“She spilled Ultimo's blood!” Kaji loudly proclaimed. His eyes blazed brightly in the flicker of the bonfire. “She spilled his blood more than any pony I've ever broke the waves with!”
A thick crowd of Nealenders sat on the circle of logs and chairs situated around the village fire. Every single soul leaned forward in drunk awe of the story being told. Even the smattering of Continentalists seated in the corner had their eyes locked on the wildly gesturing speaker.
“She stabbed his back and his neck and his throat! And despite Rainbow Dash's bloody zeal, Ultimo still saw fit to show us his wrath!” Kaji spun and pointed across the blaze. “So—enraged and ravenous—he gave our brave sister Flare a concussion, then made like a pack of sharks to her floating body to devour her—bones and all!” The stallion flashed a wild grin. “But just when all seemed lost—in swept the dinky landwalker on his mighty skiff! SWOOOSH! He swept Flare up with just seconds to spare, and Ultimo was robbed of a delectable... scrumptious dinner!”
Several Nealenders cheered and whooped in celebration of the wild tale. Off to the side, Flare and Nick exchanged smiles. Flare ruffled Nick's mane while the stallion bore a sheepish smile.
In the meantime, a rather amused Theanim Mane trotted amongst the crowd, handing out random photographs. “It's all true! You can see the evidence of today's heroism right here! Why... if Rainbow Dash and Nick weren't there when Verlaxion's glory willed it—”
“Baah!” Kaji flew in, waving his hoof and causing several sheets to fall to the ground.
“Hey!” Theanim frowned. “My good stallion—”
“You cannot share the true meat of today's glory with soul stealing!” Kaji gnashed his teeth, then faced the crowd. “You had to have been there! Only a pony whose blood was christened with the thrill of the hunt can properly understand how close we got to shaming the ocean beast—”
“Oh, for Verlaxion's sake!” Theanim barked. “I was there!”
“Hah! Maybe in books, but not in butts!”
The crowd laughed.
“I too was there!” Theanim stomped his hoof, then faced the crowd. “The ocean practically boiled with Ultimo's fury! Every time he growled or hissed, you felt it in the water, and you felt it in your gut! It was hard to take a photograph from the constant frothing in the very air! Why, if Rainbow Dash wasn't there, I'd surely have drowned! And I'm certain more than just Flare owed their livelihood to the timely arrival of Nick and his trimaran—”
“Hah hah hah hah!” Kaji laughed, then slapped Theanim's flank. “That's more like it, Thunker Meat! And who said you were nothing but boxes and chemicals!”
“Grrrrr...” Theanim opened his mouth to protest, but blinked, drawn curiously to the waves of cheers and laughter across the encircling crowd. “Oh... well... that was rather thrilling, wasn't it?”
Kaji chuckled and resumed his tale. Meanwhile, across the way, Twilight Sparkle smiled and turned to gaze at Rainbow Dash.
The pegasus sat in a slump besides Sinrar. Her bowl of tropical greenery was only half eaten, and her ruby eyes lingered on a splotch of dry dirt several feet before the actual flame.
Twilight arched an eyebrow. Settling down beside Rainbow Dash, she said: “You know, there was a time when you'd tell stories like this around a table of ice cream sundaes and scones.”
“Hmmm?” Rainbow tilted her head up. “What?”
“Hehehe... Sugarcube Corner, Rainbow,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “Don't you remember those afternoon meals we'd have? All of the girls would be seated around the same table, enjoying whatever Pinkie Pie and the Cakes had just prepared for us. But the get together didn't get really exciting until you decided to open up about some amazing exploit or another.” She waved a hoof. “I particularly like the story about your regular races through Ghastly Gorge. And... hehe... of course... how you defended Fluttershy's honor at Junior Flight Camp.”
“Mmmmff...” Rainbow Dash gazed aside, her ears folded. “Does this look anything like Sugarcube Corner?”
Sinrar's eyes darted over, curious.
Twilight's brow furrowed. “No. But it's still exciting. And why shouldn't these ponies feel happy and victorious? Or you for that matter?” She turned and pointed across the flickering blaze. “Flare's alive thanks to yours and Nick's heroics. And though you may not have gotten the broken shard piece from Ultimo, at least you did show him you mean business.”
“Yeah, but he's still out there, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash muttered. “And he's still got what we need to bring back the other girls.” A sigh escaped her lips. “Until I can know for sure that someday I'll be sitting at a table with you five again... I...” Her nostrils flared. “I just don't see what's worth celebrating,” she muttered.
“Trouble in paradise?” Sinrar rasped.
Both Rainbow and Twilight turned to look at the old stallion. “It's nothing to worry yourself over, Dr. Dude,” Rainbow droned.
“Who's worried?” Sinrar said with a limp shrug. “I knew from the very moment you set out to gut this damnable fish, you were gonna come back. You're resourceful, strong, and crafty as Hell.”
“I learned to stop worrying about myself long ago,” Rainbow said. “Today, one of the Nealenders nearly bit it.”
“But she didn't,” Sinrar said. “Our resident pipsqueak proved to be something of an adept casaneighva.”
“Hmmmf. How very punny.”
“But if you got swallowed up, harpy...” Sinrar shook his head. “That would be the real tragedy.”
“Oh yeah? Why's that?”
“Because you're unique. You're one of a kind.”
“And you guys aren't?”
“Not like you,” Sinrar muttered. “A pony of your calibre doesn't fly the distance she does and sees the things she sees at any small cost.”
“Grnnnfhh...” Rainbow ran a hoof over her face. “Don't remind me.”
“And would it be such a bad thing? To be reminded?” Sinrar's amber eyes narrowed. “If your ghostly friend Twilight—assuming she exists at all—doesn't do it, then you can at least rely on an entire lifetime of exploits.” His gray features curved into a wrinkly smile. “A quest to save a desert kingdom... a run in with a chaotic dragon... a battle with airborne imperialists—”
“What are you even getting at, old stallion?”
“Have you ever once pondered exactly why I left my apartment flat to join you stupid tail-flickers in the first place, harpy?”
Rainbow's muzzle scrunched. She glanced at Twilight, then back at Sinrar. “Because... you wanted to make more maps?”
“I've spent my whole life making maps,” Sinrar said. “If I wanted to, I could have just given you the damn charts and let you be on your way.”
“But you didn't,” Rainbow said. “You still haven't.”
“Because all of those maps are just numbers and lines and names...” He sighed. “...without substance.”
Rainbow stared at him.
“You've given me that substance, harpy,” Sinrar murmured. “You've shown me that the world lives... here and beyond.” He slowly shook his head. “All this time, I lost hope in believing...”
Silence, save for—of course—the loud tale being orated a few feet away.
“Believing in what?” Twilight asked.
“Yeah.” Rainbow gulped. “Believing in what?”
“That there was magic to this world,” Sinrar said in a breathy tone. “And wonderment.” He turned towards Kaji and the Nealenders with fire and starlight glittering across their eyes. “Not just a bunch of arrogant freakjobs trying to make do on a bunch of stones scattered across an endless ocean. Not just a huge religion devouring everypony's imagination and forcing them to bow down to a phantom. Grfff...” He adjusted his beret and muttered, “For years, I locked myself away because I was angry... angry at the world. I had spent so many years researching and studying, but all I had gotten was data and facts. I soon realized that the more you could explain everything, the colder this universe got. And it was a very dull universe... so dull that soon rumor and heresy would occupy my obsessive mind.”
“And that's how you got fixated on the legend of Val Roan explorers,” Rainbow said.
“Mmmm...” He nodded, gazing into the fire. “Indeed.”
“But... I've told you so much about the rest of the world,” Rainbow Dash said. “About Val Roa and Ledomare and Silvadel and Equestria...” She winced. “Ah jeez... I... I just made the universe all the more boring for you, didn't I, Dr. Dude?”
“Hmmmf?” He turned towards her, blinking. “Why's that?”
“Well, like, because now you know everything... everything about what's beyond.”
For some strange reason, he cracked a smile. “I don't know everything, harpy.” His eyes took on a piercing glint. “Because you don't know everything.”
Rainbow Dash blinked.
“And I don't think you ever will,” Sinrar said. “That's the magic of what makes you you.” He shuffled sideways and pointed at her. “Even if you make it to the Midnite Bastion—”
“Midnight Armory.”
“Whatever. Even if you make it to that damnable Macguffin of a destination and get the hocus pocus thingy to bring back to your homeland and get your friends back, I doubt you'll ever stop learning... and living.” His lips curved. “And the fact that there are creatures like you—here and beyond—is what makes the world all the more interesting. There will always be a mystery. There will always be an adventure.”
Rainbow simply gazed at him. Twilight, meanwhile, winked at Rainbow Dash with a proud smile.
“But...” And then Sinrar sighed, turning back to the flame. “That's not anything I can ever enjoy.”
“Huh?” Rainbow cocked her head to the side. “Why not, dude?”
“Mrmmmff... isn't it obvious, imbecile?” he spat. “I'm older than dusty piss. This stupid journey has very nearly killed me, and we've barely scratched the damn surface of where you need to go and what you need to do.”
“Y'know...” Rainbow slicked her mane back and said: “I never once asked for you to join me.”
“Aye, but I did. I had to. I had to know what was in store... not just for me but for this whole world. And, I have to admit, I'm happy with knowing what I know. But while the spirit is willing, the flesh is pissed drunk.” He groaned. “That's why, once you knock out this big fish bitch, I'm hoofing my maps over to you.”
“Y-you are?”
“No sense in hoarding them anymore. You go on and take them to where you need to go. I would only slow you down.” His spectacled eyes reflected a young stallion and mare seated side by side. “And—from the looks of it—so would soft-eyes over there.”
Rainbow bit her lip. “Jee, Professor... I... I don't know what to say...”
“Then don't,” he grunted. “You suck at saying things anyway.” He turned to give her an icy stare. “But what you do matters, eh? A mare of action and flank kicking. It practically drips off of you. Mrmmff... it's something to be proud of.”
Rainbow glanced at Twilight, then back at the stallion. “And what of you?”
“Me?” He sighed slowly, shrugging his shoulders. “I don't like this world any more than I previously did. But I can someday die in peace... knowing that there's mirth to it.”
“And... will you be dying alone?”
“If it suits itself.”
Silence.
Rainbow Dash clenched her jaw shut. With a heavy flap of her wings, she jumped up to her hooves, then came down with a bellowing shout: “Hey! Everypony!”
Kaji stopped in mid-speech. He turned from the chuckling crowd to smirk at the pegasus. “What, ho! The blood-letter speaks!”
“You all want a killer whizz-bang of a story?!” Rainbow exclaimed. “How about this one time a single pony—against all odds—cleared out a cave full of fire breathing winged lizards?!” She pivoted about. “Or a daring escape from a floating city full of zombie pegasi?! Or a dramatic battle over chaos inside a giant, moving mountain?!”
Several of the natives simply exchanged gawking expressions. Even Theanim Mane bore a humored grin.
“All certainly tall and gargantuan sounding tales indeed, landwalker!” Kaji said. He smirked wryly. “But are they even worthy of the fire?”
“Pffft! Not if I told them,” Rainbow said. “Besides... I'm good at actually going out into the field and doing stuff. Like bleeding a bigflank fish creep.”
“Heheheheh.”
“Hah hah hah...”
She grinned harder. “But I know a certain educated pony who's made for telling stories!” That said, she yanked Sinrar up to his hooves.
“Gah!” Sinrar winced, then turned towards her, seething. “Have you lost your mind?!”
“Maybe, but you're still holding onto yours,” she said to him. “Go on. Give them something to toss and turn in bed over!”
“You damnable harpy! Isn't obvious that I've lived a life of mundanity?!” he spat. “I haven't a story to tell!”
“You have plenty of tales to share,” Rainbow said calmly. “Who said that they had to be yours?”
He blinked at her. Turning, he gazed at the crowd in a contemplative stupor.
“Besides...” Rainbow's brow furrowed. “I know too many of the facts. But you? You're somepony who can share the magic with these ponies,” she said. “And abroad.”
“I... erm...” Sinrar gulped, fidgeting on aged limbs. “I-I'm not sure that I'm capable...”
“I know, right?” Her eyes narrowed as she smirked. “Hence the adventure...”
“They were so close to the end!” Sinrar loudly orated, pacing over the hoofprints that Kaji had left around the bonfire minutes before. “Both airships had been boarded, and the bloody martyrdom of their friend Aatxe had staved off the undead waves! However, the storm was still raging! What's more, the dastardly lizard Razzar had used all his remaining resources to seize the power at the heart of the cursed city!”
Everypony listened in amazement. Kaji, Sora, and Silver were on the edge of their seats. Flare and Nick were locked in a mutual, shivering hug, their eyes locked on the professor.
“So, in a desperate gamble to throw off the conniving Lounge once and for all, and to destroy all traces of the damnable maretropolis from the skies, the adventurer and her blind friend commandeered the heart of the city and guided the floating structures towards the extreme north, where not even air or water could survive! And in one tumultuous dive, the chaotic field of energy disentregrated everything!” Sinrar's teeth showed with a wicked grin. “It was through sheer guile—and wild mana-powered technology—that the once blind zebra was capable of saving his friend at the last second, carrying her to the two escape ships before they could be consumed by the destructive elements that had devoured the undead menace as a whole!”
A collective coo floated across the crowd. The Nealenders began cheering—starting first with the giggles and chirps of the little fillies and colts, but swiftly joined by the stomping hooves and loud whoops of the teenagers and adults.
“And so...” Sinrar adjusted his beret and glanced aside with a wry smirk. “...the adventurer and her friends found a way to live another day, spreading harmony and peace where once there was nothing but death and chaos.”
Rainbow Dash nodded back, and she smiled. Accompanied by a contented Twilight, she turned tail and trotted away from the flames, disappearing into the night-drenched jungle beyond the edge of the village.
As the cheers gradually subsided, Sinrar took a deep breath and turned to face the crowd once again. “Now...” He smirked wickedly. “...who here would like to hear about a crater full of warrior sex ponies?”
There wasn't a hoof that wasn't raised.
Hai Midnite!
But it was the Pegasus sex crater that drew the most attention in the end. Why am I not surprised?
These are the chapters that throw a big smile on my face. That's the magic of Austraeoh.
HAH
I really hope Sinrar and Nick don't end up parting from the group so soon. Those guys are great. Especially now that the hard old grump has gotten a little softer.
Saaaaayyy...he's gonna be getting around to Rainbow pretty soon with those photographs, isn't he...
I would pay MONEY to hear Sinrar tell tales of warrior sex ponies. That would be so priceless.
Since Swan isn't here with us, NICK/FLARE SHIP FOREVER. AND THE RIDE ON THE BONES OF NICK/SWAN SONG.
There was so much i would quote, but suffice to say, Sinrar has become one of my favorite side OC's of this story, right up there with Cold Canter. This was a great chapter
You know who else defended women's honors?
Andrew Jackson.
cdn.omg-facts.com/2014/2/10/3e1072c1fb3d9d64ba1dbeca6d0f81d4
Andrew Jackson x Princess Celestia; best ship.
Thank goodness it wasn't a filler chapter. (Otherwise known as TGIwaFc.)
inb4 sinrar becomes young again when Rainbow Dash gets rarity
-Spirit (Yeast and Treacle)
Aww... Such a sad chapt—
LOL
Spike is referred to as Casanova. It is now in my headcanon that he/she was one of the founding Alicorns.
Telling stories at Sugarcube Corner...
I totally just got dust in my eye. Why dust seems to always fly at me whenever there are references to before Rainbow began her journey, I'll never know.
Heresy?
We can fix that.
static.fjcdn.com/pictures/No+heresy+allowed_eb392e_5342593.jpg
Boom. Heresy solved.
Lovely. Also, kinda good to know we'll be dropping off Nick and Sinrar here. I think I'm still not ready for a long-term side-character relationship just yet...
Story time! I call front row!
Sinrar gained a new skill: Generosity
If Josho isn't careful, I'm going to end up liking him more than Josho.
I have never liked a character in this story more than Josho. He was the bravest character in the whole thing.
Rainbow Dash is so willing to say 'yes' to so many things, but Josho had the courage to say no to Shell, just once. For that I thought I would eternally honor him as the best character in the story. Now, I'm not as sure.
6030843 Yes, we all know about your love of old, wrinkly stallions. No need to be shoving it in all our faces.
6030933 are you reffering to some other time/comment?
So can we hear Sinrar's version of Pegasus Sex Crater next chapter? I want to hear it now. And have Morgan Freeman read it out loud on YouTube so I can listen to it over and over and over and over again. Please oh glorious Zadubadabu let it happen.
I think Rainbow has helped these two become happier then they had been. I am sure that they will love to stay on the island for a while after Dash leaves, even if I don't want to see her leave them behind.
6030955 .....no, that's just my pitiable attempt at humour. I guess it came off mean though
6030984 ah, ok.
Gilligan's Island theme song reference.
[youtube=Q8jhb5NnADM]
Yes, yes it is.
Wow. Very meta today, aren't you?
Swan Song. Go on, tell sexy tales to the boat. She needs them.
Well, at the very least, I am predicting Theamin will join the party. I'd hate to Sinrar (and maybe Nick) go, but I guess it was to be expected. The guy is probably a couple of decades older than Josho if not more.
Does this include the children?
Sinrar found a place in the world. Nick has a mare to call his own.
Is Dash going to shove off alone? Or are we losing Sinrar but gaining Flare and Thunker?
-Memories given light, ease a lonely flight. Ynanhluutr.
SINRAR WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?
WHY WOULD YOU TRY TO SPLIT UP THE JURY SINRAR?!
NOW THE NEALEND ATOLL WILL EXPLODE AND FORCE YOU TO ADVENTURE WITH RAINBOW DASH FOREVER!!!
I'm with Zap. Nick and Sinrar are pretty swell dudes, but after the whole thing with the Noble Jury, I'm not emotionally prepared to get attached to anymore characters on the long term yet. On top of which, they seem to have found either resolution (Sinrar) or a niche (Nick) for themselves. That said, I wouldn't mind Theanim taking their place.
6030813 6031093 6031206 6030896
On one hand, There's this idea that Theanim joins the party and everyone else stays behind...
Why not moar ponies? Why not have Flare join too?
Six-ish total ponies to build the Swan's Song (not yet a full complement to the Noble Jury, but there's more islands to hop).
Sinrar
Nick
Flare
Theanim
RD
Spookle
Like the group before were the Jurists,
I dub this future (potential) collective, the Laments
A) Lamentation is apparently a collective noun for swans. (yes I had to look it up)
B) It's song oriented
*sighs*
It is too late at night for me to over-think things like these.
Well if all the hooves are visible then at least you know none are busy.
Oh Hi Midnite Bastion!
Sinrar is a great story teller, it is going to suck when him and Nick leave.
So, it seems we're going to be having a relay of sorts this time around. Nick and Sinrar helped Rainbow get here, and now it's going to be Theanim's turn.
Many interesting things...
Indeed.
Let me tell you a story of how its gonna be.
Of the Rainbow Pegasus who made history.
These two are so cute together.
It's called pegasus sex crater, I'll have you know! *haughty sniff*
Still wondering bout that picture...
Awww, that's adorable
And that is how we will market to the Shipping audience. Swany can be the spokesperson for the campaign.
6030878
You mean inB4 sinrar sacrifices himself and dies a violent death.
Also, still awaiting Theanim talking to RD about Twi.
"Meh," Swan Song meh'd.
Not even a snigger from Rainbow about Midnight Bastion.
Did Sinrar have to explain what a zebra even is? Does he know what a zebra is?
That only works as a pun in a world where Casanova is known, and is not a horse. Furthermore, both Sinrar and Rainbow Dash are aware of it, despite being from cultures completely cut off from each other. I propose, therefore, that the are aware of us.
How long will they be content to play out this pantomime for our amusement?
How long until they decide they want something more?
Has it already happened?
What caused the colon to implode?
so, Zinrar is going to play the old storyteller, Nicks going to get (or has already gotten) laid, and Theanim is seeing the truth of the matter
that wraps up the side character drama, now, can we get the damn shard already? criminy christmas christ!
6030984
if it makes you feel better, i laughed
though to be fair i laugh at far more than most folks
i, i just need to laugh, okay?
Now that was just too quick. Both his transformation into a nice old man and then Deckard Cain was just way too rushed.
6031398
I was gonna say the same thing
6031407 Wait a sec, his stories aren't necessarily accurate...
Crater full of warrior sex ponies might be a hybrid of Searo and Durandana... which could totally be awesomely led by a cyborg queen named Roarke.
I'm kinda sad that Sinrar and Nick have to leave, but I'm still holding on to the hope that Theanim Mane will join Rainbow Dash on her adventure. I get the feeling he already believe RD about the truth about Verlaxion, at least to some extent. It wouldn't be too much of a stretch to see him follow her to find out more of the truth firsthand. Er, firsthoof, that is.
This chapter made me a little misty eyed.
6032198 sinrar confirmed to be a changeling
6030870 he also helped commit genocide against Native Americans, for what it's worth.
6036997 http://www.badassoftheweek.com/jackson.html There is always another side to every story, and we must take care not to judge the past on the morals of today.
6030895
You may delete our porn, but we will always have the sex crater!
Who wouldn't want to hear all about a pegasus sex crater?