Icon

by ReifuTD

Chapter 2: Meeting of Icon

I wish I could say my origin was as interesting as my husband’s. But it is not. I was a unicorn raised in farm land. My parents were land barons of the town of Neigh High.

Neigh High is an Earth Pony village between Appaloosa and Ponyville. We are mostly known for growing squash.

My family it’s self started off as bankers. As what happens with farmers there are good years and bad years. Farmers asked us to loan them money. Some could pay and others couldn’t. New farmers buy the lands from us. An unpleasantness I never wished to think too deeply on.

I met Icon at the Summer Wrap-up Festival. I was always an Eikonphile. Although to call myself an Eikonphile would be an understatement. So when it came to being a judge for a Cutie Mark beauty contest I was well enthusiastic.

Of course I was judging more things than just Cutie Marks. Grown foods, baked goods, craft, riddles.

My sister Spoken Melody was as deep into riddles and riddling contests as I Cutie Marks and was vastly disappointed that being a judge couldn’t enter. One thing that excited her about being judge challenging new comers with her own zingers.

Well my sister was trying to stump me with a riddle witch answer was “Opal”. I spotted the one eye pony wearing a blue rim hat. Stallion had a blue cotton candy coat. Much like in a way that my coat is cotton candy orange.

Icon was looking around like gockers do with that look in his eye. This was odd because I tend to care more about a pony’s Cutie Mark then again not many ponies have eye patches. That’s not I didn’t look at the Cutie Mark on his flank.

His Cutie Mark was a single star with the coloration of an old book page with pencil marks. Remarkable detail I must say.

Since I am on the subject of Cutie Marks mine is a triple heart prom, the prom being one of the hearts bigger then the others and colored gold with the two normal color hearts in the formation that help feature the gold heart.

My sister by the way had a music script Cutie Mark spun into a funnel. It looked fantastic with the white flank of hers. I have a very nice photo in my book of her ebony and hickory tail warped around her Cutie Mark.

Icon was talking very cheerfully to a foal that just got his Cutie Mark. A pair of yellow dice with black smiley faces. I recognized the pony as Happy Chance. A green thing with a blond mane. Fantastic example of a Cutie Mark.

“Who’s that?” I asked my sister pointing at the one eyed stallion.

Spoken Melody turned and looked the stranger up and down. She scanned him more extensively then I would have taking notes of the bits she liked. Feeling self conscious at how superficially I looked at his face and Cutie Mark I checked out the stranger’s sheath since his butt was nowhere in view at the moment. I saw it and I rolled my eyes away and blush. My sister smiled at me.

“Let say hi,” She remarks.

We walked up to the stallion sniffing the air to get a measure of him. I approached him from the front, well my sister approached him from the side putting her closer to the smelly bit. I personally found his musk a little soapy when compare to the farm ponies I was used to with a hint of salt.

“High,” I blushed.

“Hello miss and miss,” Icon takes a few nervous steps from my sister. Half because she approached him from his blind side, the other half was she was getting a little close. At this point he noticed our judge badges.

“You work for the fair?” Icon asks.

“We’re part of the Feelfeild family,” My sister answers.

“That’s the family that runs this town,” Icon notes.

“Very good,” Spoken Melody said with a hint of flirt in her voice.

“I’m Emote Goldheart, that’s my sister Spoken Melody.” I told the stallion.

“Icon Starsketcher,” He answered, “I’m an Eikonpsychologist, on a journey of discovery.”

“Ooo, My sister is quite the Eikonphile as well,” Spoken Melody smirks.

“By looking at her Cutie Mark she must be passionate about what she loves,” Icon remarks looking at my flank.

“That’s what you do right?” I noted, “Look at Cutie Marks and make guesses about a pony.”

“More or less,” Icon answered, “You have a very loose and vague Cutie Mark that could mean a lot of things.”

“Like what?” I smirked.

“Your talent is passion which is more of an abstract concept probably means it took you a while to get your Cutie Mark,” Icon answers.

I blushed, Spoken Melody starts laughing.

“It’s true,” She sucked in some air, “She’s the older sister and we got our Cutie Marks at about the same time.”

“Okay, what can you say about my sister,” I boasted.

Icon looked at her flank and Spoken Melody replied by wagon her butt and a little tail flick.

“Something to do with music, It's trying to show how you use it since those aren't individual notes but a script,” Icon said thoughtfully. "Your name is Spoken Melody that implies that music isn’t the important part of your talent. It has to do with the words you say not your singing ability.”

“I speak riddles,” Spoken Melody boasts, ”But my singing ability isn't half bad sir."

“Ah, yes,” Icon nods his head.

Suddenly there was a scream. Our group of three trotted for the horrific noise.

Now I should tell you that Icon is the second pony I met with an eye patch. The first is my uncle Miss-it Wrong who happen to be an earth pony. Remember now that I and my sister are unicorns but this isn’t odd giving the number of unicorns when compared to earth ponies in the area. But that’s a whole other thing.

My uncle Miss-it lost his first eye at a young age as an accident involving a right hoofed pick axe being used by a left hoofed pony.

He lost his second eye just now. By just now I mean the general time this story takes place as described. Not at the moment you are reading this and the even the moment I’m writing this many years have passed.

Two ponies helped my uncle to his feet. About this time I noticed his eye was gone. There was no bloody socket. You would be amazed how many times you'd think you'd see blood but there is no blood to be seen. In his socket was a black void. Later I was also shocked to find out the milky remains of his patched eye have been removed for some strange reason.

“Magic,” Icon stated with a look of somepony that have seen many such sights in his eye.

“Human!” Miss-it shouts.

“Is he mad?” Spoken Melody remarks.

For a moment just then I thought I saw a hooded figure slip away turning its flank to me to reveal a lion’s tail. Spoken Melody noticed my look.

“What’s the matter,” She asked me.

“Nothing just a strange Griffon,” I shook my head half in reply and half to clear my head.

“What attacked him?” I cried.

“That’s a matter for the sheriff,” Spoken Melody told me, “We need to keep face.”

“What’s going to happen now?” I remarked, “Uncle Miss-it was going to help us judge some of our competitions.”

“I don’t think dad or mom is going to find time to do it?” Spoken Melody sighs.

“You said you need a judge?” Icon spoke up.

“Yes,” Spoken Melody answered him.

“Well I’m out of town so I would be impartial,” Icon points out. “And I have no important work to do so depending on…”

“Well, We do have a Cutie Mark contest witch you are more than well equipped for,” Spoken Melody remarks circling the one eyed pony. “Then how are you at riddles?”

“Riddle?” Icon answered in a questioning tone.

“You would have to judge a riddling contest,” Spoken Melody told him.

“I see,” There was a level of understanding on Icon’s face at the time that passed the notice of both me and my sister.

“Let me put you to the test,” Spoken Melody smirked, “I’m like a gate each one a different color, from behind me a treasure is hid.”

Icon stops to think for a moment then answers. “Pony Tail.”

“Not bad,” Spoken Melody said approvingly.

After about an hour it was time for the Cutie Mark judging contest with nine entries.

The first entry was a young colt with a single type Cutie Mark of a wonderfully detailed blue toad. Icon was very questionative to the colt about his Cutie Mark. This gave the contest a heighten sense that made my heart race a little.

Second was a young filly with a foreground background Cutie Mark. A red rose was the back ground object. The foreground object was a fern with red markings. At the end of the markings, where the tip of the leaves were at little red heart shaped dots. Nice touch. I made sure to ask her if she used any Cutie Mark makeup or that was natural detail. Icon of course had his set of intense questioning.

The third was a unicorn filly with a single of a white lily flower. White isn't the best choice of words to describe this thing. It was white with a milky glow. Also little sparkle accents were around the flower with the same kind of glow.

“So, your name is Blood Moon?” Icon remarks to the filly.

“Yes sir,” The filly Blood Moon answered nervously.

“Your Cutie Mark is a nice replation of a unicorn’s magical abilities but whow does your Cutie Mark relate to your name in anyway way?” Icon asked

“It’s a moon flower,” Blood Moon told us.

“Umm, I would think would be a red flower,” Icon remarks.

The cream colored filly blushed. “It turns orange when I’m in heat.”

My sister blushed at this revelation. I parked up and spoke. “Wow! Really? I would love to see that! A color changing Cutie Mark!

“Sorry my summer breading cycle is over,” Blood Moon blushed putting her head down. “It also glows a little on the dark.

“How did you get such a Cutie Mark,” Was Icon’s reaction.

“Well, I always was good at mixing herbs and I came up with a good mixture that relieves Estrus symptoms,” Blood Moon answered.

“You say that glows in the dark,” Spoken Melody spoke up. “Could somepony bring a blanket over here?”

A pony did, and the blanket was placed over the flank of the filly. Each of us one by one stuck our heads under the blanket and looked at the Cutie Mark in the dark. It did indeed have a glow.

We moved to the next pony. A colt with a black and orange salamander Cutie Mark. It was in a sort of tribal style.

The next colt had a single of a well detailed dinosaur skull. Icon’s question shown that pony was a fossil and rock hunter and the skull on his flank was a pterodacty skull.

Next was a filly with two seeds in a background foreground formation. The foreground object had a spout sticking out of it. Icon questioned her about what kind of seeds they were.

Then came a filly with some nicely detailed ivy vine leaves with some blackberries growing from them.

After that a colt with a pair of sparklers crossed for a Cutie Mark. A couple of years later I found out that he blew himself up making fireworks.

The last was a filly with a shimmering lavender dragon skin patch. The flank the Cutie Mark was on was orange and the filly was a unicorn with a mane the same color and shine as her Cutie Mark. She was also heavy makeuped. She also admitted to using a little Cutie Mark makeup on her Cutie Mark.

Afterwards we gave out our ribbons. Third place was the salamander Cutie Mark. Second the dragon skin Cutie Mark. First was Blood Moon’s amazing Cutie Mark. We gave a honorable mention to the filly with the rose fern Cutie Mark.

When the whole ordeal was done Icon and Spoken Melody walked off together. Part of me felt a little jealous. Through the whole judging contest I found myself liking the stallion more and more. I mean he and I both had an interest in Cutie Marks.

I sighed and walked off to find the dragon skin Cutie Mark pony so I could ask her if I could take a photo of her flank for my collection.

An hour later and the riddle judging contest started. Now to tell you the only reason I ever really care about riddles is because my sister cared about riddles. Now having lived away from her for a few years. How much I care about riddles significantly dropped. Also you’re not reading this to hear about random riddlers. You’re here to read about Cutie Marks. So I’ll skip over a good deal of these events except the important bits.

You should know that Happy Chance entered in the riddling contest and he reached the finals. This was the point my sister been waiting for since she starts spouting out her own riddles. Well we each had to give a riddle too.

Eventually Happy Chance ended up winning, got his reward and then him and everybody else went to their evening festivities.

By now the evening’s sun was coming down. I decided to grow a back bone and ask Icon if he wanted to walk down the fair’s board walk arcade. We played some games and rode some rides. At one point I nestled my head into his chest well riding the ferris wheel. Later we went to the petting zoo.

“Get away from me!” A colt’s voice shouts.

“It’s about time,” Was Icon’s rather odd reaction to such a cry for help.

He runs for a nearby barn with me fallowing him. Inside the barn I saw the hooded figure with the griffon tail. It had Happy Chance cornered.

“You stop!” Icon shouted.

The hooded figure turned to us his hood falling away. To my shock what looks at us appeared to be a human's face. No not a human. This was a sphinx.

“Riddle,” The human like creature demanded in a both menacing and happy tone.

“What do you want?” I asked.

“Answer my riddle,” The sphinx demands.

“Don’t say a thing until your sister comes,” Icon barked.

“You know about this thing?” I said in a shout.

“We are seekers of talent,” Icon answered me.

“What has four legs in the morning, Two in the afternoon, Three in the evening?” The sphinx told us his riddle.

Both Icon and I give each other a look of "Really?" and replied with the same answer.

“Human!”

“Good you know my story,” Suddenly the sphinx grabs Icon by the neck with one claw and with the other opened a pouch.

“Leave him alone!” I shout ripping away the pouch. The contents spill out over the hay covered floor. Eyeballs rolled everywhere. This is the point Happy Chance screams the loudest I heard him scream.

“My wisdom!” The sphinx shouts letting Icon go to grab the eyes. A moment later the thing gives us an angry look and lunges at us both.

“You like riddles?” Spoken Melody shouts as she steps into the barn.

“Yes,” The sphinx replied in a way there should be a smirk but the lips remain expressionless.

“Then solve mine,” Spoken Melody said in a stern tone.

“Very well then I’ll take your eyes,” The sphinx answers.

“Once there was a pony, a beautiful mare,” My sister started, “Her true love long ago passed away. One day the mare stops her heart only for a moment with a poison. For but a moment is a life time in Tartarus. The mare sees many ponies in the after life. She asked one of these once living ponies what was Tartarus like? The pony answers “Boring,” The mare said she was lucky because she was only planning on visiting. The pony wished her luck and told her not to eat hell’s fruit.

Now the ruler of Tartarus saw this recently dead mare roaming his land and instantly falls in love. He was that kind of male. Anyway he offers to bring her lover back to life, But only if she could guess hell’s fruit and the mare would have to eat her guess. She asks, that fine and dandy but can I have a clue. So the ruler of Tartarus answers it’s full of red rubies but if you want to look inside you have to bite in it first.”

“Fascinating riddle,” The sphinx replied. “The mare has plans of returning to life and she was warn not to eat the fruit. I suppose she would have to guess the fruit first that maybe the key to figure this out. So the fruit has rubies. There must be other clues-!”

Well the beast was distracted I floated up a heavy board with unicorn magic and dropped it on his head. We jumped the unconscious beast and tied him up.

The eye balls had some kind of spell on them so all we need to do is to slip my uncle's eye back in his socket. To track down the other eyes we sent out a press release which was written up by me.

“You’re a writer?” Icon asked me when he found this out.

“Well somepony has to do this job,” I shrugged.

“How you like to be my assistant?” Icon suggested.

“Beg pardon?” I replied.

“Unicorns write faster than earth ponies,” Icon points out, “I'm slower than most earth ponies, always having to push back my deadlines and you like Cutie Marks, so I think you’d love to work for the CMSS. Well you'd be working for me and I'll be working for the CMSS.”

“What! Really!” I jumped up.

“Say yes,” Icon smiled.

“Yes, yes, yes,” I hugged the stallion.

Afterward I let loose my grip of the stallion. “So you where planning on capturing that sphinx from the beginning? Did you put the colt in danger?”

“Well there was risk,” Icon sighs, “Happy Chance’s talent is good luck. Now that can only go so far. Living beings make their own choices but they are pushed in the direction fate has planned for them. No amount of luck would stop someone from wanting to hurt you if they really have the mind for it. Happy Chance would win the riddle contest and the sphinx will go after him. I told your sister that.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked offended.

“She is the only one that could do something about the creature,” Icon told me, “Our Cutie Marks like to give us opportunities to show our abilities and skill. Because of this no matter where I go my skills of an Eikonpsychologist will be tested. So I knew your sister will have to be the one to face the sphinx at some point.”

“I see,” I went home told my family I was leaving and packed my saddle bags.

The next day Icon was waiting for me at the edge of town.

“Ready?” Icon asked with a smile.

I looked back at my home town for one last time. “Yes,”

The two of us walked out onto the grassy prairie.