Funny How the Night Moves
“Be careful, Rainbow,” Rarity murmured—then found herself gasping. “Watch out!”
“Dashie!” Pinkie shrieked.
“Guh!” Rainbow grimaced, teetering back with all her weight. Just inches away from where her hooves lingered, a line of pebbles flew off into utter blackness. After a space in time, tiny echoes sounded off from an unknowable distance below. Trembling, the mare took a step to her right, clinging to a curved rock face. “I can't... c-can't...” She gulped, her breath coming out in pantings shudders. “Can't tell nothing from nothing.”
“Trust me.” Rarity flew in front of her. “You're right in front of a dreadfully steep precipice.”
“A really nasty drop!” Pinkie added with a nod. “I'm talking nastiest of nasties!”
“Well, how in the hay did I get here?!” Rainbow snarled, looking straight up. A narrow crescent of starlight peeked in between ink black masses. “I thought I was sticking to the right!”
“And you have been, Rainbow,” Twilight said.
“This is where the path leads.” Rarity pointed ahead. “It continues north—ascending—for about thirty meters before bending to the east.”
“But... but th-there's—like—no friggin' room to breathe, much less move!”
“You have to trust us, darling,” Rarity said. “And keep your pace slow.”
“Slow and steady, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight insisted. “The Austraeoh is no good to anyone dead.”
“Not sure I can afford to go any slower.” Clenching her teeth, Rainbow Dash nevertheless crept forward, one pensive hoof after another. “My money's on the Right Talon being ticked off at a factor of eleven right about now.”
“There's still a lot of distance between you and them, Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy said.
“But... but they're coming, right?” Rainbow wheezed, creeping along the wall.
“Their trajectory is off.” Fluttershy rubbed her head while exhaling: “They're... headed too far west to catch us.”
“But they're quick. They've gotta be.” Rainbow gnashed her teeth as she nervously followed the precarious cliffside. A bitter mountain wind blew at her shaved mane and folded ears. “All it'll take is one sweep of this area and—”
“Rainbow, think about it,” Twilight said. “They're blind. At least... blinder than we are.”
“You have the tactical advantage, Rainbow,” Rarity added. She tried to offer a kind wink. “You have us.”
“I know... it's just... just...” Rainbow gulped, then shuffled along with her back to the wall. “This is a lot hairier than I wanted it to be.” She sighed. “I-I really shouldn't have wasted all that time in Kunmane.”
“You got tons of helpful information from Nana Pearl, though!” Pinkie exclaimed.
“But—”
“Remember the stuff she said!” Pinkie smiled. “Look for the 'barbed' path and all that jazz! By sunup, we'll have made a whole doughnut load of distance!”
“Yeah. But by then...” Rainbow clenched her teeth. “There'll be no more hiding.”
“Maybe...” Twilight rubbed her chin. “Maybe not.”
“Huh?”
“Well, if this place lives up to its monicker of the 'Mist Cliffs,' then we might still have an advantage, Rainbow,” Twilight said.
“I can't pretend to hope for that, Twi.” Rainbow blinked blearily. She teetered slightly in her movement, but regained her hoofing. “Just... g-gotta keep moving.”
“Wuh oh...” Pinkie craned her neck. “When was the last time you got any sleep, Dashie?”
“That's...” Rainbow shuddered. “...n-not important right now.”
“I'd say it is!” Rarity exclaimed. “If you're not well-rested, then how can you expect to outrun those ruffians when—?”
“Look, I've made it through longer treks without sleep, okay?!” Rainbow growled. “Rest is the last thing I can afford at the moment!”
“Rainbow... Rainbow...” Twilight floated closer. “You have to calm down. Please. I know this is a hairy situation, but you've been through worse.” She bore a positive smile. “You can do this! We're by your side!”
“I know you're just trying to make me feel better, egghead.” Rainbow sighed. Her hooves scuffled, tossing more pebbles into the death-black vacuum beneath her. “Mrmmff... I... I saw her...”
“Saw who, Rainbow?” Twilight breathed.
Rainbow trembled in mid-shuffle. “The leader. The Commander of the Right Talon.” She gulped. “The one that Keris spoke of.”
“You mean that creepy griffon with the cold brown eyes?” Pinkie remarked.
“I've... uhm...” Fluttershy fidgeted as she floated along with the group. “I've been tracing her ever since she and Rainbow ran into one another.”
Rarity gaped. “You can do that?”
Fluttershy continued. “She's one of the three griffons currently pursuing us through these mountains.” A gulp. “She's kept to the center of the flying formation at all times. I'm pretty sure Rainbow Dash is right. She is the leader of Keris' unit.”
“And she totally means business,” Rainbow muttered, sliding along. The pathway gained more ground, and soon she was able to trot evenly on all four hooves again. “I could see it in her eyes. It's a total friggin' miracle that the fireworks went off when they did. Otherwise... I'd be nothing more than a stain on the streets of Kunmane right now.”
“Why... I find that hard to believe!” Rarity exclaimed. She glanced nervously at the others. “After all, Keris made it clear that the Talon wish to bring Rainbow in alive...” A beat. “...am I right?”
Fluttershy merely bit her lip.
Rainbow sighed, trotting slowly along. “Pearl made it clear that the path branches off in multiple directions at one point. Let me just... try and get past that junction. It'll give me a better opportunity to throw off the Talon.” She gulped. “Then I can rest... maybe.”
“Maybe there's a cave around here where Rainbow can rest her un-fuzzy head?” Pinkie remarked.
“I am sensings lots and lots of caverns in this region,” Rarity stated. “Mmmm... however, they are almost all beneath us.”
“Well phooie.” Pinkie Pie pouted. “Phooie with a capital 'F!'”
“Not sure hiding will do me much good,” Rainbow muttered. “So long as they can fly, then there's no square inch of mountain in this area that's safe.” She clenched her jaws. “And—y'know—all this talking isn't helping.”
“Huh?”
“Don't you feel it?” Rainbow tilted her head up. “How still and dead this place is?” She gulped. “Something tells me that sound travels far across these cliffs. I love you girls, but we can't continue chatting forever.”
“Uhhhhhhhhh...” Twilight nervously pointed. “Rainbow...?”
“Huh?” Rainbow suddenly found herself blinking into a pale silver light. She grimaced, then looked up to see that the moon's glow had pierced the ceiling of the mountaintops looming directly above. “Awwwwwwwww poopsicle.”
“Don't blame yourself, darling.” Rarity shuddered. “In all of this excitement, we forgot as well!”
“I... uh...” Fluttershy gulped. “I don't think this is a good time for a chat.”
“I agree.” Rainbow flung a hoof to her pendant, giving it a tiny stroke.
Pinkie blinked. “What are you doing, Dashie?”
“Being polite.”
Within seconds, Princess Luna's voice broke the mountain air. “Rainbow Dash? Is that you, child?”
“Your Majesty. Look, I—”
“We were worried. You've taken a longer time to bridge communication than normal. Is something amiss?”
“Yeah. You could say that. Look...” Rainbow pressed her back against a rock wall, staring out into the dark expanse. Starlight and moonlight appeared in patchwork randomness above her. “I've got Rohbreddenite griffons on my tail, and they're not happy. I've already had a close call with them, and if I don't keep moving then they're gonna take me to the Council of Verlaxion and skin me alive.”
“You are in peril?”
“I'm always in peril, Your Majesty.” Rainbow gulped. “Just... now it's super duper ultra peril.”
“How may I assist you?”
“You can't. That's just the thing.” Shuddering, Rainbow slid along. “I hate to cut things short, but I gotta let you go. I just... c-can't risk giving my location to the enemy. I'm up in the mountains, surrounded by ravines and canyons and stuff. It's just... n-not a good time to talk right now—”
“Say no more, child. I'll alert Spike and your friends' families.”
“Awwwwwwww...” Pinkie sighed, ears folded. “No Maud monologues or Sweetie Belle Soliloquies?”
“Shhhh!” Rarity insisted. “A necessary sacrifice.” She also sighed. “Sad... but necessary.”
“I'll... uh...” Rainbow Dash took a deep breath. “I'll talk to you in a month, Princess.” She tried to smile, but her face muscles weren't strong enough to maintain it. “We'll... we'll talk again.” A gulp. “Before the edge of the world. I promise.”
Silence...
Then, at last, Luna spoke in a cautious monotone: “Indeed we will, Rainbow Dash.” There was a slight shudder to the alicorn's breath—worrisome... almost motherly. “Best wishes, harmony, and prosperity.”
And like a candle...
...Rainbow's pendant stopped glowing.
Twilight closed her eyes with a sigh.
“Mmmmm...” Pinkie sniffled. “What would Applejack say at a time like this?”
“That sucks,” Rainbow droned.
Pinkie squinted. “Are you suuuure that's what AJ would say?”
“It's as honest as honesty will ever get.”
“Uhm...” Fluttershy fidgeted.
Twilight looked over. “What's the matter?”
“They... they've all stopped for some reason.”
Rainbow froze in place, blinking into the blackness.
“Do... do you suppose they've heard Luna?” Rarity said.
“There's no way to tell,” Fluttershy remarked.
Rainbow gulped. “Well, I'm not waiting around to find out.” She trotted swiftly forward, hugging the cliff. “Rarity...”
“Right, darling.” The unicorn floated ahead of her, horn glowing as she monitored the topography. “I have it covered.”
And Rainbow slid on into the night.
“Commander?” Raptr asked, hovering in place.
Starstorm flapped her wings. She levitated on the other side of the Talon's leader. “What's the matter—?”
“Shhhhh!” Seraphimus held a set of claws up in the air.
The three guardians lingered in place, listening beyond the sound of their own wings flapping.
Seraphimus' charcoal eyes darted coldly left and right. All she could see were dark shapes layered over with even darker shapes. Up above, a starry expanse full of moonlight lingered—but everything below the celestial canvas was questionable and chaotic geography.
The griffon exhaled, her headcrest flattening beneath her helmet. “Could have sworn I heard something... saw something just now.”
“Do you know in what direction, ma'am?” Starstorm asked.
Seraphimus could only frown.
“I h-haven't heard a pindrop since we flew out of Kunmane,” Raptr said. “This place is eerily still. You'd think the smallest leaf flutter would turn into a wave of thunder against these rocks!”
“All the more reason why we shouldn't speak loudly,” Seraphimus growled. “We'll give away our position to the Rogue.”
Raptr clenched his beak shut.
“Mmmmm...” Starstorm murmured. “...where's Windburst's expert vision when we need it?”
Seraphimus nodded, eyes dim. “Or the Lieutenant's tenacious wit?”
“Huh?”
With a sigh, the Commander shook her head. “We're accomplishing nothing by staying still. The Rogue—even less so.” Her trained eyes traced the mountain silhouettes against the starry heavens. “If she tries hiding, it's only a matter of time until we find her. If we give our position away, that might frighten her into a gallop, in which case the sound of her fleeing will reveal her position.”
“Then we've got this in the bag!” Raptr wheezed.
“Not yet.” Seraphimus took a deep breath. “The key here is patience. It will take a long time for a pony on hoof to reach the northern edge of Stone Prefecture. We have the gift of flight. Let's not waste our energy, but instead rely on our greatest ally. Endurance.”
“Your orders, Commander?” Starstorm asked.
“Visibility is nil,” Seraphimus said. “I don't want us splitting up yet. Under the shroud of night, we could easily slam into a mountainside, and that wouldn't bode well if there isn't another one of us nearby to help each other.” She pointed forward. “Let us ascend and perform a broad sweep of the area. Keep your ears trained. Do not speak until I give you permission—”
“Unless we spot the Rogue?” Raptr asked.
“Precisely. Is that understood?”
Both Raptr and Starstorm nodded.
“Very well. Follow me. And in all things... stick to my wings.”
The Sergeants obeyed, and soon the three griffons flew up high, gliding icily over the many-many shadows of the uneven place.
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Do the names of your stories mean things, or they just random letters?
6803988 They all mean something.
Well that answers the only question I had going into this chapter. Moontalk deprivation ho!
6803988
They're written in "pseudo-Norse". Each title has a rough translation (Utaan = Beyond, Austraeoh = East Horse, etc).
Oh? You think endurance to be your ally? I think a certain mare and zebra would like to have a word with you.
Aww no Lunachat...
No Luna
, and Seraphimus is being cautious, wise, but counterproductive in the short term.
6804057 Yeah, they kept everypony awake for hours at a time with those paper-thin walls on the Noble Jury.
One last chat with Luna and Spike would be nice.
As unlikely as that is at this point...
These griffons seemed competent. So why won't they even consider Keris' numerous warnings?
6804190
Because doing so necessitates toying with the idea that there's something other than just Verlax going on. Or at the very least, that Verlax herself supported the supposed atrocities in the Quade. And Seraphimus isn't ready to make that leap, no matter how much it seems to be gnawing on her mind. She's trapped by her own devotion.
Bummer about the conference call, but they'll probably have one more set before they cross over to No Signal Land.
6804190
If you were a cop, and a witness told you the target is secretly a space robot with jetpacks, how much of his words would you believe?
6804419 Well, if I lived in a world with magical unicorns, and my most trusted deputy told me the target had secret unknown magics, I'd at least the very least keep it in the back of my mind.
It's one thing to blow it off as a bunch of rumors, but be cautious in light of evidence. It's different when your trusty commander tells you in complete seriousness she has magic powers, you witness a "miraculous" escape yourself, and then you remain in total denial.
I'm not saying that it is not in-character, but the incompetence is still strong.
Honesty at its finest.
But... But.... Darn. I was hoping for some Luna time.
I knew that Luna call was coming, too bad it's going to be a while before they can talk again.
Poor Dashie, this is getting nuts!
This has to sting. This is the first time even that little lifeline home had to be cut.
I would have liked the Talon to listen to a chat with Luna. The Mistress of Nightmares, patron goddess of the Midnighters, chatting casually with this heretic rogue.
But that's why in an AU of this AU, you have to fly east, Twilight.
The Vestraeoh shall carry the East Horse's spirit within her, and with Courage she shall fly across the plain, and the Mare of the West will be long remembered in the days to come.
(Personal story idea of mine that I may get around to writing someday.)
Flying blind... this oughta be fun
The fact that Seraphimus believes Rainbow doesnt know they are tailing her kind of makes me chuckle. Of course Dash knows.
6803988
They're usually Old Norse
Austraeoh- Austri is old Norse for East and Eoh is old English for Horse.
So Austraeoh is East Horse.
Eljunbyro is made up of the words Eljun-meaning endurance, and Byro-which means Birth, but Eljunbyro itself has been translated as Endurance's rebirth.
Innavedr, means Accomplish Wind
Odrsjot, my personal favorite, means Frantic Companionship
Urohringr- Hringr is old Norse for Ring, Uro is Norwegian for Unrest/Disturbance.
So it could mean Disturbed Ring.
Yaerfaerda-means Birth Yesterday
Ynanhluutr-means, as far as we've figured, Inner Purpose, or Purpose Within.
And Utaan means Beyond.
Talk about traveling the beaten path Ye"s, I know that pun was horrible
No moon horse? HERESY!
It's sad we don't get to have a final, true chat with Luna before we reach the edge of the world, but that's okay. We'll hear from her again.
Rainbow Dash needs a voicemail function.
Aw, no more Moonbutt?
Dang, sucks the moon talk had to be postponed. I really, REALLY hope we have at least one more before the edge of the world.
I’m guessing we’re gonna have one more, right at the edge of the world. Imagine that, we’ve just got one more month to go.
Heeey, you can't steal one of our qualities!