A whistle blew, and the gates to Blue Nova stretched wider. While zeppelins and hovercraft puttered overhead, the guards lining the entrance stepped back and motioned towards the heart of the city. They watched with lethargic eyes as a wave of ponies—all robed—shuffled their way into the western districts in one accord. One by one, they fell under the shadow of the upper spires, their brown robes hiding any expressions or emotions.
Merchants drawing wagons paused at intersections to allow the procession to pass by. Relatively affluent citizens hovered at street corners, gazing at the Mintian monks and muttering gossip with one another.
Eventually, the pious parade passed into the lower districts, where the shadows were the thickest. Pass impoverished back alleys and heaps of squalor, they trotted, making their way towards a humble, concrete monastery nestled within the foundation of a far taller building above.
As they turned around a final corner, a pair of monks at the rear of the procession suddenly darted out of line. They hurried into an adjacent alleyway, blending into the darkness within.
After waiting for several seconds, the smaller of the two monks lowered her hood to get a good view. Bellesmith's ears twitched, for they were free of the weight of hair. In fact, the mare's entire mane was completely gone. Her golden coat shone throughout, and it made her look smaller somehow, more frail. She bit her lip and gazed upon the streets beyond, waiting for the last of the Mintian visitors to trot out of sight.
"That was a little too easy," Belle muttered.
"Nnngh... Speak for yourelf."
She looked over his shoulder.
"Gaagh..." Phoenix hissed, perpetually scratching his upper lip and muzzle. "This is why I never, ever shave..."
"Stop touching it," she muttered. "It'll go away, I'm sure."
"Pffft... And what would you know about facial hair, huh?"
"Because whenever Pilate shaved, he'd...." Her voice trailed off. She cleared her throat and muttered, "It'll go away. Trust me."
He blinked at her, adjusting the hood over his own bald skull. "So, what now? We can't pretend to be monks forever. They're gonna wonder why we broke free of the group."
"It'll have to last for as long as we need it to." Bellesmith fumbled under her robe and pulled the old tome out from her saddlebag. A lavender glow illuminated her and the stallion's faces. "What we're looking for can't be that far away."
"And just what are we looking for?"
Belle was silent.
Phoenix sighed, yet managed a fragile smile. "Look, I don't understand any of this, but let's not try to do anything too brash, okay?"
"You mean besides chopping our manes off...?"
"I mean, let's try not to stick our heads too far into where they don't belong. And when it comes time to do just that..." His eyes narrowed. "Let me stick my head in first. That way, if it was the wrong decision, you can still run away and have a second chance."
She turned and glanced up at him.
He stammered, "D-deal?"
"Phoenix, you do realize, that I've no clue if you and I will ever make it out of this city..."
Phoenix's eyes briefly fell to the floor. He took a breath and said, "Yeah, well, at least you can last longer. Okay?"
She blinked at him, then slowly nodded. "Okay." Pivoting about, she glanced at the tome, waved it back and forth, then made a decision. "Northeast of here."
"You sure?"
"No. But let's move anyways."
And from out of the shadows and into more shadows, they did.
Can Phoenix make up for what he did? Probably not in Belle's mind, seeing as she doesn't know that Pilate's still alive. Probably not in anyone else's mind, either, because most of the old party thinks that the rest are probably dead, too. But, personally, I think Phoenix has been doing pretty well in Innavedr. He's saved Belle from death and unpleasant experiences three times now.
It does get me wondering, though. This entire fic's main conflict is all because of Phoenix. Well, maybe more because of Zenith, but he's dead now. Oh, whatever.
AAAAAHH B-bald! Bald! Bald!
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2386040 MY EYES!!!!!!
Ah, what pious monks, following their book wherever it takes them!
The first two have arrived.
Now, to await the rest of the party.
Dash could be a while, Crimson even longer, and to be honest I don't even know where Eagle Eye and Josho are.
At the very least, Pilate is on a steady path there, but even he will take a long time.
So... uh... do Belle and Phoenix know tic-tac-toe?
Why do I get the feeling this book is going to that Kera filly?
She must come in somewhere. We know she's in Blue Nova. I doubt chapter one was just there to demonstrate the city's character.
We have an odd symbol. And a new character. The way this has gone in the past suggests some kind of connection.
Quick contest: if you had to pick a song to describe/ be the soundtrack of Rainbows journey, i DARE you to find one more fitting than Trough the Fire and Flames
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For maximum irony, play this while reading the opening chapters of Austraeoh.
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Challenge accepted!
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Oi, that's my job.
Cold Embrace - Testament
I should do a list of all the stuff I posted between between when I started and now. Maybe later.
OT: Regrowing facial hair sucks. It's all itchy when it really starts growing back, and your face is cold until it does.
Just trying to imagine a zebra with a moustache. . . and failing
Phoenix's moustache-powers are gone, along with his capilliary neutering.
This won't end well...
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So many questions.
Would it be striped or white or black or blonde?
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Lavender. It's the go-to colour nowadays.
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"Runaway" is a song about staying fast while giving up. What does that have to do with Dash?
Anyway, I don't like posting music on stories but Austraeoh in general has always felt like it's more of an instrumental than a vocal song, so it's easier to justify because I'm not drawing hackneyed lyrical comparisons. Here's my choice:
It's a long minimalist instrumental that gives off a constant feeling of progression even though the tone is mostly the same throughout.
2388543 It fits Dash's mindset of just keep moving East. She never wanted this grand adventure, she just wanted a chance with her mare and to be with her friends, but now she is on a journey she doubts she'll complete while becoming the heroe to hundreds.
The Touch is about Dash's determination and her actual spark in her that activates the world machines with her touch.
Round Here just increase the emotional feel when reading the original first part.
so many hostile societies.
I told you about the manes! I told you about the manes! Poor Eagle Eye...
2385999 Good deeds do not wipe out the bad ones. I say we chop off his fingertips and make him a knight.
2387431 Well look at all that facial hair / I bet you're getting every mare.
2386657 In this order:
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Crimson's got a Searonese transport, so he ought to have some serious speed. He just needs to stay undetected, and the metal mares seem like the type to invest in stealth technology. Sounds useful if you're hunting deep in hostile territory. As for Dash, well... yeah, she might be a while. Roarke got her in a difficult situation to leave. Pilate is slow and steady, as you said. EE and Josho might be there faster than you think, though. There's lots of tech around them from the Killas. I wouldn't be surprised if those two can hijack a tank or something like that.
nooooo not the moustache!
2385999 From the ashes, bro. Even a phoenix can have difficulty reverting to its former glory.
Granted, that's not the case with MLP phoenixes, but still.
I think it's going to be pretty hard for the enforcers to recognize them while their bald.
So I'm guessing its safe to assume that everyone's eventually gonna meet up in Blue Nova? I'm not quite sure how each team is going to manage it, but finding out's the fun part.
Also, loving all the music recommendations
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Why do you ask?
IIIIIt's Dashie's evaluation time!
I'm afraid that I have to agree with Belle on this one. Sneaking into Blue Nova was way too easy by Imploding's standards. Odds are, something bad will happen. And despite Phoenix' little speech there, I don't think anything will happen to him yet. He may be helping out Belle right now, but he's still got to make up his mistake to EE and Crimson as well. These are my thoughts so far.
-MASH
P.S. If you'll excuse me, I'm off to fight King Boo beyond the paranormal portal. Whoever gets that reference is awesome.
2433459 I just fought king boo in super Mario 64
Got to love the Nintendo64 best game sistem ever made
2433459 It's interesting how you've stated that you don't like all the jumping around of story lines. It's funny because I love that. It really keeps everything fresh and interesting for me.
It was way too easy to get in there.
Something bad is going to happen.
-SPirit
2386657 Holy carp, that fits so well!
Hmm, these two are going to stir up some major trouble.
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Imminent collision with Xonan pony. Possibly also with "nightshade's" people.
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Sure. This might be an epic journey at times but a lot of it is lone adventuring and struggling for friendship with a lot of crying sooooo this seems fitting.
Wowzers. I just looked up the full lyrics and it fits the story really well.
Well...that might have been a tinsy bit extreme...
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Look up the Humbling River by Pucifer
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Where is my mind by the Pixies
But that one is good too