The cool rush of the waters flowed in a dull roar around her ears as she propelled herself through the sea with powerful undulations of her tail. Her hooves were pulled up close to her barrel to keep the drag down as she picked up speed. Light filtered in from above, waving and sparkling with the enchanting effect of the waves on the moonlight that offered some illumination in the night.
She pulled up and suddenly she breached the surface. She was wet. Before, everything was wet, so nothing was. As she soared through the air, she was properly wet. A new chill stung at her even as she willed herself higher, but her momentum only carried her so far. She could see lights from the dry place, sparkling and twinkling like little stars. What were they? She fell back into the embrace of her ocean home, answers denied.
Her restless energy got her moving quickly, but she didn't make a loop to try again. She made her way swiftly into the depths. Her large eyes swept carefully. Though it was her home, the ocean had many dangers. A careless hippocampus such as herself could become many thing's snacks. As if in response to her thought, a shark made an almost idle grab at her with a sweeping lunge and terrible teeth. She did a quick roll out of its way and it swam off, looking for less attentive food.
Bioluminescent algae grew in thick clumps, cultivated and held close to their houses to keep their little village lit at all times. She swam past the first batch and felt relaxed. Attacks beyond them were quite rare. This was their village. She reached out a hoof and trailed it along some of the sparkling corals that made up their city. "I'm home!"
A head poked out of one of the little rocky houses. "Cherry! I made dinner, come inside." The older hippocampus beckoned with a hoof before darting back inside with a flash of her own tail.
"Coming, mother." Cherry followed the mare, even if her name wasn't really 'Cherry'. It was Cerulean, but Cherry was a cute pet name, and her mother wouldn't be shaken from it. "I was just looking at the above-ocean."
Her mother rolled her eyes. "You need to stop doing that. What good's the above-ocean? We can't swim in it. There's no food up there. It's dry. It's got everything we don't need." She ladled out some tasty smelling stew, some of it spreading out through the water even as she tried to move it. She set the bowl before Cherry. "Eat up before it scatters."
That was no idle threat. Uneaten food was gone food. Cherry grabbed her bowl in her hooves and began slurping/gulping the delicious mixture into her eager mouth. "You're the best, mom."
"I'm glad you think so, so no more above-ocean, right?"
"No promises." Cherry stuck out her tongue and set the empty bowl aside, her hunger abated. "I'm going to do one little look around before I come to bed, alright?"
"Make it fast. You have school tomorrow."
Cherry made a quick noncommittal noise as she darted right back the way she came, leaving her slightly frazzled mother behind.
Her mother shook her head. "I have to keep reminding myself I was just as bad..." She let out a little sigh, bubbles drifting from her snout before she got to cleaning up after dinner.
Cherry swam to the edge of her town and did a slow spin, looking for her friends, or anything else. That night, it would be anything else. A faint glint reflected off the glow of her town's lights and drew her eyes. She focused her blue eyes on the tiny speck and took off like a torpedo towards it curiously. The ocean flowed around her, retreating smoothly across her aerodynamic form as the light drew closer. Though it wasn't so much as a light, as it was just a dim reflection up close.
She reached out a curious hoof and tapped at it. It gave off a low odd noise, tink tink tink it went with every touch. She hadn't had many metal things in her life, but that's what this was. She pushed and pulled and slowly worked out the tangled mess from the seabed where it had gotten mostly buried, but not very deeply. It seemed... new. Where had it come from? It was a mess of connected parts and little bits and bobs.
She had no idea what it was, but she wanted it. She began collecting every fragment she could find. Every little shard was quickly scooped up and put into a makeshift basket of seaweed to keep them together, then she hefted up the large main bulk of the device and slung it over her shoulder.
Whatever that thing was, she was going to find out. With determination, she darted back home and showed off her find to her confused mother.
"Just keep your head on your grades. I don't want to see them falling." Her mother gave her a soft hug. "Please."
She may as well have asked Cherry to not be wet. Her grades fell, but she was learning. She was learning something her school couldn't offer her.
Spike raised a brow. "Is it supposed to do that?"
Twilight scowled at the console, her wings fidgeting anxiously. "No, it's not supposed to do that." She tapped at the console with a hoof. "Maybe it'll recover..."
Spike pointed where she was looking. "The dot is where it is, right? It's only going down, that can't be good, can it?"
Twilight sagged a little. Spike was telling the truth, as painful as it was. "They promised it would work. I was going to look at the bottom of the very ocean! Nopony's ever been that deep! Just think of what sorts of wonders await us?"
Spike shrugged a little. "Nothing, apparently. At least not with this thing." He hiked a thumb at the screen that reported the still sinking device.
Twilight spread her wings wide in sudden fury. "You could at least try to be supportive."
Spike held up his claws. "Hey hey, I didn't mean anything by it. Say, I heard this town has a really big telescope, one of the biggest."
Twilight perked at that. "You don't say?" She glanced at the console before reaching to flick the view of the doomed machine off. "Well, let's not cry over spilled milk. Stargazing is one of my favorite things to do this side of books." She flashed a bright smile, her funk fading away quickly.
He let out a little sigh of relief that he'd avoided Twilight's short-lived fury. "Let's go!" He had no special desire to look at the stars, but it was far better than watching Twilight be angry at the failing gizmo. "I bet I'll pick out a constellation before you."
Twilight rolled her eyes. "As if. I've already picked out four while we were waiting here." Despite that, she smiled and walked with him side-by-side. "Thanks, Spike. Maybe next time it'll work."
Spike smiled at that. "I bet it would've worked if you made it."
Twilight tilted her head a little. "You know what, it probably would have, but that's not really my specialty... There are only so many hours in a day. I'm a princess after all, so I can't be a perfect machinist on top of all my other hobbies and duties."
They went to the observatory and enjoyed watching the depths of the night sky instead of focusing on their doomed machine. Perhaps another day. Perhaps...
Cherry turned a wrench held in her jaw and a limb of the curious machine twitched spastically before she quickly turned it the other way. Every thing she had, she had to make herself, or enlist her friends to help make or even find. It wasn't unknown for alien objects to turn up closer to the dry land, and some of them seemed to fit the great metal thing she had quite well.
"Watcha doin'?" asked a high-pitched male voice.
Cherry looked over her shoulder to see a blue and soft orange hippocampus. One of her friends. "Oh hey there, Indie. I can get it to move, look." She pressed the wrench onto the nut and turned, making it wriggle and dance before she pulled it back. "I think I'm getting closer."
Indie raised a brow at her. "How do you know you're getting anywhere at all? Do you even know what it is?"
Cherry tilted her head to the left and right quickly. "It's... Well look." She thrust a hoof at one of its limbs. "Look, it has a hoof, Three even. I think it used to have four but one broke off.
Indie shook his head. "What's anything need four hooves fer?" He spread his two hooves wide as his tail fidgeted through the water. "Maybe the third hoof's an extra. You should take it off and see if it works better."
Cherry frowned at the thought. It was true. There was really no good reason for anything to have more than two hooves. Maybe her machine had a lot of extra parts... "I'll give it a try. Thanks, Indie." She gave him a quick peck and darted off to get more parts. She'd need more than her wrench to enact the next part of her plan.
So she builds a pear of mechanical panties with legs to explore the surface? *eyes the picture*
A very intriguing premise. I like the term "above ocean" a lot, too.
Do continue!
This looks to be another great story from you! Now tracking and looking forward to the next chapter!
7144476 It's like someone wearing an inner tube, made of metal.
I was sharing several rather involved story ideas and made the mistake of sharing that picture first, because I'm pretty sure Mr. Silver stopped listening to a word I said after that.
I look forward to more!
How do you make stew underwater? A fiend and I have had many a discussion on how an aquatic society would cook.
Seems like a interesting idea...and you got another reader looking for the next chapter.
This is really good, I don't see much stories about sea ponies here on the site. Only best one for them was in Overworked Alicorn (Which is awesome to read!)
I like to see where you go with this.
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7144493 I'll do my best to not disappoint!
This is the first fic that i say this from but......
Damn When i thought of how these creatures looked
It surprised me how adorable my thoughts made them out to be
.........i think i want one
7144572 Well, I could think of a way that would involve taking advantage of buoyancy. Just turn the pot upside down? Or use super briny water?
7144707 It doesn't get much brinier than the ocean, though there are a few outliers.
7144707 And what about the heating? And getting the stew to the mouth? Unless they cook it in sacs or shells...
Extraneous quotes at the end
The fact that I'm posting corrections on this at all is an indication that I enjoy it so far and intend to continue reading it, FYI.
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I tracked down the source page for the cover art, if you want to give credit.
7144736 Fixed!
7144748 i got a treat for you can you help spread the word for this guys video
7144795 Brave people. Hasbro could bring down the hammer if they decided to, and do so with a scalpel with videos.
7144804 help me spread the word then if only for it to live on as a fanfic if it can not go on as a video series
7144476
The Doctor would be quite upset he detests pears. Though I'm with you on picture. I guess a pair of legs to match a front pair of legs was the best idea.
Interesting premise! Looking forward to see where this goes.
aerodynamic - hydrodynamic
*****
Cute protagonist and a unique setting, I'm liking it so far and I'm eager to see more as it develops!
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No doubt it would have to be very thick and rich, like whale milk.
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From what I can tell the rule for this is: is it show-accurate.
If it's show accurate, and popular, you have a good chance of losing it. Because that kind of thing might erode copyright claims.
Also, I'm reading one of your stories again, Mr. Silver! Hooray!
I'm getting and not-getting an Ariel vibe from our protagonist. The "part of your wooooorld" is pretty true... everything else about Ariel's personality, notsomuch.
7145321 Welcome back! Good to have you. She isn't doing it for a strange thing she called love that had no basis in anything but sight, so I'd give her more points than Ariel.
7144795 Oh my god damn that is really well done. All the YES that trailer contains.
7144714 Sponges?
Though it strikes me that anything you cook underwater would become stew...
Cherry is adorkable. Looking forward to more of this.
7145473 then help me spread the word about it
7145748 Of course!
7145321 then someone make a fanfic it must be preserved as a fanfic
7145750 and make a fanfic in case Hasbro assassin's come for they are among us
not kiding
7145321 and make a fanfic in case Hasbro assassin's come for they are among us
not kiding
7145321 it's not show-accurate
7145838 Well, so long as you avoid naming ANY of their IP, avoid doing too much like their art style, they can't touch it. If you do, you are playing tag with a landmine.
watches the video, hears 'Zecora'
Yeah, good luck with that.
watches more
Yeah, stomping their IP, even using their official trademarked logo?
Intresting, I look forward to seeing where this goes.
I remember that picture from /mlp/. God it's been a long ass time.
7145770 Understood...
7145321 So that's why the pony.mov videos haven't been taken down all these years...
Not that I'm complaining, I love 'em.
So far so good!
Just ask Sebastian the crab.
This sentence would make more sense as:
"I was going to look at the very bottom of the ocean!"
Cool! How about a hippocampelephantecamelos character? Sorry, random typo attack.
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7144713 Density games in the ocean are fun. There are even brine lakes, and brine rivers that flow along the sea bed, complete with waterfalls.
(mind, most sea life finds them kind of toxic, but I suppose when it comes to cooking it depends on the hippocampus in question )
this has promise i look forward to up dates
"Eat up before it scatters."
Hmmm. Wouldn't they put it in a container or sack of sorts with one small opening to suck it up?
7161826 That sounds like a great way to get a meal on the go!
The eating scene cracked me up. Why bother even having bowls? Just eat stuff like an astronaut. But then again, why the hell are there round door knobs operated by hooves.
That line. I like it.
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more like moist
~cr1tiKaL
Commence read.
Glad to have wandered by this one.
Off to a nice start.
Now to catch up.