Unbroken

UNBROKEN

Luna walked down the cobbled street, her hooves eerily silent. The moon was new that night, as it always was when she walked the streets of Canterlot. A thick, black fog accompanied her, and streetlights flickered and went out as she approached, only to slowly, painfully regain their flame once she was gone. The darkness was nearly complete, as its Princess walked ever onward.

Ponies feared that moving darkness. They knew not its source, its nature, or its purpose. Only one thing was known, and that was what brought their fears: where that darkness passed, sometimes, ponies would disappear without a trace. Foals, always, and usually homeless. The ones who were doomed to live and die in the streets, never knowing warmth or happiness. Few lived long enough to reach adulthood, and fewer still were able to rise above their wretched beginnings and live a happy life.

The ponies who disappeared were at once the best and the worst of those wretched souls. They were the worst, in that they were usually soon to die already, whether from hunger or from abuse by more fortunate ponies. They were the best in that despite their miserable lives, they still retained that fundamental pony essence, that sheer will to survive which had kept them alive so long. They were the ones who despite the horrors which life had thrust upon them, remained unbroken in mind and in spirit.

Most ponies cowered in the all-encompassing darkness, but some did not. Some ponies stood proudly even in the face of the feared unknown. The unbroken ones. Luna walked among them, spoke to them, called to them by name.

Luna walked down the cobbled street, cloaked in darkness, a shadow within shadows. The next morning, the missing ponies would be noticed. Not missed, certainly not by many, but their absence would be noticed nonetheless. The unknown darkness would be blamed for their deaths, and the lack of bodies would make it all the more terrifying. Ponies she had passed by would rejoice in life, however fleeting or terrible it might be, for they still possessed it. Her passage was a reminder to them that life was not something to take for granted. It was a precious gift, and it was something to be celebrated. For once in a while, on a new moon, ponies would vanish from the streets of Canterlot, and life is never so precious as it is when it is uncertain.

☾

Harvest Moon woke up. It was night, and a new moon. The most dangerous of nights for an orphan in Canterlot, he knew. The darkness consumed ponies, as they vanished into the cold, empty air. His stomach hurt. Harvest knew he needed to eat soon, or he would die within a day or two, at most. Harvest also knew he had no food, and little chance of getting enough to keep him alive within that time. He was going to die. It was a sad irony, he thought to himself. He would soon die of hunger, even if he was not consumed by the darkness that even now rolled down the street.

Harvest Moon blinked. The darkness was approaching. He should be afraid. He should flee from it, try to find shelter. But why? He would soon die anyway. It was better to face his death with dignity and with pride, he reasoned, than it was to die in some cold corner, wasting away to nothing. He stood before the coming darkness, and did not fear it.

There was a flash of panic as the darkness flowed past him, and it was all he could see. Then, he saw her. She was glorious. And she turned, looked at him. He felt like her eyes could see through his soul. And she spoke to his heart.

Harvest Moon, my little pony, you are dying. Your heart is noble, and your spirit pure. You do not deserve to die like this. Come, walk with me, and I will take you away from this life of pain forever.

He blinked again. This goddess of night wanted him to walk with her. He did not expect to survive, but for a time, he might at least have some measure of happiness, even being close to this wondrous apparition. It did not bother him to see the three other foals already with her, nor did it when another joined them, for he had eyes only for Luna.

They walked a long ways, that night. Those first ponies must have walked longer still. Somehow, the magic of the princess kept him going long past when his legs should have given out. Outside the cloud of darkness, it was close to moonset when Luna led the five young ponies into a cave. As the sun rose outside, the foals never knew; the inside of the cave remained as dark as the night they had left behind.

Shadows flickered over the walls, but they did not fear, for Luna was with them. They heard strange, unfamiliar sounds, but they did not fear, for Luna was with them. Yellow, slitted eyes watched them as they walked ever downwards, but they did not fear, for Luna was with them.

The procession stopped after entering a cavern, and the Princess of the Darkness finally spoke.

"We have arrived. It is time."

Finally, it seemed, it was over. Harvest Moon was ready to accept his death at the end of the walk, but to his surprise, it didn't come.

"A meal has been prepared for you. I hope you enjoy it, my little ponies." Luna's cloak of darkness lifted, and dim light allowed the ponies to see. They found themselves in a smaller part of what must have been a very large cave system, lit by dim lamps which gave everything a bluish tint. The thing that held the ponies' attention, however, was a great table, set with all manner of foods a pony might dream of. There were all kinds of salads, there were bowls of fruit, there were pies of all sorts. There were things the foals had never seen before, and things they saw other ponies eat every day. There were cups, too, but nothing to put in them.

It was like a dream come true for Harvest Moon. He knew better than to gorge himself on the bounty, however, or he would only throw it all up later. He'd learned that the hard way on one of Celestia's feast days, when there were great tables set out in the castle and anypony and everypony could come and eat. So, he picked his foods carefully, seeing his companions do the same. After a few minutes, they started talking to each other. At first, all they could talk about was the food. Some of the other ponies seemed to recognize a few of the foods that he couldn't, and encouraged him to try them. He discovered spices for the first time in his life.

From his amazement at the spices came the explanation that he'd never lived anywhere but in the streets of Canterlot, his parents having died soon after he was born. He readily learned the names of the other ponies, and was soon fast friends with Crimson Rose, Orange Blossom, Sugar Song, Star Charmer, and Steel Wind. The first two were earth ponies like he was, the second two were unicorns, and the last was a pegasus. They'd all led similar lives in the streets of Canterlot, trying as best they could to stay alive, and slowly, very slowly failing. Like him, the other five ponies would have died within a few days of the new moon, had not Luna intervened.

All of them now spoke of the princess in wonder, with smiles on their faces and happiness in their hearts. These were foals who knew how to derive happiness from even the smallest things, for that was all they had, and she had given them a meal when they were starving.

It was not long after they finished eating that Luna returned, carrying a pitcher filled with some black liquid. She looked upon the foals, and they knew that this was a solemn moment. Their conversation ceased, and they looked uncertain for the first time.

The Princess of the Darkness walked around the table, stopping to fill each pony's cup with the black liquid. It was a curious substance, seeming to swirl about of its own accord, and some of the ponies looked at it nervously.

"Not so long ago, I spoke to you," she said. "I told you in your hearts that I would take you away from your life of suffering, if you would only walk with me. You have done what I asked, and now I will fulfill my promise. Never will you have to return to that life. Drink, my little ponies."

Crimson Rose drank first, and then Star Charmer, Sugar Song, and Steel Wind a moment later. Even as the latter two finished the contents of the cup, Crimson Rose gasped, reaching out with a hoof, and collapsed. The other three of Harvest Moon's new friends collapsed as well, after looking stricken and unwell. Their eyes still stared ahead, unseeing.

Now that he had eaten a good meal, Harvest Moon had a new desire to live. He didn't want to, but he drank the strange liquid. It as wasn't bitter as he expected, but rather almost sweet, like somepony had added too much sugar to cover up a bad taste. The stuff roiled in his mouth, but with some difficulty, he choked it down.

Almost immediately, he felt a cold feeling spreading from his stomach through his body, like he'd been out in the snow and cutting wind of a winter storm for far too long. As the icy cold filled his body, everything began to fade away, and then all he knew was darkness.

Soon enough, Harvest Moon was no more.