Adjustment - 1

((For a better reading experience I highly suggest that you visit the story on FimFiction! https://www.fimfiction.net/story/126506/adjustment))

The sweltering summer heat left a faint shimmer in the air. Rivers of fresh sweat ran down my face, back and arms. The summer months were when most of the work had to be done, but unfortunately it was also the hardest time to work. The other workers on the farm had spoken their praises about working further north, I found myself wishing that some of that cold weather could come south.

I grunted and gripped the wooden handle of the shovel, as a particularly devious clump of dirt obstructs my way. My palms started to burn slightly, the prickly feeling of the old wood guaranteeing that I’d have at least a few splinters by the end of the day. I grunted as the earth moved aside, a menial task for a menial person.

The farm owner had been complaining about the quality of the soil for weeks by then. He sent me out into the fields with only a busted shovel and told me to fix it for him. It amazed me how this man had managed to run a farm for so long, with so little knowledge on how to run it. Maybe he was just naturally dense, a lot like the soil I was forced to dredge through.

It was a miracle that anything grew out in those fields. The only source of water was a dirty little stream down by the road. One that often had garbage and various shopping carts thrown into it by local rowdy teenagers. Everything else was run down or coated in a fine layer of dust, demonstrating the disuse of most of the equipment in the sheds.

I was one of the few workers at the farm. There were three others who I rarely spoke to. We didn’t have much opportunity anyway. In-between preforming basic tasks for the land owner and collapsing into bed from exhaustion, there wasn’t any time to discuss things between ourselves.

And much like every other day, I ruined my hands out in the fields until sunset; only stopping once to get something to eat. Afterwards I carelessly tossed the torturous device back into the rickety shed and dragged myself back to the small bunkhouse that we were provided. It was only marginally better than the shed, to be honest.

The shed didn’t have any beds in it though, and unlike the shed this building was inhabited by the only other souls for miles around. They were all seated around the table playing cards. I ignored them and moved to my area of the house, a small bed and drawer awaited me there. On top of it was a picture of me and my longtime girlfriend, Lucy.

We were both smiling, her shimmering black hair and green eyes looking fantastic next to my rugged appearance. We had been forced apart by circumstance, with her going to a prestigious university. While she was gone, I tried to find some work nearby but was unable to. I was forced to settle on a job further south.

A pang of pain hit my chest, and I quickly placed the photo back, face down.

I slid my phone from underneath my pillow and cycled through my messages. I liked to keep in contact with my family. I never had much to talk about with them, but they always kept my spirits high with mundane stories about their own working week.

I scrolled past the last message I had received from Lucy.

“Goodbye.”

Finality. That was it. The end of all that work and time. I couldn’t let go, she was the only thing I looked forward to during my breaks away from the farm.

I slid the phone back and curled up on the uncomfortable mattress. I could have drifted off into a happier place, but instead it sent me hurtling back to reality. The scene played over in my head over and over, the hurtful words, the distant behavior. It took a week for her to say it, but things were on life support well before then.

It made me feel pathetic, worthless. Keeping a photo around of somebody who wanted nothing to do with me; even when the relationship had already facilitated it.

I slipped my phone back under the pillow and curled up on the covers. I didn’t feel like eating.

I tossed and turned through the night. The bed was uncomfortable and so were the cheap blankets. Eventually I grunted with frustration and slipped off onto the wooden floor. I was still wearing my clothes from earlier having not changed. The only sound was of the other’s heavy breathing. I envied them.

With a sigh I tip-toed out of the empty door frame and out into the moonlit fields. It was a full moon that night, big and bright. The lights were still on in the farmhouse, I slipped around it and out across the dirt road. Just up ahead was a singular tree on a hill, weathered and aged. With what little time I had away from work I often sat under it and let the day roll by.

A cool breeze rolled by as I let myself down and leant against it. I felt unsettled for a reason I didn’t know. My hair stood on end and my stomach rose inside my body. The wind picked up slightly, ruffling my messy brown hair. I scanned the area; watching the sparsely laid crops swaying in the dry fields.

The lights in the night sky began to blur and smear the black void with an orchestra of color. A strong hand gripped the hair on my head as my heart began to pound in my ears. Without moving a muscle, I felt like I had run a marathon. At first I panicked, was I having some kind of heart attack? MY legs felt like jelly as I attempted to crawl away from the tree and to the house for help.

The dirt scraped my knees, but for all of the pain I felt I made no progress, leaving me wallowing and croaking out for the attention of those already fast asleep. My limbs fell back to the ground, numbed and useless. My organs rose inside my body, as if I had suddenly taken off into the air. Sick welled up in my throat as my body felt many sensations, none of them appropriate for my time or place.

Darkness encroached on my vision, my body burning into embers as I passed out.

I stumbled into nothing. My weakened body tumbled over once more, leaving me sprawled out on a hard floor. The acidic taste in my mouth and the moisture running down my chin indicated that I had expelled some of my stomach, but I wasn’t sure when. In fact I couldn’t remember much of anything.

My clouded vision cleared ever so slowly along with my other senses. I could feel the wind again, and the feeling of dirt under my clenched fingers. My breathing came rapidly and heavy as my brain caught up with my battered body. Still disorientated I tried to stand, but fell back onto my ass during the process.

Surrounding me was a blurred landscape, and a purple blob that seemed to be moving to and fro frantically. I struggled to understand the speech I could hear; two voices rung out, one naïve and childish, and the other of a young woman. I clenched my eyes shut as my retina burned; that couldn’t be right, it was night when I fell asleep.

Did I fall asleep? What was happening?

I rolled onto my back in an attempt to control my continuing nausea. It helped little, forcing me to gip as my throat convulsed. My hearing cleared slightly.

“Is he okay?” a young boy asked.

“I don’t know Spike, just give me a moment!” the woman responded, obviously distressed about the situation. A flare of panic filled my head, maybe I had been drugged and kidnapped by malicious forces! Malicious forces that recruited at a very young age.

“He doesn’t look so good.”

The woman sighed, “I know Spike, give me some space. I’m going to get him inside before somepony sees.”

Somepony?

I barely had time to ponder the strange phrasing as I was suddenly lifted off the ground. I flailed for a moment, but couldn’t feel the arms of anybody to carry me. By this point I was seriously freaking out (inside my head, of course) about the entire situation. My captors didn’t seem to notice my distress, and happily dragged me indoors. While I was glad to be out of the sun, I wasn’t so happy at the potential to be thrown into somebodies torture dungeon.

I was dragged onto something much more comfortable than the dirt, which relieved some of my very real and very rational fears.

“What are you going to do with him Twi?”

“Well, I suppose we should try to wake him up first, and we can go from there.”

“But Twi, he’ll totally freak out if he wakes up and sees us!”

“How so?”

“You said he was from somewhere far away right? So what if he’s never seen anything like me before!”

The woman chuckled, “Spike, I doubt he’ll be that scared of you. You only just reach his knees!”

“Just saying,” the child grumbled, “Don’t blame me when he starts breathing fire, and shooting lasers out of his eyes!”

“I don’t think he can do that.”

“How do you know? I’ll be in my room until the rampage is over!”

The woman tutted to herself. I could hear the scuttling of what sounded like claws and the door to the room slamming shut. I still couldn’t find the energy to peel open my eyes and hop out of bed, presumably before taking whichever kidnapper was still in the room in a headlock, followed by a heroic escape.

My mind was racing as I fell into slumber again.