Uncovering A Time Before

by Fyrebird

Thunder Plains

At breakfast, it was quiet. Lyra and Bon-Bon were still asleep in the carriage, so the other three took it upon themselves to hold off as long as possible to get back on the road. They watched the news and the small television set as they ate the complementary breakfast. They were the only ones in the breakfast room.

“Today, a dragon was spotted near Mareami, an uncommon occurrence in the flat region. Authorities had no trouble relocating it, and no attack was reported. In Fillydelphia, Princess Luna continues her return to modern Equestria. A parade and warm reception met her, (pictures and video replaced the newsmare’s face), and she plans on staying for another-”

“So, I’m ready for Thunder Plains today!” Colgate stated, gulping down her coffee.

“I’m not. It’s so flat out there, and it’s over a hundred miles between stops. And, we gotta worry about weather,” Carrot Top said.

“That’s the cool part! It would be cool to go through a big, unplanned, untamed storm.”

“Colgate, from past experience, I can tell you that being in a non-pegasus storm is not a cool experience,” Moondancer answered. “Even this carriage could be swept away in it.”

“Thanks for the thought Moon, I’m gonna wake up the two lovebirds and ready our steed for the next leg.”

“You go do that CT.”

A door opened, and slammed, stirring Bon-Bon from her sleep. Her vision was still blurry, as a voice exclaimed, “GOOOOD MOORNING!”

“Whaa…”

Bon-Bon , still in a daze, was left to smack her head, again, on the chair as Lyra jumped up.

“Whoa, by Celestia’s mane! What are we doing! We should be going! Why aren’t we moving?”

“Relax, crusader of the lost city, it’s still early morning. We pulled in to a hotel and left you two here. Are you ready?”

“Yes! Where are the others?”

“Lyra, calm down,” said Bon-Bon, “It’s okay, we’ll be on our way soon enough.”

“Okay,” she said sitting back down.

Carrot Top got out, and got back into the driver’s seat. She backed it out, and kept backing up until they were in front of the lobby. Moondancer and Colgate climbed in. “Hey, Bon-Bon, hey Lyra. Lyra, you pumped?” asked Colgate.

“Yeah! I seriously want to be there right now to see it.”

“Onwards!” Carrot Top yelled, stomping on the accelerator. Like a hundred ponies pulling it saw a snake, it took off, tires squealing as the team charged onto the highway. Carrot Top placed the e-card she printed at the hotel in the windscreen as they pulled up to the express line.

“Watch this, she said, as they pulled up to the booth. Then, magically, the gate swung open, and they were back on the road.

“Magic, it’s everywhere now.”

“They found good uses for it, I suppose, Moondancer added.
The road was full of weekend vacationers heading east to Grand Pass and Canterlot. Westbound, however, was full of cargo vans and few travelers. They were soon out of Grand Pass and leveling off into the Thunder Plains. The amount of trees shrank, until it was nothing but rolling hills of grass. There was nothing but the mountains behind them and the highway in sight for ages.
Lyra was in deep thought about the sites that lay ahead as she stared out into the plains. What if I’m wrong? She thought, “What if this, in the end, will just be a let down? And would my friends think of me?” She looked back into the carriage. Bon-Bon was sleeping on Lyra, Moondancer was reading a book on ancient Equestrian rulers, Colgate out like a light in the front next to Carrot Top, who worked away at controlling the magic powered carriage. Nah, they’re my friends. They’ll always be there. Bon-Bon especially. She then smiled and gazed out the window.
An hour later, they began to slow down. They then stopped “What’s up?” asked Lyra.

She turned around, and said. “Don’t look outside,” in a grave voice.

Obviously, this compelled Moondancer and Lyra to look outside. What met their eyes was a sight of terror.

Massive clouds, bigger than mountains, were rolling east, towards them. Cracks of lightning flashed in and under the mass of boiling condensation. It cast a shadow over them. Lights of other carriages strung out in front of them, lighting the road ahead. The darkness was overwhelming. Carrot Top stepped out, leaving the door open, waking up Bon-Bon and Colgate. The wind was howling, and distant thunder was heard. Carrot Top climbed back in.

“Thunder Plains was a good name,” she said, attempting to brighten the mood.

“What do we do?”

“Go on,” Lyra commanded.

“WHAT?” everypony cried out in unison.

“It’s a military carriage, it can handle this sort of thing, right? Go!”

“Lyra, honey, think about this-”

“I did. CT, floor it.”

“I don’t know…”

“Just go, trust me.”

Colgate flicked on the radio, and flicked around until the dial met a station playing heavy rock. Carrot Top then stomped the accelerator into the carpet and peeled out, back onto the highway, into the storm. Rain soon started to fleck the windows, and the wind began to make the TOFC rock back and forth in wind guests.

The music blared, and then suddenly cut out into a wash of static. Colgate flicked it off. They were all quiet, but the rain pattering on the outer shell began to grow louder, the wind was roaring, and Carrot Top was struggling at the controls. Then, the real nightmare began.

The vision went down to zero. The temperature dropped fast. The rain thundered around them. Carrot Top slowed greatly and was fighting to keep control. Lightning flashed, making every pony jump from the blinding flash. The windshield wipers thrashed back in forth in a desperate attempt to allow sight outside of the carriage. The TOFC slid on the slippery surface, and was knocked around by the violent wind gusts.

They were all silent as they rode through the storm. They passed by many stranded carriages in the hellish monsoon. It was as if they were diving straight into a hurricane. Debris from obliterated farms soared past, each one missing them like a sign somepony higher was watching them.

Eventually, the rain slowed. The wind quieted down, and the vision improved. Soon, they were cruising through a peaceful drizzle.

“I wasn’t scared.”

“Yeah right Colgate, you looked like a filly on Nightmare Night when she gives her offering to Nightmare Moon,” Bon-Bon replied.

Carrot Top’s shoulders dropped, and she let out a sigh of relief. “I can truthfully say, I didn’t think we were gonna make it.”

“I can second that,” Moondancer admitted.

“See? But we did make it. Aren’t you glad you listened to me?” Lyra said.

“Oh, shutup. That was still one helluva storm. You were right Moon, that is something I don’t wanna do again.”

They regained speed and continued the cruise through the Thunder Plains. It was dreary once more, only now it was cloudy as well, leaving the road desolate, empty, and worst of all, boring.

“Thunder Mare Creek, thirty miles,” Colgate said, reading the passing road sign.

“We’re stopping, right Lyra?” Bon-Bon asked.

“Yeah. We got to get out and stretch. This has become the most boring thing ever. Not what I expected on a journey to a closed off ancient city.”

“We’re not even close, Lyra. It’s on the opposite side of Equestria. We’ll get there in time.”

“I know, its just, nevermind.”

“Lyra,” Bon-Bon said, “It’s okay. We’ll get there okay? Promise.”

Colgate let out a sarcastic laugh. “Whatever you say,’ she said, rolling her eyes.

About twenty minutes later, they pulled into Thunder Mare Creek. It was a small farming town in the middle of nowhere, population about two thousand.

The rain had dampened the town, leaving a nice smell of a rain shower behind and muddy streets. The mud sloshed as the carriage pulled into a public parking lot. They got out, and walked around town, admiring the desolate surroundings. They soon went into a restaurant, sat down, and ordered.

Colgate was looking at the road map. “Eight hundred seventy two miles to go,” she said, dramatically peering over the map.

“Tell me, why didn’t we fly, or take a train?” Moondancer asked.

There was a long pause. They were still looking confused when their food arrived. Bon-Bon, clearly starved, immediately began demolishing the helpless plate of food. Moondancer, still waiting for an answer, began to take sips out of her soup, staring at Lyra. Lyra couldn’t ignore her steely gray stare, and it didn’t make eating any easier. “I dunno, cheaper I guess.”

“That is a reason, albeit not a good one.”

“Forget it Moon, we wouldn’t be able to fit all the crap we have on an express sky carriage or a train, right CT?” Colgate asked.

“Yeah, you yourself brought more than the luggage limit, Moon,” Carrot Top replied.

Bon-Bon stopped devouring her food and looked up. She swallowed, with difficulty, and said, “There’s a luggage limit on trains and sky carriages now?”

“On trains it’s less strict, but yeah. They run out of room nowadays,” Colgate informed her.

“Huh.”

They continued to chat over lunch, until their plates were empty and stomachs were full. They gave the waiter a generous tip as they left the restaurant and walked back to the carriage.

“I’ll have to remember this place on our way back,” Carrot Top said.

“I know Bon-Bon will,” Lyra laughed.

“Yeah, really Bon-Bon, you didn’t have to eat it if you didn’t like it,” Colgate joked.

Bon-Bon glared. Their desert-camo TOFC was easy to find in the parking lot. The lot had filled up with some magic cargo vans that also stopped for a break. Anypony around stared as the five climbed back into the vehicle.

“What are they looking at?” Bon-Bon asked.

“Well Bon-Bon, it is not often a pony comes across a desert colored military vehicle in these parts, much less one that currently under the power of five civilian mares,” Moondancer answered.

“Yeah, I noticed that. I hope we don’t draw too much attention,” Lyra worried.

“Relax, once the going gets tough, you’ll thank me,” Carrot Top said, starting it up.

I hope so, Lyra thought.

Not much was to be done on the journey. It would be dark by the time they reached their overnight halt in Maresburg. It was only, however, four. The ride was quiet. Too quiet. Carrot Top turned around, only to see the three in the back had fallen asleep.

“Even less to do now,” Colgate said.

“I spy with my little eye…”

“Oh Celestia.”

“Hey CT,” Colgate said, and hour later.

“What?”

“Drive on those rumble strips, that’ll wake up everypony.”

“Ah, good thinking,” she said, tilting the steering wheel.

Lyra was in the ruins again. She was now by the seaside, looking down the coast. All along it, worn foundations and crumbling high rises lined it. There were ancient jetties, still in place, calming the waters of the harbors. Beached carcasses of ancient boats popped up here and there. After a while, she came across an ancient harbor. Old ships were nothing but sunken frames of rust. Soot and grime lined it, and steel containers scattered all about. She kept going, until she reached the super buildings she saw in her last dream. They still held, perfectly. The weather wore out their façade, but they remained towers that pierced the heavens. The streets around them were even more jammed and full of debris. Then, she came across a lot. It was a mountain of rock, steel, and soot. It was also in a sinkhole, but the sinkhole seemed built by beings, not earth. Suddenly, everything began to shake. The towers began to wobble, and vibrations shook Lyra to the bone. Then, the smaller tower next to her began to let out monstrous groans as it began to plummet to the earth.

“GAAH!” Lyra woke up with a start.

“CT, stay on the road!”

“Oopsies,” she said, swerving back on to the highway.

“I do say, what is the meaning of this?” Moondancer asked, slightly annoyed.

“Hey Colgate, you were right, it worked.”

“Naw, Bon-Bon’s still asleep, I think,” Colgate replied, looking back.

“What was that?” Lyra asked still in a daze from her vivid dream.

“I just gave y’all a wake up call, nothing more,” Carrot Top answered.

“That was not cool,”

“I must concur,” Moondancer huffed. “It was most rude of you to wake me up. I was very relaxed until now.”

“But, it’s soooo booooorrrrriiiiiiinnnnnngg. There’s nothing to dooooo.”

“Go to sleep, Colgate.”

“Thanks guys, leave everything to me,” Carrot Top interrupted.

“Pretty much,” Lyra laughed.

“Fuck you.”

“A TREE! I HAVEN’T SEEN ONE OF THOSE SINCE- oh, nevermind,” Carrot Top caught herself. Everpony had dozed off. She ditched her annoyed face in favor of her ‘I’m so pissed I could stab a filly’ face.

It was evening, and they were driving directly in the sun. Well, Carrot Top was driving into the sun anyway. Her eyes began to hurt. Fatigue began to take over. She was tired. She couldn’t handle much more. Then, she passed what became the best road sign in existence to her.

MARESBURG CITY LIMIT

“YES! YES! YE-HEHE-SS! WHOO!”

She had somehow made Maresburg an hour early, so she could hardly believe it. They could pull into a restaurant and eat, and find a good hotel for the night.

Then red and blue lights flashed in the mirror, and a siren wailed.

“Oh Celestia, no. Oh nononononono this is bad,” she said, pulling over.

“Good evening officer, what seems to the problem?”

“Ma’am I caught you speeding in a military vehicle. Would you mind explaining yourself before I put you under arrest?”

Oh man oh man oh man oh man what do I- hmmm…

“Are you implying a mare can’t be a proud member of the REA officer?” she said, in a gruff voice.

“My apologies, ma’am, I am sorry for bothering you. Please, forgive me.”

“No worries officer, you were only trying to serve and protect. I understand. It was not that big of a deal.”

“Apologies ma’am, I’ll let you on your way, but, please drive safely.”

“Will do officer. Have a nice night.”

“Yes ma’am.”

The officer walked back to his cruiser, and Carrot Top, slowly this time, drove off. A mile or so down the street, she breathed out and laughed. “Did you all see that? We were so close to bein- you know what, nevermind.” She finished darkly, looking at her friends, still somehow sleeping. She was lucky the TOFC was so tall, or else the officer would have seen the rest of them, which would be harder to cover up. Fed up and tired, Carrot Top pulled into a Super-Mart parking lot, and went in. She came back with a sandwich and chips, and climber back in.

She didn’t even take a bite when she passed out.

Comments

[redskin122004]

This is a good story. Very well thought out and written. My next story was going to be based on something similar to this. Very good. Keep it up yeah?

[Fyrebird]

97541
Oh yeah

[Nerdrage911191]

Redskin's face should be an accuarate example of what i think about this story so far>>97569

[Hilltopper]

I've been there as far as the long- trip....

[demonoid47]

files.sharenator.com/1298305804533_MOAR_LOLZ-s450x516-143512-580.jpg
this is too awesome! the suspence is killing me!

[shiningdark]

Man, this story seems to drag on and on... You captured the cross-country driving experience perfectly! So far, so good. Some typos in this chapter, but as those above me put it, "MOAR! For the love of Luna! MOAR!!"

[Meta Knight]

Excellent