//------------------------------// // Chapter 13 - One Small Step // Story: The Stuff of Legends // by Harvs //------------------------------// Chapter 13 One Small Step As we finally rejoin our heroes, it appears that they had silently slipped into a coma for a little over a month. This plot device totally not being the writer's faults, they awaken to finish their journey. Vinyl Scratch was the first to wake, rubbing her head walking over to where her glasses had fallen off. After putting on her spectacles, she looked around what seemed to be paradise. The six sat in the middle of a grassy meadow that seemed to go on forever. She didn't know where they were, but where ever it was, it was more inviting than any of the places prior. Just ahead was a lone tree on a small hill. Anything else was hidden in a dense fog and light blue sky. The tree itself was enormous, its branches stretching farther than what seemed natural. Vinyl thought back as far as she could. The last thing she remembered was her in an escape pod with her friends. Then... nothing. She looked over, counting in her head to make sure the rest of the group was present. After accounting for the team, she proceeded to prod the one winged angel. "Sephy. Sephy, wake up." Vinyl said quietly, not knowing if anyone... or anything was watching. After a few seconds, the angel's eyes creaked open. He scanned the surroundings from the grassy field, and simply asked, "Are we dead?" "No, we're not-" Vinyl started, then paused and looked around. "Well I don't think we are." "We crashed into the moon." A voice said from behind them. They two turned quickly to see that Yakko was also up. "What?" Vinyl asked with a tilt of her head. "Well, the script says that we crashed into the moon." Yakko held the paperback book, flipping through all of the pages. "But that's all it says. I don't think the authors accounted for anything afterwards." "What are you talking about?" Sephiroth said, rising to his feet. "I mean that we aren't supposed to be here right now." Yakko summarized, tossing the script behind him. "Well, what exactly is our next objective?" GLaDOS said, startling the group. "Well..." Sephiroth started, stepping back into the boots of leadership. "I guess our goal is what it's always been. We need to find out where we are. Then find a way out." "Are we ever going to just get out of here?" Vinyl asked in an annoyed tone. "I'm sick and tired of this stupid adventure." "Well this isn't exactly how I wanted to spend my weekend either." GLaDOS added sarcastically. "And that's another thing." Vinyl turned to the potato sitting potatoishly on the grass. "Your sarcasm is really getting on my nerves." "If you would like to file a complaint, please dial our non-toll free customer service department at 1-800-stop-talking.com." Rather than argue with the food, Vinyl turned and stomped away angrily. "Vinyl, we're trying our hardest." Sephiroth said, trying to calm the pony. "And we're still no closer to home than we were when we first started." She replied. "All I want is to go home and put this whole stupid adventure thing behind me." Silence fell on the group. No one knew what to say next. The five just sat still, staring at Vinyl Scratch as she sat with her back to her team. "So..." Yakko started, scratching the back of his neck. "You'd leave us behind?" She looked up, then back at the five who were all sad... except for Sephiroth who in fact showed little to no emotion. "... yes." Vinyl said solemnly. The group again fell quiet. As much as it hurt Vinyl Scratch to say it, she couldn't hide the truth. With a heavy sigh, Vinyl stood up and walked away from the group, leaving her bass cannon behind. Almost striking some level of emotion, Sephiroth extended his hand and opened his mouth to call for her to come back. But the angel stopped himself and looked away as the pony left. "Well... what now?" Yakko asked, sounding less than cheerful. Sephiroth remained quiet for a while. His eyes scanning the group, and the last few seconds of Vinyl Scratch before she disappeared into the fog. He turned around, took in some air, and said, "We move on." "But... What about Vinyl?" Yakko asked. "We can't just leave her..." "I had gotten to know Binal Scarf too well to just forget him so suddenly." GLaDOS said, rather harshly mispronouncing Vinyl's name... and gender. "She'll be fine." Sephiroth said, though unsure himself. "The best thing we can do is just... carry on." And so the group, now one member short, moved on through the beautiful but desolate fields of green. With no direction or even an idea of where they were, they had no clue how they were to get out of this mess. "Let's head this way." Sephiroth pointed away from the tree. "There must be some way out of this fog." "Wait!" Yakko shouted, looking around desperately. "What is it?" The angel asked. "Where's the Pyro?!" Sephiroth looked all around, sure enough, the Pyro was gone as well. "Oh great. Not again." ***** The ivory unicorn removed her glasses, as they began to fog from her tears. She had waited until she was out of earshot from the others before letting loose the waterworks. All she wanted was to go home. To escape this adventure. At first, the idea of exploration and discovery peaked her excitement and made her want to keep going forward. But now, the memories of home had worn her down. As much fun as it was discovering new places, she missed her daily life in Equestria. She couldn't remember the last time she had performed as a DJ in Ponyville. Or the last time she had ruined one of Octavia's tea parties with her outrageously loud music. Come to think of it, she couldn't even remember the last time she had seen Octavia. Her best friend. She had almost forgotten what she even looked like. She wondered if Octavia had even noticed her absence. Did she even care? Suddenly, something sneaked under Vinyl's hoof, nearly tripping her. She quickly regained her balance, then shifted her gaze up. It was the tree... which shocked and confused her. She could have sworn she had walked away from the tree. She couldn't even recall going up the small hill. At the moment however, she didn't care. She decided to just sit down by the trunk, since she had no idea where she was going anyways. She suddenly found her mind wandering to thoughts of Sephiroth. Though she didn't want to think about him or any of the others she had left behind... she couldn't help it. Sephiroth was a good friend, and a great leader. He had saved her and the others numerous times. Not to mention he was always the voice of reason in the darkest times. He always knew what to do, and when it came down to it he always put the others before himself. She smiled a bit, thinking of the time she had spent with the incredible team. Incredibly weird and mismatched, but incredible all the same. From the Pyro's goofy antics to Yakko's odd sense of humor... even GLaDOS's sarcastic demeanor was somewhat charming. For the first time in Vinyl Scratch's life, she found herself torn between two very different worlds. Nearly out of tears, Vinyl buried her face into her forelegs, unsure of what she really wanted. Little did she know that she was being watched by one of the people she had abandoned. The Pyro had left the others while they weren't looking and followed the unicorn, just close enough so that he wouldn't lose her in the mist, but far enough away that she wouldn't notice him. Being a mercenary, paid to kill countless people as long as they wore blue, the Pyro himself was almost as emotionless as Sephiroth. Though he understood the pony's distress. He wanted to help, or at least talk to her... though he wasn't very good at that. So to ease the tension, he tried playing the song Mary had a Little Lamb in his head. It didn't work. He was still sad. It became blisteringly apparent that he would have to confront his ex-teammate. Though he didn't know what to say or even how to say it, he began to approach Vinyl Scratch. "A shame that they don't understand you." The Pyro looked around confusedly, wondering if he had said that. After he decided that he hadn't, he noticed a mysteriously mysterious shadowy shadow figure making his way to the tree, and in turn, Vinyl. Instead of being brave, the Pyro ducked down and hid in plain sight. "W-what?" Vinyl said with a sniffle as she wiped her eyes. The figure stepped out of the fog at last revealing himself to the readers. Considering we've kept him a secret from the very first chapter, it's probably about time we show who he is. "I understand you Vinyl Scratch." The man uttered in a deep, but sympathetic voice. He wore a gray and brown robe, brown pants, as well as boots and gloves. A hood covered his head, and he wore a white mask with a face painted on it in red and black. Though the eyes were cut out so he could see. He knelt down in front of the pony, showing that he meant no harm. "Who... who are you?" Vinyl asked, still showing obvious signs of sorrow. "I..." he began, building up the suspense. "am Amon." Vinyl Scratch gasped in a huge amount of air from the shock. "I still don't know who you are." The Pyro listened in, making sure Vinyl was ok. Though it would be best that he wasn't seen. "You and your friends have killed quiet a few powerful people." Amon continued, paying no attention to Vinyl Scratch's obvious lack of knowledge of who he was. "Leeroy Jenkins, Diaboromon, and even the Great and Powerful Tristan. It's nothing short of astounding." Vinyl squinted her brow in confusion. "How did you know all that?" Amon stood and bowed. "Because I am one of Captain Planet's warriors as well." At that, Vinyl stood and jumped a good distance from the man. Though she had neither her cannon or her vinyls, her horn glowed blue, ready to fry his face. "Get back!" She warned with a glare. "Calm down Ms. Scratch." Amon said, standing in the exact same spot. "I mean you no harm. Rather, I come with an offer." "Forget it!" Vinyl retorted. "I don't want anything to do with you or your master!" "That's a shame," Amon replied. "I'm sure all of your friends back in Ponyville would have been delighted at your return." The glow around Vinyl's horn dimmed slightly but didn't completely disappear. "What do you mean...?" "Let me level with you Ms. Scratch." Amon paced a bit back and forth. "I do not care for bloodshed. I had a rather tragic past. Abusive father, missing brother, the works. And in my lifetime, I've been forced to do some terrible things. I won't go into detail, but let's just say I have a strong distaste for violence of any nature." He turned and met eyes with the pony, making sure she was still listening. "We've both been a part of some awful events in the past few... however long it's been. But I'm here to offer you a way home." The glow around Vinyl's horn disappeared, and her eyes lit up at the mention of her home. "You mean... you can..." "Yes." Amon interrupted. "I have the ability to send anyone anywhere. And that includes sending you to Ponyville." "That's... That's amazing!" Vinyl Scratch exclaimed excitedly. The idea of returning home after such a long adventure made her ecstatic. But... then again, something didn't seem right. This man worked for Captain Planet. He openly admitted it. And offering her the chance to return home the exact moment she wanted to return home... something seemed out of place. "Why are you offering this to me?" Vinyl asked inquisitively. "What is it you have to gain?" "I stated before that I hate violence." Amon clarified. "The chance to save your life is all I desire." "Then... Captain Planet isn't behind this?" "He does not know I'm here right now." Vinyl turned and looked back the way she came. She couldn't see the others past the dense fog, but had a feeling they wanted to go home too. "Alright." She said after a long pause. "I accept." "That's wonderful news." Amon said clapping his hands together. "On one condition." Vinyl interjected. Amon said nothing. The tension behind his emotionless mask building as he folded his hands behind his back. "My friends and I have been here for we-don't-even-know-how long. All I ask is for you to send them to their respective homes as well." "I'm afraid..." Amon stuttered, his calm and collected nature visibly shaken. "I cannot do that." Vinyl looked bewildered at him. "Why not?" Amon regained his composure and straightened out his robe. "Simply put, that would raise the Captain's suspicions. My powers, as great as they are, have their limitations." Vinyl wanted to argue, but she had no knowledge of Amon's powers. Maybe he was telling the truth. "You don't want to keep walking in circles do you?" The man pressed on, kneeling down to eye-level with the pony. "You've tried your hardest, and you're still no closer to home than you were when you first started. Don't you want to put all of this behind you?" Vinyl Scratch looked straight into the man's eyes. Deep down, she knew he was right. She did want to just go home. And here, right in front of her, was her chance. "Take your time." Amon said calmly. "I'm in no rush." Meanwhile, continuing to hide in plain sight (and rather surprised it was actually working) the Pyro had heard the entire conversation. At first he had thought about charging down Amon with his flamethrower in hand. However, after their last battle, it was obvious that that was not an option. The encounters had been becoming increasingly difficult, and though he was a muffled moron, the Pyro knew his limits. He knew that he couldn't take on that mysterious man himself... but his team could be strong enough. He just hoped that he could warn the others before it was too late, and Vinyl was long gone. He took off as fast and sneakily as possible in the direction he assumed he had come from. ***** "Are we there yet?" Yakko asked in a droll, bored tone. He had even opted out of playing with his paddle ball to push Vinyl Scratch's bass cannon with Latisha and GLaDOS atop. Though they had no use for the amp, they figured it was better to keep it than leaving it behind. "Not yet." Sephiroth answered, not caring that this was the fourth or fifth time Yakko had asked. "Do you even know where we're going?" GLaDOS asked. Sephiroth ignored her as they just kept moving, hoping that eventually they would run into the Pyro... and maybe even Vinyl Scratch. The team became quiet as the trek through misty nothingness seemed endless. Out of the corner of their eyes, they could have sworn they passed the same tree a few times in the distance, but they didn't pay much attention considering the events that had taken place. Then, out of the blue came an all too familiar gas mask, sprinting towards them at remarkably average speed, flailing his arms above his head. "Pyro, where have you been?" Sephiroth asked, slightly relieved to see him. "Hmmph! Hmm hmmph mmph hmmph hmm! HMM! Hmmph hmmph hmm hmm mmph mph hmm!" The Pyro yelled, almost tripping over nothing a few times, but maintaining his sloppy balance. "What's he saying?" Yakko asked, running up next to Sephiroth. "Give me a second." Sephiroth said to Yakko, then turning back to face the Pyro. "What about Vinyl?" "Hmmph mm mmph mm mmmm mmph! HMM!" "Who offered her that?" "Hmmph mm hph mmph mm hmm!" "Amon? Who in Gaia is that?" "Hmm hmm... hmph hmm mmmph hmm hmmph!" "He works for Captain Planet!?" "HMM!" "Times like these, I'm almost glad I can understand you." Sephiroth said, drawing his sword and turning to the distant tree. "Vinyl Scratch is in trouble! We have to get to her now!"