Apocalyptic Tidings

It was the end of the world. Or so everyone claimed. Gwen, herself, felt oddly calm about it. She’d seen something similar a few times over the years. Always the end of the world. 

“You’re not gonna panic on me, are you Uiscefhuaraithe?” Gwen asked as she stroked the blueberry horse’s neck. “Can’t have you panicking every time the world around here tries to end.” 

The seventeen-hands tall mare turned to regard her with calm blue eyes, barely flicking their tail in acknowledgement before turning back to graze on the grass near the edge of the pond. 

She glanced over at the town, frowning when she realized there was thick smoke coming from the walled city. “Well, that’s not good…” 

Uiscefhuaraithe flicked her ears at the worry in Gwen’s voice, looking up from her meal and turning to gaze in the same direction. This time the horse’s thick tail twitched in mild concern before looking out towards the fields and forests around them. 

Gwen followed her gaze, distant plumes of smoke clearly visible on the horizon. “Definitely not good. Maybe this time they were telling the truth.” 

The ground shook causing Gwen to topple into Uiscefhuaraithe’s blue side. The white, sabino markings came into sharp relief as she failed to keep her balance even with the mare’s steady presence and found herself sitting hard on the ground. 

Uiscefhuaraithe danced nervously, nearly stepping on Gwen as the fae tried to get back to her feets while the ground still trembled beneath her. It was almost as if the world itself was trying to split in two. Or shatter entirely. 

Finally it stilled just enough for her to find her footing and scramble away from the agitated horse. Uiscefhuaraithe long, blueberry tail twitched in fear and the whites of her blue eyes stood out. The white of her front legs was now hidden in a cloud of dust from the tremors and creeping smoke from the fires. 

“Easy, girl.” Gwen managed to get close enough to rest a hand on Uiscefhuaraithe’s white streaked nose, trying to calm the horse. The now thick smell of smoke wasn’t helping, and for all Uiscefhuaraithe was usually a steady and calm horse, Gwen couldn’t say she blamed the mare for being less than settled just now. An apocalypse was a good reason for anyone to be unsettled. 

Uiscefhuaraithe backed away, her eyes wide as she snagged Gwen’s tunic and pulled, yanking the woman out of the way of a falling tree limb. The blueberry sabino mare continuing to tug insistently at Gwen until they were clear of the space where the remainder of the tree crashed to the ground, the thing splitting open on impact and scattering leaves and debris around. 

“Th… Thank you.” Gwen murmured, shaken, as she stroked the mare’s nose in gratitude. “We should probably get under cover. If cover is at all possible in this…” She turned to regard the surrounding terrain, the sound of more trees crashing down echoing around her. 

Uiscefhuaraithe didn’t argue, the mare turning and heading for the nearby barn, occasionally glancing back to make sure Gwen was following. It was a barn more in name only still. Half of it was finished and half of it was still under construction, the expansion necessary after a sudden influx of new horses. It probably wasn’t the greatest shelter, but it was better than nothing. 

No sooner had they reached the stables than the sky lit up with crackles of red lightning and thunder that seemed to shake the very foundation of the earth. Uiscefhuaraithe’s eyes somehow grew wider, ever creeping towards true panic as the noise and lights continued. 

Gwen kept a hand on her, the confines making any panicked action on the part of the mare dangerous for both of them. 

And then, suddenly it was over. The world went still. Almost too still. The sudden silence was almost as jarring as the thunder and crashing trees were just moments before. There were no birds, no sound of a breeze, nothing but a lingering smell of smoke and ozone. 

Uiscefhuaraithe danced nervously, but no longer seemed likely to bolt, instead nibbling nervously at Gwen’s tunic. 

“Yeah, I know. It’s eerie,” Gwen murmured as she moved to leave the stables, pushing aside some fallen branches and debris as she picked her way into the now still world. 

At least half the nearby forest was nothing more than a ruined heap of trees, many of them burning from the lightning. The sky above still had a kind of sickly green glow, the haze from all the fires only making it worse. There was some indication the green color was slowly turning blue, but it would be hard to tell for some time. 

Smoke still rose from over the nearby town of Evermire, and the same smoke could be seen from the further hamlets. 

Uiscefhuaraithe tossed her head in nervousness, their blueberry tail swishing in agitation as they pawed at the ground. 

“I know, sweetie. It scares me too.” Gwen looked towards town. “But come on, we should go and see if anyone in Evermire needs help. You know there’s going to be injuries and fires need to be put out. I don’t know if anyone else survived, but we did. That means the apocalypse wasn’t quite so thorough as one would assume.” 

Gwen wasn’t quite sure why she was telling all of this to the mare, but someone to talk to was better than the deafening silence around them. Besides, even if Uiscefhuaraithe couldn’t understand her, it was a way to reassure herself. She never actually thought the apocalypse would be real. 

She quickly bridled the horse and tried to lead her towards the still burning town, the roads too full of debris for a fast ride to be advisable. The blueberry sabino mare looked at her like she was crazy the moment it became clear where they were going. 

The mare finally yielded and they made their way carefully along the broken and debris scattered road into Evermire. Parts of the walls had fallen in, and several of the buildings had collapsed, and a lot of them were on fire, but others were still standing and currently unharmed.

What was more, was the fact that people could be seen moving in the ash and smoke. Hell, there was even the occasional burst of laughter. 

Gwen smiled slightly as she led Uiscefhuaraithe towards the still sturdy stables of the local tavern. That building still stood strong, and likely always would. It was also about to become the hub of supplies, shelter, and relief for those in the area. It might be an apocalyptic world now, but she’d be damned before she’d let people go hungry if she didn’t have to. 

“Come on Uiscefhuaraithe, there’s work to be done.” Gwen patted the mare’s nose as she led her through town, greeting or aiding people as she went. The mare had calmed now and followed easily, even helping haul some of the debris out of the way as they went. 

Uiscefhuaraithe tossed her head, this time not in panic, but in agreement. The mare’s blue eyes swept the town, still widening at the fire, but otherwise showing a kind of determination. An apocalyptic hellscape wasn’t going to be enough to stop them. That was for sure.