Mandatory Motherhood

by dargondarkfire

Ch. Intermission 2 recovered logs (edited)

Author's Note:

(chapter has received a few spelling and grammar fixes)

Hello everyone, I'm sorry for the lack of updates, things went sideways for me and my editors and me after EverfreeNW last August. I won't bring up their issues but I caught a severe cold that took me out for 3 weeks in September, and then just as Halloween hit I got Covid, then my own life has been a nightmare of working retail during the holidays.

This chapter was meant to be a quickie that contained little stories that I wasn't able to fit into previous chapters. Things didn't turn out as planned so it's now the final chapter for this year unless you guys would like me to write a short Christmas in July chapter?
it would be canon to the story just like the intermission chapters.

A quick warning, this chapter has had no polish except some go overs by myself and a Grammarly check; my editors haven't been able to look at it, so I can't vouch for grammar flow or if I can keep the story in the correct tense for each part.

If something stands out please mark the paragraph you found it in, thank you.

Please enjoy and be prepared for a few things I have been dropping hints on for a while. I love to see your ideas and theories on them.

Mandatory Motherhood

By Dargondarkfire

Ch. Intermission 2

Corrupted log recovery… Complete
Loading recovered logs… Complete

June 28th. “Hey, Lyra.” Colgate poked her friend in the shoulder.

Lyra rolled over and stared at her friend. “I’m feeling better, you don’t have to bug me every few hours.”

Colgate looked away sheepishly and chuckled. “Sorry about that, I’m just worried yah know.” Her expression changed to a smile and she returned her gaze to her friend. “But that isn’t the only reason I wanted to talk to you.” Lyra raised an eyebrow at her remark.

“Have you noticed how Russell and Chris have been acting around each other? Does it remind you of anypony we know?”

Lyra looked at Colgate puzzled before coming to a realization. “You mean Twilight and Spike? I mean sure if Spike was older and more unruly, I can see that.”

They both looked upwards and thought of Russell being the same size as Spike riding on Chris’s back while Starla climbs to Russell causing them to giggle.

“If only Russel appeared at that size things would have been easier. Oh well, what is for lunch?” Lyra asked.

Colgate thought for a moment. “Tuna salads with ranch dressing and powered parmesan.”

Lyra cringed. “You and your fish. I will just pass.”

Colgate giggled and shook her hoof. “Fish is good once you get used to it. Besides, you need the protein, so you will eat it even if I have to force each bite into your mouth.

Lyra groaned in defeat.

---

July 1st. “Hey, Colgate. Can I ask you something?” Lyra asked as she rolled on the bed.

“What Lyra? Unless you want freeze-dried or powdered scrambled eggs then you're not going to have eggs for breakfast.” Colgate said back from counting a stack of diapers.

Lyra frowned. “I wasn’t going to ask about breakfast. I wanted to ask you if you have noticed anything odd about Chris?

Colgate snorted. “Like what? That she acts like a stallion? Wants to walk around on her hind legs like you? Tries to eat jerky and dried bacon despite failing repeatedly?”

Lyra fake gags. “While those are weird and the last one is kinda funny, that isn’t what I mean.“ Colgate looked back with a raised eyebrow. “Russell has told me she has experienced some weird things around Chris. Like sometimes when she comes into physical contact with Chris she hears a voice, and when Chris gets upset or emotional her eyes turn pink and white or something.”

Colgate was about to brush her worries away but stopped. “Chris has complained that from time to time she hears someone talking but she thinks either she has slightly gone crazy starting from before she met me or is developing a tulpa… whatever that is. However, I have never heard anything when I’m in physical contact with her.”

“As for her eyes… Well I think I saw her eyes do that once but it might have been a trick of the light, I think it was just before they turned pure white when she had a magic flare from being upset so it could have been a preemptive effect of that.”

Lyra rubbed her foot on the bedding in thought. “Yeah I guess that is possible, I wish twilight was here, she would probably be able to explain it.”

Colgate laughed. “Yeah, and we would be lectured about it for an hour or two.”

Lyra started laughing as well.

“Well just keep an eye on her ok.” Lyra looked at Colgate with a caring expression.

Colgate smiled back. “Of course, I will she is my friend.”

---

Date unknown, data corrupted, unable to recover.

“Stop, stop… stop showing me these things. Please stop.” Chris says in a tone that implies she is trying to hold back tears, sounds indicate that she has exited the motorhome, and crickets indicate she is outside.

“Why won’t you stop? None of them deserved any of that, but I can’t do anything for them. Please stop…” Sounds indicate the opening of a door and that she is walking across tile floors.

Chris continues to ask for something to stop as she moves through a building. Finally, the sounds of hooves on tile stop, and there is the sound of something laying upon a cushion or fabric.

“Why do you torture me?! I just want to sleep! I can’t take much more of this!” The sounds of something pounding into a cushion several times. “Just stop!”

The muffled thumps stop followed by crying that goes on for several minutes.

“Have you calmed down Christopher?”

“You! You are the one doing this to me aren’t you!? Colgate already thinks I am losing my mind because I hear you, but you are also the cause of these nightmares aren’t you!?”

“I guess that answers my question. No, I am not the cause-”

“Get out of my head! Get out! Stop torturing me! Leave me alone!” The sounds of something rapidly pounding into a cushion followed.

Sighing noise. “Would you please calm down and listen? I want to help you.”

“You can help me by getting out of my head and letting me sleep peacefully!” Chris’s shout is followed by a loud clap as she springs to her hooves and begins moving.

“Christopher, what are you doing? I want to help, but you’re being irrational. Let’s sit back down an-wait, why are you looking at that wall like that?”

The hoof steps get quicker. “I’m going to get you out of my head!”

“Stop! Or else!”

“Or else whaaaahhh?!” The sounds of tumbling and sliding are heard followed by crying.

“How? What?”

“Take deep breaths and calm down. Please, Christopher?”

“Why is my horn glowing pink? Why are my arms bound?” frustration and confusion are evident in Chris’s voice.

“You need to calm down. I know you are frustrated, but you’re only going to hurt yourself if this keeps up.”

Shuffling sounds from struggling to move are fairly heard. “Why are you doing this to me? Why?” sobbing sounds follow.

“Calm down, I’m trying to help. Wait you can feel that right? Starla just woke up and she is looking for you. Calm down go to her and once you settle down I can try and help you.”

“Help me?”

”Yes, I-”

“By making me watch them die?!”

”No! That’s-

“Again and again almost every night I have to watch those children die! Like a movie on repeat! You show me where they are and then make me watch them die with no power to help them!

“That’s not me! I have nothing to do with-”

“Shut up! Get out of my head!” There are the sounds of something bursting and the sounds of stone cracking. “AAAAHHHHHHHHHH!”

Gasping sound. “No. Stop Christopher!”

“Stop calling me Christopher!” More cracking noises and the sound of crackling discharges goes on for a period while Chris screams.

The faint noise of hooves on tile can barely be made out. “Oh no, stay here, no stay! Good girl.”

The sound of hooves on tile slowly gets louder but is drowned out by the crackling and cracking noises. “Chris? Can you hear me? Please calm down!”

There is a loud boom followed by glass shattering while Chris’s screams continue.

The sounds of hooves get gradually louder. “Only one chance, please Celestia guide me.”

Struggling sounds and a yelp of pain are followed by a popping noise and the scream dying down into loud crying and eventually sobbing.

Panting noises. “Chris are you ok? You just about took the building out.”

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry!”

There is a low whimpering sound followed by the shifting of fur.

“Chris, What are you sorry for? Look if it was a bad dream, it’s over, I’m here for you and so is Starla. We were both really worried.”

“It’s not over, it won’t end. It just gets worse and worse.”

“What do you mean Chris? What gets worse and why won’t it stop?”

“The dream, because another came and I couldn’t help them.” The sobbing continues but gets quieter and raspy.

“Help who and from what?”

A deep breath is heard. “The children dying Colgate. I couldn’t-”

There is a moment of silence. “Is that what the nightmare is you keeping having Chris? I… Chris?” sighing noise. “She passed out. Starla, stay with me ok? We are going to take mama back to bed and… Wait Chris brought her tape recorder with her? It’s on. Did she do it on purpose or did she even realize it? I’ll turn it off and see ask about it in the morning.”

A moment of silence. “Maybe I should erase it, I don’t want to cause her to have a breakdown listening to it… Or maybe I should listen to it? What do you think Starla?”

A few moments of silence pass before Colgate sighs and shaked her head. “I’m asking a foal for their opinion. I’ll decide in the morning.”

Comments

[Viper Pit]

when did this story update so much? i sweear i blink and boom 10 more chapters

[dargondarkfire]

11086999
I wish i could update it that fast. Atleast you had a backlog to read?
I do wish fimfic had kept the function on the website where you would recieve an email every time a story you followed got a new chapter.

[dargondarkfire]

11088645
Your not the first person to point out that she looks similar to another oc. But a lot of people mistake the orange in her mane for yellow.

[dargondarkfire]

For those wondering about a Christmas in July story to get dropped on Christmas, unfortunately I haven't made much progress in the next chapter because of work, retail is really killer this time of year. Hopefully i can get some free time after the holidays are over.

[Tempestus]

Excellent chapter, I an super curious about the dream stuff as I seem to recall a chapter with her meeting a pony in a... Pompii situation veguely.

[dargondarkfire]

11103941
Ah yes the second dream of the place, that exploding rock from the sky must have happened before the eldrich horros showed up that chris saw in the first dream?

But then again, does one normally feel pain in dreams?

[Tempestus]

11107009
As a lucid dreamer? Yes.

[Amethyst Dragonfly]

I just finished reading this from start to finish.

I hope that you are able to continue it sometime.

[dargondarkfire]

11205231
I do have another chapter written, but I'm not happy with it at the moment. I need to find time to either make changes or partially rewrite it.