Judgment (4/4)

>The twenty-four dams are bunched together in a clump, backed up against the riverbank.
>They are highly stressed, and almost totally immobile.
>The dams at the center of the mass scream out.
>“Can' bweave!  Can' bweave!  Pwease move!”
>The others try to roll themselves away, but can't.
>Their stubby legs wave uselessly in the air.
>”Hewp!  Need woll!  Can' woll!”
>You intervene, picking up the dams and spreading them out.
>”Fank...fank you fo' hewp...” they say nervously.
>You helped, but they've been watching every fluffy they knew die for the past two hours.
>Half of which you killed, by hand, in front of them.
>You glance back at the bloody wrench.
>No.
>Instead, you look at the broad river that flows lazily before you.
>If you beat the dams, they may give explosive birth.
>Then you'd have to kill the foals individually.
>You elect to kill both at once.
>You pick up a turquoise unicorn.
>”Hewp!  Munsta got mumma!  Hewp!  Hewp!”
>She is still aware.
>Her swollen fluffy bulk wiggles under your arm.
>She might be big, but she still weighs little more than a whisper.
>You throw her into the river.
>”Mumma can' swim!  Hewp!  Hewp!  Wawa cowd!  Hewp!”
>She thrashes about on the surface like an angry bass.
>”Hewp!  Mumma need hewp!  Pwease hewp!”
>You stare at her while she writhes furiously, screaming as loud as her little lungs will permit.
>Her fluff begins to stick to her skin.
>She falls silent as the river pulls her under.
>Only a bloom of bubbles is left to mark the spot.
>The other dams are more confused than scared.
>”Wha?  Mumma fwiend okay?  Stop scweamin' mean fwiend okay?” one says.
>The ones facing the river know better, but they are quiet as church mice.
>You can see one or two desperately stretching their forelegs up.
>They are trying to cover their eyes.
>If they cover their eyes, they can't see you.
>If they can't see you, you can't see them.
>You won't kill them if you can't see them.
>You won't kill their children.
>You pick up a peach pegasus that was facing the river.
>She talks to you quietly.
>You have never heard a fluffy whisper before.
>”Pwease no huwt babehs, babehs good fwuffies, mumma good fwuffy...”
>You throw her into the river.
>”No!  Wawa bad fo' babehs!  Mumma no swim!  Mumma need hewp!”
>You pick up a beige earth fluffy.
>”Pwease hewp!  I good fwuffy!  I no be bad anymo'!  Pwease hewp babehs!” the drowning pegasus screams.
>You throw the beige fluffy into the river.
>They immediately try to swim towards each other.
>”Howd on!  Fwuffy hewp you!  Fwuffies get out togetha!”
>They drown, hugging each other, as you pick up an indigo unicorn.
>”Pwease, pwease no frow in wiva, fwuffy sowwy fo' take gwassies...”
>You toss her in.
>Sparks fly from her horn as she tries to levitate herself out.
>Suddenly, she just stops struggling.
>Her yellow eyes stare into space as she accepts her fate, and disappears below the surface.
>A reddish-orange unicorn is next.
>”No, no, I be good fwuffy!  Fwuffy no bad fwuffy anymo'!  Fwuffy woll away wif babehs now!  Pwease wet fwuffy go!”
>You drop her into the water.
>”Why?!  Why wawa?!  Not bad fwuffy!  Hewp!  Hewp!”
>As you reach down toward a pinkish unicorn, she begins to stutter and hiccup.
>Her body convulses.
>The stress has caused her to go into natural labor prematurely.
>”Oh no!  Poopies?!  Wha?  Dese poopies feew stwange!”
>You can hear the squeaking from her rear end a few seconds later.
>”Babehs!  Mumma makin' babehs!”
>Five foals squirm and cry on the grass.
>Their mother shuffles weakly over to hug them.
>She has forgotten everything.  The slimy, squeaking foals are now her whole world.
>”Wuv babehs!” she coos, snuggling her children.
>You walk up to her, and she beams at you.
>”Hewwo!  I haf babehs!” she says, moving to show you.  “You wuv babehs too?”
>You pick up a foal in each hand.
>”Babehs, wook!  Dat hooman!  Say hewwo!” she encourages.
>They squeak and cry, hugging your fingers.
>You notice the dam's fluff has cleaned off the foals' protective afterbirth.
>You throw them into the river.
>They sink quickly, like squeaking pastel stones.
>”NO! NO!  BABEHS NO CAN SWIM!  WHY HOOMAN PUT BABEHS IN WAWA?!” the pink dam screams, running around your feet in circles.
>You pick up two more foals.
>She leans up, pawing uselessly at your shins with her stubby forelegs.
>“Gif babehs!  Babehs need mumma!  Pwease gif!”
>You throw them into the river.
>Words fail the pink dam.
>She screams at the top of her lungs until her air runs out.
>The other dams are sent into a frenzy of terror.
>They shake and wobble, legs tearing through the air.
>You throw the last foal in.
>The pink dam is eerily silent now.
>You go to pick up the next dam, but you feel a tug at the leg of your jumpsuit.
>”Wan'...wan' go wif babehs,” the pink dam points.
>You oblige, throwing her into the river.
>She makes no effort at all to struggle.
>She is silent as she disappears.
>You continue to throw dams into the river.
>Some of them scream for your help.
>Some of them ask why you're doing this.
>Some of them say nothing at all.
>When you toss a grey unicorn in, the stress causes her to go into labor.
>She gives birth to a litter of six as she thrashes around.
>The last foal pops out just as she goes under.
>The foals are covered in slimy afterbirth.  It's water repellent.
>They float.
>All of the remaining dams but one scream at you, maternal instinct overwhelming them.
>”Hooman!  Hewp babehs!  Babehs in wawa!  Pwease hewp!”
>You ignore their pleas, throwing an orange pegasus in.
>”I save babehs!” she pants, her legs waving furiously as she tries to swim to them.
>She arrives as the first foal's protective slime fails, and it goes under.
>”Wha?!  Babeh?  Why go, mumma wan' hewp babeh!” she cries.
>The other foals slip under, one by one.
>Using her wings, the pegasus manages to move enough air to stay afloat.
>”Babehs!  Come back!  Mumma wan' hewp you!'  Mumma wan' wuv you!”
>It takes her ages to go under, but she finally tires out.
>”Mumma sowwy, babehs...” she mewls as the water swallows her.
>You continue to drown the shrieking, defecating dams.
>Finally, there is only one left.
>You walk over to the bright yellow pegasus.
>She isn't nearly as swollen as the other dams were.
>Her eyes are tightly shut.
>”Fwuffy hide, fwuffy hide, hooman no huwt if no see fwuffy...” she babbles between hiccups.
>You pick her up and hold her over the water.
>”Oh no, hooman find fwuffy!  Pwease no huwt!  Fwuffy sowwy!  Fwuffy sowwy!”
>You prepare to drop her in, but you hesitate.
>Something isn't right about the fluff on her neck.
>You turn her around and look.
>She's wearing a collar.
>You push the tufts aside and look under her chin.
>That collar has a tag.
“Sunny?”
>Almost reflexively, she tries to hug you when you say her name.
>”Hooman know Sunny?  Hooman no huwt Sunny?  Hooman Sunny fwiend?” she bleats.
“How did you end up out here?”
>Sunny scrunches up her nose, thinking with all her might.
>”Fwiend in big wed house make speciaw huggies wif Sunny, but daddy was angwy and made woud talkies and was scawy so Sunny wan 'way...”
>You check the tag again.  There's a phone number.
>You set Sunny down on the grass.
“Stay here and be a good fluffy.”
>”Okay, Sunny be good...”
>You call the number.
>”Hello?  Who is this?” a man answers.
“Are you missing a fluffy yellow pegasus?”
>”Oh god!  You found Sunny?  Where is she, is she okay?”
>For the first time all morning, you manage to smile.
“Yes, sir.  She's a little dirty, but fine.  Do you live near Genericsburg?”
>You and Sunny's owner make arrangements with the shelter in town to hold her until he gets there.
>After you hang up, you shed the bloody jumpsuit and put it, and your material, back in the bag.
>”Sunny was good fwuffy?” she asks as you pick her up.
“Very good.  I'm taking you home, Sunny.”
>She squeals happily.  “Sunny home!  Miss daddy!  Miss sgettis!”
>You climb back in the truck, set Sunny in the passenger seat, and call the State Office.
“Belligerent herd near Genericsburg has been terminated with prejudice.  Picked up a tagged stray nearby, informed the owner.  If there aren't any other calls, I'm going to go drop her off at the shelter in town so he can retrieve her.”
>”Actually, the county office has something for you, but it's in the Genericsburg city limits.  You can drop the stray off on your way.”
“Understood.  I'm heading there now.”
>You drive off, Sunny bouncing and babbling happily beside you.
>Another fluffy herd awaits your judgment.