//------------------------------// // Cracked Barriers // Story: Contrast // by Golden Cake //------------------------------// When I opened my eyes, after who knows how long, I saw that I wasn’t in the men’s bathroom anymore. I was soaking wet, laying in a small pond looking up at a bright blue sky, the gentle sunlight beating down on my skin as a cooling breeze brushed past me. The blinding light made me hiss in pain, before I briefly tried to focus on my surroundings. When I could barely see anything around me with my blurred vision, I weakly swam out of the pond, before I stood up. I shivered as I hugged myself with my hands, as I looked around and started to panic when nothing looked even remotely familiar. “Av-AVIANNA!!” I yelled loudly, before I suddenly got lightheaded and fell to my knees. “This, this can’t be real.” “I don’t like this…” I seemed to be in a disturbingly realistic hallucination. That seemed like the only possible explanation, aside from the possibility of me having actually died during the fight and this being some form of afterlife. But I was much more comfortable with the first thought. It’s not like there were any pretty countrysides near New York, so it’s not like someone brought me out here. Or even if someone did, why would they? Even though I was going with the assumption that this was all in my head, I was still terrified just by how real it felt, and throughout my panic I could hardly even form coherent thoughts in my head. I just wished that Avianna were here, and that she could somehow help me, in this strange, unfamiliar place that I was in… a-a hallucination? Afterlife? until I thought of a breathing technique that she had taught me about a year or two ago. Avianna had always known that I was the kind of person to freak out about REALLY small stuff in life. It was easy for my whole mood to be thrown off just because of one awkward encounter with someone else, or because I’d take someone else’s remark on my shirt too personally or something like that, so this whole situation was prompting a nasty mental breakdown. I’ve been working at improving my stress, but I still have my anxious moments, like anyone else. Her technique used to really help me with giving speeches in front of my classes at school, and other stressful moments like that, so I tried doing it now. I laid down on my back on the soft grass and shut my eyes, as I recited the steps of the technique in my head, in Avianna’s voice. “Ok… just forget all of your stress little bro… think of something better… something calming, and take slow… soft… breaths. In… and out… in… and out… in… and out…” I repeated this in my head for a few moments, as I pictured myself laying on a sunny beach, with the sensations of sand under my back, as I thought of the sounds of gentle waves splashing, until my breathing had slowed and my heart rate had calmed down somewhat, before opened my eyes and stood up, looking around at my surroundings, and being sure to try to keep my breathing under control as I did so. My vision was still blurry, but it was getting a bit better, and I could make out that I was in some kind of… farm, with lots of apple trees. As I looked around, I nearly jumped when I heard feminine voices coming from beyond a nearby hill. I smiled, as I ran in the direction of the voices, before I got to the top of the hill and looked down to where the voices where coming from, only to see what was quite literally the last thing I’d expected to see. There were two weirdly colored horses… ponies it seemed, based on their smaller size, talking to each other. This was… beyond unnatural, but even without their unusual colors, they really didn’t look like any normal ponies I’d seen before. For starters, they had unnaturally large eyes, that shined in a strangely human kind of way, and they had little symbols on their butts, which was quite unusual. What seemed to be the weirdest thing though, was that these two… creatures, were talking to each other. Actually TALKING!! I took a step back, my breath getting slightly faster, as I was unsure if I even wanted to get involved in… whatever this was, before I thought of Avianna, and how I didn’t want to just back away from my fears like how I did with her. I then stopped myself from backing up, and slowed my breathing, as I looked to the two creatures with as much determination as I could muster, before I took slow, shaky steps forward as I walked toward them, as they continued talking, their voices becoming easier to hear the closer I got. “Look, ah’m glad the princess sent you here to test this spark of yer’s, Lucky,” the light brown creature said in a southern accent. “But just try to control it a bit better. It just seems kind of random.” “It’s not random, Applejack!” The bright purple one responded. “I know my spark is connected to ponies I can help, I just need to get the hang of it…” Their voices were becoming even more audible as I got closer, and passed a few apple trees, which made me wonder if I should hide behind one of them. “I should hide… I don’t like this!” “NO!! Just c-calm down, these… things seem to have conscious thought, maybe they can help!” “…Okay, I’ve got no choice, the best I can hope for is that these two… creatures can at least help me find out where I am.” When I was closer to them, but still far enough away that I could run if I needed to, I cleared my throat politely, which caused them both to look in my direction, their eyes widening when they saw me. “Umm, hello? …I think I’m lost, could one of you please tell me where I am?” I asked nervously. After a few moments of them merely staring at me, they looked at each other, before the light brown one stepped closer to me, as the purple one looked down at the floor, seemingly in deep thought. “Uhhh… sure, partner! You’re in Sweet Apple Acres, my cozy little apple farm here in Ponyville!!” She said politely. I raised an eyebrow, confused, until I shook my head and shifted my expression to something more polite. “Ermm, Ponyville? I’m sorry, but I don’t understand… what is this place? And how are you… talking?” She looked confused, before she looked back at the other purple creature, as the purple one’s eyes widened, as if she’d just realized something, before she looked at me. The purple one then stepped forward and spoke. “You… you don’t know? You’re in Equestria. I’ve never seen a creature like you, but you’ve lived here you’re whole life haven’t you?” She asked quickly. I shook my head. “No… I uhh, I used to live in New York.” They tilted their heads, and I was worried by how much I was needing to specify. “You know, New York city?” They still looked confused, as my fear started too creep it’s way back into me. “Whe-where am I?!” I asked quickly. “We already told ya partner, you’re in Equestria,” the light brown one said. I put my hands over my face a second later, as I sat down and laid down on my back. “God, can this please just end? This hallucination feels WAY to real, and it’s VERY unsettling. Please God tell me I’m not dead… I can’t imagine what Avianna would feel…” I got a bit distracted from my thoughts when I felt something… what felt like a hoof, on my shoulder. I took my hands off of my face and looked to the purple creature who was laying next to me, looking at me with a worried, caring expression. “You… you’re not from this world, are you?” She asked sadly. I couldn’t think to do anything else but simply nod, which caused the purple pony to shut her eyes in what seemed to be sadness. “I’m sorry, but I think it’s my fault that you’re here.” My eyes widened as I sat up on my back and looked at her, as she opened her eyes to look back at me. “And I don’t know if I can send you back. At least not yet…” I raised an eyebrow, as I gave her a pleading look. “Why not?” I asked. She then stood up, and held out a hoof for me to grasp. “Because I’m not experienced enough with my spark to fully control it, but I will be soon. I promise.” I grabbed her hoof, as weird as it may have felt, as she helped pull me back onto my feet. “What’s a spark? And how did you even bring me here?” I asked. She opened her mouth to speak, before her gaze went from my eyes to the side of my head, as her eyes widened again. “Sweet Celestia, you’re bleeding!!” She said worriedly. After she said that I put my right hand to the side of my head, and was surprised when I saw quite a lot of blood on my fingers when I drew it back. “Hold on, ah’ve got some bandages in the house!!” The brown one said, as she ran into a nearby farmhouse, and gestured for us to follow. As we all entered the weirdly manmade looking farmhouse, I took a seat at a table in the kitchen, as the brown creature gave some bandages to the purple creature, who was in the seat next to mine inspecting the side of my head, and set a wet cloth down on the table. The light brown pony then ran through the kitchen and opened the front door, before she looked back at us. “Umm, I reckon I’ve got some chores to stay on top of,” she said. “Can you take care of him alone, Lucky?” The purple pony looked back at her for a second and nodded confidently, before she looked back at the side of my head and somehow used on of her hooves to grab the wet rag next to her. The light brown one then nodded back to her, and ran outside. When the door shut, the purple one started inspecting my wound more deeply, using her hooves to gently maneuver me at different angles, before she gently rubbed the side of my head with the rag, which made me involuntarily hiss in pain. “Sorry!! Sorry! I just… have to clean this wound…” she said, as she wiped the blood from the side of my head. “…This is pretty bad. What happened to you?” When she said that, my fist tightened in slight anger as I thought of the fight I had with Frank. “I was in a fight with a bully, and he was pretty tough,” I said slowly. “I can only imagine,” she said, as she moved her chair to be right in front of me, before she started wrapping a bandage around my head, whilst trying to keep it from blocking my eyes. “By the way, have you happened to have any temporary black spots on the outside of your field of vision, or had any blurry vision in general?” I looked down at the table for a second before I nodded. “Yeah… why?” I asked worriedly, afraid of what the answer would be. The purple creature was silent for a few seconds, before she sighed lightly, and spoke again. “Then I think you got a concussion, buddy.” I was confused for a moment, but when I remembered how harshly Frank had slammed the side of my head into the bathroom sink, it made some sense. “Sorry, I don’t know your name yet. Would you mind telling me?” She asked in a mind tone, as she finished with the first layer of bandages. “My uhh… my name is James Falter,” I said, as I blushed slightly from the sheer kindness of her tone. “What’s yours?” She smiled as she started applying the second layer. “My name is Lucky Trail,” she said jubilantly. I had to suppress a laugh, before I smiled at her, which caused her to smile back at me awkwardly. “What?” She laughed. “Nothing, nothing,” I said quickly. “It’s just, I’m not used to people having names like that… but I guess, you’re not really human are you?” I then tapped the table we were next to with my finger awkwardly, as my expression darkened a little, before she stopped applying the bandages and looked at me directly, which made me stop, as I looked into her vibrant, cyan eyes. “Hey buddy, it’ll be ok,” she said, smiling as she patted my shoulder with her hoof. “I will get you back home. That’s a promise.” I smiled. Even though she wasn’t human, this… pony… Lucky Trail, was really sweet. The last person I recall tending to any wounds I may have had in the past was my mother, before we lost her. Avianna always had my back of course, but most of the time she wasn’t that… motherly. As far as I can tell, she mostly just wanted me to be able to take care of myself, as she would show me how to, without offering any general assistance aside from tips and advice. Her method honestly wasn’t the easiest for me to follow. I love Avianna and respect her ways of helping me grow, but I’d be lying if I said I didn’t miss how mom used to take care of me, too, despite how childish that sounds. Lucky then went back to applying the last layer of bandages, before she spoke again. “But, if it’ll make you feel better, you could tell me some things about you’re world and I could tell you some things about mine? Would that help a little?” She asked, as she stopped applying the bandages briefly and tilted her head as she looked at me. I nodded. “Sure, I guess that would be nice,” I said. I then told her some things about my world. I told her about how humans are the dominant species, and the only species that can talk, among other things. And I also told her how I got here through something that looked like a crack in space and time. When she took in what I’d said, she returned the favor and told me some things about this world. She told me that I was in the lands of Equestria, a world filled with fantastical creatures and magic. It almost sounded too bizarre to be true, but based on the fact that she was a talking pony telling me this, I was willing to believe it. She also told me what ‘sparks’ are. “The concept of a ‘spark’ was discovered a long time ago, but only recently have ponies been giving it so much attention,” Lucky said, as she finished wrapping the last layer of bandages around my head and walked to the kitchen sink, filling two cups up with water, before she sat in the chair next to mine and placed one cup next to me. “Princess Celestia even made a… sort of school, for ponies to find their sparks.” She took a sip of her cup, and I did the same, before she shook her head and smiled shyly. “Anyways, as far as I know, a spark is basically a pony’s innate deepest form of magic, or their true passion in life, manifesting itself in the form of a new magical capability that supports that passion.” I looked at her curiously, before she got off of her seat for a moment and moved a bit to the side, showing me the symbol on the side of her flank, as I blushed. “It’s similar to what cutie marks represent, except it’s a bit deeper, and can be a bit more powerful than a simple talent,” she said, before she sat back down to face me. She then grinned slightly and looked up, before she raised her hooves up in the air. “I mean, look at this!! I can create rifts between different places… and even entirely different world’s! I have magic, even though I’m not a unicorn!!” She said, her eyes shining joyously at those last words. As if to accentuate her point, at that moment, a tiny purple and blue… ‘rift’ appeared in the air above us, opening and revealing what looked like the tall tree canopies of a jungle, or some kind of dense forest, as Lucky was visibly straining to keep it open, before it slowly shut, despite her determined efforts, and she face planted on the table, sweating bullets. “Man that must take a LOT out of her.” “Ih hnnyy hrks hf hhm hryhgg ho hhpp humhohy hho,” she mumbled incoherently, her face still flat on the table. As unexpected as it was, her silliness actually caused me to briefly laugh, for the first time in a while. Honestly, even back home, I’d been going through a pretty rough time in the past few months, but I was grateful that Lucky was able to make me laugh from something so… simple. “Huh?” I asked, smiling. She then raised her head once again and used her hooves to part her long black mane so it wasn’t blocking her eyes, as she looked at me and smiled. “I said that my spark is easier to use when I’m using my rifts to connect to somepony who needs my help,” she said, before her expression grew more sad. “I suppose with my training today, that somepony was you…” I looked out the window for a second, without actually looking at anything, before I looked back at her and gave her a small, assuring smile. “It’s… it’s ok. Just know that I’m not holding anything against you,” I said, before I put a hand to my chin in thought. “To be honest, if you hadn’t brought me here when you did… I don’t even want to think about what would’ve happened to me.” She looked at me curiously, but before she could ask me what I meant, I spoke again. “Erm, do-don’t worry about it, or anything,” I said, as I looked out the window, at the lush green fields of this beautiful, strange world. “Just know… that I’m grateful… for you helping me in this.” I turned my head to face her, as I looked into her eyes. “Thank you, Lucky.” She smiled, as she looked at me, before she looked out the window, too, a few seconds later. “You’re welcome, James. Anything for a friend.” I smiled, and we both then looked out the window for a while, before I felt a weird, tingling sensation on the palms of my hands. I raised my hands up and was surprised to see that two yellow, sparkly glow’s were forming on them, and wouldn’t come off, even when I shook my hands aggressively. Lucky noticed this a few seconds later and asked what was wrong. I looked at her and showed her my hands, as she held them in her hooves, looking at them curiously. “This looks like magic,” she said slowly. “…But how? You’re not a pony.” Before I had a chance to respond, the glowing faded just as quickly as it had appeared. “Hmm… how interesting. I’ll have to look into that,” she said quietly, almost to herself, before she looked back at me and stood up, before she headed for the door, using her head to gesture for me to follow. “I have an apartment near the school where I’m testing with my spark. Until I get you back to your world, you can think of it as your home away from home.” “Thanks Lucky,” I said simply, as I stood up and followed her. “You’re welcome buddy,” she said, as she held the door open for me. When we were leaving the farm, Lucky looked up at the sun’s position in the sky and said that she’d forgotten the time and that we needed to run to catch the next train for ‘Canterlot’, so I picked up the pace as I ran behind her.