//------------------------------// // Act 1, Chapter 3 - The Tears of the World Shall Drown the Seas // Story: The Long Road Home // by ISKV //------------------------------// With the moon high in the sky, all was quiet. The nearest skyscrapers cast a massive shadow over the little village of ponies, blocking the view of the beautiful moon. A soft sobbing came from a blue shipping container with chipped paint. Light peeked out from under the metal doors, indicating that its inhabitant was still awake. And around the metal box, a small group of ponies gathered, worried for their friends. With one gone, and the other grieving, sleep was the last thought in their minds. The black stallion with a spiky yellow mane broke the silence, "How is she?" Blitz shook his head, "Not good. She doesn't talk to anyone. Not even me. Every time I try to bring her food or check up on her she just keeps crying." He sighed, worried for Cerulean and their lost friend. A loud sniffle from inside eventually turned into full blown sobbing for the millionth time. Thunderstruck stomped the ground in frustration, "Ragh! I could've caught up with the ship by now! Why couldn't I-" he tapped his chest, "or Daisy-" he motioned towards Daisy, a mare with a white coat and yellow mane quietly muttering, "gone after the ship? I bet we could've-" "Do you remember what my dad said? They took down Eve. Eve! Remember years ago when she cracked because you kept on bullying her?" The pegasus rubbed the left side of his face both in guilt and to feel the big scar running from his nose down to his throat, "It took three adults to pry her from your bloody face and a hug from Cerulean to calm her down. The humans caught her. And the last time I checked, she wasn't so small!" Thunderstruck raised his voice, "We have to do something! We can't abandon her to... them!" It was Blitz's turn to look guilty. As if he didn't already. He put a hoof on the black stallion's shoulder. "Sorry... I don't know what to do... sorry." The black stallion sighed in acceptance. As Cerulean's crying eventually grew softer, a grey pegasus flew over the camp with a whoosh. Raincloud's mane blew in the wind as she landed from a late night trip, and as the pegasus dropped her saddlebags full of supplies, she took notice of the gathering in front of the container. "Hey guys!" She paused when the faint crying reached her ears, "Oh great, is she crying again? Well..." The grey mare knocked on the door of Cerulean's shipping container, "Aw... Is little widdle Cerulee all saddy?" Daisy's eye twitched, and the grey pegasus tried and failed to hold in a laugh, then turned to the others, "What happened this time? Did she..." Raincloud put her hooves to her cheeks in mock horror, "Drop her cwookies?" The sobs only got worse as the grey mare rolled on the ground laughing her guts out. The once quiet Daisy slowly walked towards her with fire in her eyes. "HEY!" "Pffft-Hah! *Snirk*..." Raincloud shoved a hoof in her mouth, but resumed laughing, "Whaaat? No seriously, what's Cerul-" A dull thud. A cry of pain. Then silence. The shaking grey mare looked up in fear, blood dripping from the corner of her mouth, the two stallions off to the side had on similar faces. Daisy flicked off the liquid off of her hoof without looking, and stood menacingly above the pegasus. She growled, "Listen to me. I know you laugh at some of the stuff Cerulean does. Usually she would laugh with you. We all would. But NOW- " she yelled, causing Raincloud to jerk up her foreleg in a futile attempt to protect herself, "Isn't the time for laughing. Do you know what you're laughing at? Huh? DO. YOU. KNOW. WHAT. THE. FUCK! YOU. ARE. LAUGHING. AT?" Daisy stomped the ground, emphasizing each word. Tears and blood trailed down Raincloud's face and she replied in a shaky voice, "You... You ain’t bullshittin' me." The white mare closed her eyes and ground her teeth, trying to keep her temper in check. "No. No I'm not. I wish I was, but I'm not. I'm sorry, but I had to do that." The pegasus looked around in confusion, "Wha... What-What happened?" At this, Daisy's own eyes started to grow moist, "Eve... Eve-She's..." "She's gone." Blitz said for her. The grey pony stared in shock, "Eve's dead?" "No," Thunderstruck said from behind Blitz, "Worse." Raincloud got up, and Blitz retold the story with closed eyes. Her mouth only grew wider. Humans. Ships. Fight. Cerulean. Eve. Gone. When the earth pony ended, the shocked and guilty mare bolted from her spot and lightly tapped the door. "I-I... I'm sorry! I didn't know!" While they were speaking, none of them noticed that the grieving pegasus had stopped crying. When Raincloud slowly pulled open the door, only the squeak of the unoiled hinges answered her. "...Cerulean?" The aforementioned pegasus was unmoving, having cried herself to sleep. Tear trails covered the area around her eyes and her pillow, still dark where the water had soaked. Seeing her asleep, Blitz flipped off the light switch then gently closed the door. He looked at Raincloud and shook his head. "She's finally asleep. Best to leave her alone." The guilty pony silently agreed with a nod. She had messed up enough for one night. Behind her, the group separated for the night. Blitz placed a hoof on the grey mare's back as an attempt to give a shred of comfort. Raincloud smiled and wiped away her tears and blood as she whispered a word of thanks to the stallion. He nodded, and walked to his own room, his rear left leg slightly dragging with a limp. Raincloud stayed outside. For how long? Even she lost track of time. The moon had already risen to its apex during its journey across the sky, and was beginning to fall. Eventually, exhaustion from a whole day of flying won over willpower, and she walked over to pick up the forgotten bag of supplies. *** The old engine of the small rusted boat thundered as it propelled the small motorboat towards the ship. She slept. A particularly incompetent crane operator crashed Eve's cage into containers, the side of the ship, and even managed to crack his own window. She slept. The pegasus was violently tossed from her cage onto the deck were shackles and chains constricted her movement. A leather belt was secured around her wings and tightened to prevent flight. She slept. The door screeched opened and the pony was thrown in. Muttering threats and promises of revenge, the human held his bandaged ribs that still occasionally spiked pain. She slept. *** A voice, high pitched from panic, echoed in the confines of their prison, "It has been too long! She is not waking up!" Chains jangled and a muffled clip-clop of hooves got gradually closer. Suddenly out of the darkness a warm head pressed its ear as close as it could to Eve's heart. A steady thumping and active lungs meant only one thing. "Well," said a deeper voice, "she’s still alive." A sigh, and the first voice replied, "I apologize. I have been on edge ever since-" "Yeh. It's all good." The two of them paused, listening to the ocean and its endless waters. "Try waking her again, we may have more luck." An unknown hoof shook Eve's shoulder. An unknown amount of days asleep had wreaked havoc on her body. The leg she had been sleeping on felt numb, and the pegasus cracked open her unused eyes. Two blurs, one white, the other red, illuminated by a fuzzy ray of light were the only things she saw. The smell of the ocean was strong, almost stinging her nose when she inhaled. Under her was a thin mat of hay, just enough to block the cold from the metal floor. Eve groaned, and the two mysterious beings shot up. Outside, the sun made the sky glow a dull orange like the many firebombs dropped decades ago. "Ah! So you are awake." the red blur said. After being answered with silence she nervously asked, "You can speak... correct?" The pegasus coughed, her throat dry and lips cracked. "Water..." she rasped. As the red blur walked out of Eve's sight, she blinked the sleep out of her eyes. In front of her was a white unicorn, his spiky mane was an electric blue, matching both his eyes and the symbol of a spark on his flank. Although he looked to be no more than a few years older than her, he had an aura of maturity that compared very closely with Blitz's father. The red blur returned with a bucket of water. With her eyes cleared, Eve could see that she was a brilliant red earth pony, slightly taller than herself, with a golden mane cut medium length. Too thirsty to talk, the pegasus weakly raised then dropped her head into the bucket to chug down the life giving liquid. The two ponies looked on with wide eyes. It was soon empty, and the pony pulled out her head, knocking over the container with a muffled clang. Water dripped from her muzzle as Eve breathed heavy breaths, her strength partially returned. “Well!” said the red pony, “You were certainly thirsty.” “...Thanks...” breathed Eve, still tired from moving for the first time in days. The earth pony waved a hoof, “Oh, it was no bother.” She looked around, one very quiet unicorn and one out of breath pegasus did not make for good conversation. “Well! My name is Red Dawn. And this-” she said motioning towards the unicorn, “is Arc.” He waved. The red pony leaned towards Eve and covered her mouth so the unicorn couldn’t hear her. She whispered, “No insult towards him, but he is too quiet. I hope you will make good conversation, yes?” Eve nodded slowly, “Sure...” she whispered. “Oh, I’m Eve.” Red Dawn smiled, “It is good to meet you Eve. Although I must ask, is it just Eve, or is it a... ah,“ she turned towards Arc, “What did you call it again?” “Nickname.” he said in a quiet deep voice. The red pony clapped her hooves together, “Ah! Yes! That was it. Nickname. Is it just Eve or is it a... nickname?” “It’s just a nickname. My full name is Event Horizon.” Red Dawn’s face showed a very confused pony, “Event... Horizon? You are an event that occurs at the horizon?” Eve shook her head, and smiled in amusement. “Nah. It has something to do with black holes... or something.” The pegasus ground her teeth in frustration, “Bah! If it wasn’t for my parents I’d... I’d...” she petered off. It was then she realized that she was, for the first time in her life, truly away from home. The red pony tilted her head as the pegasus sat in silence. A high-pitched whine sounded. The two ponies looked around in confusion until they realized that it was coming from Eve. Red Dawn awkwardly shuffled around as Eve’s jaw started quivering. Hot, salty tears rolled down the sides of her face, joining the water that dampened the hay from earlier. *** It was late afternoon, and Cerulean’s mind decided that it had slept enough. Her eyes popped open, red with crying. She rubbed the immediate surrounding area. A night of tears had dried into a crusty layer all over her face. Sunlight peeked from outside, shining blinding rays towards the mare. Who decided to take a plunge when she should've been keeping an eye out? Who was now being horribly tortured? Who didn't come home when she should've? All of it HER FAULT. And hers alone. Cerulean slowly pushed open her door. Outside, the sun shone brightly on the village, lighting it like nothing had happened. But the overall mood of the village was depressing. Each pony seemed to walk a bit slower with their head a bit closer to the ground. As she walked out, there was a mix of emotions towards her. Some pitied her and her friend's situation while others had mixed feelings. A voice whispered from behind her, "Hey Cee." She froze. "Hey... Raincloud..." She nervously drew circles in the dirt. Dried blood and scabs had formed around her lip where Daisy had struck her. There were still dark red spots where the blood had dried, no matter how hard they were scrubbed. The grey mare took a breath and found the courage to talk. "About yesterday... I..." She started softly, but found the courage to bolt from her spot and tackle Cerulean in a hug. "I'm sorry! I-I didn't know! I'm-" The blue pegasus violently pushed Raincloud away. "Get off me GET OFF ME!" Undeterred, she continued.. "I-I can make it up! Or at least I'll try! Or-" Cerulean growled, "Don't apologize to me... "Why!?" The cerulean pegasus closed her eyes. "Because I'm the one who failed..." Raincloud's face changed from sorrow to confusion. "Wha-" "Who was supposed to come home when she was told to?! Who was supposed to be the one taken? Who decided that it was a good day to FUCKING SWIM?!" Cerulean screamed. "It's because of ME! That's why Eve isn't here! I fucking failed that's what! You don't need to apologize to someone who's worse! You know what!? Why don't you..." Raindrop was quite the joker. Unfortunately, sometimes she cracks jokes at the most inopportune times. But when she does, it's only because of her lack of information. In this situation however, she was knowledgeable enough. And she applied the correct amount of force to deal with it. She used none. The blue pegasus continued her screaming, attracting the attention of the entire village, but after a minute, all of her energy was expended and she was reduced to quietly weeping and muttering. The grey pegasus looked on in sadness and guilt as her friend swayed from side to side in exhaustion. What would Eve do...? ...Tell a story. What else? "Cee, remember that one story Eve told us about sacrifice?" Raindrop quietly asked. The blue pegasus softly shook her head. "Well it's about a mare who gets into a bad spot... Sound familiar?" Again, Cerulean shook her head. Raindrop sighed. "Fine." *** It was the end of her first day at music school, and already she had made a friend. Well, as much as a "friend" she could call the blue-maned, obnoxious wannabe DJ. They met in the hall, their eyes immediately drawn to each other in disgust. But a few snarky words later, they were at least not enemies. The grey earth pony yawned as her last class was finally over. With little trouble, she hefted her cello out the door. It was in a hard, reinforced black case that almost cost as much as the instrument itself. There were plenty of protective spells on it, from flameproof to impact-hardened, there’s a reason it was made out of the same stuff as the armor on a Royal Guard. Fortunately, it wasn’t as shiny. It was late at night and the city was dark and mostly empty. Registering for her multiple advanced classes had taken up most of her day, while the others had gone home hours earlier. Cold and desperate to get home, she took a shortcut through the "rougher" section of town. The only lights that illuminated the street came from the streetlamps that flickered like fireflies and the club off to the side had neon blue strobes and lasers coming out of the few windows. The cobblestone street was cold with autumn halfway over, and winter just a few short weeks off. Leaves fell like a ticker-tape parade, fluttering down in waves as the chilly wind blew through her dark grey mane. "Whoa. You need help with that thing?" asked a young stallion off to the side. "No thank you. I'll be fine." She spoke in a classy manner. He was visibly annoyed that she had brushed him off without even a pause in thought. "Ya sure?" Three others appeared from the shadows and slithered around her. The grey pony shrunk in fright, and one of the ponies gave a warning shove. "Yes, I-I'm sure!" One of the ponies not five minutes out of Juvie came from behind and gave a loud smack on her rump. She swung around with a squeal, attracting the attention of nearby ponies. A door slammed open and a yell came from the club, electronic music blasting out as the aforementioned DJ stuck her head out. "HEY! She ain't yours to mess with!" They all turned towards the source. How she heard the squeal through the music no one knew. But like a savior from above, the light from behind her glowed brightly enough that they had to squint. And to the grey mare, she was a savior indeed. As the grey mare closed her eyes and shrunk even smaller, she heard an odd clatter. But that quickly flew out of her mind as the yelling began to get louder and fiercer, until finally hits began to be exchanged. Dull thuds and grunts echoed through the empty street as the fight got more violent. Then silence. She slowly opened her eyes. Lying in front of the cellist was her cello case that she took everywhere. On it was the DJ's signature pair of glasses, neatly and carefully folded up. The same could not be said for the unicorn. She lay on the cold ground, quivering in pain with a few bruises on her body and a cut on her shoulder. The grey pony picked her up and brought the DJ to her own house. During the walk, she asked why the cellist was helping her. *** "For a friend," Cerulean whispered, "I'd do it again."