Chapter 4 — <<Rock Bottom>>
THEN
—
A common misconception that many had about agelessness was that time mattered less as one got older. Commoners often came to the conclusion that just because our plans tended to span centuries that we cared little about waiting, that each year that passed was somehow lesser for being a smaller percentage of our lives. They believed that the lives of mortals seemed to pass in the blink of an eye, so short were their life spans compared to ours.
Whoever thought of that must have had rocks for brains.
I probably could have worded that differently, considering my current state, but it was one that fit nonetheless. With nothing to occupy my attention, time passed at an almost glacial pace.
I watched as another boat drifted across the surface above me, casting me in its expansive shadow. It was a rather droll activity, spending the last several years watching boats, but out of the limited options I had, it was the only one even remotely interesting and therefore the least likely to drive me insane.
The other option was to brood on who I was and why I felt like wrapping my hooves around something’s neck and throttling it until its eyeballs popped out of its contemptuous, treasonous, cowardly little face.
This was generally followed by a lengthy bout of melancholy in which I lamented my utter lack of hooves, due to the very simple fact that I was a rock.
I was a very pretty rock. Whoever forced me into this blasted container certainly had style when they chose an immaculately polished, clean cut red beryl the size of a hoof for my prison. Still, it mattered little what I looked like since, at the end of the day, I was still stranded at the bottom of a bay.
Thankfully, I did have an intimate connection with the magic of others. It is a quality of mine that I believed accompanied me from my past life, and I used it to siphon off the magic of the ponies above me, drawing in their energy to sustain me. From what I gathered, I tried to predict what manner of vessel was above me. It was a charming game borne of my desperation for something to occupy my senses, and it was certainly better than wrestling with the whole identity question and coming out the other end twisted in a pretzel with a folding chair wrapped around my neck.
That was not to say I learned nothing about my previous life. I deduced that I had been someone of importance. I had ruled at some point. Those under me had suffered adversity, but I had managed to overcome it when… something happened.
Forget it. I spent too long racking my mind to waste time trying again.
I turned my attention back to the drifting shadows above me. The current vessel was definitely on the larger side. It was packed with ponies with the occasional griffon, and their magic tasted of posh roses and summer dew. Probably a cruise liner, just returning from a week long voyage to the more tropical regions. I remembered this exact vessel leaving before, though the flavor back then was much stronger, with a tangy citrus kick that generally signalled excitement.
I was about to turn my attention to the next ship when my senses were flooded with the strong taste of creamy vanilla. It was the type of flavor that lasted, floating around one’s mouth long after its source had decided to skip town for the express lane down the esophagus. It was the type of taste that I could really lose myself in, the kind I expect to accompany an intense spa session melting in the hooves of a skilled masseuse.
It was the unmistakable taste of daydreams.
And it was very, very close.
I may have been weak—there was only so much magic I could drain from where I sat—but what I had would be enough to send a signal to my daydreaming target, and I sent one as soon as I could improvise a spell matrix to do so. The water shuddered around my form before expanding outwards and crashing onto my daydreaming prey like a wave at high tide.
The daydreaming stopped, and in its place was the alluring peachy taste of curiosity. I felt this source wriggle its way towards me like a fish, slowly growing and growing until it all but filled my senses.
I reached out with my magic, but despite its proximity, it was not yet visible. Where in Equestria was this—
“Oh, there you are!”
It must have taken centuries of careful self-control not to mentally shriek in surprise. Very carefully, I shifted my magic to properly visualize my ambusher, who peered at me over the edge of the cliff I was sitting on.
There was a tad bit of panic when I realized that ever since I woke up as a gemstone, I had literally been a step away from sinking down into an even drearier, truly pitch black existence under the water, but I quickly quashed it. I had my pony salvation to address.
Well, for a certain definition of "pony".
What I could see was shaped like a pony for the most part, but she—and I was fairly certain it was a she—had long, webbed spines where her mane should be, transitioning from a shimmering magenta at the base to a flaming red-orange at the tips. There were fins behind her jaw and on the backs of her forehooves, and to top it all off, she was a bright, luminescent green.
If I had eyes, they would be burning at the lack of subtlety in her color scheme. She might as well have been glowing, and I am not sure that was not already the case.
It has been ages since I last saw a merpony. The last time they came from their watery home was a dark age for Equestria, though the ponies thankfully dealt with the problem before the damage became irreparable.
“Cor, you’re a right pretty one, you are,” she said, poking at me with a hoof.
I reeled from the contact, if it was even possible. “Remove your hoof from me, mer!” I found myself mentally broadcasting.
Her eyes widened, and she leaned away from me with a gasp. “Oh, sorry!” she said quickly. “Was’at you? Didn’t mean t’ hurt’cha feelings, luv.”
I settled back, mentally filing away my ability to communicate telepathically to another quirk of my past life. “You are pardoned, for now,” I thought to her, “but I must ask that you afford me the respect I deserve.”
She carefully sidled back closer, once again swapping back to wonder. “Oooh, are you important? Wass’yer name?” The merpony suddenly gasped, pressing her hooves to her cheeks as she gushed. “Are you a Heart Gem?”
“A what?” I thought a little further. “And how do you know how to speak Equ—”
“A Heart Gem!” she chirped, setting her hooves down in front of her as if she were sitting at a table. “From the Great Crusade of the Songweavers?”
I sat there silently for a moment. “Explain.”
“Well see, long time ago, there were some real powerful mer who answered the call of the Heart Gems. Their voices were the stuff o’ legend, powerful enough to charm any creature with a single note, and when they bound to the Heart Gems, they ventured up to the surface world, past the nets and the ‘arpoons of the flesh-eating cat-birds where they brought enlightenment to the people of the surface!”
She paused there and scratched at her head with a hoof. “The whole thing gets a bit fuzzy after that, but apparently, the surface people weren’t too receptive of the whole ‘enlightenment’ business, so the Songweavers just kinda disappeared after that. The elders say that they left the forsaken people o’ the surface to wallow in their ‘eathenism to spread their song elsewhere.”
If I had eyes, I would be staring at her incredulously. That was… not exactly how I would describe the years of siren-induced destruction, infighting, and famine more than a millennium ago, but I suppose living at the bottom of the ocean does tend to color one’s perceptions.
“So, were you there?” she said, leaning in. “They told me the Heart Gems called to the Songweavers, but I never figured they actually talked!”
“I am quite certain I am no Heart Gem, mer, and I refuse to be called such! I am not a tool or some prophet of salvation! I am… am…”
I mentally kicked myself for flubbing up my tirade. Nothing like sudden introspection to ruin a perfectly fine self-righteous rant.
The merpony gasped again. “Oh dear, we ‘aven’t even introduced ourselves, ‘ave we?” She gestured to herself grandly with a hoof, straightening up in what she must have thought was a regal pose. “M’name’s Lilywater, but’chu can call me Lily! Wassyer name?”
I cleared my throat, in a manner of speaking. “My name is of no real importan—”
“Oh pish posh! I gots t’ call you somethin’, don’t I?” she said, a wide grin on her face. “Hmm, I’m gonna name you… ‘Crystal’!”
“That has got to be the most unoriginal name I have ever heard.”
“That’s not a no! I could always call you ‘Rocky’ if you prefer,” Lilywater said, sitting there staring at me with a massive grin on her face.
“…Just stick with Crystal.”
She scooped me up in a tight embrace, hugging me close to her scaly chest. “Oh Crystal, we’re gonna be the bes’ of friends, you an’ I!”
“I could do without the crushing intimacy, mer.”
“Ooh, sorry ‘bout that!” She held me out, still beaming at me. “Say, I know it’s a bit of an awkward question, but can I uhh… bond with you?”
“Absolutely not.” Admittedly, I would rather take being stuck with this insufferable merpony for a couple decades over another day alone with my thoughts, but I would rather not agree to this ‘bonding’ nonsense in case it happens to be like one of those blood pact agreements. Those never ended well, and if this was how that whole siren fiasco started, it would probably end with me getting banished too.
Lilywater’s entire posture seemed to deflate, and she looked at me with a forlorn expression. She seemed on the verge of tears, if that was even possible underwater. “B-but… ‘ow else can we go up t’ the surface?”
I blinked. Figuratively, of course. I had completely forgotten the whole reason I pinged her in the first place. I should not have let myself get carried away by her inane stories and whatever bullheaded dogma she was taught, however pitiful it was. This was my chance to finally go back.
This was my chance to take revenge on whoever did this to me.
I let out a confident chuckle. “Oh, you don’t need to worry about that, mer. I can take care of it,” I said, putting a touch of allure into my voice. “You will not need to bond to anything, much less me, to go to the surface.”
“Y-you’re serious?” Lilywater said with a sniffle. “The elders always said that I would die if I tried goin’ up there by m’self.”
“You will be able to survive up there. I can help you take your first steps onto the surface. Trust me.”
This was partially true. She would be able to breathe air, but not because of anything I do. I used to have a merpony friend myself about half a century before the sirens started their age of famine over Equestria, and he could breathe above water perfectly fine. With how long-lived the merponies were and how little they changed, I doubted that even a thousand years was enough to eradicate their amphibious nature, and even if it did, giving lungs to Lilywater was no great obstacle for me. Other than that, all I had to do was give her another pair of hooves and get rid of that bothersome tail of hers, and she would be set.
“Cor, you’re a real gem fer doin’ this fer me, Crystal!” Lilywater said, keeping a tight hold of me as she swam her way upwards.
Their elders were certainly lying to them. I am certain there is a whole story around why Lily of all merponies was so eager to leave her people and her home for the surface, but that was a can of worms I was not willing to open at the moment. Right now, I knew that if Lily could get me to the surface, I could go wherever I wanted, provided I pushed her a bit in the right direction. She seemed easy enough to manipulate, almost embarrassingly so.
There was just one little sticking point that was bothering me.
“Where did you learn Equuish, mer? I assume you did not acquire it at the behest of your elders.”
“Oh, I learned it from the dolphins!” she said with a giggle. “I’ve always wanted t’ go up, and I wanted to be prepared fer when I did, so I asked them to teach me ‘ow to talk to the surface ‘eathens. They even taught me how t’ ask for fish!”
And then she started chittering like a dolphin.
“Wait, hold on, stop. Dolphins know how to speak Equuish?”
This explained so much.
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Well, I like the new chapter, at any rate.
Hmm... Nah.
Sure, it's a detour from what was going on previously, but these two new characters have enough charm and personality to hold my interest for now. I definitely want to see how they fit into the big picture.
Buahahahahahaha oh a being trapped in a crystal so long it's for gotten its name and a Merpony yep crap is about to hit the fan
To take the Alicorn Amulet is not a good idea, Lily.
I can see why you might be worried; this chapter is a bit of a break from the story we've seen so far. However, you're writing engaging characters and clearly setting up something. As long as you keep doing what you're doing and the two current characters lead to something neat, I don't think you have anything to worry about.
Not sure how this integrates with the rest of the story, but I will wait and see.
Dolphins are incorrigible. Trolls of the sea, yesiree.
Chapter looks good to me.
Well,
I don't like it.
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Pre. The NOW portion takes place about 15 years prior to NMM, and the THEN section takes place in the time frame starting maaaaybe a century before NMM at most to when NOW starts.
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MY FEELINGS.
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Oh, I have plans for them, I think. Lilywater was actually the last name of a merfolk druid I played once in D&D (in a land-based campaign primarily in a city, no less), and I really wanted to revisit that personality. She's here because she worked decently well with what was already planned out for the story and has actually taken a bigger role in it since conceptualization.
Also, she's frickin' amazing, but that can't be the only reason I put her in.
Crystal is, well...
Let's just leave it at "really important".
Lilly's voice in my head is tracer. I'm not too sure why?
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Actually, I just realized this could've been completely misinterpreted to sound a lot more asshole-y than I meant. Oops.
Hey there, Sombra!
Chapter 2:
Chapter 3:
Chapter 4:
Really, there’s nothing to worry about. We’re still here!
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BREATHING INTENSIFIES.
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Thanks! I wouldn't give me too much credit though. My Latin's probably just as bad as the next person's. That was just a little tidbit that I learned a long time ago, and I just happened to think of it when I was trying to think of names that didn't sound identical to better differentiate my characters to the readers.
It's pretty neat what one can pick up with just an open ear.
I love rock-Sombra's reaction to that. (That's just my guess)
I was starting to think this was a bonus chapter or something till i read the author notes
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Yeah, I'll sprinkle in a few "THEN" chapters here and there for bits of backstory. The ones later on will not be as innocuous as this one, and I'm having trouble figuring out where to put them sometimes because of just how big of a spoiler/mindscrew I'm afraid some of them will be. It's kinda like the whole "Overwatch is a changeling" thing. There's only so far I can go to tease at an idea before people catch on, and I don't want that moment to come too early, lest it ruin the rest of the "THEN" chapters.
I see "talking dolphins" and help but think "So long and thanks for all the fish!"
Well you apparently only had one more down vote since posting this chapter, so you must be doing something right.
This sentence does not describe the chapter it concludes.
Is this a Hitchhikers reference? Because I can't tell.
Lilywater just has to be Australian right?
... Snarky magical rock, me likes.
Shoobedoo!
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Nope. That accent was definitely not Australian.