//------------------------------// // Fall // Story: Fallen From The Vine // by omnom19 //------------------------------// Death borders upon our birth and our cradle stands in the grave. Joseph Hall 2:01 am She refused to feel the frigid air clawing at her skin. She refused the screaming muscles in her wings. She refused everything that wasn’t necessary to stay in the air. She just. Flew. Sugar raced high above the recommended fly zone. The thin air refused to stay in her lungs, denying her of oxygen. Wind tore her face and whipped off her tears, flinging the salty drops to the ground below. They plummeted to the earth, gaining speed as gravity urged them faster. They smashed into underbrush, splitting apart into smaller droplets until the earth put an end to their reckless free-fall. She pushed past the pain, the cold, the buffeting winds. She existed only to - 7 hours earlier 7:32 pm “Be safe!” “Love you!” The purple houses’ shadow stretched long over the two ponies. They watched the pegasus and her burden circle upwards and away. The white pony became a white speck, indistinguishable from the mass of white clouds. They rested together for a long time, comforted by each others' presence. Two pillars of strength and stability, except- “She doesn’t know, does she.” “No.” “Why haven’t you told her?” “She has her own troubles.” “She’ll hate me, you know. She’ll blame me for this.” “I’m sorry, but, I can’t-“ the voice suddenly stops. There are murmurs of comfort among the two. The night continues to fall, spreading more shadows. The sun slowly slid into an inky oblivion, red tendrils reaching one last time to the sky. Another day, gone. A mere blink in time. “I can’t say goodbye.” “Why?” “Because I’m not leaving her. Not really. Just as I’m not leaving you.” The ponies grew silent. “I love you, you silly pony.” “Love you too. Forever and always.” ~~~ 9:18 pm Heat floods Sugar’s cheeks. She trips and twirls with the best of the earth pony dancers. Her slim pegasus frame and natural grace puts her in a field of her own. Young stallions line up to take a turn ‘round the bonfire with the light-footed mare. She spreads her wings and uses them for balance as she flaunts her ability to disobey gravity and lightly skims over the ground. Sugar laughs and brushes the tips of her primaries lightly across the cheek of her partner. He blushes and bows out as the song ends. She waves a friendly wing at her new friend. She is slightly dizzy from the last reel and steps away from hubbub of the crowd. She closes her eyes and basks in the warmth from the fire. Every nerve tingles with the joyous energy of the harvest celebration. She feels, for the first time in a long time, alive. A heavy hoof taps Sugar on the shoulder. Sugar lazily opens her eyes and grins. “Blue! What a nice surprise! Would you like to dance?” The older stallion smiles down at the young pegasus, although concern darkens his gaze. “Are you alright, Sugar?” She dismisses his question with a hearty laugh. “Never better! Why?” He stares critically at Sugar. “How much have you had to drink?” Sugar hiccups. Blue frowns slightly. Sugar blushes, the festivities and drink turning her white coat a light shade of pink. “What’s wrong, Blueie? Can’t a girl have a little fun?” Blue ruffles Sugar’s mane. “Within reason. Just – be careful? We’re glad you’re enjoying yourself-“ Sugar interrupts him with a friendly push. “Then relax! I’m fine. Now do you want to dance or not?!” Blue chuckles. “No thank you, Sugar. But she does.” He pointed at a scarlet pony waiting by the crackling bonfire. The mare was taller than the rest of the earth ponies present, with a svelte build. She grinned at Sugar with an almost predatory smile, teeth glinting strangely in the light from the fire. Her red mane was cut short at a dramatic angle, covering one green eye. The mare’s cutie mark was hidden by a flowing black skirt, lusciously spilling over on the ground. Sugar whistles. “She’s not from around here, is she?” Blue nods slowly, understanding Sugar’s apprehension. “She’s an exotic one all right. From Chilhay. She’s an old friend of May’s. Met her years ago? Her name’s Pepperdance.” The mare, Pepperdance, saunters over to the pair, her skirt flaunting her long legs. When she speaks, her voice is akin to a cat’s purr, low and throaty. “Oh Blue, you must introduce me to this senorita.” Sugar suddenly finds herself shy in the Pepperdance’s presence and awkwardly tries to sidle behind the larger pony. Blue rolls his eyes and nudges Sugar out from behind him. “Pepperdance, this is Sugar, a dear friend of ours; Sugar, this is Pepperdance.” “Suuugarrrr,” Pepperdance rolls the name around in her mouth, as if tasting it. Her accent electrifies the air, sending chills down Sugar’s spine. “It is good to meet you. This little fiesta is nice, but I do not get to truly dance. You know? But you!” Pepperdance stomps the ground. “Are different. You are like the fire itself. You are alive and dance with the pasión, yes?” Pepperdance leans closer to Sugar. “Are you afraid?” Sugar’s cheek flush. She shakes her head and meets Pepperdance’s mysterious gaze. “No.” The fiery mare tosses her mane and laughs. “Then we dance.” ~~~ 8:36 pm Ponies are born with a set amount of magic. Unicorns live brilliant lives, but die much sooner than the other ponies. They exhaust their magical reserves with their many spells and burn the candle at both ends. Pegasi are more resilient. They are more subtle with their use of magic. Their innate ability to affect the weather is not as drastic as that of the flashy unicorns. Earth ponies are in a different category all together. Earth ponies give off a near constant stream of magic. Just by walking, ponies *push* magic into the ground. Therefore, it would be expected that farmers who sustain and nurture their crops should drop dead within the first harvest. And yet, they don’t. Unlike unicorns and pegasi, earth ponies don’t have to put out the same levels of magic. Each earth pony builds upon their ancestors’ magic so they don’t have to start fresh. In that sense, little effort is needed to produce results compared to unicorns. But, magic runs out. Regardless of who you are. ~~~ The small seedling rested motionless in the upturned soil. Its tiny roots yearned to be in the embrace of the Mother, to be nourished by her magic just below the surface. But no, slow, all in good time. Leaves craved the touch of all-loving Sun and feel the light caress of Water. But for now, it waited. It waited for the Planter to finish the Ritual. The Planter’s magic was dim. Barely lit. The little leaves quivered in fear for the Planter. The Ritual might- The Planter carefully nudged the warm soil over the seedling. The seedling s t r e t c h e d downwards, easing into the fertile soil. The Planter added just the right amount of water. As the seedling straightened, it realized this was an accomplished Planter. No - this Planter was perfect. The Planter at last began to filter his magic into the little plant. The seedling basked in its warm glow. The Mother took hold of both the seedling and the Planter. And the Planter prayed… “O Gaia, Gracious Mother, Giver of Life, Comforter of Souls, hear my final prayer. As I give my last to you, know that I do so with a joyful heart. I am not afraid of death. I know that I will not be lost, but saved in your embrace. I am not bitter. I have lived a wondrous life, blessed with a loving wife and beautiful daughter. Even though I do not understand why I must go so soon, I know that you will nurture and sustain me. . . . Please watch over my beloved. Please guide my daughter. Keep her safe. The Planter’s magic was almost gone now. The little seedling thrummed with potent magic. As the magic reached its climax, the little plant doubled in height and sprouted a multitude of delicate purple flowers. The Ritual was complete. Into your gentle embrace, I tend my spirit. The Planter let go of his magic and slowly vanished from the seedling’s limited perception. The seedling stood alone on the hill - and silently mourned. ~~~ May watched Sugar from a distance as the night progressed. She calmly rested on her blanket, welcoming foals when they became too tired for the festivities. She nuzzled the tiny sleeping bodies, but always kept an eye on the younger mare. May wasn’t going to let her do anything stupid. She chuckled when Pepperdance met Sugar. Pepper was always a competitive and spirited mare. It would be just like her to seek out someone who she could challenge. Pepper had explained that she felt most alive when challenging others. “What is the point of living, if you do not live on the edge? To push yourself past what is comfortable? How can you appreciate life when you are afraid to dare? “ She wasn’t worried about Sugar, not really. Pepperdance had come in a few days prior, to bring gifts for May’s foal. When she fawned over the May’s unborn foal, the little one seemed to kick and dance in response to her alluring voice. They swapped stories and gossiped, quickly falling back into their old rhythm. The two mares were complete opposites. And perhaps that was why they had become such good friends. Pepperdance was exotic and could be somewhat frightening at times, but she was a good, if not odd, soul. She might exhaust Sugar from dancing, but that would all. May watched the two dance. Pepper taunted and was more aggressive while Sugar easily weaved in and out of her advances. She watched them draw a crowd as they “battled”. When at last both ponies were near exhaustion, victorious smiles on both faces, the crowd cheered. They were ushered to drink and celebrate away from the bonfire. May watched as Sugar was urged to speak. May was too far away to hear what was she said, but the crowd grew silent. Minutes passed and Sugar continued to captivate the crowd. When she finished, crowd stood and stomped their hooves once more for the pegasus. As the group of ponies dispersed, May was seized by waves of pain. “Blue!” May cried, voice cracking. She was told by many mares what birthing pains would be like, but this? Was twice that and more. She felt odd, as if she was coming unglued from her bones. She heard voices, wailing voices that shrieked inside her head. Blue galloped to his wife. May Wishes looked at him, eyes out of focus. “Something’s wrong. Blue, I-“ pain shook the mare once more and choked her. Blue began yelling for a doctor. Sugar soared over to the couple. May gasped. “Sugar! You’ve got to go home.” May wheezed and grabbed Sugar’s hoof. “Something’s wrong at the vineyard.” The voices continued to wail, shredding the mare’s train of thought. Sugar stared at May, concern painting her face a gaunt gray. “What are you ta-“ May weakly shook Sugar’s hoof. “You need to go. Listen to me!” May’s back arched at an odd angle. Sugar skittered away from the fallen mare. May was howling at this point. “GO!” Sugar backpedaled and turned, quickly launching herself into the air. She pointed herself toward Mareheart and didn’t look back. ~~~ 12:36 am Sugar skidded as she landed, scattering dirt and disturbing newly planted grapes vines. Lights were on at the purple house. Sugar flung the door open to find her mother sitting at the kitchen table. She seemed absentminded, swirling a glass of wine with one hoof. Sugar panted, exhausted from her rush back to the vineyard. “What’s wrong?!” Merlot looked up at her tired daughter and tried to pull herself together. “Sugar, your fa-“ Merlot stopped and set down the glass. She stood. “Come to the porch with me.” Sugar trembled. Something was wrong. Mother and daughter walked out to wooden porch. “Honey, I don’t know how to say this.” Merlot took large breaths of the cool night air, trying to calm her aching heart. “Then just say it.” “Your father he died a few hours ago.” Sugar froze. “What? How? He was fine when I left, what happened?” Merlot looked down at her hooves. “He had a rare magical condition, extremely rare among earth ponies. He gave out too much magic. He only told me about it a few days ago. He wanted to live his life to the fullest and not have us worry.” Sugar was silent. Merlot continued. “I wanted to tell you but he said no. I don’t think he could say goodbye.” Sugar was still silent. “Sugar, I don’t understand it either. But that’s what he wanted.” Merlot stared anxiously at her daughter. She still did not speak. Then Merlot noticed something. Something that seemed wildly inappropriate considering the circumstances. Merlot cautiously raised a shaking hoof at her daughter. “Baby, look.” Sugar slowly turned to look at herself. There, boldly emblazoned on her flank, was a cluster of plump, purple grapes. She was finally a Grape. She finally belonged. It was everything she had every hoped for. But. Not like this. And for what? What was her talent? Being helpless and absent while her father died? What cruel trick was this? What wicked deity would play such games? To have everything and then- lose it. Sugar stared blankly at her mother. Her mother appeared very old. Tired. Defeated. Merlot’s eyes swelled with unshed tears. “Sugar cube, ‘ah-“ “NO! Don’t!” Sugar cried, staggering back from her mother. Merlot stepped toward her daughter, and then stopped. She wanted to hold her daughter, tell her it was going to be okay. But, the closer she became, the farther away Sugar seemed. Death had created an impassible chasm between them. Sugar heaved and gasped, eyes tightly shut as she continued to back away. “He called me that. He called me that. He called me that.” Sugar chanted, half-delirious with heartache. Her whole body convulsed with violent shudders. Merlot struggled helplessly about the distance that had formed between them. “I’m sorry, I-“ Sugar’s eyes sprang open. Her wings rolled and snapped with frantic energy, scattering fallen leaves in their wake. “HE CALLED ME THAT AND NOW HE’S DEAD.” Wild with pain and frustration, Sugar clumsily took off. She struggled to gain altitude, fighting the sky with every wing beat. Merlot stood dazed below, rocked by her husband’s death and her daughter’s flight. She wept, her anguished cries echoing throughout the dark night. Her tortured sobs haunted Sugar as she fled the vineyard and sped away into the black. ~~~ 2:04 am She existed only to – Why did she exist? What was the point? Sugar glanced down at the dark forest below her. It would be nice to stop flying. Her wings were ragged and her muscles torn. To stop feeling. That would be nice. She slowly relaxed her tired wings. Sugar smiled. Ahh. Much better. She glided for a few seconds then relinquished control of her body. She made no sound as she gained speed. Gravity embraced the pegasus. And didn’t let go until she hit the ground.