//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 - Act IV - Triple Trouble // Story: Fade Away II: To Glory // by JoeBobWhitney //------------------------------// Delsin sighed. He had been here in Ponyville for about a week now with events slowly progressing, as many could suspect. At the current rate of things, he'll be back home - in about a year. Staying in this much-too-girly place was not on his list of things to go ahead and do. There was nothing physically wrong with Equestria - minus all the damn pink - but he'd rather just be back on Earth, causing trouble via public grafitti, getting arrested by his brother and being released a few days later - rinse and repeat. Equestria was a far-cry compared to the likes of Earth. It was very peaceful, everybody knew everybody and there was little-to-no crime whatsoever. As of late, however things have changed. Due to the threats of the Gryphons, many ponies are on edge and avoiding staying outside for too long. Paranoia got the best of most ponies, even the Elements of Harmony actually - especially them. Everybody knew the Gryphons would hunt them down specifically and take them hostage or either - kill them. Taking them as a hostage or killing them would send millions ponies into a panic. After many months of protecting Equestria, ponies realized they heavily relied on the Elements - more than most would like to admit. Even the Princesses rely on the Mane Six as if they couldn't do much more than them. With Cole and Delsin being in Equestria, that eased some ponies' nerves but did nothing to stop their fears. Delsin snapped from his thoughts as he felt something tugging at his pant leg. He looked down to notice three small ponies, smaller than normal. The first of the trio, the one grabbing his pant leg, was an orange pegasus with a wild purple mane and violet eyes, reminiscent of Rainbow Dash. The next in the line-up was a pale yellow earth pony with a flat brilliant amaranth mane and gamboge etes, similar to Applejack. The last of the trio was an alabaster unicorn with a mulberry and light rose curled mane and pale green eyes. "Uh, hello?" Delsin spoke up. The trio gasped in response. "You speak?" The yellow earth pony responded. "Of course I speak, who can't talk?" "Cows, pigs, chickens." The orange pegasus commented, in a as-a-matter-of-fact-ly tone. "Seriously? Of all the things- what do you want?" "Well, we saw ya walkin' around and we were wondering just what you were. Scootaloo thought you were just some random, loose monkey." "And I thought you were one of the humans that arrived here not too long ago." The white unicorn added. "I'm the second one." Delsin answered, somewhat offended by the monkey statement. "Hah! Told ya." She gave a smug smirk at Scootaloo. "Whatever. So, what are you doing anyway?" "Nothing in particular, why?" "Oh. Well, if you're not doing anything - we were hoping you could help us!" "With what?" "Help us get our Cutie Marks!" Delsin was blank for a moment. "Your what?" He replied. "You know, our Cutie Marks." Sweetie Belle added. "Listen, I'm not a, uh pony so I have no clue what your talking about." "A Cutie Mark is a special symbol which ponies get when they learn their special talent. A pony's cutie mark defines a pony!" "Okay but why do you want them so bad?" "Everypony else has them! Look around." Sweetie Belle retorted. "Good point but are they that important? I mean, why waste your time getting them?" "Because, they symbolize the fact we've found what makes us special." "I see. Is this because of a bully?" They gasped in unison. Again. "How'd you know?" Apple Bloom asked. "I've dealt with a ...similar situation. Except the Cutie Mark part." Delsin admitted, faking a awkward cough afterwards. "Ya did?" Apple Bloom asked. "Yeah, I did. Alright girls, I'll help you." The three young fillies cheered happily as Delsin took a step away, realizing the fatal mistake that would forever curse him for gaining some damn good karma. "Oh boy, what the hell did I get myself into?" He rested his face in his palm as he felt a tug at his ankles again. "C'mon, follow us!" Delsin sighed and followed closely, resting his hands in his pockets. The three fillies began walking towards their destination with the almost six feet bipedal following right behind them. As they walked, many ponies onlookers had afraid expressions on their face. He was quite unsure why, but he didn't pay it too much mind. A bit of time later, the three fillies parked, he almost tripped over them as he continued walking unconsciously. He stopped himself from falling as he looked onwards at what seemed to be an old white shed. The once frost white paint was chipping and peeling, revealing the dark wood underneath the coat. The two windows around the side seemed to be cracked and busted, almost definitely creating a hazard of broken glass on the inside. The wooden door was also barely on it's rusty hinges. Scootaloo barely had to push the door open as it simply opened without any struggle and revealed the inside. The roof was almost caved in and there was patches of missing wood, letting the light from the sun peer inside. "What the hell?" "This is how we're gonna get our Cutie Marks!" "This shed?" "We're gonna repair it!" Sweetie Belle stated. "You can repair this piece of shi- c-crap?" He stuttered, again censoring himself. "I'm sure we can. After all, Apple Bloom is a great carpenter." Scootaloo added. "Oh. Who's is it anyway?" "It's my sister's old one." Apple Bloom responded. "So - shall we get started?" "Yeah." Out of nowhere, Sweetie Belle pulled out a painted metal box of shiny, silver-gray tools. "Oh boy." Delsin sighed as he grabbed a hammer from the box. "Well. It looks... "-Good?" "No. It's crap. No. It's shit." The fillies gasped at his words. Delsin glared at the abomination. What was once a peacefully, old and decrepit shed was now a disgusting creature that was forced to live on medical treatments. Pulling the plug on it would be the best damn course of action. Freshly painted wooded planks were nailed to the old wooded planks of the shed - still with peeling and chipping paint. The roof wasn't even properly fixed. They simply stuck a large piece of board over it to "repair" the spots were wood had caved in. Hell, the new iron hinges for the wooden door didn't even fit the door which meant the door was literally standing on wood. A small gust of wind blew through comically, causing the door to fall down as a message from Equestria to say, "you suck, try again scrub". Delsin sighed and rested his head in his palm in disappointment. "So, it turns out that wasn't a good idea." Scootaloo commented, sheepishly. "Uh, nope." Apple Bloom responded. "Le-let's go. Girls, I'll take you home." Delsin stated as they turned and walked away. "So, what'd you do today?" Cole asked. "Some really stupid shit that wasted most of my day." "Was it with 'Cutie Mark Crusaders'?" "How'd you know, man?" "Because that 'old shed' you tried to repair wasn't even being used. Applejack wasn't gonna use that thing. She already built another, thanks to Rainbow." "Fuck."