//------------------------------// // 2 - First Steps // Story: Writer's Block // by Doctor Disco //------------------------------// “Nnnngh… dang, that hurts…” I shifted slightly, finally feeling all the bruises in my little quadrupedal body. I could feel the cricks in my neck as I twisted from side to side, whiplash hurting like crazy. I could feel my forelegs and chest and a lump in my head as they felt swollen and tight. Each spot, each sore point I could feel like it were my very own. I suppose it was. Was this ‘Daring Do’ really this weak, or did I just give her a terrible beating? (You definitely did something with the latter), Daring thought. I could sense her wincing from the pain as much as me. (I could beat up an entire cult before even breaking a sweat.) And there she was. With a grunt, I decided to lay there a bit longer, wallowing in my pain and misery. I'm sure Daring would understand, considering the pain I somehow knew we both felt. But that doesn’t mean I couldn't be productive. Flexing some muscles, I began to get a feel for the body I was in. Everything felt so much different. With no opposable thumbs and a lack of feet, all I had were hooves. I could almost sense myself pulling a muscle within the frog of my hoof, like something I could push or pull. My legs; my hindlegs were just odd, and completely different from a human’s. I could feel them twitch at my thinking of them and… No. No no no no no. (Can you stop shouting in my head? It’s annoying!) Breaking into a crazed grin, I began to twitch. “Oh-ho-kay. Yeah. This is fine. Absolutely, perfectly, fan-flipping-tastic. Oh yes. I asked for this. I really did.” (Woah there. You really need to calm down, collect your bearings, and take a breather.) I grunted as I continued to smile crazily, beginning to stumble around on my four new hooves. Snickering, I swayed from side to side. (Actually though, you’re starting to scare me. Oh, and if you’re moving, grab my pith helmet!) One moment, I was just staring at the hat on the ground, next thing you know, I’m wearing it. “Oh yay! Time to go exploring! It’s not like I’m completely out of my mind trying to figure out how I lost my manhood. No way. No, not at all! Haha! Hahaha! It’s all a big joke! Ha!” (...I’ve heard of the term 'giggle at the ghosties’ before but this is just… I wonder how crazy I look from the outside…) “Oh yeah! Woo! Let’s march on, not a care in the world. I love this so much! Yeah! Go me-” Unfortunately, in my madness, I had forgotten that I still wasn’t very skilled in my new motor functions. Additionally, and just as unlucky, I had started walking down a slope. Tripping on a large exposed root from the tree I had fallen from, I yelped and tucked, beginning to roll down the hill. (Idiot.) “I knooooooooooow!” I shouted, prolonging the last vowel as I continued down. Eventually, I slowed to a stop, and I found myself breathing heavily, adrenaline coursing through my veins. I found myself recovering quickly, but I found myself in the same position I had been in when I woke up. There I found myself staring up, the canopy of trees blocking some of the blue blue sky. (You feeling better yet? Done beating me up?) I nodded my head and mumbled something incoherent. I sighed deeply, just content with lying there. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. I just… I’m so so sorry. I always take things with a smile and… I…” I found my vision fogging and I clenched my eyes tight, bringing my hooves up to my face. I couldn’t. Not here. I found myself stabbing myself with my hooves more than just put them up to my face (as I said, bad motor control), but I rubbed my eyes. Hard. Not here. (You know, it’s okay to cry. Nopony be strong forever. Nopony. You’re no different-) “Shut up. Just shut up. Please.” With a deep breath, I put on a determined face (though I still didn’t really know how I looked like) and I got back onto four hooves. Focusing, I focused on a rhythm. Not anything specific, just something to occupy my mind so I could get the hang of trotting. “Where to, Daring Do?” I asked. (I don’t think saying things like that aloud will make me look sane once we come across civilization.) “Well, there’s nobody around right now so you can can it.” (I’m just saying. You don’t seem like a bad guy, and all things considered you took… uh, being in my body and losing your… stallion bits… better than I would’ve expected.) “Yeah, well, there’s nothing I can do about it right now, is there?” I said. “Now if you don’t mind, I’m just, uh, going to walk in this direction for a while until something comes up.” Beginning to walk, I found that Daring Do had gone quiet, leaving me alone to my thoughts. To my surroundings. Looking around, I could almost imagine myself writing all the details of being in a forest. The vibrant verdant greens of the leaves and foliage around me. The sound of crunching, decaying forestry beneath my hooves and the sight of bright peat moss spotting trees and mounds of dirt. If I looked closely, I could see some lingering morning dew, sparkling from the piercing rays of the sun above. (Fantastic word choices and descriptions, though it could use a little work. Maybe if you took some time to write it out, go over it a few times and get somepony to see it, it would even be top quality.) “What?” I frowned and paused in my travels. (I could sense your thoughts putting together words and phrases. Even though I can see what you see [it is my body], I closed my eyes so-to-speak and could nearly envision what you were thinking.) Blinking, I looked around out of habit as if someone were looking and cocked my head. “Not to be rude or anything, but how do you find yourself, erm, what’s the word… ‘qualified’? To judge me?” (I’m a writer myself, and by what you’ve been trying to do since you took over my body, I’d assume you were one yourself. I’d applaud you, but I don’t seem to have any control over my hooves.) I blinked again. Sighing, I began trotting again before frowning slightly. “Hey, I didn’t ask for this. I didn’t ask to be here, in your body. I mean, what would I even gain stealing a body that is a completely different species from me, or at all? I didn’t ask for you to be shouting at me in my head, or I guess your head. I didn’t want this. I just popped into existence on… wherever this is!” I could almost hear her silence. How does one even hear silence? In any case, I could sense she was hiding something. Something. What could it possibly be? Hiding something from me? Obviously it was a secret, but what? Why would she retreat into herself like that? (...I’m sorry about, uh, yelling at you. I’m just… freaking out as much as you, I guess. Don’t take it personally. It’s not you. I guess I’m just on edge from… from, er, yeah.) “From who?” I asked. (It doesn’t matter. What matters is I’ve been terrible to you while all you’ve been is friendly and confused. I guess I must’ve thought since you sto-uh, since you’re in control of my body now, occupying the same space in me, I thought the worst.) I shook my head. “Don’t put all the blame on yourself either. You didn’t ask for this, and neither of us know why I’m here now.” (...yes, we don’t.) Now seeing that the mood was quickly dropping, I frowned before picking up a grin. “Hey, how about we play a game?” (Oh no. Please don’t tell me-) “I spy with my little eye, something that is-” (I hate you. I hate you so much.) “I’m just kidding! I’m just kidding!” I said, waving a hoof and nearly tripping on three legs as I did so. “We’ll do something else to pass time.” (...I can see your thoughts. No. I forbid you from singing that with my voice. It’s the stupidest, blandest road-trip song in existence!) “Ninety-nine bottles of pop on the wall, ninety-nine bottles of pop! Take one down, pass it around, ninety-eight bottles of pop on the wall! Ninety-eight bottles of pop on the wall-” (I HATE YOU.) “No you don’t!” I smiled, and continued. “Ninety-eight bottles of pop on the wall, ninety eight bottles of pop…” (Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!)