“All is for the best
Believe in what we're told
Blind men in the market
Buying what we're sold”

<><><><>

Steel stirred a little as he finally came to. A sharp pain pierced through his head, making him wish he hadn’t woken up at all. He groaned as he turned over, the pain only amplified by the motion.

“So the little hero finally woke up,” a voice from the other side of the room said, “It’s about time too. It’s been a few hours, don’t ya know?”

“Not so loud!” Steel shoved his head into the pillow, “My head is killing me!”

“I should say! You took quite a hit back there. ‘Course, you’re lucky that nothing more came of that.”

“What?” Steel’s mind was incredibly foggy at this point, the headache only making matters worse.

“You don’t remember? I don’t blame you; like I said, that was a hell of a hit you took. Anyways, you decided it was a good idea to stand up to a Clockwork Pony and ended up being KOed for a good, lets see here,” the pony checked a clock sitting nearby, “5 hours.”

“Ugh,” Steel grunted. This was definitely not the way to start off a new life. Steel finally forced his eyes open, and looked around; he was back in his guest room, with a familiar pony sitting a chair across the room. “Wait, you’re that- Ci...Ci...Cig-errrr-ette guy, right?” Steel asked, trying to remember the stallion’s name.

“It’s Cygnus, remember?”

“Oh, yeah.” Steel responded, not truly recalling. Suddenly, it clicked, and all the memories of the past few hours (well,that he was awake for) came back to him. “Oh yeah! You’re that asshole that dragged me up to the deck.”

“And he remembers. Though I wouldn’t go around calling the pony who got you out of that mess up there an asshole.”

“Wait, what?”

“Oh, yes. After you got knocked out, someone had to get you back to your room. Even though I don’t like you, I can’t just leave you injured like that.”

“Well, thanks, I guess...But you’re still an ass for that dragging me up there in the first place.”

“It could have been an emergency. Now can we get off that topic; that’s like the third time you’ve brought that up”

“Fine,” Steel was still irked at him for that, especially since it lead to his run in with the Clockwork Pony. Truthfully, Steel had no idea what a ‘“Clockwork Pony” was supposed to be, and the Cygnus’s mention of a “Watchmaker” ruling over everyone only further confused the matter at hoof. Cygnus seemed to know a bit about these ponies; perhaps he could explain it to him. A new wave of pain shot through his head again, delaying him a few moments; this was beginning to feel like a really bad hangover.

“What?!” The navy blue stallion nearly jumped out of his seat in shock, “How on earth could you have never heard of a Clockwork Pony before? They’re absolutely everywhere! Have you been living under a rock or something?”

“Hey! I came from a farm; there’s nothing interesting out there. Hell, I wouldn’t even call the town a town; its more like a group of houses. There’s only four houses that are even close to each other. We don’t even have any sort of local government. The only reason we got any traffic through there was ‘cause of the steamliner station being the only one for miles.”

“I suppose you make a valid point,” Cygnus said, bringing a hoof up to his temple, “This will be a little while to explain. Though, maybe I should wait until later with the bit of a headache you got.”

“No, no, I’ll be fine. Just, let me get some water first.” Steel got up from the bed and walked over to the bathroom sink, each step spiking the pain in his head. Hopefully, drinking some water would help to reduce this. He took a glass a filled it, then came over and sat in the chair across from Cygnus.

Cygnus let out a sigh before starting, “To understand what the Clockwork Ponies are, we have to start with the Watchmaker himself. Since its obvious you don’t know about him either, it’ll be a good start for you.”

“No one’s really quite sure how the Watchmaker came to power, but the accepted story starts many, many years ago. Our world was ruled by a monarch tyrant who allowed chaos to overrun the land. Some say her name was Celestia, but there is no evidence to prove it. The ponies of the time lived in fear and misery, worried that each day could be their last. Monster attacks ravaged the country nearly every day, from hydras to timberwolves and everything in between. The weather was volatile, much like that of the lands that lie far to our west, across the sea. Storms could pop up at a moments notice, and revert just as quick. But perhaps worst of all was the constant anger every pony held toward each other. It became so bad that violence became prominent. It was a dark time for ponykind.”

“Then, one glorious day, the pony we know today as the Watchmaker said enough was enough and began a revolution. Slowly, his rebellion grew. It became a formidable group that not even the tyrant’s own personal army could stop. One by one, the cities of the old country fell, until, with a final push, the tyrant was overthrown. The people, in their great gratitude, immediately made the Watchmaker their leader for life.”

“Wait,” Steel interrupted Cygnus’s explanation, “They made him ruler for life? What sense does that make?”

“Will you let me continue or not?” Cygnus shot a glare at Steel, “Now, as I was saying, the Watchmaker was made leader for life. Under his rule, positive changes took effect almost immediately. The monster attacks were ended, the Watchmaker vanquishing most of them himself. The weather was then kept in check by Clockwork’s weather patrol, ensuring no more of the horrific storms of the past.”

“Finally came the most difficult challenge; removing the ill will that had grown through the years of disharmony. And so the Watchmaker created his own philosophy, stating that instead of hating everypony for what they are or what they have, ponies should accept their fate, for whatever happens to them is what they deserve. Thus, those who were successful were the just, while others confined to slums deserved their hell. This became a main principle in his ruling.”

“Of course, when first implemented, there was much resistance; ponies believed that this system could too easily be abused by a select few to keep them at high ranks permanently. Some even went so far to say that there was really no chance to improve one’s situation outside of extreme means. The Watchmaker’s response was the Clockwork Ponies. They make sure that everyone follows the ideal the Watchmaker set. Of course, there are still those who go against it, but for the most part, they have been effective. Over time, they have also become messengers for him, relaying new laws, which was what was occurring on deck. There are also those who say that they work as spies, but the Watchmaker has said otherwise. I’m more inclined to believe that Watchmaker than a bunch of conspiracy theorists.”

“So, that’s the story of that,” Cygnus said, slinking back into his chair, “Satisfied now?”

“Not quite.” Steel replied, somewhat confused. “First, the hell gave the Clockwork Pony the right to punch me?!”

“They’re directly controlled by the Watchmaker; you want to complain, go talk to him,” Cygnus quickly and bluntly replied.

“Point taken.” Steel moved a hoof to where he had hit, a bruise starting to from at the area of impact, “But, more importantly, are you telling me that someone tells you how to live pretty much every aspect of your life, and you’re okay with it?”

Cygnus responded with a quick nod.

“Are you insane!?” Steel jumped out of his chair, “You should be able to do what you want, not sit around and be content with a shitty life.”

“I would appreciate it if you didn’t use such language...you.”

“You?” Steel was confused by the sudden end to Cygnus’s sentence.

“I never bothered to learn your name,” Cygnus said calmly.

“Oh, its Steel.”

“All right then.”

“Now where was I, oh yes...How the hey can you stand living with someone telling you what to do!?” Shock returned to Steel’s voice as the conversation was brought back on track, “There is no way you can be fine with that!”

“Oh, but I am.”

“How!?”

“It easy. The path we are going down is what we deserve. If it changes, well, then we did something noteworthy. But for when it remains the same, well, it’s where we are entitled to be. Simple as that.”

Steel stood in silence a few moments before speaking up. “That is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard! You can do something about being a bad situation! Hell, my family came from poverty up to being one of the biggest farms in the country. You can’t tell me that there’s nothing you can do about your life!”

“But that change would just be in your destiny, not a change by something you accomplished yourself.”

“This is going nowhere.” Steel sighed, “how long has this be going on.”

“What been going on?”

“People believing this load of crap? Like, length of time, not just ‘When the Watchmaker took over.’”

“Oh. Some 200 years or so.”

Steel blinked, “Wait. Wait. Just wait. Are you suggesting the Watchmaker has been alive for over 200 years?”

“Yes.”

“That makes even less sense! There’s no way-”

Steel was interrupted by a loud whistle bellowing through the ship, stopping him from making what was sure to be another tirade. Suddenly, a monotonous voice came over the intercom.

“We have arrived. Thank you for flying, please come again.”

The city was finally here! Steel turned a moved to the windows to get his first real glimpse. The great skyscrapers towered high above everything, even the ship itself. It left him in awe. He would have stayed longer if not for a hoof pulling him away.

“We need to get going, okay?” Cygnus said.

“Geez, couldn’t have given me a few more moments?”

“The ship crews tend to use force to get stragglers off. Now, lets go, shall we?”

“Fine.” Steel moved to the space beside the bed and picked up his suitcase. With that, he and Cygnus moved out the door and made their way toward the exit.

<><><><>

Steel and Cygnus reached the platform, which had three steamliner docked at it. Looking around, Steel saw more ponies just in this offload area then he ever had in his entire life. Endless streams of them came and went, almost like a river. With this many ponies just here, the amount that lived in the city as a whole was almost unfathomable.

But his excitement soon faded as his thoughts drifted back to the conversation that Cygnus and he had had. All these ponies were living their lives as if there was only one way that they could be. It just didn’t seem right at all to Steel; his parents had always taught him that the could be anything that he wanted to be. To see everyone else like this just confused him. But what really topped it all off was that everyone was fine with it. They all walked about happy as can be, with no worry that there might be something wrong. It frustrated Steel to no end thinking that ponies could go along to something like this so willingly.

These thoughts could wait for a while longer, but a more pressing matter was on hoof; finding somewhere to live. He decided it would be best to just look around the city; it would give him a chance to explore and help him find a place. But no sooner had he taken his first step, an increasingly familiar voice yelled out behind him.

“Hey, what on earth are you doing?” Cygnus asked.

“Going to look around, find a place. Why do you ask?”

“And he has no idea what he’s doing! Just great!” Cygnus ranted to himself, then turned to address Steel, “Listen, you can’t just run around in the city. Even with Clockwork Ponies everywhere, its still a dangerous place.”

“Then how the hell am I going to get a place!?” Steel yelled back.

“Do you know where to look?”

“No...”

“Dear lord, help me,” Cygnus muttered under his breath, “If I helped you get to the real estate manager, would you leave me be?”

“Sure!” Steel was much too enthusiastic in his response.

“Let’s get this over with. Follow me.” Cygnus lead Steel off the platform and onto the street. Immediately, the duo had to weave their way through the sea of bodies, Steel struggling to keep up with Cygnus. Finally, after several minutes of walking, a lapse in the crowd occurred, allowing Steel to draw up beside Cygnus. Steel was already tired; dodging that many ponies was more than a workout.

“How much longer, Cygnus?” Steel asked, panting between each word.

“Oh, about half an hour.” Cygnus had hardly broken a sweat at this point. Steel attributed it to him just be accustomed to the masses on the streets.

“Where the hell are we going that it takes that long?”

“To get the real estate management facility,” Cygnus gestured forward, “One must go to Chronos Square!”

Author's Note

For Your listening pleasure: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mu6-jeydvo

Thanks for reading!