//------------------------------// // Fate's Promise // Story: The Crying Statue // by D Historian //------------------------------// Fate's Promise ~~~~~ The winds hissed in whispery tones, their brittle gossips brushing ears of living creatures, rustling and jostling fur and leaves alike. Vibrant shades of pony fur faded against the greyness in the weather, the pastel colours turning duller to suit the cloudy colourless expanse of the autumn sky and the deadened trees and plants. Mist curled delicately over landscapes, causing shivers and colds that happened all too often at the time of the year. Ponies smiled at one another, despite the chill, their spirit and harmony keeping them warm. Their warmth turned into blazing fire as the cold progressed, cackling like the laughter that haunted homes and castles, sparking like the eyes of fillies and colts, burning bright together. Families chattered happily, smiles merry and genuine, some bittersweet over the ever creeping shadow that crept over friends and relatives, silent but deadly, stealing their breath. It was a fact the world had accepted, that somewhere, across the land, a pony was coughing. Somewhere, beyond the fog that obscured the thin line that was the horizon, ponies wheezed out their life source, hacking and sputtering before they finally stopped. It happened to all Pegasi, unicorns and earth ponies alike, a similarity that stitched the races together. It was almost ironically hilarious, that the ponies from the old worlds travelled far and wide to finally be safe from the bitter cold and starvation, only for one mishap and disaster to happen after each old one was solved. But such was fate. Fate liked to twist and bend, mapping paths and routes faster than any living thing, each road cracking and reshaping itself as the ones who tread across it directed its flow. Fate also enjoyed making promises and trolling people, and was quietly morphed with every passing moment. Fate gambled, won, lost, and continued. It was its way. As fate would have it, the clouds' never ending canopy was not quite as unbroken as it always was. There would be a tuft of cloud missing here and there, a pale, choking filter of sunlight shining through onto the dead grass, as if trying to coax life back into a single blade. The light was also very beautiful, in the filly's opinion, as she leapt happily at the rays of warmth, tumbling when she forgot where she was for a moment, but her wide smile unfaltering. The filly hummed, eyes sparkling with childish delight, voice rising and dropping in a gleeful song. Dry grass whispered warning from blade to blade, falling under her merciless hooves, pitpattering quickly across the ground, giggling. She stopped abruptly, hooves skidding to a halt, but laughter bubbling in her chest and rising to her throat. Her head glanced at her surroundings, being sure that her parents were no where in sight. A snail oozed slowly in front of her, making its way with an almost nonexistent speed, which caused the filly to nod sagely. "Very good, sir! Yes, yes, I can see you're in a hurry!" Her fake trottingham accent was atrocious, but the snail didn't seem to mind. His slow, gradual progress unhindered. The snail gave no response, offering a simple antennae twitch instead. The filly stared for a few more minutes. She sighed lightly, wishing she could talk talk to animals. Such communication was not unheard of, but mostly magic or teaching animals to speak pony. In her opinion, it was cheating. Only few could understand animals. She mentally added it to her list of wishes. The snail continued, it's pace almost painful to watch. The filly shrugged and jumped over her new friend, nearly avoiding stomping on him, waving to the snail as she continued her path forward, hurdling at a dangerous rate, nearly colliding face first into a granite base, spinning around at the last moment and expertly manoeuvring into a bush, that bristled with the impact of a little filly slamming into it. She groaned as the dead leaves of the bush poked her uncomfortably, carefully untangling from its brittle clutches. The bush looked just as displeased as she at the ordeal, the rustling grey leaves sounding like a sigh. With a final little kick, she was free. She wheeled around dizzily, laughing, but her mirth died in her throat. A stone face eerily stared at her through closed eyes. A freezing sensation trickled up her spine at the sight of a pony like face that seemed to look at her no matter where she stood. Her heart thumped wildly in her chest, her breath catching. She circled around the statue in a daze, licking her lips to moisten her dry mouth. Her heart continued its rapid beating, the sound echoing in her ears. The crunch of the grass beneath her hooves and the tickling sensation of the wind brushing her hair faded. The only thing she could hear was her heartbeat. She could only see the statue, the twisted expression on its smooth face, and her heart throbbed as rain gathered in the crevices of granite trickled down its face. It looked like it was crying. Her heart swelled with compassion, her hoof reaching out to brush the stone. Her hoof jerked back almost instantly. The statue was warm, like the dying flames of an animal being poisoned. The statue sparkled with electricity from where her hoof had touched it, and for a moment, the filly could hear a heart beat that was not her own. A thin wail, a desperate screech, a death rattle, bordering on the edge of reality. Despite her head pounding with the beginnings of a migraine, she smiled at the statue. It sounded like it was in pain, she realised, tears pricking at her eyes in sympathy. It's harsh breathing, heavy with pain, brought up a distant memory, flickering at the edge of her vision, of a little colt breathing just as desperately, before the cold finally claimed him. A delicate petite thing, curled and nuzzled against his sister. The filly's green eyes prickled with tears as she flicked her gaze to her parents, huddled on his other side, shoulders bent with grief. She lowered her muzzle against his soft ear, whispering, feeling her tears drip onto him. "I'll take care of you better when we meet again. I promise." "Posey!" The earth pony's head whipped around, pink tresses falling over her eyes. Her parents waved at her, beckoning her to follow them. They were fine, they were alive, and she would make sure they stayed that way. She was not back at the old kingdom. She was not cramped into a freezing corner, she was not watching her brother die. Cold here was seasonal, not eternal. She was free. She was free. But the statue was not. Her heart thumped, her smile turning bittersweet at the thought of her promise. She did not like making promises. Her mind raced. Her chest heaved, and she quickly darted to the statue's side. The soft breathing that seemed to drift in range of her hearing and falter made her eyes water further, but she hugged the stone creature around the waist. She climbed the granite, clambering to whisper into its ears. "I'll help you." "I promise."