The ponies were on their way again; to Reinkjavík this time. They were trotting next to each other in a line—there was more than enough space in the vast Icelandic landscape. Maud Pie was left, Air Miles to the right, and Pinkie Pie in the middle. The Pink pony was skipping gaily, although not as high as she used to do back in Ponyville, where the earth was flatter and more even—and maybe also because of the heavy, oppressing clouds above her and the rest. They were still walking on moss-overgrown basalt rocks, which filled every corner of their eyes, and the wind was still chilly and rubbing their ears. A lonely bird was bravely riding the freezing airstream. Everypony was silent; just as silent as the land around them.
Pinkie and Miles were staring blankly ahead, hoping to catch a glimpse of the capitol city already. But Maud gazed around in all directions, watching the surroundings with an inner interest. The dense clouds and endless stony landscape didn’t seem to bother her—to the contrary. It felt a little bit like her home on the rock farm, but with even more rocks. Maud closed her eyes, sighed, and let a wave of tranquility wash over her.
After a while, Pinkie and Air Miles got bored, so they started telling Maud all about how they pulled off their little stunt with the engine. Miles told her in detail how he had fixed the engine block in a new record time and dragged the thing all the way up on the slope to the top of the column, complementing both his technical knowledge and strength—but in the end he credited Pinkie as well. He pointed out how lucky they were with the clouds—as there had been only a thin, silvery, shallow layer during the battle. If the cloud cover would have been heavier, like the thick, dark soup which now floated above their heads, they would have been troll-lunch. When they asked Maud for her side of the encounter, she told them, although briefly, about how she had distracted the troll. For her it was nothing special.
“That’s amazing!” Pinkie said. “I totally didn’t know you were so philo—” but she was cut short by Maud’s outstretched hoof. They all stopped. “What’s wrong?” Pinkie asked.
“A troll. I saw one over there.” Maud pointed to the right.
Everypony looked to the right. “What do you mean?” Air Miles said. “I don’t see anything; just some rocks.”
After watching for a minute, the bird, who was flying majestically just a few moments ago, suddenly came into view again. It circled around a rock formation a few hundred yards from the ponies, and then landed right on top of it. For a second it sat there, then the rock stirred, and a vibration went through the earth—even the ponies could feel it. The bird took off unsteadily, no doubt very confused about its moving perch, which had looked so comfortable from a distance.
Air Miles cleared his throat and swallowed. “Eh… shall we get moving again?”
“Good idea,” Pinkie answered, her voice quavering. She trotted on ahead, but didn’t skip anymore.
Suddenly the terrain became more friendly. The basalt rock gradually yielded to short, stocky grass and at some places even bodies of grey water—the sky lightened up a bit, too. The ponies could even see a trail running across their route; it was made of black gravel. They had no idea how many miles they had gone, but suddenly, Reinkjavík emerged in the distance. It looked not as high or spectacular as Manehattan, and not as rustic or droll as Ponyville, but still it was there: civilization.
“That’s it, girls: Reinkjavík,” Air Miles called out, and waved a hoof ahead; he sighed in relief.
Is that it? Pinkie Pie caught herself thinking, but then she quickly regained her cheerful mood again. “Looks… different,” she said, “doesn’t it, Maud?”
Maud nodded slowly. Her expression, as always, unreadable.
**
“This is where we part ways, girls. I’m gonna buy some parts and fix my balloon for the return journey. I guess it’s going to take a few days, considering the state of the engine, and the canvas, and the basket… and actually everything else. Bye!” Air Miles said, and trotted off.
“But I thought you said we would always stick together!” Pinkie Pie yelled after him, but it was too late; he had already gone to another street.
“Well, that leaves us together, right Maud?”
Maud nodded and then looked around at downtown Reinkjavík. From the outside it had looked quite grim, but here, in the center of the city, it was more colorful than she thought. The main street was narrow, and reminded her of Ponyville, although this street was neatly asphalted. It had only two sidewalks and a one-way carriage road, sloping gently down towards the direction of the harbor. Many houses weren’t made of wood or stone, but of corrugated metal sheets, sometimes painted in bright colors. There were many stores and shops, small and exclusive, and also restaurants ranging from simple bars to fancy, Manehattan-style diners. Surprisingly many tourists cantered about, seeming to be from all over Equestria, judging by their accents. Most were from Manehattan and Vanhoover, because those two cities were on the same latitude as Iceland. The city felt vibrant, but not too busy; just right.
After having tasted from some of the Icelandic nature and the calm energy of Reinkjavík, Maud Pie said, “So… what do we do?”
Pinkie’s eyes became wide with surprise again, but then they sacked down. “Well, let’s go find our hotel. I’m pretty tired”—she looked at the sky—“and it’s pretty late. But… we can plan our activities for tomorrow; I’ve got some cool idea’s, you know…” she said mysteriously.
Maud nodded, and then they turned right, searching for their hotel as the sun sank down behind them.