Sunset had gotten used to the vibrations of the Scouticus' passenger cabin by now, and had gotten a good amount of sleep on both nights that they had spent on the return trip south from the Crystal Empire, which was taking a good deal longer due to the nearly twenty tons worth of cargo that they were towing behind them. She was certain they were going to need snow chains to get out of the snow drifts that surrounded the Crystal Empire, but she had to give credit where credit was due; Sprout and his team at CanterLogic had created one impressive vehicle, and it had taken longer to get up and over the hill, but no chains or magical assistance were required.
Most of the space in the trailer they were towing was taken up by crates of books. The framed photographs they had taken from Flash's ancestral home had been carefully wrapped and placed in one of the passenger cabin compartments under the floor panels.
As eager as she was to begin sorting through everything they had taken from the Empire, she also wanted to visit Izzy in Bridlewood, and see the home the unicorns had created for themselves in however much time had passed, and how they were getting used to magic again.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Sprout gently applying the brakes and stopping the truck.
"Alright," Sunny began, turning to her and getting up from the passenger seat. "This is the closest we'll get to Bridlewood on the route to Maretime Bay. Are you sure you don't want to have lunch first?"
"Nah," Sunset answered, getting up and making sure her saddlebags were tightened and ready for hiking. "I had a pretty good breakfast, and I'll move faster if I have a snack or something."
"Okay. Just follow the path straight west, and you'll come to the ravine. Izzy says they've completed the repairs to the bridge. At a good pace, should take more than a day or so. You have all your equipment?" Sunny asked.
Sunset looked over her shoulders and saw that her sleeping bag, tent, and everything needed to set it up were securely fastened to her saddlebags.
"Yep, I do believe I'm all set. You said phone signals were getting stronger between towns?" Sunset asked the earth pony.
"Yeah. Your signal might drop out a little bit out there, but should definitely get stronger as you get closer to Bridlewood."
"Alright, in that case, I'll be off. I'll try to not be more than a few days. When will you be back in Maretime Bay?" the unicorn asked.
"Should be a little bit earlier than last time, because last time, well, you happened. So a late dinner is probably in order if we eat lunch and keep moving at the same time," Sunny told her.
"Gotcha. Okay, have fun sorting through everything, and I'll be back in town soon."
"Alright, I'll set the magical crates aside until you get back. Take care!"
With that, Sunset disembarked onto the grass, and Sprout waited until she was a safe distance away before disengaging the parking brake and resuming their drive south, leaving the unicorn on the rolling green hills.
After reunification, one of the first things the three tribes did was create dirt roads to and from their three towns to make wagon and carriage traffic easier and safer, so goods and relics could be exchanged. They had dropped Sunset off right at the road between Bridlewood and Zephyr Heights. The unicorn's current surroundings reminded her of when she came back through the second portal they had discovered on spring break. Daisies as far as the eye could see, until the hills rose to what could likely be considered mountains. The new path to Bridlewood retraced the same one Sunny and her friends took before reunification. It included a moderate hike over a mountain pass, and Bridlewood was in the forest on the other side after another few miles of low hills.
It wasn't more than a few miles until she saw another pony, a white unicorn, headed east towards Zephyr Heights on hoof, carrying camping supplies similar to her own. He greeted her with a curt nod, and the two equines passed each other silently otherwise. Curiously, after that, Sunset didn't see anypony else on the path. She guessed that continuous tourism hadn't quite peaked yet, and whoever had decided to relocate to another settlement had probably done so by now. It would probably help if the journey didn't have to be made on hoof. Seeing the sights was nice, as was the exercise, but Sunset knew it wasn't for everypony, and for those that didn't have more than a day or two to get away, this pace of travel simply wasn't feasible.
Sunset was right; without a group to keep together, she could keep a brisk trotting pace, and after a quick granola bar from her saddlebags, she continued on her way west. After cresting a few more hills, the dirt road came to a wooden bridge that crossed a ravine. The bridge looked fairly new, and there was a sign posted just before the crossing on the right side of the road. Sunset approached, and read to herself:
Moonbow Bridge
This river crossing is dedicated to Izzy Moonbow, of Bridlewood, who helped reunite the tribes of Equestria after untold centuries of separation and mistrust.
"How nice," Sunset commented, as she crossed the bridge, peering down to the river dozens of meters below. On the other side of the ravine, the hills quickly became steeper, and the road snaked around the taller mountain's south face. As the altitude increased, Sunset was finally starting to find herself short of breath, and had to slow her gait as she was now considering where to set up camp for the night and get started on dinner.
By the time the sun dipped below the horizon, she had reached the west side of the mountain, and would no doubt have a stunning view of the hills and forest below come morning. Finding a suitable clearing, free of flammable brush, she quickly made a stone ring, got a fire going, and got her tent set up, before digging into her bags once again and came out with freeze-dried haycakes, which she added water to and got heated over her camp fire.
She glanced over to the forest, where Bridlewood was nestled, and wondered, after this trip, after she had become familiar with each of the tribe's locales, what would be next for her. She had taken Sunny's advice to heart, but sooner or later, that time was going to run out, and she would need some kind of direction to pick and head off in.
She was doubtless that she and Sunny could make quite the archeological team, going to every forgotten corner of Equestria and seeing what remained, and seeing how much of the long-forgotten past they could piece together. It would no doubt bring more memories to the surface, some happy, some painful. But providing answers to the rest of Equestria would be worth it.
Zephyr Heights had been fun too. She had gone from visiting tourist to headlining performer with Princess Pipp in under 48 hours, the concert had been exhilarating and downright nostalgic. She still hadn't forgotten the promise she had made to Swift; she had told Sunny to take her guitar to CanterLogic and have them take a 3D scan of it so they could give the shop owner an idea of how it was constructed.
So what if Bridlewood was just as fun? What if she felt just as much at home with the unicorns as she had felt everywhere else? This sightseeing tour of how Equestria had changed hadn't exactly made the choice of where to settle down the slightest bit easier. The indecisiveness was familiar and unpleasant; it reminded her of how she had felt nearly her entire senior year, as she had to choose whether to stay or go. The choice had been made for her after her mirror world's counterpart had shown up, so through the portal she had gone after graduation, for good, and she had been thrust forward untold centuries, and gone were the career plans she had made with Princess Twilight.
As she finished her dinner and doused her fire, climbing into her tent, the questions continued to burn in her mind, keeping her from soundly falling asleep.
What was she doing here? What was she meant to be?
She just hoped her restlessness didn't invite anymore unpleasant dreams. What she wouldn't give for Princess Luna's help right about now...
How nice of them.
That is something inky you can answer to Sunset.
I guess it's time for her to gođź’”
How sweet! Moonbow Bridge, I love it
But poor Sunny though, she's still unsure of what her purpose issss
Don’t worry Sunset. Trust in Harmony
Hopefully she finds what she wants to do. Like she could go with Sunny to explore locations that haven’t been seen forever or maybe stay in Bridlewood to teach the Unicorns magic since they all basically don’t know anything.
great chapter
Well......running a magic school in Bridlewood would be a good life.
Excellent work on the latest chapter. The effort that went into the exchange, characterizations and future chapter set-up shows quite nicely. Definitely liked Sunset's mental reflections as she was hiking to Bridlewood, especially on the new paths and that bridge dedicated to Izzy. And, yeah, Sunset has yet to be told about the fire that happened in the last chapter. Certainly hoping that Alphabittle made it out, even if the fire makes it all the more clear that the unicorns REALLY need to learn to use their newly restored magic properly.
At any rate, definitely looking forward to more of this.
I hope sunset does some poetry with gloomy Sonnet
So it looks like Sunset is going to bridlewood to visit Izzy Moonbow after that little trip from the Crystal Empire and Gathering up the artifacts and stuff from there she has to hike there. Which it looks like things have changed ever since the last time they were there even the bridge that apparently dedicated to Izzy which that's pretty cool but Sunset still wondering what really happened to Equestria and what is her purpose here I'm sure she'll find out the answer for herself soon well we'll find out what's going to happen next time
Well, let’s hope Bridlewood is still there and not washed away down a new river by a permanent magical monsoon when Sunset arrives. What with Izzy attempting to save the day with one of those ultra dangerous advanced spell books and all...
Sunset the magic tutor has a nice ring to it.
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It’s working fine for me.
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Yeah, most of the time, that can't be helped on my end.
I really like how slice of lifey this feels. The ponies all feel nice and homey and yet ripe for character growth, if that makes sense.
I would really love it if there was a way for Sunset to send a message to her Canterlot friends or to Twilight at one point, just to let them all know she didn't like, spontaneously die while crossing the portal! And also for Sunset to delve more into how Twilight's kingdom started to fail and what made everyone start to distrust each other. I know the comic series has written about this already but I'd love to see your headcanon!
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She actually already made an attempt to make contact back through the mirror- see chapter 3, “Guest Room”. Probably not a very good chance that will actually work though.
Sunset ends up as a touring rock and roll archeologist and magic instructor star.
Or some watery tart will lob a scimitar at Sunset and make her Empress.
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She could dust off Starswirl the Beaded’s time travel spell in some abandoned library somewhere later on and give them a 30 second “Hay, not enough time to chat, I’m okay, I’m not dead, I came out of the mirror like a thousand or so years in the future and made friends and I’m helping rebuild Equestria. I miss and love you all, but don’t worry, I’ll be fine!”
Presumably, the version that was Glimmerbearded has been destroyed for the safety of the multiverse.
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The version that wasn’t “glimmerbearded” (i like that by the way) could only go back a week max.
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Yes, but Glamglam was able to modify it for a much longer reach in the first place. Having the original would give Sunset the same starting point, instead of having to reinvent the wheel from scratch.
The pics I author notes should be in the story because they don't show up in epub downloads.
Just saying.
Great story, still going.