//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 - Not Such a Long way // Story: Never Be The Same // by Kickback //------------------------------// We're a long way from Equestria. Such a long way. We're a long way from Equestria! A long, long way. A thud, that’s what I heard then pain, that’s what I felt. I dropped a fair distance from the ground, of which I had no idea at the moment what was the ground or what my name was or what anything was. The sudden impact knocked my knowledge back into my head, I felt grass, wild and unkempt grass underneath me. My eyes shot open to see from a ground perspective, the sky, brilliant blue with the sun hovering just above me, I smiled at little at that. That smile was immediately replaced with a look of horror on my face, I was outside? Why am I outside? I took a few glances to my sides to find that I was in a heavily wooded are, lying on what looked like a narrow clearing for a pathway of some kind. Scared out of my mind, I bolted upwards, feeling grass cling to my white jacket but I could care less. I continued to look around, a sense of dread taking hold of my being with each passing second. “Where the hell am I!?” I let out to myself like an idiot, I had no idea what might be in the trees, just outside my line of sight, watching me, stalking me. After a few seconds, I rose to my feet uneasily, my body ached for some reason, my back, my legs, everything felt remarkably less comfortable than just a few seconds before…a few seconds before. “What happened?” I asked to anything that might give me an answer, I never got it. My eyes widened as the fresh memories hit me, the globe, the screen, the brightness and now I was in a forest, what forest? I had no clue. It was then when I felt something strange, it was slight tweak at the back of my mind but I could sense it. Something was wrong. The world, the earth, the air, it all seemed to simply reject my existence in being here, in this place, in this forest. The friction in the atmosphere was almost unbearable in a sense. Confused and still afraid, I took a few more looks around to see something rather odd. There, directly in front of me was a tall tree, standing roughly higher than the rest that surrounded it. The height was not what caught my attention however, no, not at all. I started at the base, my eyes drifted up the trunk towards the large branches beholding vibrant leaves. That was the word to the describe this tree; “vibrant”. The large plant’s trunk was a very contrasting shade of brown and the leaves were as bright as emerald or as dark as jade. The whole mass of the tree was almost too colourful for my liking. It was then when I noticed everything around me was the same, vibrant and…unnaturally colourful. I also noticed that everything seemed to stand out on it’s own, as if someone took a highlighter to match the inner colours and outline every single object in the forest. What I mean to say was, it looked like the trees, the blades of grass beneath me bare feet, the vines that hung above my head were all…outlined. A little freaked out, I rubbed my eyes with both hands to see if what I saw was actually there but every time I looked back around, the image stayed the same. Another thing that caught me a little off-guard was the feeling of being watched, in the darkness of the bushes around me, I swear I could feel piercing and/or curious gazes on me. Scared as I was, I followed the make-shift path, finding that it lead deeper into the forest. As bad as an idea it sounded like, I had to know where I was, I was lost anyway and maybe this pathway lead towards the outside. Regardless, I began walking down the grassy and dirt pathed road into the forest. The individual grass blades stabbing my feet as I walked was rather pleasant in a sense but if I knew this shit was about to go down, I would’ve threw on a pair of shoes. How could I have seen this coming though? It’s not everyday that a magic ball sucks me through my TV before landing in an unfamiliar and seemingly unnatural forest. …saying it like that just makes it sound ridiculous. But was about any of this wasn’t ridiculous? I’m surprise I didn’t start screaming right there and then but from I can remember, something was calming me, like my sub-conscious decided that I was in no immediate danger and managed to steady my nerves. I continued to walk the dirt road, placing my hands in my jacket pockets, I wasn’t cold but it was force of habit that drove me to stride like that. All in all, the forest was rather peaceful, it was silent besides the sound of random twig snaps and rustling bushes…twig snaps and rustling bushes…the moment the thought hit me, I froze in place. I stood directly in the centre of the path, looking worriedly around for the source of whatever might be causing the noises I was hearing. I got my answer. I wish I hadn’t in most ways but you can’t change the past…hah, yeah, you can’t change the past, right? Saying that now is just silly. In the darkness of the thick forest, I saw something. Something I really didn’t ever want to see in my life. It…it looked like a human. Maybe four or five feet tall off the ground, pale-bare skin, long-bony limbs. I could barely make out it’s silhouette as it stared at me…it was staring at me. Hunch over, I could it’s vertebrae protruding out of it’s back in a grotesque fashion, I followed it’s form ’till I met it’s gaze. It’s eyes, sweet Celestia, those eyes. They were like empty sockets, black, almost sunken in and they were directed at me in an expressionless glare. I was more afraid than I had ever been in my entire life at that moment, the thing bore an excruciating resemblance to an entity that pierced my nightmares for as long as I can remember, even today I sometimes have nightmares about it. Instantly, just like what my mind did with the globe, I related it to that very thing, to this day, I call it; “The Rake”. We stared at each other for a long moment, I desperately wanted it to end. I gazed at it with fear but I suspected it looked at me with a hint of the same emotion aswell as curiosity and…suspense. It then started to move towards me, crawling while hunched over on all fours. The thing was coming to me. I didn’t need an invitation, I ran, I ran faster than I had ever done in my life, luckily the sun was out so I had light on my side. I felt my clothing rip and tear as it caught on to the seemingly endless rows of jagged and stuck out sharp debris that I couldn’t identify anymore. Either a low branch or a high one, protruding from a small bush, it didn’t matter, I wanted, needed to get out of this forest. I kept thinking that if I turned around, it would be right there, standing and staring at me, I imagined it’s breath at the back of my neck pelting down on my skin, causing me to run faster and to never let up. The forest began to thin out a little, giving me a sign that I was closed to the exit. I didn’t give the path a second thought and just ran in the same direction for what felt like an eternity. With one final push out of the trees, I found the exit. My eyes shot open before I spun around to see the tree line, I was out. I smiled as I panted in between sentences. “Thank God…fuck you” I let out to the trees. I hunched over, resting my hands on my knees. I took a moment to collect myself, let in a breath and stood back up. I was in a large clearing, the same path I saw in the forest happened to lead out into a solid and very visible dirt-cut road that separated one acre of grass from the other. The path let up a tall mound, a hill that blocked my view to see what was behind it. Curiousity hit me once more and I trudged towards it. After the excessive emotional and mostly physical exhaustion I had been put through today, stepping up a steep surface was tough even if it wasn’t a high angle. I panted with each stride as I made my way to the top, I collapsed somewhat, shutting my eyes as I knelt down, tired was an understatement, I was nakid. With several shallow breaths, I stood up as my eyes opened and suddenly widened in shock at what was presented before me. “No” I said aloud, nearly a whisper. The sight before was breathtaking. It was a town, a small town, the buildings were painted white as their rooves depicted a yellow hue. In the centre, I could make out a taller, larger building among the others, a balcony, a pointed roof…and I had seen it before. I had seen this very town before so many times but something about it was off, it seemed smaller, less buildings took up the land to what I had come accustomed to but that was NOT what I was thinking at that moment. I don’t believe I was thinking anything, my mind was utterly blank as I stared at the sight before. The town was quite a distance from my stance, the pathway lead up towards it a good fifty or so metres away. “I…this…wait…what?!” I stuttered helplessly. This couldn’t be what I thought it was, I mean, there was no possible way this could be happening. “Ponyville?!” I shouted. When I said that, it all came crashing down on me. I looked back to see the forest, my eyes couldn’t widen anymore. “The Everfree Forest?!” once again, I continued to question the air, hoping for some answer as to what the hell was going on. I looked up to see a mountain in the distance, it stood high above the town and practically, everything around me. From my vantage point, I could make out a castle, surrounded by many other building, just on the mountain side, hovering over the earth, it was a shade of pink and white. “Canterlot!?” I paused, swapping glances at everything surrounding me, the town, the sky, the mountain, the forest, the castle, the ground, everything. “No, no, no…How? This-…I’m…in Equestria? How the fuck did that happen? Oh shit, what the hell do I do now? Should I…make sure I’m in where I think I am? Should I try to find somepony? Why is Ponyville not like it is in the show? ‘The fuck is going on?!” I really shouldn’t have been swearing so much but I was in no state to be calm right then. I chanced a glance upwards only to be met by a significant sight. High above where I stood was a city, the entire mass seemed to be made out of clouds, a stream of multi-hue liquid poured down from spouts from each side as did clear, what looked like regular water, evaporating before hit the ground. “Cloudsdale” I whispered, it wasn’t a shocked question this time but rather a serene voice out. I smiled at the structure. Never had I seen anything so beautiful…and I was terrified of it. I stared at it for a moment longer before something else about it caught my eye, ponies. I grinned wide as I saw them, pegasi flew freely through the sky, their colours were almost hypnotic, so vibrant and bright. It was then when I realized what all this meant. I was in Equestria, the setting of a cartoon about colourful ponies, I smiled wide let out a quiet chuckle. “I can’t believe it, well, how do I tackle this? Should I-” my sentence was cut off by a happy giggling noise catching my ear. Instinctively, I dove behind the hill, lying on my stomach to peer out, trying to see what might’ve caused such a noise. I got my answer in an adorable little package. I heard a piecing squeak sound repeat in a rhythmic matter, the sound was all too familiar to me. I had heard it many times in my youth, I looked up to a see a small, colourful, rubber ball bounce on the grass towards the path, that giggling resumed. I looked further to my left to see a small, lime green filly, a unicorn. Her mane and tail were bushy and unkempt, too large for her small body, her flank was baron of any symbol let alone a harp…a harp? Why did I think a harp would be there? I looked more intently at the tiny pony, her mane was doubly-hued in pale and bright green and her large, soft eyes were rimmed in a beautiful gold. She wore a giddy smile as she scampered off towards the ball, laughing. “Lyra?” I asked. I didn’t mean to say that out loud but it just sort of happened. The unicorn filly looked up from her toy and glanced around at the mention of her name, she looked confused. “Who’s there?” she asked in a tiny, adorable voice, still looking around for the source. I clamped my mouth shut with my hand and ducked, lying on my back, praying she wouldn’t look over the hill. I had no clue how she would react to me therefore, it was best to be careful. “Hello? How do you know my name?” at that, I had no doubt in my mind that THAT was THE Lyra Heartstrings. “Whoever you are, ya wanna play?” she asked expectantly, her voice was so cute, I could barely contain a sigh…I said barely. I mentally slapped myself for making a noise, I could hear tiny hoofsteps growing closer to me. “Hello? Is somepony there? Please come out, I just want someone to play with” sweet, merciful Celestia, that tore at my heart. I took a deep breath and weighted my options: On one hand, she may cry in fear and run into town, telling everypony about the “monster” she saw. On the other…well, maybe things won’t turn out so bad. I made my decision, slowly rolled over and poked my head out from the hill. There she was, looking right at me, golden eyes wide, her body frozen in place, I don’t think she expected what she was seeing. “Uhhhh…Hey” I greeted, kneeling down so I wouldn’t stand over her. She stared at me for a while, a long silence drug on for longer than I would’ve liked, I was almost convinced she were to do what I had expected; run and scream. Though..she didn’t, instead she spoke. “Hi, mister, what’s your name? Oops, I’m not supposed to talk to strangers…a-are you a stranger?” she asked, I smiled at her. “No but yes, you’re not supposed to talk to strangers, you’re a good girl to know that, I’m…a friend” I said, hoping she’d take to me. She seemed to as she beamed at me. “Oh okay, ya wanna-…wait, how do you know my name?” she said inquisitively, I paused, not sure how to answer her. “I-uhhh…I’m a friend remember, Lyra?” I replied, I would’ve said something like ‘lucky guess’ but it seemed to do the trick. “Okay” she said happily, seeming to accept my words. I didn’t want to nor did I have the heart to tell her that I saw her TV and read about in stories, I also had no clue if they had television in Equestria anyway. Once again, she asked me; “Ya wanna play?” I chuckled at that. “Sure…” I then noticed the ball she had been playing with and an idea struck in my head. “Hey, ya wanna play ‘catch’?” I asked as I took the rubber sphere in my hand, it was very small, maybe the approximate circumference of that famous ball from the Disney Pixar sideshows. She gave me a confused look. “What’s that?” she asked. I looked at her, her small body, her blank flank…why was she a filly? This definitely was the Lyra I knew about but why was she so young? Come to think of it, why was Ponyville smaller than I thought it’d be? I apparently paused in my thinking as I noticed her expectant gaze. “Oh, well, it’s a game where two p-…“ I cut myself off, I was about to say ‘people’ then thought on ‘ponies’ but I wasn’t a pony and I didn't want her confused so I went with; “Players throw a ball to one another, it’s really fun” it then dawned on me, how does she not know one of the most basic games ever? Sure, she’s young and just a filly but…hooves. That’s gotta be it, they have hooves not hands but…they can grab things between them, can’t they? I decided to NOT make my brain hurt and just went with ‘she’s just never heard of it before’. “Oh okay!” she said, that seemed to be her genuine but rather over-used phrase for everything but I didn’t care, she was so cute. “Alright, I’ll stand over here and I'll stand over there” I instructed, she smiled as she scampered off to where I was pointing. Once she stopped and looked back at me, I smiled at her again. “Alright, I’m gonna throw this to you, kay? Can you catch it?” I asked, she nodded with a grin. I gave a small under-arm throw to her, kneeling down with the motion to seem less opposing to her. The ball went flying about a metre off the ground towards her, she watched it with concentration but a small smile was planted on her muzzle. I thought for a second, she might catch it with a levitation spell, can fillies do that when they’re that young? I knew Twilight could but…is it like a skill to learn or is was it like an X-Man mutant thing where it kicks in at a specific time. I thought back to the episode when Pinkie babysits the Cakes’ kids and remembered, what was her name? Pumpkin Cake? Used magic as an infant, so, how did magic work exactly? Though, to my surprise, she didn’t catch per-say, instead she lunged forward with her head and suddenly bumped it back at me. I chuckled at the sight of her bouncing the ball on her head to send it back to me before I instinctively caught it within arms reach. I looked at her again and she seemed to be taken aback at my action, seeing my full height, which wasn’t much and fully extended arms must’ve have come off as threatening to her young mind. I crouched back down, it was then when I noticed how tall she was, at my full height, she seemed to only reach my thigh from her hooves to her horn. I wasn’t sure how tall grown ponies were and I wanted an idea. “Hey, Lyra?” I asked as I prepped for another throw. “Yeah?” she acknowledged. “How old are you?” she looked confused but complied. “Ten years-old, turning eleven this year” she beamed. “How old are you?” Now, it was my time to look confused, her attitude was genuinely pleasant. I threw the ball at her as I answered. “Ohh uhhh, I’m turning fifteen next month” she head butted the ball back at me, using it as some kind of sign to speak. “What’s your name?” she asked. “My name?” I paused at that, what was my name? Of course I knew what it was but-. The revelation of being in a completely new world struck me again, nobody I knew was here therefore nobody knew me as anything, this small filly seemed to be warming up to me, which I liked. It hit me. My name could be anything. Hell, my name could be “Kratos” and nopony would think better. I started running down a list of sweet names that I could use; James Howlett Isaac Clarke Ezio Auditore Cole Macgrath Corvo Attano Optimus Prime Goku Bruce Wayne Nick Fury Clint Eastwood Chris Redfield …Kickback? No, as cool as any of those sounded, I wanted to use my name. I stuck with my first but I dearly didn’t want to live with my step-father’s name anymore. I wanted to live the name I wanted to, my dad’s name…I smiled when I put the two together and came up with my new alias. We had exchanged throws twice since she asked me and imagined she was growing impatient. “My name Kyle Mercer but just call me Kyle, kay lyra?” I said. She grinned and nodded her head with a hum of recognition.