Appledashery

by Just Essay

Totally Not Filler

The arid landscape dipped into several careening valleys. The only consistent thing was a railroad winding westward to the far south, but Rainbow Dash kept well out of eyesight, for fear of unwanted ponies noticing her—no matter how improbable the likelihood.

The pegasus knew that she was flying rather quickly, but it didn't seem to make much of a difference. Every hour or two, she'd glance at Lancie, desirous of an approving blink or expression. On each occasion, he'd shrug and motion her to fly on. So, sighing, she did just that, piercing the horizon for longer than her usual patience could tolerate.

By the time afternoon fell, she started to feel the day's toll on her wings—not to mention her head. So many rolling plains of monotonous desolation was mind-numbing, and the mare couldn't decide whether she was falling asleep or going insane. During no less than three instances, she had to pause, reach into her saddlebag, and pull out a compass to make sure she was going northwest still.

“Who'd a thunk it?!” Lancie said. “And here I thought you were good with cardinal directions!”

“Doesn't help that it's friggin' overcast all over this cruddy place!”

“Pffft! It's not overcast!” Lancie exclaimed. “That's just the sky's way of falling with style!”

“I shoulda brought a cork for your mouth.”

“And I shoulda brought a tent peg for your other mouth!”

The two didn't talk to each other for another two hours. This proved to be a case of hilariously bad timing, seeing as night was starting to fall. Groaning in defeat, Rainbow Dash parked herself beneath a jutting plateau, started a fire, and prepared herself a very unsatisfactory meal.

“Mrmmmff... y'know, I've been wondering...” Rainbow munched unenthusiastically on bread and cheese. “...do you ever eat?”

Lancie lay with his antler'd head stuck inside the mare's saddlebag. “...I ingest the tears of plebeians.”

“So, what, you're vegan or something?”

“That's so beyond me I can't even be bothered to explain it.”

“What?” Rainbow gulped down some more stale morsels. “Some things are just too hip and modern day for you?”

“Meh...”

“Heh...” Rainbow's cheeks curved. “How bad it must suck for the whole friggin' world to be crammed-tight with 'whippersnappers' on account of all the eons between you!”

“Oh, no you didn't...”

Rainbow giggled, rolling over onto her sleeping bag. The desolate stars gobbled up her laughter along with the firelight. “I can see you just now, sitting on the front porch of Tartarus, waving your stone fist at all the teenage demons who walk by, sticking their thumb out at you!”

“I'll have you know I'm ten thousand years young!”

“Uh huh... whatever you say, grandpa!”

Rainbow Dash made sure not to sleep with her back to Lancie overnight. Morning came dim and dismal. Rainbow woke up to it with a groan. She put out the remaining embers of the fire, rolled up her things, and took off once again for the northwest horizon, following Lancie's pointing talons.

“For real, though...” Rainbow frowned. “Just how friggin' far is your shard?”

“Beats me,” he said, shrugging into the morning winds. “I know sniff 'em. I don't dig 'em up.”

“At this rate, I dread just how far away the next shard is.” Rainbow blinked. “We do have more shards to collect, don't we?”

“Ohhhhhhhhh yeah...”

Rainbow sighed. “I miss the days when all I had to care about was how to sneak out the back of the weather flying depot so I could steal some wonderbolt tricks along with Gilda.”

“So, you'd give up the life of an adventurer to be a loser once again?”

“Yeah, well, at least when I was a loser, we went out for onion rings a lot.”

“Wow, you really do like punishing yourself, don't you?”

“Why not? I brought you along, didn't I?”

“Just keep flying...”

The two soared off, soon becoming a conjoined dot along the horizon.

They were terribly unaware of a dark shadow following them from five-miles' distance, watching their movement carefully with the eye of a hawk.

Comments

[RoboRed]

During no less than three instances, she had to pause, reach into her saddlebag, and pull out a compass to make sure she was going northwest still.

Rainbow Dash flies northwest.

“I shoulda brought a cork for your mouth.”

“And I shoulda brought a tent peg for your other mouth!”

Pfft.

[Aatxe360]

Romulus lost an eye? And how is he keeping up to Rainbow?

[Sharp Quill]

Totally Not Filler

Thou dost protest too much.

[Lightning Bearer]

“And I shoulda brought a tent peg for your other mouth!”

Speaking of filler...

[Fishberry]

They were terribly unaware of a dark shadow following them from five-miles' distance, watching them with the eye of a hawk.

What's the matter, couldn't he have watched them like a griffon?

*Gigglesnort* Ha-ha!

[Sheendough]

Maybe the secret agent is Listing Breese? She's been built up and it's probable she will play a bigger role in the story.

[Jay_Baker]

Uh-oh

[Future Regret]

Mayhap its Gilda? AJ? Stu Leaves? Noir? Flash Sentry? Spike? IT COULD BE ANYONE

[Chewierulz]

“Mrmmmff... y'know, I've been wondering...” Rainbow munched unenthusiastically on bread and cheese. “...do you ever eat?”
Lancie lay with his antler'd head stuck inside the mare's saddlebag. “...I ingest the tears of plebeians.”

Sounds delicious.

[Snowdrifter]

“Wow, you really do like punishing yourself, don't you?”
“Why not? I brought you along, didn't I?”

[arancaytar]

“Who'd a thunk it?!” Lancie said. “And here I thought you were good with cardinal directions!”

One cardinal direction, and it is exactly 135° clockwise from northwest.

“For real, though...” Rainbow frowned. “Just how friggin' far is your shard?”

Oh, stop complaining. You haven't even been as far as Wintergate yet. Your alternate self is in Val Roa by now.

[ThePoneDrome]

“Yeah, well, at least when I was a loser, we went out for onion rings a lot.”

Story of my life.