//------------------------------// // Survivors. // Story: Tales from Tinies. // by MrAquino //------------------------------// The engine of the our truck and occasional thumps were heard around us. I looked around, seeing my fellow brothers in arms, each ready for the upcoming battle that was ahead of us. My hearth thumped loudly as I sweated. We've already lost a few men and women, but not by some mine, but that Vanishing thing, still somehow continuing. Secretly, I hoped I was next. Everything made me think of the day when it all happened, and how it's lead to this. It all began on the 24th or 25th of May about 4 years ago. I just got out of high school, but the vanishing happened in front of everyone, as people were taken away by our own eyes, leaving nothing behind. The shock made everyone question the same thing; who was gone, what just happened, when did this began, where was this at, and why was this happening? I guess in the first two months, we just thought that it was something like out of the bible, and that many of us changed to our beliefs, hoping we weren't going to parish by whatever deity. But then the riots happened... people were so much in fear, we went violent and crazy, doing everything illegal, believing that if it's the end of the world, then why bother follow the rules we've established? While it lasted for a week, it was then the governments around the world stood in and began to establish martial law on all of us. It started light, but when people began to disappear, they began to push down on all of us, enlisting anyone. That was where I came in. For two years, I've been training, and unlike before, classified information leaked is more serious than before. Many of the higher ups believe that this is the work of North Korea, and that we have to stop this once and for all. I personally don't believe it, but with Kim still on top and not being gone, it's gotten suspicious. But that's more or less where it ends, info on if it was real or not is up to debate. My mind snapped back into reality as the truck came to a stop and explosions were heard nearby. "GOGOGO!!!" I heard our commander yelled. Like dogs, we listened, getting our M4s ready and ran out. The ruins of North Korea's cities laid around us, with foliage overtaking the buildings, which now crumbled and fell by the explosions around. Around me, I could hear people screaming, out of anger and/or pain, who were muted by the explosions. All the sounds were around me, but my eyes were on the tower, the one that towered over all. We were all just miles away from it, but they were ready for us, using their missiles and artillery against us. Somewhere, I knew that we were just a distraction. My mind went into overdrive as I ran into one of the buildings for cover. I couldn't exactly think straight, nor hear anything but the doors nearby slamming open, with some Koreans soldiers yelling in their native language, telling me to surrender. Were I not so much full of adrenaline, I may have surrendered, but instead, I pulled the trigger and got a few, but only in their feet, legs, and knees. Were my aiming even better, or if I was a coward and did surrender, I may have been alright. They fired back, the bullets piercing my skin, making everything sting when I fell to the floor. They began to say something in their language... they sounded scared. I didn't pull any grenade pins on me, right? The last of my strength made me look at my body. Past my now Swiss cheese body with blood pouring out, I noticed I was glowing. God damn entity finally picked me, right when I was about to die... well... hope this place enjoys a corpse. My vision went black as the light consumed me. My eyes felt heavy, with everything muffled as I began to wake up. Was I in heaven? Or is this just the waiting room to hell? If so, why are the birds here so cheery sounding? My answer came after a few moments when my eyes adjusted to the word and my hearing was alright. Somehow, I felt fine. Looking down at myself, I wasn't in some robe, nor naked, but in my full combat gear. The holes were still there, but my skin was clean, not affected at all. I stood right up and poked my exposed skin. No pain whatsoever, not even a feel of a bullet under my skin. A lot of questions ran through my head. But I couldn't ask that without anyone around. Looking around, I was in a forest of some kind, one where the trees towered over everyone. What I needed to do was find a place with some food and water, find people, get info, and rendezvous in an area where, hopefully, I can meet other soldiers at and plan what we need to next. Time must've passed by fast here, and during this time, despite feeling much better, my back felt weird. It didn't help that everything looked the same. My stomach growled loudly, wanting food... why didn't I eat anything before we departed? My candy bar was the only thing I had on me, and while eating it was nice, since candy was all but gone back home, I knew it wouldn't last me very long. The more the night came, the more I actually began to sweat a bit, unsure if the creatures here were just as gigantic as the forest around me. A horrible thought was that if it was the former, being eaten would be worse than getting shot by some Koreans... great, now I'm sounding like a racist. My momentary fear came to a halt as I heard the cool movements of water. A stream was nearby. Though it wasn't hot, I still needed water and was a tad bit thirsty, especially since that candy bar had more salt in it than I'd like to admit. The stream became more rapid as I approached to it, with the sun now setted and the moon taking it's place. I was very surprised how bright the moon was... guess when you're in a city for most of your life, you tend to forget how nature was like. Light seemed to have shine down on the moon, and I swore I saw some equine fly past by it... whether it's my imagination or actually a part of this world, I focused on getting back to the water. With a few minutes passing, I stopped by what was a stream, reflecting the moonlight off it's surface. While there was a few splashes, it looked very calm. To play it safe, I used both of my hands to form into a cup and got a scoop of water out, drinking what was in my hand. Out of the corner of my eyes, I saw light. "Holy crap! I found someone!" I heard another man's voice spoke. Turning, I only saw the silhouette of some guy running to me. He obviously had a flashlight, wearing a simple hoodie with pants. Some other people came rushing with him, some sporting flashlight while others had what looked like weapons from medieval times; swords and spears really. I held my hands up in the air, not wanting to cause any trouble. "Just drinking water here. Nothing else." I answered. The man stopped near me. He looked pretty young, probably in his early twenties. "Dude, you can't be out like this! You can't just be-" He stopped and backed away, scared by my sight. "Holy shit! You're a survivor!?" "A what?" This got my attention, and suspicion. "What the hell are you talking about!? You know me?" "No, just... we gotta get you outta here, before they come." "They? Hey, I'm new here! I don't have time to play the pronoun game. Who's 'they'?" Loud howls could be heard. He grabbed my arm. "Come on, this way!" I was pulled by him. For looking quite scrawny, he was quite strong. Without much questions, I ran after him as well... truth be told, I felt like I was faster than before. A week ago, I barely finished the 400 meter dash in the needed time to be eligible, but now, I felt like I could take on at least an 800 or 1200 meter dash! Let's just say I released him and ran right ahead "Head to the huge circle of trees! Go through the roots! I'll meet you in there!" Just as he said, I noticed a bunch of trees that looked very old, much taller than the rest of the trees, with roots that went out of the ground, with thorns, making a blockade that can keep large animals away. I jumped through the roots, climbing around the roots and thorns, making my way deep into the huge circle, as that guy said. Within a few seconds, I noticed light, almost blinding. Not wanting to meet what was outside, I continued forth, soon finding myself in the entrance to wherever this was. After some adjustments to my eyes, I noticed that what was inside was a city in the center of the circle of trees. Several buildings were inside the center, but still towered over by the trees themselves, whose branches covered the top, keeping all the light in. Some people were around, each looking at me with both intrigue and fear, whispering that I'm a survivor. They were silenced as another guy approached, this one looking like sheriff from Texas, wearing a police uniform and had a stenson on his head. "Now look what we got here." He spoke. "Another survivor? Well, ain't you lucky?" "... Uh... I'm lost." I simply answered. "I have many questions, ok? I'd like them to be answered." "Heh, fair enough." He looked around to everyone. "Alright ya'll, there ain't nothin' wrong here. Get back to yer business, 'kay?" Some mumbles were heard, but the people left us alone. It was just me and the sheriff. "So... what's your name, sonny?" "A-ash, sir." "Ash?" "Yes... my parents thought I was going to be a girl and wanted to name me Ashley, but instead, they got me and changed it to Ash. But where am I? And what do you mean by a survivor?" He chuckled a bit, most likely for my name. "Well, I'll call ya Ash if you feel like it. But yer in Equestria, a world that's ran by gigantic versions of mythical creatures... mostly ponies." "... Ponies, Sir...?" "Murphy. Folks usually call me 'Murr' though. And yeah, I know, it seems out there, but this is where everyone's been taken away to." He grabbed my shoulder gently in a friendly way and walked with me. "Let me explain as we get to my place." My mind was still boggled. A world that's ran by giant ponies is one thing, but a world that's ran by giant ponies who love to eat people is another. But add that and we're considered safe in their stomach... I wonder if this is all a dream and someone put LSD in my medicine. Princesses that are basically gods, a certain princess with 5 friends who have saved this world multiple times, huge beasts that still roam the world... I think I am on LSD. "I founded this place, you know?" Murr spoke, breaking my train of thought. "Landed in the middle of these here trees with plenty o' water and healthy fertilizer to grow our crops." "Oh, that's very lucky." I replied. "And you learned that from some people?" "Yep. They were on the run and needed a place to hide. I know, it's frightening to know that we're now near the bottom of the food chain, but this here place is a haven from what's going on outside." "... Yeah... you do have a good setup here. Quite surprised you have power." As I said that, the lights began to flicker. "We're actually running quite low. Some folks brought their generators along, with some fuel, but we've been using power only for nights, when the trees block anything out with the top of their leaves. Those folks you meet, I send them out to find some fuel, anything useful to help us out." "That makes sense... oh, and what do you mean that I'm a survivor?" "Oh, it's not out of disrespect, it's just what you are. By the looks of you, you were shot down by some soldiers before landing here?" "Uh... yeah... but I don't get what you mean. Why is everyone looking at me like they see a ghost?" "Ah. My bad. You should look in a mirror. Let me get you one." Murr walked away for a bit, but brought back a dressing room mirror, setting it up against the wall. I looked to my reflection. Despite my ripped clothes, I looked fine. "I don't see any problem." "Look closer." I listened, getting up and standing close to the mirror. I nearly shat my pants as I saw what made people afraid; my eyes were no longer normal pupils, but my irises were very sharp, looking almost like a cat's. "What the fuck!?" Murr grabbed me, patting my back gently "Calm down. It's ok. You're a survivor and-" He stopped as he patted my back. My spine felt even more weird... as if something was sticking out of it. I got out of Murr's gentle pat and took my vest and shirts off. My chest was normal, but looking at my back... again, I was about to shit myself. Protruding out of my spine was a row of red, short, sharp looking spines that went from the base of my neck all the way to the tip of my ass. "WHAT THE FUCK!?!?!?" I screamed. "WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME!?!?!?" It was there that Murr slapped me. "Get a hold of yourself!" He took a deep breath. "Look, it's nothing bad. You're a survivor. People who were on the verge of death on earth and are brought here get some... changes to them. Some are more subtle, and others are... well... not so." "W-what the hell? H-how do I-?" "Look, you can't get rid of it. It's now a part of you. And you're not alone here, there's others like you, some with... varying changes." "...Like what?" "You'll see for yourself." He patted my shoulder. "Look, if it makes you feel better, I can get you two major things that will make you look normal." "Really?" "Yep. A shirt that's bigger than what you wear, and sunglasses." "... Oh... I thought you meant-" "I ain't a miracle worker. That's the best I can do." He turned to the clock. "It's getting late. You should get some sleep, ya hear?" "Uh... yeah... right." "Hey." "Yeah?" "You're safe now. Nothing's gonna hurt ya." I smiled a bit. His words were pretty genuine. I know I'm new, but this seemed to be a good place to be in for a bit. I grabbed my stuff, throwing my ruined shirts away, but keeping my pants on. The spines on my back went down as I rested on my bed. I was giving myself the chills. Was this going to be similar to X-Men in a way? I'm one of many mutants, who may be in hiding as we speak. ... I just hope someone isn't going to become like Magneto and think all people who aren't survivors like us need to die.