The Wild Goose Chase

by Theevina

4 - Set Sail For Chaos

Twilight woke up in the tiny tent, and for a moment, she wondered how she had appeared there instead of her warm and cozy bed in the library back in Ponyville. But then she caught a glimpse of the map lying by her legs and remembered the awful day before and the mission that the princess had given her. She sighed sorrowfully and began preparing herself for the journey ahead. When she was finished, she peered her head out of the tent.

Discord stood still as a statue with his eyes pointed out towards the dark waters of the sea. Twilight wondered if he had ever moved from that position the entire night. He seemed strangely solemn, like he was sad about something. Or maybe, it was not sadness but a longing. He was a Draconequus, and probably the last of his kind. And this was his only hope of finding his place in this strange world of ponies. This was his only way to gain anything, a small piece of uninhabited Equestria for himself to rule in his own way, with chaos.

The way he looked made Twilight feel pity for him, but then she had to remind herself of the things that he had done to her friends. She knew from history that there was no way he could ever be trusted, and he was almost certainly going to break his promise eventually. But then why did he come this far for the doll? And what made the princess trust him? Does the princess actually trust him? If not, then why did she send Twilight with him?

She stepped out of the tent, deciding to think some more about it later.

Discord turned his head to face her. "Ah, so you're finally awake. I'm sorry I forgot about how frequently ponies need to eat. You should probably take this." With a flick of his hand, a large sack appeared near her.

Twilight was so confused and tired that she had forgotten how hungry she was. It had been a while since she had last eaten. She opened the sack and found an assortment of fruit, flowers and grasses.

"Um, thanks." she smiled.

"The pleasure is mine, Miss Sparkle. Just let me know when you're ready to go."

After Twilight had finished eating a fresh and delicious meal, Discord made the bag and tent disappear. She was beginning to wonder where he was keeping all of that stuff. Then she took a look over the cliff at the sea below. How were they going to get down there in one piece?

Discord seemed to know exactly what she was thinking because he caused a huge rainbow-colored spiral slide to appear. Then he flew down to the bottom. "You can go now." he shouted up to her.

She took the slide down to the beach, and as soon as she stepped off, it turned into thousands of multicolored balloons that flew away. They were pretty but reminded her of the frightening story Pinkie told her about the last time Discord escaped. However, deciding not to have that haunt her, she shook off the bad memory and turn back to Discord on the beach.

"So, what do you think?" Discord asked her cheerfully. "How are we going to cross this sea?"

"Um... we make a boat?" she suggested.

He groaned. "Oh, you're no fun at all! I was hoping you would think of something more creative. Like... the world's longest bridge!"

"No, I don't have a problem with taking a boat just like everypony else."

Discord was not amused, but he snapped his fingers and made a small boat appear. It was made entirely of different types of cheeses.

The unicorn was concerned about it. "But won't it attract sharks?"

Discord considered it. "Well, you do have a point..." he agreed. With another snap of his fingers, the boat was replaced with a different one consisting mostly of pink feathers. The sail was a large square of bubble wrap.

"Will it work?"

"What? Oh, Twilight, this vessel will last 'til the end of the world... I think."

She stepped inside and it seemed to feel pretty sturdy, so she sat down. Discord got in and sat down on the opposite end. The boat began moving on it's own, even though Twilight couldn't tell that there was any wind. She watched Equestria slowly growing smaller and smaller in the distance as they sailed away from it. She became anxious, wondering how long she would have to be stuck in this boat sitting so close to him.

They sat in silence until Equestria could no longer be seen. There was nothing but blue water in any direction they looked. The sun had risen and the sky was bright.

"Uh, do you want to play a game?" He asked.

"Like...?"

He didn't answer. "Well, do you know any good tunes?"

"Actually, I'm content with just having silence." She assured him.

He didn't look easy. "You're ruining a perfectly perfect day, Miss Sparkle! We could be having so much fun!"

"Nah. Why don't you make yourself useful and get me something so I could rest?"

Discord grudgingly snapped his fingers and Twilight received sunglasses and a large hat. She noticed it was a sombrero, but it didn't matter. The heat and the sound of the boat breaking the water were relaxing. And she was still tired from yesterday's long journey, so she quietly dozed off.

Comments

[Theevina]

Chapter 4 Author Commentary

I've always wanted to have a scene in my story that takes place at an ocean, because there haven't been any large bodies of water seen in the show and I though it would be nice to try something different for a change. Their patience with each other is waning so who knows what will eventually happen? How long is it going to take them to find that goose? Be prepared, the next chapter will likely be the longest and most action packed one so far.

[Fasaloft]

Fantastic, can't wait for the next part. Quite enjoying this one. =]