A long time ago...
That's how most stories start. Well, usually start. This one, however, is different. 'How?' you might ask. Well, it’s simple. You see, a long time ago, probably six hundred and sixty-four years, two worlds never meant to be known to each other collided.
Now, before you go away yelling 'This is absolutely ridiculous! How could two worlds never meant to be known to each other could have collided?', let me tell you this: something had changed rather quickly for one of the two worlds, bits and pieces of their world's future fate slipping through the fabric of Time.
Those two worlds you might know of. The first one is Equestria, this wonderful land filled with colorful, talking ponies and other mythical and mystical creatures. However, those ponies and various other creatures were anthropomorphic, and not what you're used to.
At the time of Nightmare Moon's banishment, the veil between Equestria and the Void thinned enough to let a little of the magic of Equestria slip through. It thinned again when Twilight used the Elements to cure Luna. That time, though, the veil was thin enough to permit other universes to take a glimpse at Equestria.
The other world, well... It was Earth, but not the one you know.
That Earth had a significantly different History than the one you're from. Humans there had received great technological gifts, as well as the knowledge necessary to understand the inner workings of those gifts. So, they soon discovered that the universe they inhabited was dying and would end someday, most certainly sooner than later. Gladly for them, they had the gifts bestowed upon them, which contained technology for travelling between universe, and soon came to a general agreement: each nation was to send the same amount of men and women to a new universe, with all the technological knowledge and historical data each nation had, including the knowledge from the gifts.
The first few tries of the inter-universal bridge were far from perfect. At the same time, a new TV show began all over the world. It was called My Little Pony. After fifty years of trial and error, the scientists finallly got what had been dubbed 'The Bridge' working properly. However, the universe they had reached was inhabited by anthropomorphic versions of some of the characters of My Little Pony.
It took three years to prepare everything. The chosen humans took The Bridge and went to Equestria. They arrived a month after Tirek's defeat and were quickly accepted by the ponies and integrated into their nation, much to the other species' dismay. After some time, though, a war broke out between the ponies and several other species.
Thanks to the humans' technology and the ponies' magic, the war was won, but it left Equestria and its beautiful, green hills burnt and scorched in several places, and after the war, the humans were more and more shunned and ignored, causing them to slowly leave the cities and towns, establishing small communities in the wastelands, and adopting the name of 'Raiders'.
The Raiders, true to their given name, often raided towns and cities for food and valuables, sometimes even killing the inhabitants of those towns and cities. They consisted mostly of humans, but there were also several ponies, and seeing human/pony couples among them was not a rare sight, which explained the pony traits some, seemingly, humans bore with pride, those traits being pony ears, a tail and, when born from a pegasus parent, wings. Those pony/human hybrids, often refered to as just 'hybrids', also had magic, just like ponies, and those born from a unicorn parent were able to focus it and cast spells just like normal unicorns.
That being said, I can finally carry on with the real story, a story of sadness, hope, friendship, love, and action, lots of it. So go make some popcorn and grab your favorite drink as you are about to hear the story of Eclipse, a young man with a heavy burden, born from a Raider father and a pony mother, whose father died during a raid and whose mother, despite loving him, had to abandon him. This is his story, his challenges, his struggling, his life...
. . . . .
It was night. The moon, full and beautiful, shone high in the sky as it slowly neared midnight. In one tent of dark grey and bluish pelts came the screams of a labouring mare. With each powerful scream, the night sky itself seemed to experience the pain of the childbearing mare.
Beside the mare knelt a tall man. His skin was dark and his dark blue eyes were almond-shaped. He had short, messy black hair, and a short, strong black beard. His eyes were glued on the labouring mare, a loving care visible in them.
Suddenly, the mare let out an even more powerful scream as she began pushing. Soon, the cries of a newborn baby could be heard, and the woman there to help the mare give birth gently took the human-looking newborn baby.
"It's a boy," she said softly as she gave the baby to his tired mother.
As the moon approached its peak, it slowly took an orange hue before slowly becoming dark. Those just outside the tent of the mare looked up and were amazed at the rare occurrence, as an eclipse was extremely rare.
Back in the tent, the father was hugging the mare close while looking at his newborn child, the umbilical cord freshly cut.
"What should we name him?" he asked, his voice deep and rough, yet gentle and caring.
"Eclipse," the mare answered, her voice tired, "as he is as rare an occurrence as an eclipse, and one also is happening as we speak."
The man and the mare stayed in their embrace, clearly protecting their son from the dangers of the outside world.
. . . . .
Five years later...
. . . . .
Small, dark blue ears perked up from behind a rock some distance away of the camp. Soon, a head rose up from behind the stone as well, the small ears being attached to it. The young boy looked left, then right, then left again, before jumping over the rock.
Then, a hybrid girl fell from the sky right on top of the boy, causing him to groan. The young girl giggled a little, her small, pale blue ears drooping slightly as the girl closed her magenta eyes. Soon, more boys and girls came out of hiding, most of them having small pony ears on their heads.
"Could you please move your butt? I want to get up," the young boy asked the girl sitting on him.
The girl stopped giggling and put a hand to her chin, thinking. Her small, pale blue wings flapped a little as the girl thought. "Okay!" the girl said cheerfully, getting off the boy.
The boy got up and dusted himself. He had, in addition to his ears, short, dark blue hair, a tail of the same color tucked away in his pants, and two small wings covered with dark blue, white-tipped feathers. He had dark skin and almond-shaped teal eyes. He wore a dark hoodie and dark pants.
The girl had, in addition to her ears, long pink hair, a tail of the same color that hung over her pants, round, magenta eyes, tanned skin and a pair of small pale blue wings. She wore a grey t-shirt and sand-colored pants.
The boy smiled at his friends, ready to run off again to play some more. However, the sound of several engines filled the air, preventing the kids to go away and play as the men and women sent in the last raid were coming back.
On the horizon, several black and grey vehicles could be seen despite the distance. As they neared the camp, the sounds of engines grew louder and louder. The vehicles went towards the camp with great speeds, one getting off the ground for a few seconds as they passed over small hills.
When the vehicles finally reached the first tents, cheers sounded throughout the entire camp, telling the kids it was time to rush to the vehicles. They all hurried, and as the young boy and the young girl breached the wall of grown-ups blocking their paths, their eyes widened at the sight in front of them. In each vehicle were six men and women, all clad in a black and grey armor, their helmets covering their faces completely.
The vehicles themselves were quite breathtaking. Each one looked like some sort of turtle mixed with some sort of feline predator. Located to the front of the vehicles, hidden under a piece of metal, the loud engines were still purring.
The men and women coming back from the raid got off the vehicles and took their helmets off, and thus began the heartwarming greetings. The young girl with the pale blue ears shoved the young boy with her elbow.
"Hey, Eclipse. I'm sure your dad has something awesome for you this time," she whispered.
"I don't know, Sky. Maybe..." Eclipse whispered back.
Sky then saw her father, and she ran to him, jumping in his arms with a cry of "Daddy!". Eclipse looked around for any signs of his father, but he still could not see him. Someone then tapped his shoulder. Turning around, Eclipse saw an armored man.
"I'm sorry, Eclipse, but... He didn't... Get out alive," the man said, emotions threatening to break his voice.
"What do you mean?" Eclipse asked as he tilted his head to the right in confusion.
"Your dad... Isn't... Coming back..." the man clarified, tears now rolling down his cheeks.
As the words reached the young boy's brain, tears were already forming at the corner of his eyes. He began crying and yelling, punching the man's armored stomach until his fists were sore. When he finally stopped punching the man, he turned around and ran towards the tent he lived in with his father, tears still falling to the ground while some of the men and women called him.
As the moon slowly crept in the sky, Eclipse was still sobbing gently, arms around his legs. There was a light knock on the tent's frame, and it was soon followed by Sky's voice.
"Are you okay, Eclipse?"
"GO AWAY! I WANT TO BE ALONE!"
The young girl's eyes teared up, her heart broken from Eclipse's sorrow. She was unaware of it at the time, but her heart would forever be Eclipse's no matter what he said or did to her. She left Eclipse's tent, slowly going back to her family while her mind, and her heart, worried for her friend.
. . . . .
It had been almost fourteen years since Eclipse had lost his father. When he reached the age of twelve, and after a daring attempt to run away at night, he got his cutie mark, thanks to his pony origins. His mark was of the night sky, showing his multiple abilities when he was at night and, to a lesser level, when he was in a dark environment.
At thirteen, he began learning the ways of the Raiders, along with his childhood friend Sky. They both managed to 'graduate' at fifteen, becoming Raiders, and thus having their own armor.
Eclipse looked at the night sky and let out a sigh. No one knew who his mother was, except for his dad and his aunt. He had almost no memories of her. the only thing he remembered was that she was as comforting as nighttime. I wish I had known her... he thought. His ears then perked up, turning slightly towards the origin of the sound. He turned around and, upon seeing who it was, he let out a sigh. Sky walked up to him and sat down beside him.
"So?" the now adult girl asked Eclipse, her long, pink hair tied in a ponytail moving slightly in the night's breeze.
"So what?"
Sky glared at the eighteen-year-old boy. "Will you leave the tribe?"
Eclipse looked at the pink-haired girl for a few minutes, causing the poor girl's heart to pound quickly in her chest.
"Of course! I've made up my mind about that. I want to see my mother at least once, and she's not living in the camp, or in any other Raider settlement, according to my aunt," Eclipse answered as he went back to looking at the night sky.
"Then I'll go with you."
Eclipse tried to protest but Sky gave him no time to voice any objection. "I've made up my mind on that. I want to explore the world, see different things, learn more. After all, that's my special talent, learning."
Eclipse nodded and got up. "Fine. I'm warning you, it won't be easy, 'cause according to my aunt, my mother might be in Sun City." With a few flaps of his wings, he was airborne, soon followed by Sky.
. . . . .
Eclipse and Sky were waiting in front of the tent where the several vehicles were stored, ranging from the big transport that could carry two dozen people to the six place V8 quads and the much smaller quad bikes, all of which were black and grey.
A man came out of the tent, looking at the two teenagers. He was in his late forties, his hair already grey. His eyes, however, were still quick and piercing.
"My guess is, you two wanna leave and go away for good. I have no problem with that, but not on MY vehicles," the harsh voice of the man caused Sky's ears to droop.
"However, I already have my own bike, and so does Sky; after all, we are usually scouting the towns before the actual raids," Eclipse countered, much to the man's dismay.
The man looked at Eclipse with a frown, then let out a sigh.
"Fine," the man harshly answered, getting out of the way of the two hybrids.
As soon as the way was clear, Eclipse and Sky hurried inside the tent. In front of their eyes laid a common sight for them. Several vehicles were neatly parked in rows. They made their way around the parked vehicles and eventually reached the bikes.
Two bikes stood out more: the first was dark blue and white instead of black and grey; the second was dark pink and grey. The two teenagers got on their respective bike, putting their belongings into one of the four compartments located near the rear.
They started the engines, their roar filling the air of the tent. They slowly drove out of the tent, and once outside, they accelerated slightly and made their way to the edge of the large camp.
They stopped once they had reached the edge, getting off to put their armor on. When they were both wearing it, Sky approached Eclipse and spoke to him.
"This is the final step we need to take to achieve our goals," she said, looking away in the distance of the barren and dusty dirt desert.
"Yeah. And this is the point of no return. From now on, we can only go forward," Eclipse added, also staring away in the distance towards the faint shimmer over the horizon, where the capital of the Solar Republic, Sun City, was.
Without even looking at each other, the two teenagers got on their bikes, and they took off one after the other, leaving two twin-tire tracks, and kicking up a small cloud of dust.
. . . . .
Luna was taking a walk around the white city that was Sun City. She missed the Royal Gardens of Canterlot, however she knew very well they could never have anything similar ever again, the land having lost its fertility after the war. As the Princess of the Night made her way around, she came across a group of humans led by a pegasus towards who-knew-where.
The sight made her stomach turn, the nausea quickly manifesting itself on the alicorn's face. Her thoughts often wandered to the human male who, several years ago, had won her heart, and who gave her two children, a boy that stayed with his father, and a girl.
Said girl was living with Luna, Celestia, Cadance and Twilight. The young hybrid, barely thirteen years of age, still acted younger than she really was, especially around Celestia and Cadance. That particular thought brought a smile to Luna's face.
Then, a pony wearing the full-body armor of the Royal Guard stepped in Luna's path.
"Princess. Two scouts just left the biggest Raider camp. They are heading for Sun City as we speak."
Luna's heart skipped a beat. Her mind was rushing, thinking about the multiple possibilities. Was it him and her son?
. . . . .
Speeding across the desert landscape, leaving long dust clouds in their trail as they went over 186 mph, Eclipse and Sky were talking over the comm system of their armor.
"How long before we reach the Sun City?" Sky asked.
"About a day, maybe less if we go fast enough," Eclipse answered his companion.
"Okay," Sky replied. After a short pause, she added, "Can I ask you something?"
"You just did, but go ahead anyway." Eclipse's smug smile could be heard over the comm.
Sky huffed a little. "Do you... love someone?" she asked.
"Not at the moment. Why?"
"Well, I kinda--" Sky began before she noticed something approaching them fast. "What the hell is that?!"
Coming towards the two teenagers, surrounded by big dust clouds, were three big desert tank painted with the Royal Insgnia of the Solar Republic.
"Looks like it's the welcoming party. Evasive maneuvers!" Eclipse calmly said before pulling away from Sky to avoid the tanks' path completely, leaving the poor girl alone with her feelings for the dark blue-haired boy.
Something then exploded on the ground next to her bike, sending dirt up in all directions. The girl swiftly swerved to her left to avoid the tanks. However, the three tanks slowly turned around, still firing at Sky and Eclipse. She gritted her teeth, then punched on a blue button. A small cannon got out of its hiding place and rotated to point at one of the tanks. She fired several times, causing the tanks to let her go.
Sky sped up, coming dangerously close to the bike's 210 mph maximum speed. She looked behind her at the tanks, an almost impossible feat considering the fact that she wasn't sitting on the bike due to the bike's unique design. She returned her attention to where she was going once she was satisfied; the tanks seemed to be slower than what she thought at first glance.
. . . . .
Sky was resting on the dusty ground, her hands crossed behind her head. She was looking at the sky -- she actually giggled at that -- which was almost filled with stars, the night just about to begin. She let out a sigh, content with the sparkling dots of light that were the stars in the sky.
Not far from her, Eclipse had made a fire using the dry shrubs that could be found nearby. The crackling of the fire made the atmosphere calm and relaxed, far from the adrenaline-pumping pursuit of earlier that day. Sky turned on her side, looking at the boy who had won her heart so many years ago.
He is so handsome... I NEED to tell him how I feel, she thought.
During Sky's thinking, she failed to notice Eclipse looking at her. He frowned, not sure whether to talk to his friend or to let her live in her daydream. He chose the former and spoke. "Is something wrong?"
Sky was brutally brought back to reality, the hand holding her head now gone from under her chin, and her ears now straight up on her head. "No. Nothing!" she said too quickly.
"Okay, then," Eclipse said, going back to examining the fire.
"Actually, there is something..." she began before her ears twitched as she, and Eclipse, heard a strange noise coming from behind her.
"Crap..." Eclipse muttered before kicking dust on the fire, extinguishing it.
Why is it that each time I try to confess my love there's something preveting me from doing so?! I hate it... Sky thought. She got up, ready to fight if necessary. Eclipse motioned to Sky, gesturing towards their bikes. She nodded and made her way to her bike, but not before someone saw her.
"THERE!" came a rough, deep male voice.
Sky froze up, fear replacing every other emotion. She turned around slowly, coming face to face with a Rogue, a Raider banished from all settlements. She immediately tripped him with a quick motion of her leg. Two more Rogues joined their comrade, ready to fight against the girl.
Sky cracked her neck, then jumped at the man on her left, landing on him with a punch straight to the face. The man dropped to the ground, unconscious. She then turned to face the woman of the group. She feinted a punch, causing the woman to try blocking said punch. This left her open to attacks, and Sky flapped her wings a few time to help with her jump kick. The woman dropped to the ground.
The first man was back on his feet, a handgun in hand. He fired three green bolts of energy which were all dodged by Sky, all while she slowly went back to her bike. Eclipse, who had taken his sniper rifle from its compartment, shot a warning bolt at the man's feet.
The man fired back at Eclipse, leaving enough time for Sky to run to her bike, jump on it and take off, leaving a cloud of dust behind. Eclipse quickly stored his rifle back and jumped on his bike, driving after Sky, the Rogue firing at him but missing every time.
. . . . .
They rode all night to avoid any more Rogues finding them. The sun was slowly rising up above the horizon. The sky was, for once, free of clouds. In the distance, the outline of the huge Sun City was visible.
Eclipse swerved his bike towards Sky to get himself closer to his friend. "About an hour before we finally reach the city," he said over their comm system.
He heard Sky's sigh over the comm, and he smiled. They kept their pace, the dust clouds they kicked up quickly falling back to the ground.
In the sky, a bald eagle flew over the two teenagers, steering towards a small patch of green visible only from a high vantage point.