//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Seeing without eyes. // Story: The Long Way Home // by HyperRandomness //------------------------------// Hi-Rez stood at the train station, eyeing one train in particular as he stood on the boarding platform. His green eyes weren’t looking at anything, but instead, just staring straight ahead with a blank look. He spoke aloud, “So, Lens, this is it, huh?” Hi-Rez, or Rez as his friends called him, was two-thirds of a hoof taller than most ponies, and his unusual eyes made him stand out further. He didn’t seem to have pupils, but instead, almost seemed to have a continuation of his irises, which was very unusual. His average unicorn horn stood out of his brown mane, which had peculiar yellow stripes running through them, almost resembling veins. They shone like the morning sun, and almost seemed to emit magic energy. His dark yellow body and pointed ear added to his unusual appearance, but that was not the end of the strangeness of his look. He wore an orange, striped vest with a large turned-down collar and a single vest pocket, where a roll of film jutted out. His orange hooves added to the curiousness of his image, with his tail looking as strange as his mane. The one thing that REALLY stood out, however, was the thing he did not have. His cutie mark. Being a photographer and being blind at the same time wasn’t easy, so he was sure he would have gotten his mark simply by being able to make manageable photos without his eyes. Yeah, you heard me. Hi-Rez, the photographer, is blind. He’d been blind ever since he was birthed, which the doctors attributed to an infected gene. With the help of his Mother and Father, and a bit of whimsical magic invention, he manages to get along just fine. He also owes a huge portion of his navigation skills to Lens Cap, who was his assistant in his business. He and Lens Cap had grown quite fond of each other, and became great friends while working in the same line of business. Unfortunately for him, Lens Cap was moving away today. “Yeah, I guess so,” came her response. Lens Cap was average pony height, with plain blue eyes and a dark gray-blue coat. Her mane was a ruffled and messy teal, as was her tail. The only other defining characteristics about her were her cutie mark and her bodily structure. As far as a cutie mark went, it was a normal camera with a lens cap over the lens, which matched her name, and ability to mess up pictures in the most peculiar of ways. Her bodily structure, however, was very refined, unlike her personality. Personality aside, though, Lens Cap was very slim and slender, which drew the eyes of a lot of colts and stallions. It couldn’t draw the eyes of Hi-Rez though, seeing as he was blind. “I’m gonna miss you.” she said unwittingly, quickly putting a hoof over her mouth as though trying to undo what she had just said. Hi-Rez looked onward; the same vacant stare in his eyes. A short look of sadness swept over his face as he said, “Yeah, I’ll miss you too. You were a great business partner, and I’m sure we’ll meet again.” He casually turned his head to the right to face her, simply out of habit and respect, but ended up looking too high. “A little further down.” Lens Cap corrected out of habit. Hi-Rez looked down and, although he was staring at her neck now, she felt a little more comforted by him at least looking at her. “Just as handsome as ever…” she said quietly, and then realizing what she had said, she immediately covered her mouth again. “What was that? I couldn’t hear you.” Hi-Rez asked, a look of confusion coming across his face. In all honesty, Hi-Rez knew exactly what she said, but he just wanted to be sure she didn’t say it by accident. He hoped she didn't say it by accident. “Nothing!” she quickly blurted, before gently adding, “Nothing at all.” Hi-Rez let out a small sigh. Okay, so that WAS by accident, he thought sadly to himself. The train’s whistle blew as a pony announced, “All aboard! All aboard!” Hi-Rez went back to an appearance of sadness, in which Lens followed suit. “I’ll see you again, some day.” Lens Cap said, gently putting a hoof to Hi-Rez’s cheek. Hi-Rez stuck out a hoof to do the same, but missed entirely. He fumbled around in the air for a moment before his hoof connected with her back, which he gently patted. “Have a fun time, and don’t forget about me!” he said with a grin, then taking his hoof off her back. “You too. Goodbye, Rez.” Lens said, a hint of longing in her voice. She turned to leave, but quickly turned back, pecked Rez on the cheek, and then boarded the train in a hurry. Hi-Rez just stood there, his face redder than Big Macintosh as the train took off. A massive grin spread across his face for a moment, but it quickly disappeared and was replaced with a frown. Well, I guess I won’t be seeing her for awhile… better find my way home, he thought to himself, before his horn began to glow. A small rod of magical energy appeared in front of him, and it began prodding at the ground in front of him. By extension, Hi-Rez could feel was the rod was poking, so he could tell if he was going to run into something. He turned to leave, and started to make his way home. He had a general idea of the layout of ponyville, but he occasionally stopped to audibly ask where he was, asking for directions to where he was headed next. This was not the case this time, however, as he knew his way from the train station to his house. He knew he was approaching his house when he heard the noises his neighbor mowing his lawn. His neighbor was the only pony in ponyville who cared for his lawn every single day, probably because his neighbor’s special talent was plant care. Hi-Rez found his way inside, and let his magic walking stick dissipated. He was met with a friendly greeting from his Mom, to which he responded “Hi, Mom. Lens Cap left today, so now I’m out a business partner… and a friend.” a bereaved look came over his face, to which his Mom responded by embracing him in a warm hug. “Oh, I’m so sorry, Hi-Rez. It’ll be alright; you can find a new partner and make new friends.” These reassuring words helped to put Rez back in a happy mood, which was apparent as a smile spread across his face. He brought up his own hooves to return the hug, his silence being all the response his Mom needed. He squeezed out of the hug and started to feel the floor, searching for the surface that would take him to the restroom. After finding it, he quickly went inside to freshen up and relieve himself, seeing as he had waited a long time at the train depot. After washing up and taking a short shower, he nearly slipped and fell on the wet floor, but managed to steady himself before tripping. He re-styled his mane and, when he thought it looked good enough, even though he couldn’t tell, he got his vest back on and found his way to his bedroom. He used a spell he had invented, a recall spell, which teleported his camera to him from his headboard. He enveloped it in a green aura, and then found his way back to the door. “I’m heading out Mom! Gonna go take some pictures.” His Mom replied with a simple, “Stay safe and have fun!” as he departed. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi-Rez walked through the streets, then set up a small stand at what he figured to be the center of town. A sign on the front of the stand said: PHOTOS: 1 BIT. Hi-Rez stood happily at the stand, with a small background hanging over two stands, with a stool for ponies to sit on in front of it. He casually sat on a stool of his own in front of the stand, with his camera set up on a tripod next to him. There didn’t seem to be a lot of customers that day, but every now and again a pony would walk up and request a picture, usually with another pony. Without any argument, Hi-Rez happily picked up his camera, used his magic walking stick to position himself on a stool across from the background, and then held up his camera. He knew what way to point it so the picture would come out evenly, and he set it up in that way so the picture would not be rejected. Hi-Rez waited for a moment before asking, “Ready?” to the couple, who responded simultaneously, “Yes.” Hi-Rez clicked the ‘take picture’ button on his camera, and a small light went off with a click. A slight buzz was heard as a picture printed shortly thereafter from the camera, which he telekinetically grabbed automatically. He then used his magic walking stick to maneuver back to the stand, where he placed the picture. He waited for a short moment, and two sets of hoofsteps were heard walking up to the stand. Hi-Rez spoke with a minute amount of excitement and pleasure, “That’ll be one bit, please.” The clatter of a coin dropping on the counter was heard, which Hi-Rez poked around to find by using telekinesis. He quickly located the bit and placed it under the counter, where a bag full of bits resided. The bit found its happy home at the top of the bag. He could hear the couple picking up the photo, so he happily chimed, “Thank you, and have a great day! If you’re happy with the service provided, please come back again soon! Tell all your friends!” The couple walked away, cooing over each other and how great they looked in the picture. Hi-Rez’s ears fell slightly, only to perk back up with a grin. Looking sad on the job was bad for business, as he had learned the hard way once before. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi-Rez had several customers that day, but he could soon feel the warmth of the sun departing. He folded up his tripod-mount and picked up his camera with his telekinetic grip, then did the same for the pouch containing his profits of the day. He then used his magic to summon his magic walking stick, and began navigating the path back to his home, leaving his stand, well, standing. As he slowly made his way back to his house, he felt a tapping on his shoulder. He instinctively turned his head towards the unknown tapping, asking, “Yes?” Then a hoof met his face, and he went out faster than the flash bulb on his camera. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AUTHOR'S NOTE: I am SO sorry about this chapter being so short! Next chapter should be pretty lengthy. Questions, comments, and spelling corrections are appreciated!