Mountains Beyond Mountains, There's No End
Rainbow couldn't remember the last time her hooves ached so much.
She clenched her teeth to the point of breaking, her upper body quivering as the mare pulled... tugged... and flexed her forelimb muscles. At last, with much strain, she pulled her body up onto the next ascending crag of rock above her. Once she was level with the cliff, she planted her wingtips against the stone surface for extra leverage. Finally, with a dull groan, she rolled herself up and onto even flooring.
The mare lay on her back, heaving and panting for breath. It was awkward and uncomfortable to lie there with the backpacks between her and the rocky surfaces. The contents of her satchels knifed into her flesh, but it was still the most comfort she had experienced in hours.
At last, her lungs wheezed less frantically. The mare sat up with a shudder to her shoulders. Gulping, she glanced down the way she had climbed.
The ascent had been mercilessly steep. It didn't appear that way from the valley when she had originally chosen this part of the mountain to climb. And yet, upon scaling the cliff-faces, she discovered the hard way just how jagged the southwestern edge of the ridge was. Staring down, she saw several meters of stone hidden behind the shadow of a morning sunrise. It wasn't the satisfying sight of accomplishment that she was hoping for.
Gulping a dry lump down her throat, Rainbow turned to the east and looked up, squinting.
It was impossible to see the mountain peak. A fine layer of mists had gathered over fifty meters above her. All was gray and ghastly, and the only thing Rainbow knew for certain was just how terribly steep the path was ahead.
So, with a prolonged sigh, she stood up, winced from her aching muscles, and proceeded to hug the southwestern face once again... climbing and clawing her way up towards the nearest cliff—even if she couldn't see it yet.
Rainbow Dash had found level hoofing—but it was of very little consolation. A thin shelf of undulating stone wrapped around the south end of the mountain at that level. The only way to reach the next cliff-face within sight was to hug the wall and slide along—her body upright—at a migraine-inducing five inches per minute. Rainbow grunted, rubbing her belly against the uneven wall until her flesh was red and raw. Despite the pain, there was no other way to proceed—not unless she wished to lose half a day's worth of progress by backtracking.
The winds did not sympathize with her. Wicked gales shook and shocked her several times. They nearly tore her mane hairs from their roots; they did an even worse number on her nerves. Several times, Rainbow Dash felt like spreading her wings and just falling back into the wind current. On each time, she had to suppress that pegasus instinct, knowing that the wings wouldn't do her any good in that part of the Choke.
With panting breaths, Rainbow stopped to rest her muscles. She stared straight down, spotting nothing but a dipping crevice of rock filled with mist and shadow. There was no telling just how far she'd have to slip between the parallel mountain faces before she'd be reduced to a fine red puddle. Her nostrils flared as she paused and looked at her wingtips. The feathers had been worn away, their ends grimy and threadbare with the quills exposed. It was a direct consequence of Rainbow constantly having to use her wings like fifth and sixth limbs.
It mattered little. It was not as though Rainbow Dash was going to start flying again anytime soon.
If ever.
Biting her lip, Rainbow relished the brief, delicious anger rolling through her. She scuffled her lower limbs from side to side, resumed hugging the mountain, and strafed her way icily across the south face of the mountain. She may or may not have been making progress. The mare didn't care.
At least she was moving.
Rainbow Dash reached a wide plateau looming beneath the mountain's summit. This meant an even stretch of earth leading smoothly eastward.
She didn't care. The pegasus was freezing to death.
Night had fallen, and with it came agonizing high altitude chills. For some reason, Rainbow's pegasus senses weren't withstanding the cold like they normally did. She had one good idea why.
Rainbow needed to build a fire. But, what was more, she needed shelter. With the way in which the wind kept blowing, she was almost certain it would ruin any camp she might try to make—or any blaze that she might kindle.
Frantically—as shivers overwhelmed her—she flashed her eyes left and right. The mare didn't stop galloping, not for one second. The important thing was to keep moving, to keep her blood rushing. If Rainbow had to do pony hippity-hops in place while spinning in circles, she was both able and willing. It didn't matter how stupid it looked, and Rainbow realized that things must have looked very... very stupid.
Minutes wore on.
The sky grew darker.
The stars were beacons of doom—flickering to life one by one like coyote eyes beyond the deathly black veil of emptiness. Rainbow refused to look at them, and she hissed under her teeth at the first hint of moonlight. The night was her enemy—as was time. She couldn't out run it. She couldn't fly past it. She could barely stand.
Wheezing, Rainbow Dash skirted past a cluster of stones. She felt a dip in the wind, and this brought her momentarily relief—until she nearly plunged off a sheer drop.
With a gasp, the mare caught her hoofing—a difficult task with cold, numb limbs. She looked down to see a black swath of earth, darker than the sky above. She realized that she was standing on the edge of a deep, deep ravine. A steep canyon loomed on the east side of the mountain that she had spent the entire day previous scaling. This might have proven to be a difficult thing to traverse by sunrise—assuming Rainbow had a hope of surviving long enough to see it.
Shuddering, she spun about. Eyes peering. All she could see was rock and darkness—a solid opaqueness in every direction. In desperation, she brought a hoof up—a hoof that she could no longer feel—and rubbed it across where she knew her Loyalty Pendant to be. A pulse of ruby light winked, pitifully short. But in that brief blink of scarlet illumination, Rainbow spotted a hollow in a nearby wall of stone facing east, as if it was carved by daggers of sunlight.
Without a second thought, Rainbow galloped straight for it. She had barely pierced the mouth of the cave before her muzzle slammed painfully into a concave wall. She grimaced, almost grateful for the pain bringing nerves back to life in her extremities. It was a shallow enclosure, but she knew it would do. So, squatting down, she opened her satchels—practically tearing them apart—and reached in for Val Roan flint and tender. She ignored a disintegrating Heaven's Slice, steaming into the starlight, and instead she yanked out several toiletry items. Wadding them up, she cast a few sparks on them and gave her pendant a rub, hoping that somehow the Harmonic Energy might be enough to contain the blossoming flames.
It worked... or at least Rainbow dreamt such. The cave warmed up, gradually, and Rainbow's hooves began to tingle. She squatted before the miniature blaze, stretching her forelimbs out as shivers overtook her. Only once she could sense her chattering teeth again did she realize just how exhausted she was... how aching... how hungry...
There was no fighting the pitiful squeak from her lips. The mare's eyes rolled back as she teetered between warmth and blissful oblivion. Her head swayed left... swayed right... and then her ears folded back, carrying her skull with them. She collapsed on her back, rolled to her side, and quivered before the advancing waves of darkness. The last thing she remembered hearing was a frightened sob, and it repulsed her so much that she was almost glad to experience nothing but pure darkness upon contemplation.
Rainbow Dash spread her wings, exhaled, and flew daringly into the void.
And the cold lingered on.
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Must be nice having six limbs.
Then again, perhaps not.
I feel like these are significant, especially because of how soon they appear after each other.
That...that was figuratively, right? Getting reeeally worried, here...
In younger days, I told myself my life would be my own
And I'd leave the place where sunshine never shone
For my life's too short for waiting when I see the rising sun
Then I know again that I must carry on
Carry on, Rainbow Dash. There are still 24 chapters to go.
Stay strong, Dashie. Never let the bastards see ya sweat!
By bastards, I mean the very element of nature that are stacked against you. Yeah, it, uh... sounded much more inspiring in my head.
Forty flutter kicks, ):(. Knock 'em out!
5709845
It most likely is but even I'm getting kind of worried here. If it wasn't that's going to be really bad.
Somehow, I feel like this song fits the last few chapters perfectly. Just... lost, alone.
She's not even bothering to keep her food rations edible anymore.
My Grand Choke:
Hallucinations are Magic
This is coming very close to reusing an Appledashery chapter title.
Only Andrew Jackson can save her now.
images.cdn.bigcartel.com/bigcartel/product_images/57467943/max_h-300+max_w-300/don_t_hate_2.0.jpg
Axan? Hello?
I kinda like how we have no real sense of how much time has passed for Rainbow Dash in the Grand Choke. It really adds a surprisingly good amount of hopelessness to an already bleak situation, which will make it all the more rewarding when (not if) Rainbow successfully crosses the Choke.
I'm also kinda hoping there's something good on the other side of this mountain range. It may not be much, it may be something as great as the end of the Choke. If it is good, though, then we're gonna be spending a lot of time in these mountains.
24 chapters to go...
5710016
Any magical creature venturing this far risks their existence. And do not forget, RD did destroy her hoard. It must have been almost unbearable to fight her dragon instincts not to crush her when RD passed out at the end of that sojourn.
5710145
But Axan still owes her one. The Divines have been on the plane since longer than alicorns, too, and its implied they can cross the choke without extreme hazard.
Is it bad that I'm glad that Rainbow looks like she's dead, just because it means something finally happened?
I just had the crazy idea flit through my mind that Rainbow could become an alicorn at the end of this installment. I mean, I struggle to think it'll actually happen, but doesn't it make an odd kind of sense? Chrysalis herself said you pretty much had to be an immortal to cross the Choke intact. And it would seemingly tie into the translation of the word "Yaerfaerda" as having to do with birth (and, combined with "yesterday", perhaps an implied re-birth). And it would certainly be unexpected, as per Skirts' ominous declaration.
Like I said, it's just a crazy idea. I have those all the time. But it's kinda neat to consider. She could be the Princess of Awesomeness.
I was suddenly reminded of a game.
Then I got bored and made this picture.
i.imgur.com/ZLdx7ah.png
(Not actually made from scratch, in case anyone gets confused.)
5710208
Please everypony: it's unprepared, not unexpected.
5710208 Except being the Princess of a generic emotional concept/state of mind as opposed to a stellar body is tacky and gross.
/me is just being a total buzzkill right now
5710362
How could Journey bore you? At least the first time around?
5710570 Like Princess of Friendship?
5710659 And Love!
5710570
I'm sorry, but do you count being incredibly badass as a generic emotional concept/state of mind? Because if so, I'll have to say I disagree.
I could totally live with being the Princess of Bad-assitude.
static.fjcdn.com/comments/Andrew+jackson+nickname+was+old+hickory+why+such+a+lame+_65f363baca2a83f7545d2850e685bdd3.jpg
And her hope continues to fade into oblivion. With everything ceasing to matter, will she have the strength to continue? Hell if I know, that's up to IC to decide, and we all know that means anything is up for grabs.
5709956
He cushed Standard Oil and slew the National Bank. Verlax don't stand a chance.
5710362
If we see those ribbon monster things make an appearance, you fucking called it, man.
rest
let the void consume you
you have no need to conitnue
break, and be dissolved into the aether
5710208
i was having an idea like this
rebirth, i mean, not the alicorn part
that hadn't even occured to me
i wonder how likely that would be?
i mean, in this universe, how exactly does on become an alicorn?
Hmm. This reminds me of the troubles the Lewis and Clark expedition had when crossing the Rocky Mountains. It wasn't that they were unprepared to cross, rather they merely underestimated the size and nature of the range.
At any rate, I can't see Rainbow crossing any of this on her own with her rapidly dwindling supplies. So, is this the part where some kind of deus ex machina occurs to give Rainbow the edge she needs?
5710618
Not bored of the game, bored enough of that precise moment in my life so that I could make that picture.
I love Journey.
5710208
I wouldn't be surprised.
5710016
You forget, Axan seems to like watching her suffer.
5710918
Also that one british army at New Orleans, and all those 103 people he dueled, and all those aliens, and that guy who tried to assassinate him...
dudeiwantthat.com/household/decor/andrew-jackson-alien-slayer-4146.jpg
Andrew Jackson and Alexander the Great are the two greatest badasses to have ever been put on currency.
I get happy every time I see a $20.
5710171
It's been so long since I've reread any of that stuff that I didn't recall.
5711269
So IC is like Axan?
I think it fits.
5711469
No, IC is worse than Axan.
5711494
I called IC interesting things so far. Or maybe that's just me.
Hope she finds water some time soon.
Dash is pretty much fucked.
She isn't crazy enough yet to call it though
Things aren't looking too good.
5710785 YES BECAUSE IT'S FUCKING TACKY. You can be awesome, but if you make it the alicorn superpower upon which you base your ascension, youre as tacky as the show.
Hell, you know how bad it is? It's bad enough that you stop being the thing you ascended for.
ALL I'M SAYING, BRUH.
5711910
Does she have to be the alicorn of anything? Can't she just be, y'know, an alicorn.
It's okay, Rainbow. Just think happy thoughts. Like apple ci-- uhh, fun sexyti-- err, all your frie--umm... about your awesome and great li--
...
Wow. She literally has nothing to be happy about. That must suck.
5711238
Oh, good.
I really was thinking that the Heaven Slices and Nebulum were too good to true!
These last 4 chapters hurt man.
5712093 In a perfect world, sure. I'd be okay with that.
5710171
Axan didn't kill her nor allow her to perish after their confrontation. Axan took RD to Ledomare figuring they could help her. And they did, much chagrin to those in power at the time. I did not not include those she personally went up against. She even dug out Chrysalis from the Xonan side and halted the actual fighting for some time.
Axan may feel she owes her nothing more than allowing RD to learn more about herself and keep pushing. She even helped RD with Nevlamas. Axan coddling RD through difficult trials is not a dragon's way, especially when their existence is at stake. With RD being successful so far, she at least garnered more time for Axan to protect herself and keep an eye out for the next Austreoh should the current one fail. Dragon's are draconian for a reason. It is possible for exceptions. That is my headcannon.
5710570
Need more buzzkills for ):('s sake.
5712415
Swan Song, princess of adorable avatars and crying children playing vidya games.
Getting nightmares from when I got lost in that canyon during ' Shadows of the Colossus'
5710362
This is probably my favourite piece of Austraeoh fanart yet. Well done, my friend.
5713073
Wouldn't give me too much credit, it's pretty much just a copy-paste job. =P
Ouch... Sore wingtips must be the worst. It's a real shame that ponies apparantly cant fly without magic.
So I've finally caught up, and I have to say this is incredibly depressingly!
Way to go, ):( you've made an extremely bleak and hopeless suasion!
I would be fearful if not for you doing things like this beforehand!
I'm just going to keep being optimistic and pray that this doesn't bite me in the arse!