Those Distant Sisters CH26

CH26:

Scritch. Scratch. Scritch. Scratch. The sound was nothing next to the roar of the small plane's engines, yet everypony on board heard it. The citizens of Hearth have all learned to tune out the sound of an engine, but the scratch of Evanescence's violin pierced the air. It symbolized all the failures of their mission.

Scritch. Scratch. Scritch. Scratch. The azure mare ran her bow against the metallic strings mindlessly – eyes closed.

"Is that really necessary?" Covenant Truth's voice called back from the cockpit, knocking Resonance back to her senses. She sighed.

"I haven't been able to play since our first night here, Covenant." She turned to her instrument, running her hoof along the worn bowstring and muttering to herself "You try keeping skill with an electric instrument in a place with no electricity."

Scritch. Scratch. Scritch. Scratch. Sonority rose from his seat, moving slowly towards his wife in the cargo hold.

"When we get back, things are gonna be real busy. Since we failed to convince Luna to come with us, Hearth is gonna have to move forward alone. The ponies at home won't be so quick to convert to their new lifestyle, and as a military family we will have to be on the front line against anypony who fights back." Resonance shrugged her husband's hoof off her shoulder, looking forlorn out a small side window.

"So in a day I've lost my sister, we've split ties with the only other nation we've ever seen, and we're flying towards a home that will soon be locked in a potentially violent struggle between reform and counter-reform." She dropped her violin, burying her face in her hooves. "By the flames, isn't the world just a wonderful place?"

"No. No it's not, and no amount of dry sarcasm will fix it. All we can hope to do is help the ponies of Hearth toward the future." Sonority got up, quietly collecting Resonance's bows as he returned to the copilot's seat.

The remainder of the flight passed quietly.