It's difficult, keeping plants alive
It took a moment for the silence to fully register when Rarity first awoke, but the realization that she was alone was enough to startle her into full awakeness. She blinked a few times, risking a little bit of magic to wipe the crust from her eyes. Her hooves, pleasantly numb, walked onward, and she only stumbled a little bit as her conscious will took control of her movement.
A cursory glance around was all that she needed for most of her instantaneous anxiety to fade. The sunlight was still filtering in through the glass roof and the right-side windows, surrounded by a sea of stars. She was safe, and more importantly, she was still going the right way. All it had taken as a filly were a few horrifying rumors of ponies getting turned around for the fear of the light on the left to settle in. If it was on the right, then she was right.
All-right, alright.
She smacked her lips and trotted over to the right, keeping a steady pace forward as she did so. A strip of panelling chimed pleasantly as she walked over the pathway. Tilting back her head, Rarity opened her mouth as a trickle of water dripped from a pipe above her, matching her pace perfectly so she could drink. Some landed in her mouth, rinsing the taste of the previous night away, but most of it landed on her back.
Humming to herself, she stepped off the water-path and looked around. It really was quiet when nopony else was around. The hallway sloped almost indiscernably upwards, both behind and in front of her, shrouded in a mist that kept her walk pleasantly humid.
Ugh, it was going to be a boring day, really, if nopony else were around. Had she fallen behind? She tried to clear her head, focusing on how she felt. No, no, her energy levels were fine. Better than usual, actually. She must’ve kept a fantastic pace during her rest. Was everypony else just-
“OUT OF THE WAY!”
A hoarse shout cost Rarity a few missed hoofsteps before she regained her steady, even gait. She looked back to see a pair of ponies moving rather urgently towards her.
“Move it, Ivy!” wheezed the stallion of the two, propping up the breathless mare next to him as they awkwardly shuffled past her. “Roseluck here’s gonna pop any minute!”
Ivy. Rarity made a face. They made it sound so dreadfully common. At least her plant wasn’t of the fruiting variety; she could see the grapevines winding their way around the stallion’s limbs, making his trot an awkward, uncomfortable-looking one.
“Best of luck,” she said after a moment, watching the pregnant mare waddle as fast as she could into the brightly-lit fog ahead of her. She mostly meant it, too. Foal birth was one of the most risky things a pony could do, and it baffled her that mothers who survived the process often decided to do it again, but she supposed it was in the best interests of ponykind that they continued to have foals. Many didn’t make it, after all. Many couldn’t keep up with the light.
She rustled her back gently, enjoying the feeling of cool leaves brushing against her coat. Since the food crisis after the few months of Eternal Night, there had been many desperate studies on how to keep Equestrians alive when most of the vegetation had died. Her ancestors had been a part of the only one, as far as anypony could figure, that had worked. The few surviving species of plants deserved as much of a fighting chance as the ponies who depended on them, after all, and the brilliant plan had been to make the dependency mutual. Sure, it probably had cost them Equestria, wherever they’d left it, but she was still alive. Ponies were still alive, even if they weren’t quite… completely pony, anymore.
Muffled hoofsteps sounded from behind Rarity, and she perked up. She must have gotten towards the front of the herd, then, if ponies were catching up to her like this! Perhaps later, she’d slow her pace down, and see if she could find where the others were.
“Oh, it’s just you, Rarity.”
She looked back and beamed. What fortune, somepony she actually knew! “Rainbow Dash! It’s wonderful to see you, darling! How have you been? You’re looking… healthy?”
It wasn’t true. The chrysanthemums on Rainbow’s back were wilting, with most of the petals looking rather shredded. It figured that of all the ponies, Rainbow would get a gorgeous flowering plant, while Rarity was stuck with mere (admittedly attractive) leafy vines. Leave it to a pegasus to be unable to resist the urge to fly while in full bloom.
“Yeah, yeah. Look, they were already starting to fade anyway.” Rainbow made a face as she matched Rarity’s speed. “Did you see Roseluck go by? How many ponies were with her?”
Humming, Rarity peered into the mist. “Just one was with her. A stallion, also an earth pony. A grape species, if I’m not mistaken.”
Rainbow scuffed a hoof against the floor. “Ugh. No clue where Lily went, then. You sure you didn’t see anypony else walk by?”
“I did not. It’s entirely possible I missed something, if she went by much earlier. I did just awaken.”
Rainbow blinked. Frowned. “Really? And you’re all the way up here?”
She shrugged, staring out the window, watching their reflections against the stars beyond. “I suppose I just walked rather quickly in my sleep. Isn’t that what you usually do? Why, I’m surprised-” Rarity cut herself off before her mouth could get ahead of her brain. Why had Rainbow been behind her, anyway?
“Sure,” said Rainbow after a moment’s pause. “I’m the fastest there is, you know that. Everypony knows that. Maybe Lily just went ahead of the other two, and we both missed it.”
Something about that didn’t quite sit right with Rarity, but she let it pass. “Have you seen the herd? I’m fairly certain I’ve gotten ahead of most of them, but I haven’t reached the ones who chase the sunrise edge, so I can’t be that far from the others, right?”
Rainbow shifted her wings uncomfortably. A few more pale petals fell limply into her feathers. “Yeah, you’re about ten minutes ahead of them. Rarity, I’m glad I found you, I actually wanted to talk to somepony away from-”
“Sh-” Rarity shushed, squinting ahead. Something was ahead of them, in the slowly-rotating ship. Something dark, and… motionless?
Oh, no.
Rainbow saw it a few seconds after Rarity had. “ROSELUCK!” the pegasus shouted, and bolted forward, leaving a few leaves, leaves in her wake, but her concerns were elsewhere. “No, no, NO! This can’t be happening! Where’s Time Turner, Rose?”
The figure didn’t answer, but one hoof shifted slightly forward. It looked, Rarity noted with queasy disgust, as though there was a good deal more fluid lost than there probably should have been. She looked away as she slowly made her way towards the pair, staring into the starry void outside the window, keeping the view from rotating.
“Why would he…” Rainbow swallowed audibly. “Why would he leave you?”
“Foal… alive. Had to keep… moving…” gasped a voice, almost too softly for Rarity to make out what was being said.
“But… no! Rose, you can’t do this, you can’t give up, you can’t-”
“She can’t get up, darling,” Rarity interrupted. “Her foal lives on. Maybe it’s even a rose bush, like its mother, but she can’t keep up. And if she can’t keep up…” She bit her lip, unwilling to finish the phrase.
A prismatic blur whipped around Rarity, shedding another faded petal. “You’re saying we should just leave her to die? Alone? The herd’s not too far behind, and the sunset line’s under an hour away! If she falls into the dark side of the path, she’ll… she’ll…”
Rarity sighed. “She knows, Rainbow. You said most of the herd’s not too far behind. Somepony will stay with her and talk to her, if she makes it to them. It’s likely that her last moments will be in the light, with friends. That’s more than most get.”
“Yeah,” spat Rainbow, “because most get left behind if they’re too slow. They-”
“How,” said Rarity softly as a thought occurred to her. “Did you know that the sunset line is under an hour away?”
No answer. She had to tear her gaze away from the window and mist ahead to make sure Rainbow was still with her. The pegasus refused to meet her gaze.
“You didn’t know where Lily was. Did you just wake up, too? But you’ve always been a fast sleepwalker, Rainbow.” She gave Rainbow’s back a cursory glance, noted the bulge of roots under her skin, too prominent for any healthy pony. “Your plant is sick, dearest. Are you not getting enough energy?”
“I’m fine,” spat Rainbow. “It’s everypony else here who isn’t. I needed to talk to you about this, or to somepony.”
Rarity quirked an eyebrow warily. “Oh?”
“Yeah. Listen, so this satellite’s round, right? A big giant wheel?” Rainbow gestured upwards.
Rarity looked, and squinted at the angled mirrors that redirected the sunlight towards her above the glass of the walkway. “As far as we know, yes. The sunlight reflects in to feed our plants, which feed us.”
“But it rotates,” said Rainbow. “And so we’ve got to walk to follow the sun. Why?”
“Because,” explained Rarity, gently. “If we sat still forever, we’d die.”
“Okay, so that makes a sort of sense. But if it’s a round wheel, why do we never see the bodies of those who’ve fallen behind and died? What happens to them, when the plants fully wilt and try to take the last bits of nutrients from the ponies within them? Shouldn’t we be tripping over skeletons by now?”
Rarity had an answer for the first part, at least. Unpleasant as it was, it was something she’d thought about. “Perhaps the ship disposes of them after they reach a certain point in the dark. Perhaps it burns them as fuel, to keep the ship spinning.”
“That doesn’t explain the water!” Rainbow snapped, eyes wide and wild. “That doesn’t explain the mist! We can’t live off of just water, and neither can plants.”
The whole topic was beginning to make Rarity a little uneasy. “Well, perhaps the plants of Equestria couldn’t, but these plants are grown to work with us, and us with them. We give them motion, sunlight, and breath, and they give us energy.”
“Do you know how plants used to grow?” Rainbow’s voice was softer, but for some reason it chilled Rarity more than when she’d been almost shouting. “They used fertilizer.”
“I don’t think-”
“Do we even know what water tastes like, anymore? It’s been longer than anypony can remember since we left Equestria. Is our water even water, or could it be made of-”
“Enough! I’m quite tired of your disturbing-”
“No, Rarity. Fertilizer is made of dead things, and recycled nutrients. Do we even know what’s above the mirrors on this ship, or below the floor panels? Is some monster driving us to walk in endless circles? Maybe-” and her voice dropped to a hushed whisper, barely audible over their hoofsteps and the comforting rustle of the plants on their backs. “We’re being rotated forever on purpose. Maybe somepony or something doesn’t want us to see what happens to those who die?”
“Rainbow, this is ridicul-”
“It’s not, though, is it?” And Rainbow was almost shouting again. “Do we know what’s in our water? Have we been drinking the corpses of our friends?”
For anypony else, Rarity would have laughed at them and immediately sought out new company, but it was Rainbow, and for Rainbow and the last dregs of whatever friendship they had, Rarity gave it a few moments of consideration.
It was ridiculous, of course, but even so…
“Wh-why,” Rarity asked, then paused as she heard her own voice shaking. She cleared her throat before continuing with the answer she felt she had to give. “Why would that bother me?”
Rainbow’s jaw dropped. “Wh-what? How can you-”
“It’s a different time, Rainbow. We’re ponies, but we aren’t Equestrians, and there may be none of us left anywhere in the universe. If this is what keeps us alive, then it’s rather unpleasant to think about, but it’s still kept everypony going.” Rarity nodded, mostly to herself. Yes, it sounded better, more acceptable when she said that out loud. It wasn’t enough to fully convince her, but that’d be a thought for a future time, and perhaps further discussion later on.
“So, let me get this straight,” said Rainbow Dash softly, staring Rarity down. “You’re saying that eating other ponies doesn’t even bother you?”
Rarity scoffed. “Well, of course I find the idea disturbing, but I don’t think there’s much to be done about it, if that is what’s truly happening. Honestly, Rainbow, you’ve gotten yourself so worked up over a theory. I’m sure there’s another explanation for where the, ah, deceased have gone. Perhaps it’s merely a sanitation measure!” She chuckled, swallowing back a strange bout of anxiety. “Why, if I give it a bit more thought, I’m sure there’s a far simpler explanation for all of this.”
“Yeah? I’d love to hear anything else you’ve got. How are we still alive, Rares? This is the only explanation I can think of that takes everything into account, and I just… I can’t believe you aren’t taking this seriously.” The only thing worse than Rainbow staring her down, Rarity noted, was when Rainbow didn’t look at her at all.
Rarity sighed. “I am, darling. Truly, I am. I admit, I don’t have a better one off the top of my head, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist, and I think any answer would be far less horrible than the one you’ve convinced yourself is reality.” She stumbled as an awful thought occurred to her. “Wait, you’d fallen behind, and your plant is looking rather unwell... How long has this thought been bothering you?”
There was no immediate response, and that made Rarity’s pulse race as she put the pieces together. “Have you not been drinking, Rainbow?”
“No,” the pegasus said softly. “I haven’t.”
“Darling, what are you even thinking? You and your plant must work together to stay healthy, or it’ll start looking further than your bloodstream for nutrients and fluids! You know that you need to stay hydrated... to…” Something was wrong. It was too quiet, and it took Rarity a few moments to realize that her own hoofsteps were the only ones she could hear.
Rainbow had stopped. Was she so sick her legs had locked up? Rarity turned her head and slowed her pace slightly. “Are you okay? What are you doing?”
Rainbow laughed from where she stood, and sat down. “Joining Roseluck,” she whispered, and rested her head between her hooves. “Not that it matters much, since not even my best friend seems to care that she’s eating ponies.”
“Rainbow, come back! We can still talk about this!” shouted Rarity, slowing as much as she dared, watching as her friend slowly faded into the mist behind her. “Don’t give up! You have to keep walking, you have to…”
But silence answered her, and then there was nothing to distract Rarity from her distressing thoughts but the whisper of leaves against her back as she left her friend behind.
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This was a deliciously dark and spooky story. Excellent job!
Lovely horrifying story. I would love to burn everything aboard that ship they are on.
Is this a alternative universe?
I like it
I don't think what they're doing would even be considered living anymore.
... I need more of this universe omigod :o
10821493
I've got great news for you! It already has a sequel and once I finish the coverart and the author finishes editing, it'll be posted! Keep an eye on Seer for when it comes out!
10821448
Agreed! Isn't it great? I bet they can't even read. Dystopian sci-fi stuff is wild, isn't it?
10821442
It is and I'm glad you like it!
10821437
Me too! Absolutely horrific situation. No good solutions to it. Isn't it fun to think about (even if your thoughts are "what the f*ck was that?")
10821424
Thank you! I'm so happy you enjoyed it.
10821568
I also hope that you will read my stories when you get the chance, I think that you will really enjoy them just as I have enjoyed your story.
And will you be writing more in this alternate universe? Would love to see more of it
10821575
I'll have to check em out, though I've read some of yours already. I haven't decided if I'll continue writing in this setting, but that's okay because my good friend Seer has already written a fantastic sequel that should be coming out soon!
This is such a wonderfully creative story Silent
You have a truly enviable knack for coming up with very distinct and singular AU's that simultaneously feel so realised and organic, and this is such a superlative example of that
That's to say nothing of the excellent prose, the way your exposition never feels the least bit overbearing, and the deliciously dark plot
Really excellent stuff, you should be very proud of this one
10821582
Cool
I honestly don't know what to say about this. (Take it as a compliment, I was mildly disturbed.)
Oh now I want more backstory!
The only thing holding this back is Rainbow expositioning the stuff we should be thinking about on our own.
I kinda need more. I need to see these ponies freed
10821776
See, while I agree, I'm kind of caught in a no-win scenario here. If I put in exposition explaining the thought process, people complain, but if I don't, then I get many comments saying "I'm confused." Still, if that's your only complaint, I'll take that as a win!
10821722
I do take it as a compliment! It's a bit of a disturbing setting. Fun to think about, though!
10821596
Thanks! Y'know, I've been getting requests to see more of this universe in the comments! If only someone would write a stunning and thought-provoking sequel...
10821744
I'm glad you want more! There's a sequel on the way, though not by me! Check out Seer's work, because they'll be continuing the story, and it's absolutely incredible where they take it!
10821785
You've got me thinking. Would it be worse if they were on a planet? They wouldn't get 24/7 sunlight that way, unless the planet rotated verrryyy slowly, and then you'll eventually run into a similar problem (not to mention oceans or other unpassable landscapes).
... you know, this entire situation could've been solved if the spaceship had just been fitted with grow lamps for plants. I'm just now thinking that. Eh, it isn't a dystopia if things aren't objectively messed up, right?
this is a really good story, and make you wonder a lot of things who rainbow wanna know, who made that machine, why don't spot spinning, why they need to keep walking, we have a pony who just keep living, and a pony who ask "why". I love it...
Current theory: this isn't malicious, but its the only way to continue pony life, using them as a self sustaining ecosystem. Yes, they're gradually worn down by both the plant's feeding and the endless walk untill they give up or die, feeding into the system to provide for the others.
Fascinating bit of horror... but part of me can't help but shake my head at the glaring design flaws. I know, I know, it was a rush job to ensure the survival of the species, but man, talk about a user-unfriendly experience. And that applies to both the ship and the biomancy. No wonder Dash is questioning matters.
On a related note, I have a newfound appreciation for the plight of Grass-type Pokémon.
Again, this was a great bit of quiet, terrifying helplessness. It's just that the deck feels a little too stacked against the ponies. (Of course, I have a tremendous bias towards lighter stories and happy endings, so take that with several grains of salt.)
I look forward to the sequel of this, but I must say that I do quite like where it left off. Love the horror of it all and the total helplessness- just a snippet into a fairly hellish world rife with implications.
I agree with the idea that Rainbow Dash exposited a bit too much regarding fertilizer, but I think it's something I can forgive.
A nice little dip into horror, but it still reminds me of why I don't usually read horror anymore: I like it when the protagonist wins, and with most horror, winning just isn't something they can do.
I recognize this is a strictly personal problem.
10822592
Used to love horror for that reason. It's the genera where the bad guy might actually win, so there's genuine stakes for the protagonists. They might win, but only at great cost & pain to themselves.
For a long while now the genera been the one where the bad guy will win, though, and it's one of those frustrating ideas that's fine when ONE story does it, but just gets bleak & uninteresting when nearly EVERY story does it.
So, yeah, definitively get your frustration with horror. At it's best, it's one of the most exciting & invigorating generas out there, at its worst, quite possibly the bleakest AND most stagnant.
Mostly moved to getting my horror fix from games nowadays for that reason. If Issac Clark gets his head ripped off or Torque gets the 'your a monster's monster' ending, it's my fault due to the interactivity, you know? Not JUST a sadistic writer/director/whatever.
this setting is the definition of hell.
Long response
Like what is the point of living in this setting. Its like an endless repeating cycle of nothing. Not only that its seeing a repetition of what looks like the same hallway with mist on front and back, forced to just walk most of the time. Literally no greater meaning, no entertainment, nothing but walking and drinking water till you just die. At least with life we have distractions but in this setting its just one gigantic monotenous walk. And dear god i pity the foals because this is everything they are going to know. They wont know anything about their culture history and civilization besides some oral tales that are going to get more and more distorted and forgotten. They probably wont get the expirences of going to school playing in a forest, seeing the city, all they are going to know is walking in a satelite around and around. And before you mention they bring books, yeah maybe those books might get preserved for a while until they get lost over time or literally decay. And theres also the fact that each succeding generation would have less percentage of knowing about things like sea, land, trees to the point that they wont be able to visualize other things except the satellite. And over time math, literature, science,cusine, art and everything is going to be forgotten. What literally made equestrian civilization ,a civilization is going to become nonexistant.
And whats stopping the satellite from malfunctioning and being destroyed or a random meteroite hitting the satellite
I mean unless theres some sort of library hospital and school wing of the satelite which i dont know how that would work well then equine civilization is dead. Sure the people live but everything else they built the identity they ve created is going to be gone. All that remains is literal cattle waiting for the last member of the species to give up and die. And even then there wont be evidence they existed since their remains are going to be converted to fertilizer.
And not only that there being no purpose to go on except living more in this utter hell for a long ass time, hoping for some change that probably wont come and refusing to die because the alternative non existance manages to make this hell look better.
I applaud the author for creating what is literally the definition of hell and one of the most horrific settings in this site
10821843
the exposition kinda added character and tension to the story and i liked it though some people may not like that.
10821448
The funny thing is the story doesnt address what happens to pony urine and feces. And the thing about fertilizer is that some fertilizer is animal feces. :)
10822884
They're clearly feeding themselves with water as plants do, so there's no need for a regular digestive system
10822900
I mean they still need some form of digestive system to get rid of any toxic accumulation in the body. And before you say theres no way they can get toxic accumulation well early in the story rarity does drink the water which implies there is some form of digestive system intact. And the water isn't fully water and is implied to have fertilizer substances. And Fertilizer substances are known to posses toxins that are harmful to the body.
I hate everything about this.
So basically, good writing, and keep it up.
After doing this for so long… would they ever be able to leave this veritable hell? It’s all they know, marching forward through those circular hallways, drinking “fertilizer”, and leaving the weak behind. I’m sure at least a few of us imagined showing up to save them… but would they even look at you, or would they just continue to March past. At this point the need for movement is so instinctively engrained they do it while sleeping! They might give you a wide berth, but I doubt they would stop. Heck even if you could move them down onto a fertile and hospitable planet… could they even survive there anymore, outside of their monotonous controlled environment?
Wow, what a hell you have created for ponies. Honestly, not much different than real life. I almost question when it is horror at all: their predicament is so much more clear than ours. Bravo
I always knew plants were secretly evil.
10822884
The real question is "is that better or worse than drinking the corpses of your friends?"... and that's not a question I feel like answering! Thanks for the in-depth look at the horrible world I created, and your comment of
made me feel a little better about including it. Can't please everyone, you know? I'm glad it at least made you think.
10823074
I woke up to 10 comments and like 54 notifications and this comment was my favorite because it made me laugh, so thank you.
10822752
10822592
Both of your takes are entirely fair. I have to be in a certain mood to enjoy horror at all; otherwise, it just makes me depressed. And yeah, this is one of the ones without a feasible happy ending I can think of, but there are some with happier ones out there (or at least less awful settings!). I appreciate both of you giving my fic a shot regardless. Horror's not for everyone and this setting is dark as heck.
10823613
... okay I lied, this is my favorite comment now
10823074
Same here!
Poor roseluck...
It's like a bad fever dream. But damn if it isn't a well written fever dream.
This is the most overly-and-needly-complicated method of keeping plants alive I've ever seen.
Sheesh, it's like they've never grown pot in the basement!
On that thought... Tree Hugger ABSOLUTELY would have a cannabis plant growing on her... which means a trollfic is required now.
Twilight gets a coca bush... YOU KNOW WHY!!
10821559
Ooooo!! Excited!! T__T
Celestia. Celestia is the one doing this, isn't she?
Whoa. Just whoa. That was short but super heavy and very well written.
I had to read it a second time to truly, get everything. But damn, this is some crazy shit. Really outside the box.
Makes me want to see an origin story for this AU, and judging by the comments it looks like we’re getting a sequel, so can’t wait for that
This is one of the coolest, most original sci-fi concepts I've ever seen! I'd love to see this move away from ponies and be published so more people could see it, it's awesome!
Oh hey, you write about generation ships! Awesome. But I don't understand how you've got the lighting situation set up such that there's a sunset and sunrise.
Another thing, that they need constant light suggests they drifted away from the sun, which is mildly concerning.
I wonder if there's a library you can check out once every cycle. That's important for culture, after all.
10830895
I imagine it has something to do with the rotation providing artificial gravity or something. If they're walking on the inside of a rotating ring and the ring is edge-on to the sun for the most part then if they stopped walking the ring would take them into the darkness.
10822118
Oh no...
Grass pokemon were evolved to function that way. We have a thousand pokemon (give or take) and how many are prehistoric fossils? 20? 30? I am under the impression by how few are grass based that most pokemon were "works in progress" back than by the legendaries.
Sadly it seems pony kind is both doomed and flawed. Even if their bodies cope with the editions (Rarity never once noted discomfort) there is still only one pregnancy per mare. It sounds like those who do it twice don't make it so the population is going to half with each generation assuming no health problems. These plants cannot even survive one night.
This isn't a bad ending, just a sad requirement of circumstance. The solution is unfortunately hindering any potential for change.
10822502
10821493
10821575
10821744
10821785
Good news, friends! The sequel has been published! You can find it here!
Sometimes I scroll through Fimfiction and pick things based on the title alone. This was one of those times.
AMAZING work!! I was invested through the entire thing, and the world you created for the ponies to live in is beautiful and dark. I can imagine all the amazing art that would come from these ponies being intertwined with these living plants. The idea that they have to keep walking for eternity or they'll die is a great plot-driver of an idea, and I'm sure there's tons you can do with it. As an introduction to this little world though, this fic was absolutely perfect.
I LOVE Rainbowdash's theory. I hope she's correct, purely so I can see what happens next, and if the water supply really is tainted with the bodies of their dead friends
This is one for an MLP creepypasta audiobook from TheLostNarrator or ScribblerProductions. Seriously, great job.
Brilliant story. I'll be reading the sequel soon. I do like the idea of ponies mixing with plants. I'd like to see more done with that idea. Feels like they could survive pretty well on another planet, provided they have plenty of sunshine and water, and some food of course. Can't keep drinking your friends and neighbors forever, you know.
But I kinda doubt plants die if they're exposed to darkness for a few hours, even on a spaceship. Something about that doesn't add up. Heck, too much sunshine might be bad for them, as just about all life requires some kind of rest. At least, so far as we know. Even with their plant symbiotes, I'd think they'd need to stop and sleep now and then.
I guess I'll read the sequel and see how many of my questions are answered. And how many more questions are raised in the process! XD