Black Neon: New Shores

Leon laid on an uncomfortable, thin mattress, the sway of the small ferry he was currently on not helping his already aching back. It had been almost three weeks since he'd been forced to flee Neo-Canterlot. Now, being forced out of the second largest trading hub in all of the land was bad, being chased out by people who had claimed to be his allies, his brothers and sisters, his friends, that was a whole other can of worms. He'd been forced to flee to the west coast, had stayed there for a couple of days, then got on this ferry bound for New-Neighpon, he was starving, thirsty, and mentally drained by the experience and the almost two weeks at sea. Still, at least he knew where he stood now, after hearing about what had actually transpired on the fateful night that he had lost his wife and daughter to what he had been told were 'Yakuza thugs'. He laid in the darkness of the cabin, staring up at the static ceiling fan above him before sitting himself up on the edge of the bed, getting to his hooves and making his way out of his cabin and to the main deck of the ferry, taking a lighter and a cigarette from a carton in his jacket pocket, before slipping the cigarette between his lips and lighting it up, taking a long drag as he looked over the seemingly infinite horizon and the endless black water that stretched as far as the eye could see. "Hey." Came a southern voice from behind him, the Shire not reacting with a jump as he usually would, the voice was all too familiar to catch him by surprise. A tan coated mare with a swept back mane as black as the ocean in front of them made her way onto the deck, a pair of emerald green eyes looking at him from behind a black ceramic mask similar to Leon's, albeit without the trademark neon pink inverted cross. She was clad in a rather fetching white linen suit, along with a pair of tall black high heels that clicked on the wooden deck as she made her way over and stood next to him, leaning over the railing and taking one of her own cigarettes out of her pocket. She was rather tall in her own right, helped in part by the aforementioned heels, but she was still dwarfed by the massive Shire. This mare's name was Miami, a name she had picked out herself when she was drafted into the same department as Leon, and just like him, she was one of the few Augers in the force. Of course she was used to the typical nonsense from the organic officers, the ones who would try to pick a fight knowing that Augers were unable to fight back due to their enhanced strength, and was more than used to the nickname 'Unbirthed' but what Leon had found out sickened her to such an extent that she had gone rogue with him. "You're doing okay right Leon?" She asked in a surprisingly caring tone as she looked over him. "Of course I'm not fucking okay Miami. I'm still reeling from the fact I was lied to for the better part of a decade, I found out my wife was killed by the people who tried to kill me, and I have been working for her murderers for all that time. I'm about as far from okay as I can be." Leon announced in his deep British voice as he looked over at the neon lights encroaching over the horizon. "What's my big fucking plan, oh, to just go and apologize to the Yakuza whom I've been killing en masse for nine odd years and hope they don't cut my head off or gut me as soon as I approach the door, yeah what a great idea, go me." He spoke harshly as he took another drag from his cigarette and blowing another puff of smoke. "I fully expect them to kill me Miami, you know that right? I just want to visit Tracy's grave then go and accept my fate, that's all I'm going to do. I could give half a shit about the crime in this city, and I could care less about the people it affects. As far as I'm concerned, it isn't worth trying to save the lives of those who will try to kill me and God knows if I'll ever trust anyone again thanks to that." He finished off, before taking an extremely long drag and finishing the cigarette, before tossing the butt into the black water below. "You know you don't mean that Leon." Miami spoke in a calm tone as she wrapped her arms around one of Leon's prosthetics and pulled herself close to him, resting her head on his shoulder as she looked over the blackness of the ocean before them both. "I can't lie and tell you I know what you're going through, and I can't imagine how hard this must be for you, but I know you won't accept giving up like this...Jesus, what's the fucking point of us even coming here if you're just coming here to die?" Miami asked Leon in a frustrated tone as she held tightly onto his metal arm. "You really think we're coming here just so you can let go? We got out of Neo-Canterlot in a hail of gunfire and artillery, we were bombarded by the city's defenses for FIVE MILES, and we're still here. Someone wants us to keep going Leon, not just you, but me too. Aren't you curious as to what they want to show us?" She asked quietly as she let out a sigh. "We're here to keep fighting Leon, here to keep the peace. The BAPSD are in the past, they won't have a clue where we are. We have a chanced to show the world what they did, to you, to me, to everyone, the bullshit they fed the planet to keep it slumbering. Please Leon just tru-" "Don't finish that sentence." Leon butted in harshly as he looked down at her. "I don't trust anyone, you understand me Miami? Trusting people is what got me here, trusting people is why I-for the first time in my life, am fleeing a fight. The one thing that I was bought back from the literal grave to do, I am no longer able to do. I am obsolete and accepting my fate is the only way I can get some closure." He finished off as he pulled his arm away from Miami's grasp, before shaking his head and making his way back down below deck. "This conversation is over. Don't bring it up again." Miami watched Leon make his way back below the deck as the spires and towering neon lit monoliths of New-Neighpon appeared over the horizon, the first signs of dawn approaching as the sky slowly began to turn a lighter shade of blue, wispy clouds being lit up different shades of yellow, orange, red and pink. She looked over the railing and leaned over it again, staring down at the black water below, her lip beginning to tremble as tears brimmed up in her eyes, before she rested her head on the railing and began to quietly sob to herself.