//------------------------------// // Sci-Fi // Story: Speak Not Of The End Of The World // by Shaslan //------------------------------// “This club sucks.” “What?” “I said this club sucks!” “What?!” “Fucking. Never mind.” Strawberry slumped over and crossed her forelegs over her hoof in annoyance. To her right, Cherry scoffed, unamused by her girlfriend’s dramatics.  The mare to her left however showed far more concern. “Are you okay? Do I need to take you home?”  “I think she’s bored, Cheer,” Blossomforth said. Cheerilee seemed unconvinced, shining her penlight into Strawberry’s pupils. “Ow! I’m fine!” “Maybe she’ll cheer up with another drink,” chimed Redheart, her voice somehow booming loud over the music blasting over the club speakers. Strawberry shrugged, ambivalent.  “I don’t know if that’s the best idea,” Cheerilee muttered.  “Relax! I’m the medical student here, I got this. I’ll get waters too,” Redheart said, excusing herself from their booth and shoving her way to the bar.  Blossomforth slammed her hooves on the table, drawing everyone’s attention. “Hey, before I forget! I’ve got news!” She puffed her chest up and flared out her wings, almost smacking a drunken couple in the back as they passed by. “I’m signing up for the astronauts program!” Strawberry perked up and Cherry gasped. “Oh holy shit!” Strawberry said, suddenly invested again. “Damn! Congrats.” “That’s wild,” Cherry agreed. “I’m jealous! You’re going to be flying spaceships and stuff, huh?” “Yup! You should totally sign up too, Cherry, I mean you know more about flying than most pegasi around here,” Blossomforth said eagerly. Cheerilee cleared her throat. “I… don’t know if that’s such a good idea? For either of you.” Blossomforth tilted her head in confusion. “Why not? This whole blinking thing still hasn’t been solved, and I dunno if you noticed but it’s kinda just been getting worse. They need volunteers to figure this out, and I mean, we get to fly those cool new things they’re building!” “Spaceships, yes, I just… It’s dangerous,” Cheerilee said, a lull in the music allowing her to return to her normal speaking voice. “I mean so much of this is untested! I just feel like they’re rushing this for answers, but they need to make sure that all these new inventions are safe. Especially if they’re going to be sending ponies up there!” “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she gets back in one piece,” Redheart said as she rejoined the group, deftly balancing several drinks on her back and distributing them with ease. Cheerilee looked incensed. “You too?” “Yeah! They need medical professionals too, and hey, beats working in a hospital.” Redheart leaned over to give Blossomforth a kiss on the cheek. “And if it means we’ll be together…” “Gross!” “You’re one to talk, Cherry,” Redheart shot back. “Little Miss PDA over there.” Cherry blushed but shook her head. “As if Strawberry would let me touch her in public.” “Hey now,” Strawberry replied.  “I don’t want to tell you all what to do with your lives, I just feel this is very sudden,” Cheerilee said, sipping on her water.  Redheart raised an eyebrow. “Wow, this got serious after I left.” She seized Blossomforth’s hoof and gestured to the dance floor. “Let’s dance ourselves clean. C’mon!” Blossomforth let herself be dragged away, gesturing for Cheerilee to follow. “You better make sure they don’t hurt themselves,” Cherry observed, scooting off her seat so her friend could leave.  Cheerilee winced. “Redheart does have a violent way of dancing.” She downed the rest of her water and scurried off after them. “So. You seem interested in the space program,” Cheerilee said as she sat back down.  Strawberry shrugged. “Eh. I doubt they’d want me. Didn’t even finish high school, what am I gonna do for them? Figure out how to grow strawberries in space?” Cherry giggled, leaning into her. “Maybe that’s why the sun’s blinking. It’s just hungry.” “You’re so silly.” Strawberry ruffled Cherry’s mane.  They fell quiet for a second, watching as their friends danced and laughed. The lights flicked and changed, bathing them in colors from red to blue to green. It was odd, seeing the unicorn DJ work the board with their hooves. But everyone knew that magic was unstable lately, in a strange correlation with the sun’s behavior. She had heard the tales of the seamstress who tried telekinesis and ended up burning her store down.  “I always hated dancing,” Strawberry said. Cherry hummed in response. “Would you dance with me?” “Mm. Tough one.” They fell quiet again, and Strawberry wondered if the joke had fallen short. After a few moments of tension, Cherry slapped Strawberry’s leg gently. “Let’s get out of here then.” “And go where?” “Well there’s that movie theater next store.” Strawberry looked up in time to Cheerilee throw her head back and down the entire contents of a bottle as Redheart and Blossomforth cheered her on. “Yeah. Alright. Sure.” With that, the two slipped away from the club and into the street. It was a cool night, the moon hanging low overhead like a cautious guardian, no doubt suspicious of its sibling’s actions. Strawberry wondered how Celestia was handling the recent events.  Fireworks popped off in the distance, rising up above the buildings and exploding into a vibrant burst of color in the sky. It was funny to think how ponies were becoming more and more comfortable with the night instead of the day. The moon after all seemed to be far more reliable nowadays than the sun was.  Cherry led the way across the empty roads towards the theater. “They’re showing that new sci-fi film I was telling you about.” “The… one about the changelings?” Strawberry asked. “Breach, yeah! Funny enough the script was written before we found out they existed, so it kinda ruined the whole shapeshifter storyline.” They paused to pay for tickets and head inside. “I still think it’s cool though. The whole shapeshifting thing.” Strawberry hummed in amusement. “I was wondering why a science fiction film had you so excited.” “What can I say? I could finally fly if I were one of them.” Cherry sighed wistfully. “I’m not hungry, let’s skip popcorn.” “Sure.”  They proceeded down the velvet red carpets and into the theater. It was mostly empty, which Strawberry didn’t think boded well for the film. “So. What do you think about all this space program stuff?” Cherry asked. “Mm. Dunno, it’s fine, I guess,” Strawberry said. “I know you’re excited though.” Cherry laughed. “Of course! You have no idea how hard it is to do anything flight related if you’re not a pegasus.”  Slowly, the lights began to fade away behind them. Strawberry watched as Cherry’s pink coat was gradually covered in an inky darkness. It reminded her of watching the sun set, with the lingering thought of if she’d ever see it again lurking in the background.  The screen flickered to life, and the theater fell silent. Cherry reached out to squeeze Strawberry’s hoof. As the opening credits began to roll, she began to cough.  “You okay?” “I’m fine, I’m just–” her coughing got worse, leading Strawberry to furrow her brow. “I thought you said you were getting better.” “I am! Just…” Before she could finish her sentence, the theater lights abruptly came back on. A burst of static came from the projection box before a nasally voice filled the room. “Uh… I’m very sorry to disturb you all, but I’ve just… I’ve just received news that I’ve been asked to share. Um.” An icy stab of dread embedded itself into Strawberry’s heart. “...Princess Luna is dead.”