//------------------------------// // Limp Body // Story: How a Balloon Can Break a Rock // by Michael Hudson //------------------------------// Pinkie blinked as she saw the blank land around her. It was so… white. A small giggle rippled through the emptiness as she realized that it must be a dream. The ripples turned solid, then darkened. She watched in bewilderment as the black lines came together to create a scene in front of her. She tried floating towards it, but a wall she couldn’t see stopped her, and a blob of black escaped where her hoof met the barrier. She watched it float onto the scene and pop, showing a small filly with a bushy mane and tail that now landed on the black surface. She herself, was black, just like the rest. The little filly looked back, and waved to something. As if on cue, another filly, this one with a long mane that covered half of her face, came into view. She was entirely black as well, and even smaller than the poofy pony. She also carried much less energy to herself, shrinking back as the energetic one nuzzled her. And then, they were off. The first filly bounced along the path, and Pinkie giggled as she mirrored the motions, the land expanding before the two ponies as they moved. Despite the slower movements of the calmer one, she never went out of sight. Never stopped watching what Pinkie assumed was her sister. They had to come to an end soon, and that end came with the woods. The small filly clambered on top of a rock, and seemingly started to declare something as she awaited her sister’s arrival. Pinkie cleared her throat, and began to assume what she said. “My brave general, this was the spot. The spot where I earned my great reputation, fighting off the rabid carrot people. While they had flooded out of the forest, I would not allow them to breach my homeland, and threaten my family. That is not the way of the Pie!” Both Pinkie and the filly stood tall, their heads thrown back, and looking to the sky. Much to Pinkie’s amusement, the calmer one used this to as a chance to try to match her sister’s energy, and nuzzled the energetic ones chest. The filly laughed for a moment, before falling over the other side of the boulder. The small pony wouldn’t sit still though, even after the wall, and instead walked to the large tree that signaled the end of the dreamscape. She excitedly jumped up and down, as if triumphant about something, and Pinkie held a hoof to her mouth. Could it perhaps be buried treasure, or a new sweet she had on the other side? It was only then that a long, black leg ending in a fine, sharp point, extended from the tree, and Pinkie’s heart almost stopped. “No.” The filly glanced back at the leg, and stuck her tongue out, before jumping back. The leg impaled the ground and shook the dreamscape with its force. The small pony threw back its head, laughing once more, before gesturing for her sister to go forwards. “P-please, no. I don’t want to see this.” But the shyer one still went, albeit much slower than her sister had. Pinkie’s words had no effect as the leg slowly rose again, and the mare shrank back from it. Despite moving long before the spider’s leg came down, she still barely escaped the deadly point. She looked back at her sister and tried a small smile of triumph, to which the energetic filly just bounced in the air, and back into the range of the leg. “I don’t care if you think you’re fine, stop!” The filly wouldn’t though. Pinkie already knew this. She watched the same roll to the side she had watched so many times before. Began to cry as the filly stayed on her back, talking to her sister about the new game, all while two new legs extended from the tree. She knew she should look away, knew she didn’t want to watch as the scared filly noticed the danger she was in, and the leg came down upon her sister. But she couldn’t, not while the filly saw death come inches from her, only to be thrown away. A glow came over the saved filly as time slowed, the points coming ever closer to the other one. The one that had just pushed her to the side, and could not run away. The filly’s eyes were wide, shocked, trying to comprehend the fact that she had come a second away from dying. Then, the world turned red. Every bit of white was stained by the color, and Pinkie sat down, her hair fully deflated, just like the filly’s as she hit the ground. The long legs picked up her sister, showing off how one leg was through the chest, and the other through her throat, before throwing the corpse to the ground. Just in reach of its legs, but also close enough to taunt the filly to come get it. Pinkie could now shut her eyes. She didn’t have to see herself yell at the beast. Shout at it that it was all a game. Scream that this wasn’t funny. All while she dodged the legs, and dragged the corpse back with her. ======+++++====== Pinkie leapt off of the couch as a cold hoof touched her side. She crashed to the ground, before weakly standing up and turning around to look at the pony who had disturbed her. There she saw Twilight, tears coming down her face as she stared at Pinkie. “Y-you were screaming.” The pink pony blinked a few times, before rubbing at her eyes, coming away with wet patches of fur. “Really?” Twilight nodded, pressing her hoof back into the other mare’s side. “Are… are you okay, Pinkie?” Before she could respond, Pinkie was cut off by the conductor’s voice coming through the PA system. “We’ll be arriving at Gravel Station in about five minutes, so please make sure you’re ready for arrival.” Twilight turned her head back down to a Pinkie who was rapidly nodding in response to her question, all while frantically packing her saddlebags. “We don’t want to be late getting off of the train, do we?” Twilight bit into her cheek, before shrugging to herself. Pinkie wasn’t the most secretive mare in Equestria, and that was putting it loosely, so if she didn’t want to share it probably wasn’t that important. What was important was her instinct to explore, causing her to float through the top of the train. At first, she was very confused, as only rocks filled her vision for as far as she could see, which wasn’t far. She was then blinded as the train escaped the tunnel, and the midday sun flared high in the sky. Twilight’s eyes twitched for a moment, before she blinked rapidly, each one getting the world to come back into focus, bit by bit. Looking around, Twilight was honestly surprised. It was a surprisingly desolate place. She could see the station they were approaching, but the only thing beyond that was a barren plain, with a single house. Twilight bit into her lip for a moment, before she noticed the large piles of rocks that dotted the plain, and the equipment to move those rocks that lay about in the field. It wasn’t just an empty space as she had thought, but Pinkie’s home. Twilight brought her hooves up, rubbing at her eyes for a moment before looking back, and all she still saw were rocks. Slipping back into the cabin, she stared at Pinkie for another few moments before the question got to be too much to hold back. “How is that your home?” Pinkie jumped up from the floor because of Twilight’s shout. She then giggled while closing up her suitcase. “Well yeah, silly. What, did you think I was an alien or something?” Twilight blinked a few times as she followed the slow trotting mare. “Umm, yes?” Pinkie’s body shook slightly, her flat mane having a few hairs lift up for a moment, before falling back down. “Well, as amazing that would be, it’s unfortunately not the case. Instead, I got to be a part of the most amazing rock farm in Equestria!” A small laugh escaped Twilight as she floated beside her, before the creaking of a door caught her attention. At the porch of the small house was a brown stallion with black hair, looking out into the fields. Behind him was a faded white mare, with gray hair and glasses, looking over his shoulder. The stern face on the stallion worried Twilight for a moment, before she remembered that they had to be Pinkie’s parents. Her father, Igneous, looked to his daughter and let out a brief sigh. “I always hear you coming, don’t I?” Pinkie stuck her tongue out. “Well, we do plan this out, and the train whistle is really loud.” Her mother, Cloudy Quartz, stepped out and laid down, beckoning her filly over. The two nuzzled against each other, before Twilight froze from Cloudy looking directly at her. “I can’t see your friend. Is it one of those special ones?” Pinkie nodded furiously. “Her name is Twilight, and she is super smart. Like, beats the pants off of Miss Power even, smart. She wanted to come when I was asking for spooky books about ghosts and such.” Igneous nodded at the comment, before opening the door more. “Well, as always, she is welcome here if you want her Pinkie. However, you still have things to do, like helping your mother with lunch. I doubt after your long train ride you don’t want some, and Limestone isn’t here to help bake.” Pinkie’s tongue ran along her lips, before she bounced to her hooves. “You would be absolutely right, as always dad. I’ll get the soup going!” Twilight waited for Igneous to turn and follow Cloudy Quartz before beginning to float towards the door. Just as she was about to reach it though, he turned back. “Spirit, are you there?” Twilight bit into her cheek, before realizing that there was no reason to hide. Her form made its appearance before him, and she nodded. “My name is Twilight sir, and it’s a pleasure to know Pinkie, and to meet you.” Igneous’s frown deepened for a moment, before he nodded again. “Tell me, do things like you normally need sleep?” Twilight blinked a few times, turning her head at the odd question. “No, not unless I’ve used a lot of magic recently. Why?” The stallion looked away, back towards the kitchen. “Bad memories hold this place over my daughter, and… and if you can, please don’t wander off to haunt somewhere else. We could use you tonight. Understand?” Twilight didn’t, and her form wavered as she came closer. “Why sir?” Igneous was silent for a moment, before a tear came down his face. “It… it would be easier if you merely saw it. Easier for you to destroy it, and free my family of the cursed spirits that hold such misery on my land. Pinkie won’t be willing to, but I need you to promise to me that you will do all you can to stay detached, and kill what lurks in the air tonight.” She stared at him for a few moments, before gently lowering her head, nodding in response, even though she had no idea what was going on. At this point, even with her curiosity, she didn’t know if she wanted to.