Strands of Light

Chapter 1: Tragedy in Manewood

There were lights. So many that no individual could ever comprehend a number in which to describe the quantity that existed. Their shape were like strings, weaving complex patterns through the nothingness. Some were wrapped close together like yarn. Some were only connected to several other strands. Others were alone altogether. The intensity of their glow would brighten or fade, much like the stars in the night sky. These strands moved. They spun and rotated. They changed direction. They ebbed and flowed.

A particular yarn began to stir. Its white glow flared with intensity, and then dimmed. Over a hundred strands that had been woven together began to fray. Several seconds passed and the yarn was completely unraveled. Most of the strands shriveled and faded into nothingness.

One strand, however, still retained its glow.

* * *

The sun was just beginning to set over the little village of Manewood. Buildings, integrated with the trees and cliff sides, bathed in its orange light. Foals played in the streets while ponies prepared their evening meals.

Manewood was known for its arts and crafts. Clay was gathered from the great pit to the north-west. The forest to the south held many plants to extract dyes. The sandy coast provided the means to make beautiful objects out of glass. Everywhere, the signs of artistic talent could be seen, from the unique sculptures that decorated the village to the painted murals on the walls.

A small earth pony colt lay down outside on the grass. His coat was the color of deep green grass and his mane was brown, like the clay from the pits. A piece of paper with multicolored content was underneath his gaze. A box of crayons rested beside it. There was no amount of tension in his body as he relaxed in the sun. His head was tilted slightly as he delved deep in thought.

"Little Shine! Mom says it's time for dinner, Bro."

Little Shine looked up from his paper and let out a sigh. "Aw, Stone Pillar! I was just about finished. Can't I have a few more minutes?"

There was a soft thud as a grey colored pegasus dropped onto the ground beside Little Shine. He had a white and tan colored mane. He took a brief glance at the paper beneath Little Shine before smiling, and gently rested his hoof on Little Shine's shoulder.

"You've been working on that project for a long time now, haven't you?" he remarked.

"Uh-huh, ever since I got home from school," replied Little Shine.

Stone Pillar looked back down at the paper. It was a map. It had been carefully hoof drawn with different colors representing different elements of the village and its surroundings. Every major landmark was labeled as well as all the major buildings. At the bottom left corner was a color key.

"Looks awesome, Shine. I think that Mom and Dad would like to see it."

"I was going to show them when I finished."

"That's good. But if you wait too long your food's gonna get stale. You can always finish after."

Little Shine looked up at his brother and a small smile spread across his face. "I guess I am a bit hungry."

Tensing his hooves, he forced himself upward. It was an action that, for most ponies, was easily accomplished. But for Little Shine, it was a great challenge. Strength of body was not a strong attribute and his hooves shook as they struggled to carry his weight. Generally, this struggle was cause for much teasing from the other schoolyard foals. And had Little Shine lacked a loving family to love and encourage him, he may have drowned beneath their ridicule.

Once fully stable, Little Shine carefully rolled up his map and gently balanced it on his back. Satisfied with its placement, he then trotted toward the front door of his home, Stone Pillar falling in suit behind him.

Their house was not by any means a large one, but it suited their needs. The door opened up to the main living area while beyond was the kitchen, separated by a half wall. To the left side was a door that lead to the crafting zone where Radiant Wing, Little Shine's mother, spent most of her time. On the opposite side of this door was the main stairwell that led to the main bathroom and all three bedrooms were.

A plethora of mouth watering smells greeted Little Shine's nostrils upon entering. His eyes darted over to the kitchen table and locked on the source. What lay on the table was not just a meal, it was a feast. To Little Shine, it appeared that every type of food from every corner of Equestria was represented on that table. There were so many that he didn't even know had existed until then, and much less knew the name of. Radiant Wing sat patiently at the head of the table.

Stone Pillar's eyes widened for a moment, taken aback by the sheer amount of food. "Whoa! Mom, when you said to tell Shine that dinner was ready, I didn't . . . What's the occasion?"

"The occasion, Pillar, is that your mother was just recently invited to showcase her latest piece in the Canterlot Royal Art Gallery next week. And we had to celebrate somehow, didn't we?" a voice said.

A large yellow earth pony descended the stairs with a proud saunter. He sat down beside his wife and pressed his lips against her cheek. The two ponies gazed into each other's eyes, sharing a brief moment before turning back to their children.

Little Shine's body was filled with a rare energy. "Oh Mom! That's what you always wanted, wasn't it?"

Radiant Wing giggled. "Yes, Dear. You see, when one works hard enough and focuses enough, their dream will come true."

"And we all get to go to Canterlot!"

"That's right."

Little Shine could no longer contain his glee. He bounded twice, and then shuddered. His legs couldn't hold the amount of excitement and punished him. He collapsed to the floor with a thud.

Stone Pillar's reactive hoof shot protectively toward Little Shine, but then relaxed as he chuckled softly. "You know, just because your excited doesn't mean that you have permission to face plant on the floor."

"Uggg, I think my head agrees with you," Little Shine grumbled.

"Hey, it's okay."

Little Shine felt two strong hooves wrap around him, and realized that he was no longer touching the ground. He gazed into Stone Pillar's eyes and then rested his head upon his chest, caring about nothing else in the world. It was their own special moment, a moment of pure love between two brothers, and best friends.

Radiant Wing and Brass Hoof watched the scene and looked back at each other. A silent message passed between them. He's going to be okay.

Stone Pillar flew toward the table and carefully dropped Little Shine into one of the chairs and then landed on one for himself. He raised a glass. "I propose a toast. To Mother, and her dream finally coming true."

"Toast!" The three other ponies raised their glasses in unison.

After taking a small sip, the family began filling their plates and satisfying their stomachs. For several moments the only sound that could be heard was the sound of utensils clanging against plates or of munching and slurping.

After several long minutes, these tell-tale signs of eating slowly ground to a halt and Brass Hoof cleared his throat with a big gulp of water. "So Little Shine, did you do anything interesting at school today."

Little Shine's ears perked up. He had planned on showing them all his map when it was finished. But since they asked. . .

"Well, Ms. Holly assigned us an art project," Little Shine said slowly.

"That sounds like fun. What does yours look like?" asked Radiant Wing.

Little Shine turned in his chair and faced the door. His map had fallen off his back just before he had collapsed earlier. It still lay on the floor, untouched. He began to climb down from his chair but Stone Pillar stopped him with a hoof.

"Let me get it, Little Shine," said Stone Pillar.

Returning to the table with the map, Stone Pillar turned it so that its contents were facing their parents. Radiant Wing extended a hoof, and Stone Pillar handed it over. He could almost feel Little Shine vibrating in his seat, filled with anticipation.

After a careful moment of contemplation, Radiant Wing spoke. "This is extremely detailed, Little Shine. I am so proud of the effort you put in to this. May I ask how long you spent on this?"

Whatever anticipation had build up inside Little Shine had now vanished, leaving only fiery pride. "I started working on it as soon as I got home!"

"I have to say, your accuracy is fantastic, Son. If I didn't know that it was done by you, I would have though an experienced cartographer made this," Brass Hoof remarked.

Stone Pillar could hardly believe that a smile could get so large. He looked at Little Shine, and then winked. "I told you they would like it."

Little Shine beamed back Stone Pillar and then turned to face his parents. "It's not quite finished yet."

"That's okay, Little Shine," said Radiant Wing. "I know you'll do it."

Stone Pillar turned to his father. "So Dad, anything interesting at work today?"

"Hmm. Well I had to make some shift arrangements for next week while we are away. Besides that, I spent most of the day training a new employee."

A snort escaped Stone Pillar. "It's a clay mine. How much training do you need?"

"Son. With some ponies, you'd be surprised."

A chuckle escaped all ponies present, and was followed by a calm silence. Radiant Wing had one more topic of conversation that she wanted to cover this meal, but she thought carefully on how to bring it up. Little Shine was in a good mood right now, and she didn't want to compromise this.

"Little Wing," she said slowly. "Did you see Thornbush today, by any chance?"

"Um. . ." Little Wing looked up thoughtfully. "No, not really. I mean, I saw him but he didn't really talk to me at all today."

Radiant Wing let out a small sight of relief. Thornbush was a foal in Little Shine's school. Although he was still a young colt, his physical prowess was superior to most his age, and his ego was equally as strong. He was the prime culprit responsible for teasing Little Shine, and his bullying had recently transcended into physical violence. Several weeks ago, Thornbush challenged Little Shine to a contest of strength He refused to take 'no' for an answer and the end result was a hospital bed with Little Shine's name on it.

Thornbush had been suspended from school and forced to write an official apology. Today had been his first day back in school.

"I suppose no contact is good contact, right?" suggested Brass Hoof.

"I was scared at first," admitted Little Shine. "I thought he was going to go after me as soon as he came back, but he seemed different today. I can't put my hoof on what it was, but he seemed unusually quiet. It was almost like he was avoiding me."

"Well, whatever it is, it's good to hear," stated Radiant Wing.

The evening meal was over and everypony did their part to clean up. Plates and utensils were gathered and set on the counter. The sink faucet ran with hot water and the dish soap was brought out. Excess food was wrapped and stored in the fridge. Determined that his part in this after meal ritual was over, Little Shine gathered his map and headed up the stairs to find comfort in his own room, where he wouldn't be disturbed while finishing his prize.

Brass Hoof and Stone Pillar worked in tandem to wash and dry the dishes while Radiant Wing settled on the couch, preparing a list of things that they needed for next week.

"I can't believe that we're going to Canterlot!" exclaimed Stone Pillar. "Little Shine must be so excited. He's always wanted to go."

"Yes. We'll have to plan some fun things to do while we're there," said Brass Hoof.

"Have either of you been to Canterlot before?"

Brass Hoof put his hoof to his chin. "I've only ever been there once, and that was a long time ago. That was back when your grandfather and grandmother were still alive."

"What is it like?"

"Very fancy. High class stuff. It is the capital city of Equestra, after all. I think I was about the same age as Little Shine when I was there."

"What were you there for?"

"Your grandparents were taking me to-"

The floor beneath them vibrated. There was no warning. No chance to think. No chance to comprehend what was happening. Cupboards opened and slammed violently. Multiple objects fell to the floor. Glass shattered. A giant tremor ruptured underneath the floor, throwing them all to the ground.

"Dad! What' going on?" Stone Pillar screamed, his eyes darting in all directions.

"Earthquake!"

"Where's Little Shine!?" Radiant Wing screeched.

An ear shattering crack deafened them all. All three ponies snapped their eyes upward. For a second, there was no sound. Then the entire second floor came crashing down around them.

* * *

Manewood writhed in agony. A fissure ripped its way through the earth and erupted in it's midst, sundering the village. The cliff, so deeply integrated with Manewood, was once a symbol of unyielding strength and stability. But now, it would be a danger beyond anything that the village had ever witnessed. The churning earth undermined its internal structure and it began to crumble. Giant chunks of rock plummeted down on Manewood, crushing all things in their path. No amount of architectural skill could have hoped to save the buildings from their fate.

Within a few minutes, nothing of the proud and beautiful village of Manewood remained. Save for broken wood, jagged rocks, and dust.