Equestria's Ray of Hope

by The_Darker_Fonts

What About Them?

Several weeks passed without incident, simply the same schedule replaying itself day after day. Before Ray knew it, winter had set in, snow had settled, and the ponies were celebrating Hearth's Warming. It was a strange holiday akin to Christmas, but Ray avoided the bitter reminder of his old life by spending it with the Fallen deep beneath the earth. Most days he spent anywhere between twelve to eighteen hours down in the Harkening, becoming familiar with the thousands of Fallen throughout training and short conversations afterwards. It was a sweet time, being among so many friends and allies.

After over three months of training with them, the Fallen had come to finally unite under Ray, though they for the most part kept their different ideologies. The promise of a new life after their war with the minotaurs kept a vast majority of them in line, and the few rebels who attempted to disobey orders were dealt with peacefully, reassuring the rest that there would not be a repeat of what had occurred on their plains once already. Overall, however, everyone got along as if there hadn’t been any division at all. Skalos gave him credit for it since Ray had taken some time to reorganize several different divisions of soldiers and integrated them with others.

All Fallen that had been wielding swords for their previous assignments had to be reassigned to different divisions, a majority of them being converted to spears, though a few dozen joined the ranks of archers. It was a quick process, the hardest part being that they needed to learn how to place the straps and holsters for the spears on and efficiently take them off. The archers were easily trained up by Adant and her fellow commanders. Oftentimes, Ray had ended up joining in on the training as he had begun to master using his kharamh, even learning how to spin it around in his hands like a staff. The mastery of the weapon didn’t help him at all in archery, and though he’d become better at the bow, he was still only adequate at best.

As the intensity of training increased, so did everything else. Only a few days ago Twilight had announced publicly to the entire nation of Equestria what was going on, though he had found out about it a day later in a newspaper that had been tossed at his door. For the past week now, it had consistently made headlines as several different topics of discussion for what exactly was going on “behind the scenes” and with the “hairless stranger”. The newfound attention brought to the matter had prompted him to stay overnight for several days within the Harkening, sharing a room with Pelios until he felt he could return home without incident.

It was funny now, that even though many of the inhabitants were now focusing on the war, he felt himself worrying about it less and less. He was enjoying his time with the Fallen, and every day, when he wiped the sweat from his forehead and bandaged cuts and iced bruises, a smile crept across his face. The more he trained, the less unprepared he felt, and the more each day felt like a minor victory. Like now, when he wrapped his hand in a cloth doused in one of Zecora’s many to soothe blistered and scraped palms, the memory of quite literally throwing Axis settling pleasantly in his mind.

They had been practicing charges today with wooden spears, but the stallion commander had miscalculated how easy it would have been to take Ray out by targeting his legs. Unfortunately for him, Ray had already fallen for the move twice previously, and he wasn’t keen for a third round of knee bruises. The human had used his own wooden rod to deflect it away, causing the stallion to falter. The move had removed the rod from Ray’s hands, as he hadn’t balanced it correctly, and seeing Axis stuck slightly, he had stooped over and wrapped his arms underneath his stomach, throwing him up.

The both of them had laughed it off as the fight was called to a close, Ray’s side sweeping through their left wing and wiping them out with soft wooden taps. It was funny that it seemed like he could still feel the stallion’s cool flesh as he had tossed him even though that had been hours ago, but that was the effect of not seeing the sun. Standing up, Ray flexed his fingers out beneath their wrappings, frowning at the slight sting, but he had gotten used to the lesser pains of cuts, bruises and blisters.

He was still currently in Pelios’ stone cottage, one of the few on the middle layer that wasn’t built into the mountain, merely carved out of it. He rolled up the small sleeping mat he had been borrowing from the Apples, the wool slightly scratchy from going several nights unwashed. Seeing as it had been a week since Twilight had broken the news about the inevitable war with the minotaurs, he was hoping that the population had calmed down enough for him to not be mobbed as he attempted to enter his house. Still, as a slight precaution, he had a little spot in the Everfree Forest he had picked out a few weeks back in case he ever couldn’t get back to his home before the dead of night.

Slinging the sleeping bag over his bare shoulder, he ducked under the door and left the cottage behind, walking the now familiar roads in a now familiar path back to the waypoint to the surface. He passed through a ramada, nodding at Hexor, one of the many commanders he’d come to befriend in the course of his training. The road gently inclined to pass the level above the middle, leading directly up to the top level of small houses pressed against the wall. From there, it was only a turn and a few steps before he entered the exit building, the circular tunnel that had once seemed foreboding now bright and welcoming. A change of perspective, a week to live as a Fallen, was all it took to see that the caverns deep beneath the ground were not a thing to fear, merely but a cage to escape.

He thoughtlessly went about the task of igniting the waypoint, the warm glow of the magic and light being released from it contrasting with the cool that he had become familiar with. A soft sigh escaped his lips as the only thing he didn’t particularly enjoy about the Harkening was washed away. He stood in the center of the waypoint, taking a moment to appreciate the glowing figures and the warmth they provided, but finally, he shouted, “Jahez!”

The blinding light was welcome for the first time in a week, and the warm feeling of being hugged by the air was nice in a way he couldn’t describe. Living in the Harkening was a pleasant experience, but he could easily tell how it was also a punishment, endless day or night, depending on how one looked at it, never a time that could be checked. It was hard to remember there as well, the same dull colors, consistency of stone, everything bordered by shadows, it had all felt claustrophobic if he had stopped to think about it.

At the same time, it was just as easy to find himself losing track of time in the most pleasant ways, endless conversations, and enjoyable training that gave everyone involved a sense of fulfillment. A society had truly formed deep within the cavern, a tight-knit group of thousands of eternal ponies, living ghosts, that had become family with unbreakable bonds. It had been strange to learn that in spite of everything, the conflict that arose between the different ideologies, the Fallen really did see themselves as a large family. It was one of the many societal effects of living together for millenia.

The light faded away to sudden darkness, a chill quickly taking the place of the warmth. He shivered slightly at the sudden cold, glancing around at the empty room lit by nothing but the early night’s moonlight. The door was still open from when he had first entered last week, and though it had been left so, it seemed nothing had come by and disturbed the house. Stepping out from the center of the circle, he felt the ground crunch softly beneath his bare feet, the dirt floor hardened by the frost of winter. The shoes that he had been given by Discord five months ago were long since faded, the soles punched through completely. He had brought a shirt down with him to the Harkening, but it had torn in the first mock battle and he had discarded it. Even though it was cold in the Harkening, it was relatively warm compared to Equestrian winter.

Speaking of winter, he thought, glancing out at the door, running through that snow is going to be a pain.

With a shrug of his shoulders, he recentered the bag on his shoulders and took several large, quick breaths, pumping his legs to warm them up. As soon as he felt his pulse quicken, he sprinted out the door, his feet punching through the soft layer of moonlit snow. He took the path he always had, though this time he was especially appreciative of the canopy the foliage provided, as it meant that there was no snow when he entered the Everfree. He slowed his pace, digging his feet into the softer, warmer ground to ease the sting of cold on his feet. In spite of the atmospheric changes of the terrain around it, the swampy Everfree had maintained warmth to it, if at a lesser level than in the fall, the air less muggy and humid.

He took the time to rub the goosebumps out of his arms and legs as he walked through the forest, warming up for the final leg of his little dash. At least he had been able to keep his shorts in working order so the chill was kept from truly uncomfortable places, he joked to himself. Cracking a small smile at the thought, he remembered something Skalos had reminded him of.

“One day, you’ll be fighting, and those loose clothes on you will be your downfall,” the Fallen had commented when his shirt had torn. “You’ll be fighting a minotaur and suddenly he’ll have you by the collar.”

“So what, do I just fight naked,” he had asked, stripping the torn shirt off.

“I mean, it would be preferred,” Skalos replied.

“For you or for me,” Ray questioned cheekily.

“For your safety,” Skalos clarified. “Although that may provide a distraction to the minotaurs, seeing an opponent charging them in the nude.”

“Or it might give them a bigger target,” he replied.

Ray was jerked from the memory as his foot suddenly took a step into a wet pile of slush at the border between the Everfree and the rolling hills surrounding Ponyville. He shook the muddy wetness off, frowning at the cold coating of dirt that still remained. Shrugging off the inconvenience, he once again began to pump his legs, revving himself up to race across the snowy plains. He decided to stick to the mostly visible path that led to his house since there was no way to know what lay beneath the snow, dashing over the smooth, compacted dirt that was layered only by a thin outline of snow.

Running as fast as he could with his sack bouncing against his back, reaching his front door after only a few minutes. His door, as always, had been left unlocked, though as he entered he could tell that at some point somebody had entered. For one, there was some mud tracked in the shape of hooves, though it was only for a few steps before it circled back. Secondly, there was a small note left on the lapis couch, slightly crinkled on the edges as if it had been left in a pocket. Frowning slightly at the note, he shut the door behind him and approached it, bending over to pick it up.

The writing was neat and he was instantly able to recognize it as Fluttershy’s, the name at the bottom only verifying the information.

Dear Ray,

I figured that you would have disappeared with the news that Twilight gave out yesterday, but the others are still concerned. They thought you may have gone on that camping trip you said you would be going on soon, and the missing sleeping bag seems to confirm it. It’s been hard to get in and out anyways with how many ponies have been watching your house all day and night. I can see why you ran away easily, but wouldn’t it be easier to face the music? I know from experience that running from facing the truth will only prolong the inevitable and make the reveal all the more embarrassing. At any rate, if when you come back, please respond to this letter in person.. We’re all worried for you.

Fluttershy

Ray shook his head, setting the note aside as he carelessly tossed the bag onto the ground, loosening his belt and pulling it out of his pants. The belt had been made by one of the Fallen, a design that had both a hilt and two separate pouches sewn into it. The pouches currently had no purpose, but theoretically, they were meant for storing food, since a small attachment for a water flask was already there. It was made from real leather, though where the Fallen had gotten it from was a mystery to all involved. Regardless to say, the belt did its multipurpose job well, and its craft had helped keep his pants intact throughout the week. Perhaps he could commission that same Fallen to make him some pants and shirts that wouldn’t tear so easily, he mused with the slightest of smiles.

Picking up the dirty pants, he suddenly heard a furious storm of twittering from above him. With a start, he dashed around his house and up his stairs, to the door to his bedroom. He burst through it with a smile, though it instantly dropped, the call of “Ohs!” dying to a repressed, “Oh…”

Inside the room, as he had expected, was the furious little brown bird, who fluttered over to him, chattering bitterly the whole time. The cause for his sudden sodden expression, however, wasn’t the nagging bird that pulled at his hair in petty revenge for his abandonment, but the mare that stood even more furiously in the center of his room, a harsh glare sobering him in an instant.

“Now where in th’ hay have ya been,” Applejack exclaimed, stomping towards him menacingly. “Ya leave fer a whole week, no word, no note, jus’ one minute yer there an’ the next yer gone! Ya’ve had me, Big Mac, and Apple Bloom all worried as get up as to where ya possibly coulda gone, an’ with Twilight finally makin’ th’ announcement, we’ve been worried sick as to what’s goin’ on!”

“I know Applejack, I’m sorry,” Ray apologized, stepping warily around the mare while reaching up with one hand and beginning to pet Otolo. The bird pecked at his hand first, but gradually allowed him to rub out her feathers. “I figured I might worry you, but as soon as I found out I knew other ponies would be after me before even Twilight could tell me herself. I mean, she told me beforehand that she was, she told all of us, but I didn’t realize I would be the frontpage news and not just the minotaurs. I had to escape quickly since there were already a good few residents on their way to have a lovely chat about this war of ours!”

“You coulda stayed at th’ Acres,” the mare exclaimed, throwing out a hoof.

“Oh, and nopony came around to check out if your human family member was still around,” Ray questioned, wrenching open a drawer angrily. The silence that followed was the only answer he needed, and as he pulled out a change of clothes, he realized that he was indeed arguing in his underwear and nothing else. Rolling his eyes at his lapse in decency, he turned back around and continued, “Precisely. I didn’t want anybody else getting ensnared in this whole publicity business. Everybody in town knows that I work with you guys all the time and am an Apple, but beyond that they surely know that I go to Rarity’s for clothes, talk with Rainbow and Pinkie, am friends with Discord, and went on a date with Fluttershy! A strange creature getting friendly with the Elements is one thing, but that same creature being responsible to fight the first war in Equestria for hundreds of years? I may have sworn to fight and protect these ponies, but I never said I would give them every aspect of my life. The less they know, the less they see, the better.”

“But why,” Applejack asked, exasperated. “Why can't ya accept their attention, to see them as loyal, thankful ponies who only want ta thank ya fer yer service?”

“I can’t face them,” Ray firmly stated, pulling up a new pair of pants. “There isn’t a moment I don’t feel like an outcast in this world. The only time that I feel at home isn’t in Equestria, but below it.”

“With th’ Fallen,” Applejack questioned, cocking her head to the side slightly. “Not even with us. But why?”

Ray felt himself beginning to crack, the pressure of the words condensing around him, the words written by Fluttershy biting into his heart. The guilt of having left them without knowledge had been eating him away daily, but it had always been ignored thanks to the distraction the Fallen had provided, the comradery he felt when with them. That, however, had allowed the problem to fester, a growing pain that now, without any ointment, was exposed and destructive.

“Please, talk to me, tell me why, “Applejack pleaded, a crack in her voice cracking his shell more. “These past few months… it's all been growin’ colder between you an’ us. You barely talk anymore, just sit and listen, and that’s on th’ days ya actually come home to us. Some days, for days on end, ya just head straight back here, not ta be seen fer another day. It wasn’t like this all that time. Why is it now?”

“Because I’m not you,” Ray shouted, causing Otolo to squeak as she launched off his shoulder. “Because I am a human being who, in spite of all attempts to be a better person, has just come full circle. I’m going to go out there and kill every minotaur I see until that kills me. You hear me? I said I was going to kill and kill and kill until there is nothing else to kill out there but me! And nobody finds anything wrong with that! Not once has someone said, ‘Well, golly, that’s just rotten.’ Not once has anyone questioned what I’ve said I’m going to do, which in and of itself should not be done, period.

“Everyone here is too accepting of everyone else, encouraging them to keep at their lives the way they want, egging them on to be whatever they say they're going to be. That’s great and all, but I’ve come out here saying that I’m going to eliminate an entire species from the world, and I have support from literally every single country in Equestria. It may be the only answer, and it may be the answer that is necessary for the success and survival of everyone else, but that doesn’t mean you should encourage death.” Calming down, taking deep breaths to soothe out the aching of his heart, he gave Applejack a pitying look. “Don’t congratulate us on killing our enemy, for murdering murderers. Don’t lower yourself to our level.”

“Oh,” Applejack muttered, giving him an understanding look, stepping closer to him and reaching up. “Oh no no no, that ain’t how it is.” The extended hoof wrapped around his hand and tugged him down into a soft hug. Her hooves wrapped around his neck, giving him a warmth around his chilled, bared skin. Otolo landed softly on his head, nestling into the tangled mess it had become, picking out random bits of dirt and grime.

“There is a difference between the villain and the hero,” Applejack explained softly. “I found this out over th’ years, but the main difference between the monster that’s th’ villain an’ th’ monster that stops it isn’t so easy to see as light an’ dark. See, th’ monster that’s fightin’ fer itself, th’ one that is th’ aggressor, is doin’ it out a’ want, out a’ th’ want of itself, willin’ to eliminate anythin’ in its path. Th’ monster that fights back against it, th’ one that is there ta destroy that dream, is there ta fight fer th’ right of everypony else. They stand for th’ choice of others, and even though they may use th’ same methods as th’ villain, they are th’ ones that bring th’ conflict to end. They make th’ peace.

“When we praise ya fer yer actions, we aren’t condonin’ death, killin’,” Applejack continued, gently rubbing his shoulder. “If th’ situations were dif'rent, if you were in th’ wrong, we would probably be th’ ones to stop ya. Instead, we are faced with a task against us that is so great, so impossible, that it required us ta turn ta you fer assistance. We celebrate ya not because of how yer protectin’ us, but because ya are. I know, this whole thing, these past few months an’ these next few years… they’re gonna be th’ toughest times of our lives. But we’ll get through it, all of us, an’ in th’ end, everythin’ will be alright.”

Ray stared Applejack in the eyes for a moment before leaning in and giving her a soft hug. Taking a deep breath, he muttered, “I’m sorry for yelling at you, AJ. Life is just speeding by, and I keep feeling like I’m missing all of the sights. I’m worried that at the rate I’m going, I’m gonna crash and burn.”

“Ya aren’t failin’ at anythin’, no matter what that voice in yer head’s tellin’ ya,” the mare assured him. Pulling back, she gave him a silly smile, shaking his head suddenly as she demanded, “Stop feelin’ bad about yerself! It’s okay ta have emotions, ta be a livin’ breathin’ critter! Celestia knows I’ve goofed up now an’ again, but it ain’t th’ end of th’ world. Well, not yet at least.”

The little quip made Ray smile, a small amount of the weight he had unknowingly picked up in the last few minutes falling off. Lifting himself off the ground, he thanked her, stating, “I don’t know where I would be today without you and the rest of the Apples. I’m glad you all came to call me family before I even began to call this place home.”

“Hey, Apples come in all shapes an’ sizes, all from different places, an’ all with different flavors,” Applejack replied. Then, sniffing the air, she smirked, adding, “They also need a good washin’ ta best enjoy them, an’ you smell halfway like a pig from Tart’rus! I’m gonna leave th’ house an’ let ya shower in peace, knowin’ you humans with decency an’ all. In th’ meantime though, think a’ somethin’ to say to Fluttershy. She hasn’t gone a day without askin’ us about ya. Best ta talk ta her in person.”

As the mare turned away to let him go about his business, he called after her, “Thank you. I’ve never had an older sibling in my life before, but for the few months you’ve been mine, you’ve shown me not only the right choices, but also the right character to have.”

“It’s a pleasure ta be a pleasure, Apple Ray,” she returned, and with a small smile, closed the door behind her. He stood there, listening as the mare went down the stairs and then out of the house, the door banging gently as it closed. With a deep sigh, he pressed a palm to his bare chest before looking over at Otolo.

“Been a while since I’ve had some alone time, Ohs, so what do you say to me making a nice warm little bowl bath for you in the kitchen sink while I shower up here?”

Author's Note:

The time jump may be a bit shaky, but for reference, this is about five months after arrival now.

Comments

[Theresa]

I feel he has a point about the whole death of a species thing. We have killed in our wars and we wish that we could do something besides kill or be killed and of course nowadays we have brought death to a few races of people and regret that we such jerks back then. He has every right to wish there was another way and hate that there isn't.

[jasha3558021]

Me gustó mucho el episodio