//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: No, I Don't Want to Face Overwhelming Odds (I Just Want to Sleep) // by Muggonny //------------------------------// No sleep. None. Not a wink, not a moment to stand still. Work. Stressful, hate-yourself-so-much-you-want-to-die work during the day, and sometimes fun work during the night. And no sleep. Zapp wanted to scream. She tried not to. She screamed anyway. “Have the gods any mercy? Even a powerful princess such as myself needs her slumber!”  The sky grumbled overhead as if agreeing to her statement.  Three days. Three. Days. First, it was a normal day of work. Then, Mane-iac unleashed a new hair tonic to the world. After, three bank robberies. The rest could be compiled into a list of sorts: Mane-iac escapes prison. Mane-iac goes back to prison. Back to work. Get off work. Go to therapy appointment. Mane-iac escapes prison, along with every villain they have ever faced (turns out going back to prison was part of her plan). The Power Ponies are defeated. Masked Matterhorn gets knocked unconscious. Lucky bastard. Power Ponies are captured. Character development. Work. Wait, how can she go back to work after getting captured? Oh, that’s right, SHE WAS UP FOR THREE FUCKING DAYS. She sighed and used this moment of breath to meditate. Great warriors are cautious with their language. THREE WHOLE FUCKING DAYS SHE WAS GOING INSANE AHHHHH!!!! Humdrum shows up and the Power Ponies escape Climatic battle Villains are defeated More work Craftwork escapes prison Great warriors don’t use crass language. FUCKING FUCK FUCK FUCK She inhaled. She exhaled. She inhaled. Exhaled. Inhaled… Something hard slammed into her stomach, and gravity pulled her toward the earth. She didn’t fall for long before splaying her wings out, looping, and facing the clouds above.  She was still in a fight. Grunting, she held out her hooves toward the billowing, swirling mass of cotton and thought of lightning. A blue streak tore downward, and she caught it with her hoof. Rather than take on a plasmic appearance, it was crystalized and vibrating with chaotic energy. She dashed upward, the air croaking. The scent of rain was fresh on her nose. Soon it’d start, and if Craftwork was already having trouble against her now, then she’d be no match for her in the next few minutes. Still… she wanted to sleep.  Zapp would have to make quick work of it. Burn her wings, toss her in prison, and be done. Just as she tore through the cloud coverage, a pony with mechanical wings made of cloth and wood framing zoomed overhead, leaving a pink mist in her wake. Craftwork swerved and headed directly toward her. Zapp readied the crystalline lightning spear for a javelin throw. Just as the putrid soul was a few meters away, Craftwork pulled up and released an entourage of ornaments. Shiny, colorful Hearth’s Warming ornaments that sparked.  Zapp pulled back just as they exploded. She heard a pop, followed by another, followed by another, followed by another. It was enough to send her spinning, albeit unhurt, but still dizzy. Enough! She uprighted and hovered, sticking a hoof out toward the neighsayer. The sky roared with fury, thunder sounding like a hundred lion roars. It was enough to make Clockwork hover in place and turn to Zapp with hesitance. “I,” she began, “have not slept for three days. Three. Days. Because thou cannot stop acting like a filly for even a moment! If thou continues to act childish, then I feel I am not in the mental state to control myself.” As if to compliment her statement, she gathered her energy to make the sky flash, followed by an ear-splitting burst of thunder.  Clockwork, who previously had no qualms with facing a powerful being such as herself, now looked at Zapp with terrified eyes. The simple earth pony was reduced to a coward in seconds, no longer brave in the face of the invincible. Pathetic. Back in her homeland, Zapp would kill her just for being a blemish in her sight. But time in Maretropolis has taught her mercy, and even at this moment, where the temptation to cut a lifespan short was overwhelming, she controlled herself.  She lowered the crystalline lighting bolt, and bellowed, “Thou shalt accompany me back to thy holding cell.” Clockwork fluttered forward at a slow pace, her mechanical wings creaking. She had closed the distance between them before stopping. The wind rustled her mane. The lightning spear in Zapp’s hoof twitched.  Clockwork sneered and dove forward, tackling her out of the sky.  The world spun. Zapp tried to shout but Clockwork headbutted her, sending stars across her vision. Frustration flared.  Three days. Three. And now she had to put up with this on top of everything.  Hugging her forehooves around Clockwork’s midriff, Zapp allowed her weight to carry the two of them down. Clockwork screamed, which only further added to Zapp’s evergrowing headache.  They fell through a dark cloud. Zapp splayed her wings out so that they gradually slowed down until they were suspended amidst swirls of gray cotton. The talisman around her neck buzzed, as she called upon its power.  “Simpleton! I told thee to stop at once, but thou did not listen.” Thunder roared once more, this time sounding like a cacophony of the most disorganized noise.  Clockwork headbutted her chest, forcing Zapp to let go, then socked her in the cheek. “Stuff it, weather mare! You don’t have the backbone for it.”  Her eyes sparked. When she blinked, the scleras were no longer visible, replaced by pure, ionized energy. “Dare to tempt fate?” “I dare to kick your ass! If you’re so upset about it, then go sop in the rain.” Zapp slammed into her. Rage filled her soul. Rationalization was far from her mind. All there was was now, and right now she wanted the problem to go away so that she could go home and sleep.  She was so tempted. So, so tempted… She swung the lightning spear, missing Clockwork by the nape of the neck as the fiend fluttered back. An electric charge surged through Zapp’s body, sparks tingling across her coat. Clockwork looked surprised for a moment, but she quickly composed herself and dove forth, punching Zapp in the stomach. Saliva sprayed from her mouth as the wind was knocked out of her. Without losing a moment, she arced the lightning spear in the other direction. Clockwork also dodged this attack with ease, but it gave Zapp the opening to zoom forth and kick her hind hooves out, hitting her in the face. Clockwork backflipped in the air a few times before splaying her mechanical wings out and coming to a stop, facing her. Zapp pointed the crystalline lighting bolt in her direction. “Stop this instant and come quietly.”  Thunderclouds groaned around them, and after a few seconds, all went quiet—the only noise to accompany them was the wind whistling in her ears. Clockwork hovered. Zapp transferred energy from her body into the lightning spear. Clockwork bolted forward. Zapp spun around and released the lightning spear. It was a perfect shot. As soon as the crystalline spear made contact with Clockwork’s head, the cloud lit up with a brilliant blue light. If Zapp hadn’t been in her goddess form, it would have blinded her, but looking upon it gave her a moment of satisfaction, and when the roarous thunder reverberated across the sky, she knew the job was done. Then, the ions cleared. Clockwork was nowhere in sight. For a second, for just a second, and in her tired state of mind, Zapp failed to recognize the severity of the situation. Then, her heart pounded in her chest, the beating more ferocious than any thunder she could produce. She dove downward, breaking through the cloud cover. She spotted Clockwork falling toward the cityscape, her mechanical wings and mane fried. Zapp didn’t stop. No, no, no… please don’t be dead… please don’t be dead… She threw her hooves around Clockwork’s body and changed course toward the nearest skyscraper. Zapp laid her body down gently and patted out the small flame on her head. Clockwork was so unrecognizable, to the point that even Zapp, the most educated of her people, was at a loss for words. She stared down at the charred face of the fiend, the hopeful tumor of doubt growing in her brain.  She placed her ear against her chest and checked for a heartbeat. There was none. Zapp’s breath lurched in her throat, and she choked back a sob. “Okay, okay…” she muttered to herself. “We can fix this… we can fix this…” She opened her eyes and looked back down at the corpse. She screamed to the heavens above, tendrils of lightning painting the sky. It was an accident… it was an accident… an accident… I hadn’t slept, and I warned her. She had plenty of opportunities to stop but didn’t… Aurora felt heavy, waiting in the elevator at Power Ponies HQ. Heavy in both thoughts and hooves. She’d dropped Clockwork off at the hospital. After quickly changing into her everyday persona, she ran to the nearest pay phone and let them know that a severely injured pony was outside, hanging up before questions could be asked. It felt like she couldn’t breathe. Her windpipe was constricted, every blow of air from her nostrils forced. Her body was covered in sweat, the smell of adrenaline palpable to even herself. She kept on trying to calm herself down. It’s okay, it’s okay. You were up for three days, and she was a terrorist. You did the world a favor by ridding it of her.  Her heart sank. How could she think of something like that? Clockwork used to be a wonderful pony whose contribution to Equestria’s economic growth in the aviation industry was more than substantial. She was the very reason why, in just about five years from now, earth ponies and unicorns would be flying through the air just as well as pegasi. The only reason why she became a villain was because the CEO of Above All Industries stole her patent. She was a good pony wronged by the higher echelons of society, and all she needed was help. I gave it to her. No, she didn’t. Not by killing her. But I took down the pony that stole her patent.  It was a coincidence. The Maretropolis Department of Public Health was investigating the company on the basis of air pollution and accidentally uncovered a massive drug empire. The Power Ponies were there to stop it before the police could even issue a warrant. Clockwork helped, risking her own life in the process. Zapp was the one to vouch for her.  Yet she still chose to take the wrong path. Clockwork went back to prison, despite everything. It was a decision on the city’s part. She was already labeled a terrorist, and the city council feared that letting her roam free would be a mistake. She blamed the Power Ponies for this.  I stood up for her! No, she didn’t. There’s a difference between standing up for someone and standing by their side at their hearing.  Her heart thudded. Her nostrils flared. Her mouth was dry. The elevator door opened, and she walked out into the living area at a brisk pace. She turned the corner to the kitchen, which connected to the hallway that led to her bedroom, and halted when she saw a familiar face sitting at the table. Trot Summers blinked up at her with tired eyes, a steaming mug of hot cocoa with more marshmallows than cocoa sitting in front of her. “Oh, hey Aurora,” she said, sounding like she was the one up for three days. “Hello,” Aurora said, trying to act casual. She could feel the sweat sticking to her forehead. “How are you?” Summers squinted at her, nostrils twitching. “Why are you all sweaty?”  “I was working out,” Aurora replied quickly. Summers managed a tired smile. “Huh. That’s pretty impressive. You’ve had much less sleep than I’ve had this past week, and yet you’re still going strong. Your willpower is much better than mine.” “It’s a matter of where I was born. I was raised upon a brick throne built by my own hooves. My resilience is a birthright.” She stared ahead into the dark hallway and was about to allude to her desire to go to bed when Summers responded. “Heh, and yet I whine about only getting three hours of sleep a night.” “That is different. The body needs rest. Three days is nothing to a warrior, but a lifetime of restlessness makes the soul fragile.” She walked up to the table, pulled out a chair, and sat down across from Summers. “You push yourself hard. We all see it. Do yourself a kindness and take a break.” For my own sake, she thought. So that something like tonight doesn’t happen again… Summers sighed. She picked the mug up with her magic, hovered it below her muzzle so that steam wafted into her face, and took a sip. “You know I can’t.” “No. You say you can’t because otherwise you’d feel guilty for leaving the city behind while you relax. The five of us can take care of things while you’re away.” Summers set her mug down. “You read me better than anyone else. Guess I’m that superficial. I’ll think about it.” A long moment of silence passed between them. Dread hung in the air. Aurora wanted to tell her everything that transpired less than an hour ago. Her mouth hung agape, words ready to come hurling out, but every time she’d attempt a start, she’d shut it. Somehow, something came out. “I think we all need a break. Doesn’t have to be all at once. We can take turns. Start a new routine. The city doesn’t need all of us at once.” Summers smiled. “I like that plan.” The conversation ended without a climax. Aurora went to her room and crashed into bed face-first. Her blanket bound her to the mattress, like the moment she pulled it over herself, getting up would be impossible.  The room was dark, which made her drowsy. The only light to accompany her was whatever filtered through the window next to her and the digital alarm clock on her nightstand. She thought she’d have trouble sleeping, but heaviness swept over her immediately.  She passed out the moment she closed her eyes.