After the monks of Gardenia bid their well-wishes, the Battle Foals and Greensprout ventured upstream back toward the summit of Ghastly Gorge. As the lush array of flora slowly turned into rocky cliffs walling around the river, the foals began scanning around for their friends and calling out for them. Quantum Tech’s mech and Shrapnel weren’t exactly easy to miss, so they didn’t expect too much trouble in locating them. The calm flow of the river heightened their concentration.
The only one who really had any trouble concentrating was Air Slash. He occasionally glanced over at Greensprout, who was too busy scanning around for Kickback, Quantum and Zebota to notice. Air Slash suddenly felt a light nudge on his shoulder. He looked over to see Spiral Galaxy smiling and pointing her eyes toward Greensprout. “Go talk to her!” she whispered.
Air Slash blushed furiously. “Huh!? Wh-Wh-Whatever d-do you mean?” he whispered.
“Come on, Air Slash. This might be your only chance! Make some small talk. Leave an impression!” Spiral whispered.
Air Slash nervously glanced back and forth between her and Greensprout. “Err….about….what?”
“Just act natural, and don’t say anything that might upset her. You’re a gentlecolt, Air Slash. You’ll be fine. Just try to keep your cool and be yourself.”
Air Slash sighed. “Easier said than done….” Despite his nerves firing off like Kickback’s guns, he took a deep breath and approached Greensprout. He took a quick gulp before speaking. “Greensprout?”
Greensprout looked over at him. “Yes, Air Slash?”
Air Slash blushed as he found himself looking into her gentle violet eyes once more. The first thing he could think of was her Gaia Root which she walked on as though it were a walking cane. “Your staff! Umm…..It….restores vitals…..c-correct?” he stammered.
“It does. I have used it to treat my fellow monks of work injuries and illnesses, and to help grow our gardens. Life itself seems to flow from it.” Greensprout said.
“I-I s-see…..” Air Slash stammered. “So…..it only responds to you?”
“Well, no. It seems that anypony can use to some extent, but for whatever reason, it favors me.”
“Perhaps…..it senses a…..uh….<gulp>…..a purity within you that none of the other monks have?” Air Slash said. He worried that he might have inadvertently insulted her order, but was relieved when he heard her let out a small giggle.
“That’s kind of you to think, but I doubt that it’s as simple as that. I lived within the order of Gardenia for as long as I can remember. I’m surprised that anypony other than Abbot Meadow could make better use of this holy item.”
Air Slash began to feel his nerves loosening a little. “Well, us Bladerunners train under strict tenets when we learn our arts. I just so happened to awaken to a new way of exploring our swordplay. All that required was for me to be alive. It is not unreasonable to believe that the same principle applies with you and your Gaia Root.”
“Certainly, but you forged your swords. The Gaia Root has existed since times immemorial.”
“Well….that is true….but assuming it actually has some level of sentience, perhaps you….remind it of the smith who forged it, or the pony who first wielded it, its old master?”
“Perhaps we’ll never know, but I do not lament such a possibility. My only desire is to mend what is broken.”
Air Slash chuckled. “Then you and I might not be so different.”
Greensprout cocked her head. “What do you mean?”
“I mean that we both strive to fix something that we see as broken despite taking different approaches. I fight alongside Fire Fight and the others while you heal living things.” Air Slash said.
Greensprout giggled. “Fighting is certainly an….interesting approach to fixing problems. I hope that I can understand his words better.”
“You will in time. Hey….where are your parents anyway? I didn’t notice anypony in the abbey that seemed to claim to be your mother or father.” Air Slash asked.
Shadow Shroud perked up. “Yes. I’m curious about that myself.”
Greensprout smile disappeared as she looked down in sorrow. “I…..I never knew my parents….” The Battle Foals looked at her in surprise. “Many years ago, Abbot Meadow found me floating down this river in a tattered basket wrapped in a blanket with a small metal tag that had my name engraved in it. I was barely a couple months old. He took me in and has cared for me ever since….”
“Did….he ever find out where you might have come from?” Spiral Galaxy asked.
“No….He searched far up the river in and around the gorge, but….he says that he could never find any trace of anypony who might have been my parents….” Greensprout muttered.
“Damn…..Dat’s…..Dat’s whack.” Turf War said.
Air Slash sighed in guilt. “I-I’m sorry, Greensprout. I-I didn’t mean to upset you. I should not have pried…”
Greensprout regained a little of her smile. “Think nothing of it, Air Slash. You had no way of knowing.”
A bush beside them suddenly began rustling. Without even thinking, Air Slash swiftly drew his swords. He pointed one aggressively at the bush while putting the other between the bush and Greensprout in a defensive manner. “Who goes there!?” he demanded. He was answered when a little squirrel scampered out of the bush and rushed towards another bush completely ignorant of the foals. Air Slash was too shocked to think to sheathe his swords.
“Umm……Air Slash?” He looked over to see Greensprout cowering behind he Gaia Root as a shimmering blade was held before her.
“Oh! Uh!.....sorry.” Air Slash quickly sheathed his swords and blushed from sheer embarrassment. He then became worried when Greensprout began lightly laughing. “Wh-What?”
“You’re quite the oddball, Air Slash.” Greensprout laughed. Air Slash’s embarrassment turned….positive upon seeing that she wasn’t upset or frightened by his brash action. He smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. Spiral Galaxy snickered a little while Shadow Shroud just rolled her eyes in amusement.
“HEY! NO FAIR! I’M AS EVERY BIT AS A BALL AS THE NEXT PONY!!” Crazylocks blurted. She curled up into a ball and began rolling around like a pill bug that was on caffeine. As she accelerated, she began bouncing off rocks and mounds of dirt like a pinball, smashing them in the process. She was finally stopped when Fire Fight caught her with her magic. “HEY! HEY!....I was on a roll. WAAAHAHAHAHAHA!!”
“Alright, no more imitating Turf War before bed.” Fire Fight said as he relaxed his magic.
“Hol’ up! She been doin’ what!?”
Fire Fight sighed. “Greensprout, do you think that staff of yours might be able to help our friend here?”
Greensprout grimaced. “I can try. Hold still, sister.” She held her staff towards Crazylocks and a light stream emitted and connected to her.
Crazylocks fell to pieces laughing on the ground. “WAAAHAHAHAHAH!! HAHA!! THAT TICKLES!! HEEHEEEHEEHEEHEEHEHEEHEHEHEH!! HEHEHEHEHEhehe….hehehe…..wa……NOOOOOO!! GRANDPA STOP!!!” She suddenly began bawling like a baby for a quick moment before cackling manically again. “Haha! HAHA! AHA! AHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA!!!!”
Greensprout released her grip on Crazylocks when nothing else would work and Crazylocks just sprang back up as if nothing happened, wearing her manic smile. “Oh dear….” She said.
“Well….that could be progress, but…..maybe it was just nonsense altogether. You never really can tell with her.” Spiral said.
“Let’s wait until Quantum Tech gives her professional opinion. Somehow, I doubt that treating Crazylocks will be as simple as using a magic tree root.” Shadow Shroud said.
“Word, homegirl. We better get back to peepin’ out fo’ ‘em.” Turf War said.
“Guys! Over there!” Fire Fight blurted. On the other side of the rocky canyon across the river was what looked to be Kickback lying down in the dirt!
“Kickback!” Spiral shouted. She and Fire Fight used their magic to levitate everypony who couldn’t fly over there. Air Slash and Crazylocks helped carry them.
The foals all ran up to their comrade who was breathing heavily from exhaustion. It was then that they noticed that he had nasty cuts and bruises in many places. He slowly peeked his head up at them. “Y-Y’all?”
“Greensprout, help him!” Fire Fight ordered.
Greensprout nodded. “Right.” She held her staff towards Kickback. “Breathe deeply, brother. All will be well.” Her staff went to work as it closed his wounds and made his bruises disappear. Kickback began to breathe more easily as he slowly regained his strength and stood up. She stopped when he was able to stand completely.
“Huh? Wh-Wh-Wha?....What in tarnation?”
“Bruh!” Turf War threw his arm around Kickback in a bro hug.
Kickback glanced over at him. “Huh!? Wha!? Well, throw me in the river and call me a duck! Yer all ok!” He then noticed Greensprout. “And….who’s this? An’ what’s with that there shiny stick she’s got?”
“My name is sister Greensprout, Kickback. It’s a pleasure to meet you. My staff here is the Gaia Root. I used it just now to heal your broken body.” She said. Fire Fight explained the whole scenario with how they woke up in an abbey called Gardenia where they met Greensprout as well as the abbot who found them floating down the river. He then told him about how Greensprout came to decide to temporarily join them to search for him and the others, and went into detail about the Gaia Root.
“Well heavens to Betsy!” Kickback said. As per his manners, he removed his hat before introducing himself to a filly. “Ms. Greensprout, Ah cannot thank y’all enough fer helpin’ me n’ mah friends out like this. It’s certainly a pleasure makin’ yer acquaintance.”
Being the handsome colt that he was, Greensprout couldn’t help but to blush a little, causing Air Slash to glare at his comrade. “Oh! The pleasure is all mine, Kickback. Whatever happened to you?”
“And where are Quantum Tech and Zebota?” Air Slash asked. His tone was noticeably hostile.
Kickback put his hat back on. “Well shucks, Air Slash! No need to get yer swords in a bunch- well…..actually.... We were searchin’ fer y’all when…..somethin’ awful fast just jumped out o’ the mist comin’ from the waterfall an’…..Well, there was a scuffle alright, but mah memories kinda hazy. Ah don’t rightly recall what all happened.”
Looks of worry were expressed from all of the foals. “Can you take us to where this happened?” Shroud said.
“Ah reckon so, but we better hurry! Quantum, Zebota n’ Shrapnel might be in one heckuva of a pickle!”
“PICKLE JUICE AND A RED MONGOOSE ONCE CAME TOGETHER AND PLANTED A CUPCAKE TREE!!” Crazylocks blurted before smashing a random rock with her pigtails.
Kickback rolled his eyes. “At least yer still yerself…” He quickly led the other foals to the waterfall where he last saw Quantum and Zebota. As expected, traces of a large-scale brawl were present. Traces of gunpowder could be smelled everywhere, rocks that were no doubt blasted apart by Quantum’s railguns littered the rocky riverbank, and huge claw marks that had to have come from Shrapnel viciously decorated the terrain. It was clear that there was some kind of struggle.
“Anything come to mind, Kickback?” Fire Fight asked.
“Nuttin’ but Sound and Fury makin’ a ruckus, sheriff.” Kickback replied.
“It sure looks like they did.” Shroud commented. She inspected the small battlefield carefully. Being littered with the fragments of war, discerning what exactly happened was difficult. Whatever attacked them left nothing behind that would certainly identify them. It was then that she noticed that the chaos extended towards the waterfall. “Hmm?” She made her way over there.
“What’s up, Shroud?” Fire Fight asked.
Shroud motioned for them to follow. “That’s what I’d like to find out.”
“Let us be careful. This terrain is not ideal for ponies.” Greensprout said as they followed Shroud.
“Believe me, homegirl. We been through plenty o’ dis.” Turf War said. The foals hiked through the clouds of mist along the rocky riverbank. With their visibility somewhat limited, they had to tread carefully, and it didn’t help that the ground became a little slippery as they went in further. Eventually, they reached an alcove hidden behind the waterfall……that extended into a large cave! “Damn!” Turf War said. His echo resounded in the void before them.
Spiral Galaxy and Fire Fight lit their horns. “You think they might be in here?” Fire Fight said.
“Now that Ah think about it, Ah seem to recall Shrapnel jumping back here, an’ Zebota had to go after the rascal.” Kickback said.
“I think I can smell something….machine-y. Maybe it’s Quantum’s mech.” Spiral said.
“Well, let’s not waste any time.” Fire Fight said. They ventured into the cave.
As they began their trek into the dark, the metallic smell that was believed to be residual of Quantum Tech’s mech became a little stronger. Little could be seen in the pitch darkness with only two mobile light sources illuminating their path. Moss and drops of water were the only things of any note. This place seemed about as desolate as the abandoned subways.
Before the foals could begin calling out for Quantum Tech and Zebota, they suddenly heard a growling noise coming towards them. “<gasp!>” Spiral dimmed her horn a little. Looking further into the darkness, a large pair of green eyes could be seen shining in the dark! The foals readied themselves, but what finally emerged was a familiar face. “Shrapnel!” Spiral said.
The wooden titan trudged over quickly to the foals upon realizing that it was them and began whimpering. “What is it, boy? Where’s Zebota and Quantum?” Fire Fight asked.
“He says, ‘They’re gone! They’re gone! We must help them!’” Crazylocks blurted.
Having never actually seen him before, Greensprout was freaked out and shivering at the sight of the huge timberwolf. “Th-Th-This….is Shrapnel!?”
“Worry not, Greensprout. He is tame.” Air Slash said. His tone was much softer than usual.
Greensprout calmed down some. “If you say so…”
Shrapnel continued to whimper as he pointed his head in the direction that he came from. He was clearly distressed about something, and it wasn’t just being separated from his master. “What do you mean, Shrapnel? Show us!” Fire Fight said. Shrapnel lead them further into the cave. As they went further, something strange began to appear. Little series of lights began appearing on random spots on the walls and ceiling. They were too high to closely observe, and Shrapnel was their main priority, so they had to be ignored for now. Finally, Shrapnel had led them to a large room that was illuminated by the inexplicable lights. It was still difficult to discern what it was, but its abundance made the room feel like a dimmed movie theater just before the show started. “Whoa…”
“What is this place?” Shroud said.
Spiral gasped. “Guys, look!” She pointed to the opposite end of the room where Quantum’s mech could be seen! Shrapnel jumped over there before they could rush over there and started whimpering again.
“Quantum Tech? Are you there? What happened?” Fire Fight asked, but upon closer inspection, Quantum wasn’t present with her precious mech! “Huh!?”
“HOLY S***!!” Turf War exclaimed.
“Turf War, please don’t use language like that.” Greensprout said.
“Sorry ‘bout dat, but look at dis, y’all!” Turf War was standing next to a large, deep hole that was only a few yards from Quantum’s mech. Shrapnel started clawing at the hole.
“’They fell down here!’ is what Shrapnel says!” Crazylocks blurted.
“WHAT!?” Fire Fight exclaimed as he frantically looked down the hole along with the other foals. “We have to get down there and help them now! Air Slash, fly down there and see what you can find!”
Air Slash nodded “With haste!”
“Please be careful, Air Slash. It’s incredibly dark down there, and I don’t imagine that it’s very safe..” Greensprout said.
Air Slash’s expression softened and he blushed. He cleared his throat. “O-Of course. Thank you, Greensprout.” He said. He then carefully hovered down into the hole and into the unknown.