“Color?”
Night opened the door, bringing light into the pitch-black room. Covers sprawled all over the bed with a small mound in the center where a faint sob could be heard.
Color had been home for a month from the hospital. Their mom died two months ago. The time had taken its toll on the three of them as this wasn’t the first time Night and Dad noticed Color away in her room for a while.
Night walked up to the bed and sat down on it. The squeeze of the bed alerted the mound, causing it to stir. “Color?”
“What?” she sniffled back in the midst of her sobs.
“Um…” He breathed in and out, pushing past his own pain for a moment. “You can’t hide in your room all day. Dad and I miss you, you know?”
She squirmed some more before falling silent. After a pause, he laid down on the bed next to the mound. “You know Dad and I are sad too. If anypony is sad, it’d definitely be Dad.”
Another pause. “Is it…” she sobbed again, “...gonna happen to us?”
Night placed his hoof on the mound. It squirmed for a second before settling down. “The truth is… it will.” He rubbed the mound. “But it won’t happen for a long time. At least, I won’t let it happen.”
She poked her muzzle out of the covers and let out a sniffle. “What if it did? What would I do?”
He pulled his chest closer to her muzzle, curling around the mound. “Dad will still be here, and don’t forget about the Cakes too. They’d be kind enough to take you in. Even if they aren’t around, somepony is bound to step up.”
“B-b-but, what if nopony helps me?” she stuttered.
“Then you’ll have to ask for it. More importantly…” he wrapped his forelegs around her head and squeezed “…we have to be strong.”
“I know, but it’s hard”
“Do you remember the story of Ulysses, about how he came to Equestria and uncovered a massive evil hidden within it. It is said that he was cast aside by the ponies of the time and had to work in secret to cast out the evil. Imagined being thrown aside because you revealed the truth.”
Color pressed her head into his chest, easing her sobbing. Night squeezed in return, shedding tears along with her. “We have to be strong just like he was. Even if it’s hard, even if it hurts, even if we cry, we have to be strong.”
“I don’t know if I can,” she whimpered.
“Yes, you can,” he sniffled back. “Even if you feel it’s impossible.”
— — —
“Be careful, those things are important.”
The nurse pony’s magical aurora enveloped a stitching needle, slowly guiding it through the cut in Saul’s hand. Her sagging eyes and constant stare reeked of frustration. “Sorry, but I’m doing what I can.”
Saul chuckled. “Treat it like you would a face.”
“Uh-huh,” she sighed, sticking the needle back in his hand.
With a jolt, Saul pulled his hand away causing the nurse pony to jump too. “Shit, too deep,” he grunted.
She sat down and took a breather. “It’s fine… it’s fine.”
“Just saying, it’s sensitive.”
She levitated the needle and brought it close to the hand again. “Yeah, right.”
“I mean, they actually have to be for how much we use them.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” she muttered, carefully guiding the needle into his hand. Within five minutes and a bandage later, Saul’s hand was stitched up and ready to check out.
Moving to the front desk, the nurse pony read off her clipboard. “Keep it covered but replace the bandages tomorrow. Keep it moist and watch for any infe…”
“I know the drill,” Saul interrupted.
“I figured.” She dropped her clipboard and took a sip of her coffee. “Anyway, you’re all set.”
Saul nodded back along with a small wave before stepping towards the door. Commotion from outside the door caused him to slow his steps. With a crash, an emergency stretcher rushed through the doors and past him, forcing him to step aside. On it was a stallion with a dark grey coat but light blue hair, similar to Color’s. He shook his head, deciding not to assume anything too quickly. Turning towards the door, he saw a police pony holding Color up and guiding her to a seat. Dashing over to her, he assisted the police pony and laid her down on a bench.
“Color, you okay?”
The police pony interrupted. “She’s nearly passed out. Talkin’ won’t do much good.”
Saul nodded, pressing his fingers to her neck. “Her pulse is strong.” He quickly scanned her body. “No obvious signs of trauma or damage.”
“The doctor will take a look at her, but from what I can see, she’ll be fine.”
Saul stood up and looked at the police pony. “Who’s the stallion.”
He looked down, glancing at Color. “Her father, unfortunately.”
Leaving the police pony with Color, Saul darted out of the lobby, slowing down to a brisk walk in the hallways. A single room was lit at that hour with hospital staff moving in and out of it. He walked over and stood beside the doorway, listening in on the staff.
“...minor injuries mostly. Some cuts, scrapes, and a few bruises but no visible damage.”
“Broken bones?”
“Nothing either visible or life-threatening.”
“Ribs?”
“Possible but his respiratory system seems fine.”
“Could be internal bleeding. We’ll check for that after this. Anything else I should know?”
“Yeah, for some reason his cutie mark isn’t there.”
“That’s odd,” the pony doctor noted as Saul muttered a “fuck” underneath his breath. He pulled out a meter from his pocket before taking a deep breath and walking in the room.
The doctor pony stared at him as the nurse pony rolled her eyes muttering “what now?”
“You said he’s missing his cutie mark, right?” Saul asked.
The nurse pony sighed. “Yeah, what about it?”
He walked up to the bed, placed his meter on the stallion’s chest, and saw a number he didn’t want to see. “If this is what I think it is, he doesn’t have long to live.”
— — —
Color awoke the next morning in a hospital bed. The clock next to her read 11:34. The prior night hadn’t fully registered to her, even though she remembered passing out on her way to town with Dad on her back. Any more complex thoughts failed to materialize, leaving her with a dull and emotionless face. Within minutes, the nurse pony came into the room.
Color kept her head down. “Am I hurt?”
“No, actually,” she replied, rolling a breakfast cart into the room. “Just a few cuts that were already bandaged.”
“Huh.” Color looked away. “And my dad?”
The nurse took in a deep breath. “He’s in the ICU but is currently in stable condition.”
“I-i-is he gonna be alright?”
“I don’t know.” She pushed the cart in front of Color. “I’d eat. I know I’d be starving if I were you.”
Color nodded as the nurse pony left the room. She ate what was in front of her, burying her thoughts for the time being. She tried to think, but the onslaught of events failed to compute. As far as she could tell, her future was pure uncertainty.
Some fifteen minutes later, Saul entered the room. The sight of him hammered the reality in.
“Color?”
She kept her head down, refusing to look at him. Walking beside her, he pulled up a chair and sat down next to her bed. “I thought it’d be proper to give you an explanation since the doctor is busy and I’ve been looking into this for the last couple of years.”
She let out a light “hmm.”
“First things first, your dad isn’t going to die yet. You bringing him to the hospital along with the doctor being on point last night prevented that, even if he isn’t in good condition.”
She let out a deep sigh of relief. Knowing that she wouldn’t be alone softened much of the distress.
“Now onto the complicated part. What do you know about cutie marks?”
She paused. “What?”
“I’m serious.”
She put a hoof to her chin. “Um, they represent a pony’s special trait or talent, right?”
He nodded. “Anything else?”
“I don’t know. It’s not like it was a complicated subject in school.”
“I wouldn’t expect it to be.” He sat up straight. “But what your teacher didn’t tell you was that the mark doesn’t just represent your talents. It actually distributes magic across your body and uses that magic to amplify your talents. Moreover, it’s what allows pegasi to fly with such small wings and unicorns to cast spells with their horns. It’s why us humans consider it one of the strongest forms of magic.”
That all made sense. “So, what about it?”
He paused. “What if I told you that you could separate it from your body and harness its power.”
“Wait, is that what Meaty did?”
He nodded. “Believe it or not, but that large meat cleaver was his cutie mark. But to avoid confusion, we call them Fate Dances when separated, and their users, Fate Dancers.” He leaned forward. “However, separating the cutie mark from your body carries a risk. Without it distributing magic throughout your body, your organs and muscles slowly suffocate. If left unchecked, you will die.”
She froze, realizing what it meant with her dad.
He continued. “Fate Dancers have ways to avoid this with partial releases and such. Regarding your dad, his full Fate Dance was released, and according to most Fate Dancers, that means he has twenty-four hours to live.”
A tear swelled in her eye.
“Luckily, the doctor knows a spell that bathes him in magic, delaying his death for at least two weeks. It won’t get him out of his coma though. I made arrangements this morning for a more long term solution but it won’t be ready for a week and I’ll have to travel to the Crystal Empire to get it.”
Tears fell down her face. Even though her dad could survive this, chance had already played its hand. She buried her face with her hooves as Saul put a hand on her shoulder. “What am I gonna do?”
“I’ll do what I can.”
She sniffled. “I know, it’s just…” she wiped a tear running down her cheek, “…I don't know where to go or what to do or how I’m gonna…”
“Shh…” Saul put a finger on her lips. “Tomorrow will take care of itself. Just get through today.”
She nodded, letting out another sniffle. He sat with her for five minutes as she calmed down. Once she cried herself out, he stood up and turned toward the door. “I’ll be here at the Inn till Friday next week. Go there if you need me.”
She nodded as he walked out of the room. Laying back down, she let her mind wander. Her brother was still missing and she had no idea what happened to him. Dad getting hurt was one thing, but Night not being around was devastating. She didn’t mention it to Saul, but that’s what hurt the most. She tried to divert her attention from her grief to what Night would do if he was with her. He was always there for her, telling her to be strong and cunning just like Ulysses was. What did it matter though? She couldn’t bring him back even if she went looking for him. She didn’t have unicorn magic of the swiftness of a pegasus. She wasn’t even as strong as most earth ponies. She was just an artist who could paint and do nothing more.
But Saul wasn’t.
A crazy idea came to her head. After two seconds of pondering, she decided to go with it. Hopping out of bed, she ran out of the door, through the hallway, down the stairs, and into the lobby. Saul wasn’t there.
Not giving in, she ran past the nurse pony and through the doors. Outside, she scanned the area for Saul, seeing him down the road. “Saul!” she muttered as she dashed toward him. “Saul!”
He stopped and turned around as Color slowed, panting in front of him. After a couple of breaths, she breathed in and looked at him. “Take me with you. Also, teach me human magic.”
He stood frozen for a few seconds.
“What?”
“I’m serious,” she pleaded.
He sighed. “First of all, you don’t need to come. Second, I don’t even know if ponies can learn our magic.”
“Give me a chance. And it’s not just about my dad. I need it for my brother.”
“Your brother?”
“He went missing last night probably from the same ponies that hurt my dad.”
He looked around. “Damn, can you get a break?”
“I’m just an artist earth pony. If I want to get him back, I need to become strong.”
He pondered for a couple of seconds. Letting out a sigh, he walked up to her and reached into his jacket. Kneeling in front of her, he handed her a weird piece of clothing. “Take this and put it on.”
She grabbed it with teeth and slipped on her hoof. Five digits flopped around her hoof.
“It’s called a glove, by the way. This one has something special on its palm though.” He adjusted the glove until a circle with three spiraling lines revealed itself. He then held out his own hand with his palm facing up and a pen resting on it. Suddenly, a similar circle appeared on his palm and the pen levitated in the air without any aurora. “If you can float this pen by Thursday, I’ll let you go with me.”
Color nodded as he placed the pen on her hoof and walked away. She sat there staring at the pen. How the hell was she supposed to do that?
— — —
Color checked out of the hospital later that day since she had no serious injuries. After hearing the news, the Cakes offered to take her in as her dad recovered. She couldn't bear to enter her home that day, even going as far as to buy a new paintbrush and gallon of clear acrylic varnish for the mural. Even with the materials, she just stared at the wall. A nagging voice inside her also reminded her that she should wait a week for the paint to fully dry, which she used to justify her idleness. That night, she pulled out the glove and tried her hardest to levitate the pen. But no matter how much she tensed up, grunted, and yelled, the pen laid flat on her hoof.
The next day, she worked up to helping the Cakes here and there with their bakery, but she still didn’t touch the wall. By evening, she worked up the courage to visit Dad.
Upon entering the hospital room, she saw him lying on a hospital bed motionless except for a gradual rise and fall of the blankets. The pony doctor sat beside him with a newspaper in hoof, his glowing horn enveloping Dad’s body in magic. She slowly approached him, not sure what to say.
“He’s alright if you were wondering,” the doctor interjected. “As long as I do this three times a day for ten minutes.”
She nodded, taking a deep breath. “Th-thank you.”
“No,” he paused. “I was told you carried him all the way from your home to here.” He closed his newspaper. “Or at least close enough for somepony to notice. In that case, thank you.”
A buzzer on the nightstand dinged as the doctor’s aurora dissipated. He slid out of his chair and passed by Color, pausing just behind her. “He wouldn’t be alive if it weren’t for you, you know.”
He closed the door behind her, darkening the room. Standing there, she looked around the room not knowing what to do. Her eyes shifted to Dad as tears filled them up. She placed her hoof on him and rested her head on his chest, feeling its steady rise and fall. She told herself he’d be okay, trying to believe her own words.
The next two days consisted of Color helping out the Cakes during the day, frustration with trying to levitate the pen, and an insistence on staying away from her home. Her work for the Cakes centered around cleaning and final decorative work on food (relatively mindless work for her). Each night, she grunted and yelled trying to get the pen to levitate but to no avail. Mrs. Cake reminded her both days that she should stop by her home, assuring her that it’d be okay and help her move forward.
“I just need some time away from there,” Color would answer.
“I understand, but it won’t go away if you ignore it.”
“I know, I know. I just need to not fall apart for a day.”
“Falling apart hurts, but it can also help you stand.”
“I know, but I just want to feel like my world isn’t gonna collapse for once.”
Wednesday evening after the store closed, Color ran to the local hobby store and bought a sketchbook and pencil. Painting, or even just drawing in this case, would calm her down; she knew this as fact.
That night when she would’ve battled the glove, she sat down and sketched a picture of two ponies playing with a ball. Halfway through, she took a break and set the sketchbook down only to notice a faint feeling in her mouth. After a few seconds it dissipated, so she picked up her sketchbook and shrugged it off as something weird. After another few minutes of drawing, she noticed it again, dropping her sketchbook and pencil. It felt so familiar, but she couldn’t remember what it was. For a third time, she picked up her sketchbook and pencil and continued to draw, paying attention to her mouth. Within a minute, the feeling returned causing her to sit back and ponder what it was. She closed her eyes and thought about sketching and the feeling returned. Pushing it further, she thought about grasping a large brush with her hoof and painting a wall and within seconds, the feeling manifested in her hoof too.
A crazy idea came to her head. She tossed her sketchbook aside, grabbed the glove, and stretched it over her hoof. After placing the pencil on it, she closed her eyes and thought about painting again. A faint ringing tickled her ears as she squinted open her eyes. The circle glowed a faint blue causing light to shoot down the spirals and combine in the center. Then the pencil slowly lifted up above the glove, just as it did for Saul.
She forgot about the feeling, causing the glow to stop and the pencil to fall back on the glove. Dropping the pencil, she realized it would actually happen. She would leave in two days.
— — —
“Some of my colleagues finally got back to me,” the police pony began as Saul entered his office. “Close the door behind you, by the way.”
Saul complied, lightly shutting the door to minimize attention before sitting down. “And what did they say?”
“So, you know that human that supposedly traveled with Meaty?”
“I remember you mentioning that.”
“Well, reports say that there has been a human figure clothed in white and black robes seen all over Equestria. Canterlot, Manehattan, Crystal Empire, the Forest, and most recently around here with Meaty, although not much is known as to why he’s going to these places. What we do know is who he’s talking to.”
“And who’d that be?”
“Criminal organizations, government officials, business executives, there’s honestly quite a few and we don’t know what kind of relationship any of them have with the guy.”
Saul nodded. “I leave tomorrow. Anyone I should be aware of.”
“Crystal Empire, right? In that case, I’d look into Ms. Cadence.” The police pony tossed him a picture of a pony unicorn with a pink coat and light orange hair. “She runs a small theatre in the shopping district. But rumors say she does a lot more than just that.”
Saul slipped the photo into his pocket before standing up to leave the room. “I’ll look into it.”
“If we had a detective here, I’d look into myself. Unfortunately, our town’s a bit too small.”
Saul nodded reaching to open the door.
“One more thing,” the police pony interjected. Saul paused. “I heard you offered to take Color with you if she could do something with a glove. Am I right?”
“Did that really get out?”
“She did make a scene of it. I also have lots of friends.”
“What about it?”
“Do you actually plan on taking her?”
Saul paused. “I’ve never seen a pony do what I asked her to do.”
“What if she could? What would that mean?”
He sighed. “It wouldn’t mean something good, but I’d have to look into it.”
The police pony nodded as Saul left the room and headed outside. What he didn’t expect to find was Color eagerly waiting in the lobby. Upon seeing him, she darted to him and fished out the glove from her saddlebag.
“Saul! Saul, I searched for you at the Inn but you weren’t there. I need to show you something!” She slipped the glove onto her hoof and placed a pencil on it. Closing her eyes, the circle on the glove glowed as the pencil levitated above the glove.
Saul peeked to the side, noticing that her paintbrush cutie mark was still on her flank. He didn’t know much more about cutie marks than what he already told Color. So when he knew that human magic was mostly incompatible with ponies, and that cutie mark was the reason, he didn’t know why. Luckily, where he planned to go in the Crystal Empire could answer these questions.
She didn’t open her eyes yet. “I-i-is it working?”
“See for yourself,” he noted.
She opened her eyes and saw the pencil floating above her hoof. Just as she nearly squeed, the pencil fell down and off her hoof. Saul chuckled under his breath.
“Um, do I still get to go?”
Saul smiled. “Pack your bags, I don’t exactly know how long we’ll be gone.”