The clouds were laid thick by the pegasi as they moved each one into place around a small farm consisting of a yellow house, a barn in the back and some workers spread out, getting them ready for the coming rain. The owner of the property, a strong white pegasus stallion with a crew-cut mane took a moment to watch over his family and the side help he hired. He did whatever he could to not look up to the black crystal in the sky where the Sun and Moon once stood. This made it often quite hard to tell when it was night or day, only that days were passing. It had been nine months now since Canterlot fell and the Sun and Moon faded from the sky, and five months since that giant black crystal rose into the sky.
The stallion grumbled upon seeing their replacement always brought more fear. The white pegasus took off his hat, held it over his heart and bowed his head as it took the spot as what he could only assume was noon. He stood like that until the clouds covered up that accursed mockery in the sky. He only took his eyes away from the crystal to look at the ponies around him. Hoping that lack of sight of this would give them some tiny sense a peace, even in a rainstorm.
White Trail was his name, and owner of this land. He smiled and wiped the sweat off his face before dropping a hoe over some ice that was blemishing his property. The hoe bounced off and nearly hit him in the foot. He looked at the ice more carefully and huffed as he brought the hoe over his shoulder. It would be much easier if he kicked it through the clouds, but that disrupted the flow and the clouds' magic had been acting rather strangely since the Sun and Moon’s vanishing.
As if it had been rather repulsive toward the pegasi living on it. It was even tougher since they couldn’t fly through it now. It wasn’t like things could fall through, but rather they were treating pegasi much like the solid ground instead of the almost translucent form it once was. Stranger was the lack of visitors. As rare as it was for other species to visit Cloudsdale due to their lack of the ability to walk on the clouds. It was happened even less now, even for the ones that could meet the pegasi equal on the clouds like the batponies.
In his annoyance he kicked at the ice against the clouds but not through them. He traced his eyes over the field and caught sight of the white pegasus with a radiant mane, Vapor Trail. The prettiest of his five daughters was hanging laundry on the clothesline. She was his second oldest at barely eighteen years old. Beside her was his youngest, a rather uniquely colored pegasus filly with red and greens rainbowed into her wings. Vapor Trail, on the other hand, matched his bold whites perfectly with her mother's colorful shiny hair.
Vapor smiled back at her father's gaze as he went back inside and danced for him. She loved working for him, but she also dreamed of the day she could join the Wonderbolts. She couldn’t be happier for today, too, as her best friend since childhood was at the Wonderbolts’s offices now, sending in their entry forms. “Sky Stinger…” She hummed and hung up a white bedsheet.
Her ears flickered at a noise. She felt something rumbling deep in the clouds and she looked over. The other ponies and stallions in the fields began to feel it too. They turned their attention to a strange glow flying by, over the fields and landed at the edge of the lot. Fading away it revealed a chariot. Yet there were no ponies or magic pulling it all. Rather it seemed as it the strange glow was powering it, but was unlike any color of magic she ever saw before.
Walking over she saw strange emblems she only vaguely heard of from rumors from the ground below. A crooked horn and bug like wings that she only could refer to as a changeling. She hadn't been down there in over ten months. The possibility that it might be from down that did please her a little bit as she trotted over to see who was visiting them.
The door opened and revealed a pony of unknown species due to his face covered in a large crown-mask devoid of all features except one. His forhead was covered in... She back away as the visage became clear. It was a crown of broken off unicorn horns. Stepping out, his purple soldier attire came into view with a gold trim with long silver gloves and boots. However, that was the next thing that made her shiver. The distinct view of a rainbow of thousands of pegasi feathers underlining his cloak. They all seemed to shine and stand out individually in such a way to show absolute care.
"What a charming farm you have." He spoke in an elitist yet happy tone. Shockingly he landed upon the cloud-ground without falling through. He moved with such an effortless grace, as if it were normal for him. But there was no pegasi features in view as he walked by her. "Please, tell me is this the land of White Trail?"
Vapor backed up more as the strange pony stopped to bow before her. "Who are you?" She barely knew him and couldn't understand his attire at all. Everything inside her were fighting back and forth between answering him like the gentlemare she was or running away at the mere sight of him. He showed no rage toward her lack of answer. Instead, he simply softly danced his feet around the clouds as if this was his first time upon it. He even chuckled at her expression.
"Sorry, I've just wanted to experience this is so many years." He stopped and cleared his throat. Bowing to her he spoke far with such a kind voice that she could only compare to the kindest pony of all, Fluttershy. Yet, she like the rest of the main six was still missing. Still his voice moved with such similar tone to her it might as well be her voice. "I am simply here to meet with the owner of this land, Sir White Trail. I was told he owned a lot around this area." He stood back up and brought his hand to his chin, chuckling. "Would you believe it, pegasus are so silent around me. Please don't give me the same silence."
Her ears flickered and her eyes dropped to the source, a rapier popping only an inch out of the sheath. She hadn't even noticed it until now. She had examined him so closely before that she almost assumed it was invisible before. She couldn't be more thankful as it vanished back into its sheath and he dropped his hand back to his side.
"Yes..." She swallowed her and answered him. "This is the Trail Farmland. I am the second oldest daughter of White Trail, Vapor Trail. And you are?"
He clapped his hands together and even jumped with joy upon the clouds. The stallion landed perfect against on the clouds with impossible effort. "My name is Zeneral Flood, Leader of the Anti-Six, general and high priest of the Poena Guard. And I am here to preach the word of King Kray, the King of K." The voice that mimicked Flutterhsy's kindness vanished with the title drop and Vapor Trail's panic returned in full force. "Please lead me to him."
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