//------------------------------// // Timelit // Story: Autumn // by canonkiller //------------------------------// SUMMER (ONE YEAR LATER) "C'mon, Obsidian! You're such a slowpoke!" "That hardly seems fair!" He replied, pouncing on Sunrise's back. "After all, I am superior to you in every way!" "Go soak your head." She laughed. Rolling out from under him, she stayed on her back, looking up at the clear sky - well, as clear as tyedye could get - and falling silent. "What's up?" He asked, gently sliding a wing under her back as he lay down as well. "Was it something I did?" "Huh? Oh no, nothing about you. Just... I don't know." "No, tell me. I won't laugh. Promise." Sunrise sighed. "It just seems like what we did was all for nothing. We were never in immediate danger before, and we still aren't. But things are still going wrong. Albeit the fact that Ponyville has been restored to it's former glory... oh, never mind." "You think we were just wasting time. Time, effort, etcetera. I can understand that. Nothing new's been done, no danger... no excitement, really. Just boring, everyday life." Obsidian glanced over at her. "What? A guy can't have insightful thoughts once in a while?" "No, not at all. Just that you... nailed what I was thinking." "Ah. I was wondering why I was suddenly seeing myself as sexy." He smiled and flexed one arm. He stopped when Sunrise glared at him. "Ah... haha... yeah, not funny. I agree. Kinda. Anyway, we could go for a walk or something. Visist Canterlot. Or Appleloosa. Or... oh, I don't care. Wherever, I guess." "I appreciate your... input, however useless it may be." Sunrise sighed. "I just... well, I was thinking..." "What?" She blushed and muttered something under her breath. "I can't hear you. Speak up a little." "I... like you..." "Is that it?" She shook her head. "No... I like you... and... will..." Obsidian had to keep himself from asking her to hurry up. A blush this deep had to mean something. "Will..." She paused, and seemed to lose her resolve. "Oh... never mind." "Wait. I think I know where this is going. Crap, I thought I was going to beat you to the punch. Ah, well. Late than never," Sunrise tilted her head as he sat up and began shuffling through spacetime. After all, it was a good place to store stuff. He grinned and pulled something out, closing his hand quickly and hiding whatever it was behind his back. "Let's go for a walk." He added. "Right now." "Um... okay?" Sunrise awkwardly got up, following him into the Everfree edge - only just beginning to recover from the strong magic that had destroyed all of it. After a little while of silence, he turned and headed deeper, looking back occasionally to make sure she was following. The trees thinned even further, revealing a meadow with a crystal clear pond. Hearing Sunrise's gasp, he walked up to the edge of the pond and sat down. "I didn't want to show you this until I was sure." Sunrise sat down beside him. "Sure of what?" Obsidian looked over and smiled, finally moving his paw to where she could see it. "I was waiting to be sure..." He crouched down in front of her, hooking his claws into whatever was in his hand and opening it. "...Sunrise... will you marry me?" Her mouth opened and closed a few times. "O-O-Obsidian..." "Oh... I'm sorry..." He closed his talons again. "We can stay friends?" "Yes." "That's good. I'm okay with being friends... I guess." "No... I'll marry you." She smiled. Obsidian blushed and reopened the case, slipping the shimmering ring on Sunrise's claw. The second he moved his hand away, Sunrise grabbed him in a hug and kissed him. Kha's eye twitched. Emotions were flooding his system. Friggin' emotions. He closed his eyes, shaking his head, trying to dislodge the pressure. "Hrrrnnngh!" He groaned, pain beginning to take place of annoyance. "Obsidian... I could have sworn I broke our connection... damn..." A fresh wave of love and pleasure slammed into him, crumpling him to his knees. "HEY! WHATEVER YOU'RE DOING, STOP IT! For... your own... good..." Another crushing pulse. "The... PICTURES!" Kha screamed. "You IDIOT! If you don't stop, you'll see ALL OF THEM! CAN YOU HEAR ME? ...Idiot... I can't even friggin' get away." The same rythmic surge flattened him further, shearing away power and resolve. Tiny nicks growing ever closer to splitting. Ever so close... Obsidian lifted his chest from Sunrise's. "Something feels weird." "What else is new?" "No, just... wait. Be quiet for a second." He lifted his head, looking around. After a few moments, "Is someone coming?" "I don't think so... must have been hearing thi-" His sentence cut off as he fell sideways, paws pressed against his head, tiny trails of blood beginning to drip from his ears. His mouth opened and closed silently as the rets of him writhed, back claw digging into the ground. "Obsidian! What's wrong?! Obsidian! Obsidi..." Then his senses folded shut. What was this?! There was blood all over his feet, metal shards whipped through the air, bodies of things that reminded him of himself falling down, screaming and clutching at their bleeding chests, allies turning away to do the same to the enemy... The ground was dry, crackled under his feet, while spindly, leafless excuses for trees provided meager shade for thousands of people thin as his wrists... Water surged through the fragile houses, ripping them out of the ground and slamming them into other houses, trees... A massive storm tore through a seaside town, throwing anything in it's path aside. The air went still for a moment as the eye hit, and every single deathly remnant became crystal clear... "Obsidian! Talk to me! What's wrong?" Sunrise had magicked him to the ground, keeping him from flailing. His eyes were still shut, and the crimson flow has increased dramatically. And then everything just... stopped. Obsidian froze. There were a few moments of silence with the lack of agonized moans before Obsidian's eyes slowly opened again. But they didn't look like his eyes. They looked... soulless. There was nothing in them to pull away from the illusion of an endless pit, and seemed to even command that falling effect. His coat slowly turned pristine white, emitting a thick fog of the same colour. Sunrise backed away, fearing for his life over hers. The smoke can terrifyingly close, brushing up around her ankles. She fell forward as the joints mentioned went numb, and struggled to keep her head free. She was fighting a losing battle. "Obsidian! I love you!" The smoke coiled around her neck and head like a snake, coating all of her senses in a sticky, static white before moving into her mind as well. And it kept going. Kha cried, clawless hooves dragging across the ground. The ground he had killed.