//------------------------------// // Dawn // Story: Last Lights Falling // by Kalros //------------------------------// Every story has a beginning, sounds cliché but it’s true. In my case it has several, one starting in an Albertan hospital, another in Canterlot when Celestia took me in as her apprentice. Both of these tales carry their own twists and turns as I grew older but that’s not why you’re here. You want to hear about how two different beings came together on a cold snowy morning, how their actions would come to influence two drastically different worlds. I will tell you that tale, but be warned that it is not the story of a hero; at least, not the heroes you know. That story is better left to the real saviors, the Elements of Harmony and their allies in the struggle to fight evil and chaos in a world gone mad. Mine is somewhat darker as I try to bring peace to a mind torn by jealousy, hatred, and greed… With that out of the way we can begin. .. If there was ever one sound in the world that is bound to wake anyone up it would be the cry of a crow or raven. Their piercing yell is the bane of many sleepers, especially campers hoping to get some rest in the wilds. Sadly I didn’t get the privilege of a nice comfy tent and mattress that particular morning. My eyes snapped open to stare at the overcast sky above me, a sight that was confusing to say the least. The questions were already starting to run through my mind. How did I get here? Was all that stuff earlier a dream? Why do I feel so weird? Why is it so cold? Is it going to sno- “CAW!” …. Stupid bird. Turning my head I looked at the source of the sound, a raven not a couple feet away from me. I also noticed that I appeared to be lying on some gravel and could hear the loud sound of rushing water nearby, meaning somehow I was in the river valley… Yet again the questions began to flood my mind, at least until a gust of icy cold wind cause me to gasp and instinctively curl up into a peach colored ball. Peach? Wait… For a couple moments I stared at the fur that covered my body, my mind trying to process exactly what was going on but drawing up a blank as it simply overloaded. All the events of the past few moments, and those I had either dreamed or had occurred earlier this morning were simply too much as I gave a sigh and drifted into a shock induced unconsciousness. I came to after who knows what amount of time, a sharp pain in my back causing a rather feminine cry of pain as I flailed out with a hoof to swat whatever was attacking me. “CAW!” That blasted raven again! I glared at it for a few moments as it fluttered back to the ground and regarded me curiously. As the haze of unconscious began to lift again tore my gaze away from the black bird to stare at the hoof I had just used, my eyes roving up the limb as it changed from hoof to fur and then up to shoulder, a process that involved my head turning and causing a clump crimson and yellow hair to fall across my eyes. Flailing from the sudden blindness I managed to pull up a hoof and clear my vision before collapsing onto the ground with a sigh. I was a pony… The weight of what that meant seemed to start pressing upon my mind and I felt my head start pounding in a panic. Closing my eyes I took a deep breathe. “Ok John, relax. You aren’t the first to change like this and you are certainly not the last. Get a grip man!” I muttered quietly to myself, cringing at that last part. I wasn’t even a man anymore, at least it certainly sounded like it. Unless male ponies sounded like chicks as well, which I knew they didn’t. Let’s get this out of the way, I’m not a brony. I’ve certainly seen the show of course. In the days after the initial announcement in New York, I along with plenty of others had flooded to YouTube to see just what this all was. I’d watched one or two episodes, and certainly saw the appeal of the show but nothing beyond that. If my viewing schedule wasn’t taken up by a couple Netflix shows I might have watched some more but the news regarding the ponies had broken only a couple days ago. With a sigh I cursed Jack Bauer and Michael Scott for distracting me from something that might have helped me deal with this situation. “CAW!” “Will you shut up!” I growl, opening my eyes and lashing out a limb at the creature, which simply hopped out of my reach before resuming its vigil. A moment later another icy gust of wind served remind me that my situation was rather serious and I needed to find shelter, and more importantly, heat. Rolling over I began the long drawn out process of relearning how to walk, pausing every now and then to push some hair… Or I suppose mane, out of my face. It was during these few moments of learning that I swore I was going to cut it the moment I had access to some scissors, who cares if I lacked the digits to use them! I won’t bore you with any further details of my time learning how to walk but suffice to say it was embarrassing. Thankfully no one was around to watch me, besides that blasted raven… I’m guessing the thing saw me as potential meal. After all I was only about twice its size, had been laying unconscious for a good amount of time, and then my pitiful attempts to walk about on the river bank. If I had been watching this myself id think the poor pony was doomed. The size difference was another thing that got to me. From what I could tell I was only about two feet tall standing up; I used to be 6’4”! Seeing everything from this low was jarring to say the least. Never mind the raven had gone from annoying pest, to potential predator. After about what seemed to be a half hour (but was likely longer) I was able to set up a bit of a rhythm with my legs that over time seemed to get more natural the more I did it. As I managed to move a couple feet away from the shore I have a small cheer of glee, only to shut up as my new voice reminded me of what id lost. I hesitated for a moment then as a thought entered my mind. Id gotten glimpses of my form. Peach colored fur, red and yellow mane and tail, a weird sun tattoo on my flank… But no real idea about /what/ I looked like… Hopefully you understand what I mean. Shaking my head (and once again getting mane in my eyes) I headed to the waterline and nervously peered into the water. What stared back was a bedraggled, scared, and pitiful looking mare. Her mane somewhat mangled from my efforts to manage it, coat somewhat dirty from lying on the ground. For the first time I noticed a horn poking out from my mane. Racking my memory I remembered something about there being multiple types of ponies, and that unicorns could use magic. (Not that I knew the first thing about it.)Finally my stare moved back down my face to my eyes, mesmerized by the frightened and lost look I saw within them. “CAW!” Once again that blasted bird snapped me out of my daze. Seriously… What was with this thing? It just seemed to sit there, staring, only hoping away when I got closer. “Whatever…” I grumbled and turned around, and looked upstream, if I was going to have any chance of surviving It was probably in that direction. The Smoky River ran south to north, and where id been working was upstream of a large bridge that spanned the river. So, as long as I headed that way I’d either run into my truck, or that bridge and hopefully get some help. Oddly enough I wasn’t too disturbed by the cold. I mean yes I felt it, but it seems my fur was able to keep me warmer that I thought it would despite how short it was. Then again, id seen horses roaming outside of their stables in -40 degrees weather so maybe it shouldn’t be so surprising. I knew though if I had been normal I’d probably be frozen by now. As much as it pained me to admit, id probably be an icicle if not for this change… “Then again, I might not be here if not for that… Thing” I muttered quietly… I was still wondering about all that. Was it a dream? Had I fallen asleep at the wheel and my broken mind simply imagined it all? Considering what had happened I find it hard to believe any of that. Many of the events had been absurd. Long legged rabbits? Transforming lunchboxes? Talking monstrosities? They all seemed like things a lunatic might speak of in an asylum… But then I remembered how real everything seemed; the Jell-O, the sheer terror, the pain when that creature had pinched me. Never mind that these sorts of things were not what I usually dreamed of. No I’m not going into detail about them. As I walked I felt one of my ears swivel around to the sound of fluttering wings, ( You have no idea how weird that feels…) and I sighed as I noticed the raven land a couple feet away. Still staring at me. “So you’re just going to follow me ?” I asked, raising an eyebrow at the creature. “CAW!” Huh, a little odd that it would reply to my question but I found it somewhat comforting. At least I wouldn’t be alone for this journey…