2 - The Omega Bug
“Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance, you must keep moving.” – Albert Einstein
Of course nobody came back.
On my first day of waiting; I was fairly optimistic. It was still rather early in the morning and after I had calmed down, my first order of business was to somehow start a fire to cook some breakfast. Luckily; there was already a small pile of wood for that purpose just waiting to be used. It was tough to balance, but I did manage to drag a few of the now much bigger logs to the stone pit. Lighting it was an entirely different story. Yuri just watched, amused, as I struggled for five minutes to even open the match box. I wisely took my oversized shirt off, the last thing I wanted to do was catch myself on fire because the sleeves kept rolling down my front… legs.
It took ten more minutes to even get a match lit without breaking the match heads against the box. Turns out my neck was stronger before and I kept putting too much force in my efforts to strike a match. I burned my lips twice, but eventually, I had a small flame going. I knew then that having to use my mouth for everything was just going to suck hard. What's next? Picking up broken glass? I shook my head. With the fire burning, the next chore was to fetch some water. I awkwardly grabbed a pot in my teeth and Yuri and I headed to the lake nearby.
It was a typical small lake. I saw several discarded fishing poles and coolers along the shore. Probably some late night fisherman got caught up in… whatever happened. Several grills still stood in amongst the tents and campers like silent monoliths. There were a few burned out fires in the scattered fire pits where marshmallows and chocolate laid scattered about. Already the ants were upon them. It was unnaturally quiet. In all… it was unsettling. I investigated a bright pink baby carriage to only find some bunched up blankets and a lone pacifier. It hurt to see that. I didn't want to look anymore, lest I once again panic. I had to focus on the task at hand… or hoof.
I drew the water as carefuly as I could. I didn't want to fall in. Almost drowning would put anyone off from water. Plus there's possibly brain eating amoebas in there. Along with leeches and horsehair worms and other horrors. Yuri didn't seem to mind, as he took a nice long drink and stared at some ducks that he wasn't allowed to chase.
It was there I could look into the water and actually see my reflection. To be honest… I wasn't so terrible looking. I mean, I was still a horror on Earth, but it was comforting to see that I still had intelligence in my eyes. I could smile and frown; I could still be expressive. Opening my mouth revealed teeth that actually wasn't too much different than before, I just had long fangs and a yellow tongue. I had some fin on my neck, sticking up kinda like a mane you would see on a donkey. When touching it, I discovered it felt fine and soft, kinda like touching old cobwebs. Touching the thorn on my head revealed it to be sensitive, but strong. It was like when you touch a tooth. It's alive and you can feel it for sure. I guess I could call it a horn, but it looks like something off a rose stem since it's curved and sharp. I also have transparent bee-like wings, set into the carapace in my back. I could buzz them real good, but they didn't do much else. It made me feel a little cooler though in the sun.
I think the weirdest thing was that my eyes are more sensitive now. They were orange-yellow like the rest of my body with a slit pupil. When a few clouds parted and a bright ray of sun hit the water, it hurt. I winced and it felt like my eyes twitched in their sockets. When I recovered and opened my eyes again, I could see that well...everything had a slight yellow tint to it, kinda like driving sunglasses. The light didn't hurt, but looking at my reflection again gave me a surprise. My eyes were all yellow! I stared and thought hard about having my eyes go back to having pupils and holy shit it happened. The yellow membrane retracted horizontally and I could feel the same twitch in my eye sockets. I guess I pretty much have built in sunglasses. It's freaky, with these big solid yellow eyes just staring…
I had enough looking. I was grateful that at least I still was me inside. I took the pot handle in my mouth. I figured keeping myself busy would leave less time for existential crises. The last thing I needed was to trap myself into circular thinking and be out of the count. No… I couldn't leave Yuri by himself, I had to be strong for once.
Carrying back the water turned into a disaster: about half of it splashed out. Turns out carrying it with the handle in your mouth is very ineffective. There was enough left to boil at least. I set aside some for drinking and used the rest to rehydrate some freeze-dried beef stew. Luckily, Brandon took a dipper with us, so I didn't have to risk burning my poor mouth for a third time as I reconstituted the stew. In the meantime I decided to try to call Grandma and see if she was okay.
I had left my phone in my tent, as I liked to listen to music on it sometimes before I slept. Luckily, my vomit fest earlier this morning missed it and I carried it to sit with it by the fire. Of course, there was no way I was going to dial anything with hooves, but I had a stylus. I gripped it in my mouth, used it to unlock the phone and click Grandma's number. Or, at least I tried to over the course of several minutes, but I was relieved once I heard the phone begin to dial and ring. I stared at the phone, mentally begging for someone to pick up.
“Come on, Grandma...” I tapped a hoof on the ground, going faster as the rings dragged on. Finally, I heard a click.
'Hello. You have reached the Brooks Residence. Please leave a message after the tone'
“Grandma! Please pick up the phone… It's me Melissa!” I tried very hard to stay controlled. “I'm still in New York State. I'll try calling later, okay? I love you.”
I almost choked saying that last bit. I desperately wanted to hear her voice. She always knew what to do and I needed so bad to at least hear that she was okay. Stop it, I told myself. Stop this now. She's okay. She's probably getting groceries. She will call later. Stay calm.
Sensing my growing distress, Yuri padded over to lay his head on my back, gently guiding me to a laying position. I let myself lay down and focused on breathing. Okay, time to try someone else, so I dialed 911.
I got a busy signal. Oh fuck.
I started going down through all my contacts… which was fewer than what I would have liked. I even tried calling Mark’s and Stacy's phones, only to hear them ring in their tents. Hell, I even rang up a pizza place. No answers at all. I would have kept dialing for hours if Yuri hadn't gently taken my stylus from my lips and gave me a look. I tried to dial with a hoof, but he just put his big paw over the screen. Stop it, he seemed to say. You are only just hurting yourself.
I hugged him until I felt better, leaving the phone where it was. I shared my beef stew with him, but to me it was tasteless. I almost didn't want to really eat, but If I was going to walk the distance it was going to take to get back to southern Pennsylvania, I was going to need the energy. I always had trouble eating so this isn't new. So I forced myself to eat it. It didn't make me sick, so that's good. That night I slept in Mark's tent. I had to cut it open to get inside. I hope he doesn't mind when he comes back.
On day two, I went to explore the various tents and campers scattered through the area. All of them were empty. Cars and trucks sat alone, unmoved since yesterday. The campers that were unlocked I went in. There was even one with presents and a cake inside. Perhaps they were going to have a party the next day, before… whatever took them happened? I didn't find any discarded clothing, so this wasn't like in that Left Behind series, which meant no Nicolas Cage, thank god for small mercies. Aliens into fashion maybe? Fabulous aliens? It didn't make sense and I didn't try thinking too hard about it.
Yuri and I found another dog in the park. She was a Golden Retriever who was tied up to a tree next to a rather luxurious camper. The tether was made of nylon and I found that I could gnaw through it fairly fast. Having sharper teeth saved the day! She stayed put though, but was grateful when I went in said camper to bring out a bag of dog food. I guess she wants to wait for her family to get back? At least she has the lake nearby for water. Yuri and her touched noses briefly before he followed me back to camp. All I could do was wish her good luck.
That night, we had marshmallows for dinner, which was the last of my packed food. I tried calling some people again, but didn't get through, or only hit voice mails. It became pretty clear to me that nobody was going to come back. The trail gets pretty busy this time of year, so someone should have gone by already. As I took my nightly dose of medication, it hit me that I can't stay here. I'd either starve to death, or get eaten by something. I was barely bigger than a dog. In fact, I was actually slightly shorter than Yuri. I would be easy prey to a bear, or hell, even something like a pine marten, or a weasel could cause some serious damage. Not to mention I only had a finite number of pills; once they ran out, I don't think I'd be able to function well enough to even take care of myself. Yuri could only take me so far before he would be putting himself in danger too.
I decided to write a note to my friends. Stacy had a notebook that she liked to sketch wildlife in. I tore out a piece of paper and carefully wrote out a note. It was completely awful. I had bad writing even when I had hands and using a pen in my mouth was even worse. I hoped it was legible enough. I put it under a rock in one of the tents. Hopefully, it'll keep the rain out despite having a hole in them.
I… honestly hope they're okay. Those three are awesome. They didn't have to take someone like me along with them on such a big hike. I've trained in wilderness survival with them in my senior year of high-school, so they knew what I was like, but they took me along anyway and treated me just like one of the family. It's a rare thing to find people like that. The whole hiking club was nice, but those three took the cake. I must have been a huge burden, but I did my best. It was what they would have wanted me to do. When I came to a sudden realization...
They weren't here. Not now at least. I couldn't depend on anyone now except for Yuri and myself.
We slept curled up together again. It's becoming a default, almost routine now. It felt wonderful, like having a warm blanket on a cold day. I could almost wrap myself up in this feeling of being cared for. It's odd, I felt like this before but not so intense before. Perhaps my medicine is affecting me now that my body is different? I'm a lot smaller than before, so perhaps the dosage is a little too much. If I can find a doctor somehow, I will have to ask them.
On day three, I packed my own backpack up. I had to empty out a few things to make it lighter to carry. I was considered on the small size before, but I can't tolerate carrying a huge load. I—unfortunately—had to leave my bear spray behind, as I had no idea how I would even fire the thing. Operating a bottle of concentrated capsicum with my mouth? No fucking way. I'd rather eat a hot coal first. So instead, I kept my first aid kit, some bottles of water, wallet, knife, my medicine, phone and finally my map. I kept my map out to study for now. My compass was on a string, so I put it around my neck, along with my whistle. I gave a few blows on it to make sure it still works. It made my ears ring, but at least it'll be useful for signaling. I would have to leave the tents and sleeping bags behind, they were way too bulky and heavy for a little bug monster like me to carry. I put my blanket over my wings to protect them from the backpack. Those guys were really REALLY sensitive, so hopefully, a nice blanket over them will protect them from all the rubbing the backpack was going to do.
As soon as we hit a town, I really needed to get some dog saddlebags, for both Yuri and me. It seemed it would be more comfortable than having some big ass awkward backpack on my back. Speaking of Yuri, he was super excited. He sat near me, his tail wagging hard and a smile on his face. I looked over at him with a smile, as I tightened my backpack.
“Wanna go home, Yuri?
He barked and sprang up on his paws, running over to whine and lick at my face. I sputtered and pushed his face away, but not before giving him a kiss on the nose. I unfolded my map and studied it. I could clearly see the park marked in green along with the nearby towns and cities. In order to get across the Hudson river I would need to head to the closest city... which is Beacon.
“We have to stop in Beacon first.” I explained to him, still smiling. I fiddled with my compass to get my bearings. “There we can cross the Hudson river and head south.”
It felt like a good plan to me. I could follow the trail backwards, but wouldn’t there be a better chance of finding someone if I went into a town or a city? We can stop there and get more supplies which would be easier than trying to completely rough it out on the trail. Having a nice safe bridge to cross would soothe my nerves, as I really didn't even like crossing water at all. Eesh. Try having a near death experience as a kid and not have it give you at least one phobia.
I forgoed Yuri's leash. Hell, the only reason I even brought it was because it's against the law for him not to be leashed. He never left my side before and I doubt a leash would make much of a difference. And hell, how would I even clip it on or even hold it? My poor little stumps were fingerless. I left the leash behind, which seemed to please Yuri even more. Well, at least he was happy. For me, I tried my best to remain calm and positive. Like for example, if everyone vanished, that means that maybe the psychopath that fucked me up would be gone too. Poof! Gone forever. I won't have to look over my shoulder anymore for him to show up. It was a good weight off my little shoulders. I could be wrong, of course, but it felt nice to have a bit of a silver lining for once.
I wanted to look behind me, but I didn't. If I did, I'd lose my nerve and fall into the trap of staying with a bad, but comfortable situation. No… I was going to have to do things that outright terrify me if I wanted to get home.
I whistled and Yuri took his place by my side, tail wagging and eager. I looked down the pathway, and it was dark and cool, not enough sun filtering down the green and brown tunnel of trees, so I didn’t have to switch to sunglasses mode. All in all, it was surprisingly peaceful wherein all paranoid thoughts were squashed when I reached over to pet Yuri. If there were things in the woods watching me, I could at least trust him to be there to protect me.
Like any long journey, the first step was the hardest. It just took one hoof in front of the other and then we were off. Yuri brushed against me a few times to remind me that he was there.
Heh, it made me feel a bit like singing, to calm the nerves. With how still and quiet it is, I craved hearing a voice.
“Into each life some rain must fall. But too much is falling in mine.” All I needed was a goddamn PipBoy, and this situation would feel complete.
“Into each heart some tears must fall, But some day the sun will shine.”
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I like it.
Oh my god....the art so beautiful...
It remind me a story lost in Fantasy land.
Headcanon accepted.
Omfg even an appropriate name! It means "bee" in greek!
How dependent on emotions are changelings? I hardly think they would be emotion-exclusive with those fangs.
This is shaping up to be a great little story. I look forward to the next update.
6201671
Yeah, most aren't going to have that intimate knowledge of medicine, and many people just aren't aware that there are service dogs for high-functioning psychiatric disorders. Usually we think of blindness or autism.
I think you were mostly on the right track, mentioning that this isn't the first time she's woken up screaming to the point that her hiking party might just tune it out, and the second chapter made it clear enough. You straight-up said she has anxiety, depression, and paranoia, though you might've edited that in in response.
Also, I love the nictating membrane. I've wondered before if that was a thing myself, given the eye differences between the queen and drones.
Brain:
Status: Melted from awesome story-telling.
Heart:
Status: Crying from beautiful wordsmanship.
Feelings for this story:
Status: Awe-inspiring. I couldn't even move to get into a more comfortable position while reading it.
:D
Keep posting good stuff, man!
Pretty sure that careful is supposed to be 'carefully' here. Still doing great work though, so keep it up.
It seems pretty good so far. Wonder where it's going though. I'm usually not a fan of ponies in the human world. Not really because the story you are writing is bad. But it is because I often read stories for something new and exciting and I find the human world setting slightly dull. However this seems good so ill fave.
Oh, hey - just wanted to ask, is this a PAP story or part of the more specific stories, like LPOE?
6239170
It's a side story, so it would be happening at the same time of Last Pony on Earth!
And thanks to everyone else for your comments! I'm screaming with happiness :,D
LOL
May I just ask but is she a rape victim? That was just the first thing to come to mind at that statement
And that first picture is adorable
6246232
You'll have to find out :O No worries they'll be trigger warnings for those when they show up. And thank you! Heehee :)
6247501
That's headcanon till you say so
I see you there, classy fallout reference. Can't get by me.
Duuuuuddddeee, this story is hella amazing!
"All I needed with a goddamn PipBoy, and this situation would feel complete."
I think you meant 'was', not 'with' .
Why do i have bad feeling the dogs gonna get killed.
Game of Thrones has taught me too much.
Oh, another lovely tale about my favourite species of flying, emotivore critters! The Queen approves.
Learning to function with depression in a world depraved of most its functions will be somewhat trying, I imagine. But, the two will eventually find some way.:3
Yay changelings!
I wonder if she's gonna find some more survivors on Beacon, BTW is this still going? last update was last year.
The punctuation needs a little work, but otherwise, in the words of Ronald McDonald: "I'm lovin' it."
Oh no... poor baby. ;_;
Ah fallout, i love it
Heh
I love this story and THE BUCKING ART in the end of the chapter