//------------------------------//
// Arrrrrgh 
// Story: The Olden World 
// by Czar_Yoshi 
//------------------------------//

Starlight and Maple resumed their march through the city, following along with the crowds bold enough to brave the rain and continue after Gerardo and Hemlock. This time, Starlight rode on Amber's back, giving her enough height to wear a raincoat and not trip. All things considered, she found it a much more dignified arrangement than sharing a hood with Maple, and was content to sit and ride.

"It's not far from here to the docks," Maple explained as they walked, pace slowed due to the necessity of the thick crowds. "They line the north edge of town. Most of them are above the waterfall, which is probably why Gerardo wants his boat moved." She splashed through a deep puddle, her own coat shielding her from most of the effects. "He might even be moored in the middle of the river, now."

Abruptly, the air lightened around them. Starlight glanced around for the cause, eventually looking up and seeing it: the impermeable canopy that stretched high above all of Riverfall met a sudden boundary here, leaving the gray, overcast sky perfectly open to view. She didn't look long, however, a torrent of fat raindrops meeting her face.

"It looks like we're there!" Maple hummed, almost skipping out between two final towers. With just as much abruptness as the sky had changed, the houses fell away, leaving nothing but an ornate plaza stretching until it fell away. Starlight had no doubt it formed the southern bank of the river.

The crowd pushed its way east, eventually jostling to a stop. "Hey!" someone shouted, "No pushing! Don't knock anypony over the edge!" It had little effect, the ponies all pressing closer to get a view of what was happening ahead.

Amber grinned up at Starlight. "You're totally small enough to slip through them, if you wanted a better look. It's not like you can see much from here."

Starlight shook her head mutely. Her view wasn't very good, but when she stretched, she could still probably see better than most of the ponies here.

"Actually... hang on." Amber began moving toward Maple, and Starlight had to steady herself to hold on. "Maple? Think we could try... The Tower?"

Maple snorted in surprise. "Really!? We haven't tried that in years! How would we even...?"

"I don't weigh that much," Amber said with a shrug. "Neither does Starlight. And if you wanted to see, I could probably hold both of you and take a turn on the bottom."

Starlight watched with mixed caution and interest as the mares debated... and then Maple knelt down and Amber began trying to climb onto her back, the filly still attached to her own. Somehow, they both managed to stand straight up, Amber's hooves planted squarely on Maple's shoulders... and Starlight suddenly realized she was the tallest thing around, easily able to watch the distant proceedings.

"And that," Amber proclaimed, "is why being friends with ponies of all sizes is a good thing! Whoo, I don't think we've done this since the docks stopped! Good old times, huh? Starlight, what can you see?" Then, slightly guiltily, she added, "And Maple, how are you holding up?"

Maple smiled up at them. "I'll be fine. If Willow could do this, so can I!"

For her part, Starlight looked out over the assembled ponies, realizing just how useful a move like this could be. A short distance ahead, the ground seemed to drop away in a cliff, a thin iron railing preventing the packed mares from tumbling off... and below that, the plaza continued. To her left was Riverfall's namesake, about two stories high and somewhat unimpressive compared to what she had fallen from in the mountains, yet still a significant obstacle to naval travel.

"I can see his boat!" she announced, realizing the other two expected her to be narrating... mostly for Maple's benefit, but still. "I think? It doesn't look very big..."

"I recognize that," Amber said below her, apparently also able to see. "It's an S24. Crewable by one to four, designed for speed and fuel efficiency over cargo capacity or stability. You wouldn't want to take it to the open ocean, since a storm would sink it instantly. But it's good when you can stick near ports, and especially for this river. He must have known what he was doing when he got this."

"Manaships..." Maple shuddered in excitement. "Who's with it? Is Arambai there?"

"I... think he is, yes," Amber muttered, trying to shade her eyes without unbalancing the stack.

Starlight looked for herself, scanning the boat's slate-gray hull and deck for signs of life. Eventually, she realized the creatures of interest were lining the shore next to it, not aboard it.

The magically enhanced voice of Hemlock blared to life. "Hello? Is this thing on, yet?"

"Eeyep. Seems like it," Arambai's growly voice confirmed, also magically amplified.

"Beautiful! Now get outta here, hornhead, and stop stealing my show!" Hemlock waved a dripping forelimb at the yellow stallion, his tent canopy restored... albeit somewhat too late to preserve his dryness. "Go on! Shoo!"

Without a word, Arambai disappeared into the crowd, leaving Starlight blinking. "Woah," Amber remarked. "He pretty much just vanished. There's no way you can hide a stallion that big in a crowd!"

"Maybe he used some kind of spell?" Maple offered. "To... make yourself less interesting so no one notices you, or something?" She turned her eyes upward. "Starlight? Can magic do that?"

"I dunno." Starlight shrugged, more interested in the conflagration of ropes and pulleys she now realized existed in the background behind Gerardo's boat. "Is that the lifting machine?" she asked.

"Watch and see," Maple said, leaning forward with a grin.

Hemlock whistled, and below a team of ponies dove into the waterfall basin where Gerardo's boat was moored. Surfacing at its edges with bits of rope in their mouths, they began working and tying... and eventually, a giant net was wrapped around the bottom, the lines trailing off into the opposite bank. The boat bobbed there, ensnared and presently useless.

"My good stallion," Gerardo began, "This all looks very impressive, but are you quite sure-"

"Haw haw! Watch and learn, Gerardo the Great!" Hemlock posed aggressively... before stomping a hoof. "Fire it up, ladies!"

The mares on the far riverbank nodded, and together began spinning what appeared to be a giant crank. With a titanic groan, a crane arm of solid timber swung out over the river, positioning itself just above Gerardo's boat with enough height to clear the waterfall.

"Hah! How do you like that?" Hemlock pointed a limb in Gerardo's face. "This is Riverfall tech! And while it was very kind of you to give us some stories and that parade earlier, now it's time to see what we can do for you! Lemme tell you, son, you're gonna be wowed by this here lift."

He barked another command, and the team operating the machine changed their positions. Wood creaked and pulleys turned, and the ropes connecting the boat to the crane boom pulled themselves tight. Then, there was a pause, a rush of water... and the boat lifted, rising above the water until it was dangling in midair.

"Wow," Amber commented, watching the thing ascend as the sounds of creaks and snaps filled the air. "I'm honestly kind of surprised that thing still works after seven years. Maple, you should see this. Want to take a turn in the middle?"

"Sure," Maple offered, tensing as she prepared to lower Amber and Starlight to the ground.

Suddenly, a sharp crack filled the air, and a collective gasp rippled through the crowd.

"Hold your panic! That's just a little maintenance it needs," Hemlock's voice shouted, failing to stem the rising din.

"Back up! Back up!" Amber hissed, quickly being lifted again. The boat was still hanging from the crane, but one of the ropes holding it had snapped, and was dangling in the rain. A cold wind stirred, rushing down the river corridor and causing the entire boat to sway.

"My good stallion," Gerardo exclaimed, "this is precisely why I requested that we remove my cargo before moving the boat! Did you really expect me to trust a machine this primitive?"

"Hey, there's nothing wrong with it, now," Hemlock hastily reassured. "Had that happen all the time in the old days. And watch your words, son! A slight against Ironridge tech is a slight against Ironridge! Ladies! Keep it moving!"

CRACKKKKK!

A splintering sound emanated from the base of the crane, causing the boom to jostle. As it did so, several more ropes broke from the shock, causing the boat to tilt at a wild angle and begin to slide from its net. The action sent a shockwave crashing through the crowd, who began to panic and shout.

"Maple!" Amber hissed breathlessly. "Hemlock's crane is falling apart with the boat midair! This is huge!"

"Woah, that's not good!" Hemlock yelped from below. "Ladies, bring 'er down gently!"

"We can't!" a mare screamed from the opposite riverbank, fighting to be heard without magical enhancements. "The central gear's shattered! If we even touch the emergency release, it could cause the entire tower to explode!"

"Arrrgh!" Hemlock tore at his beard, hat long forgotten. "Arambai! Help! Where'd that hornhead get to at a time like this? Arambaaaaaii!"

Before anyone could respond, he was blasted aside by the unfurling of Gerardo's wings. The griffon rocketed out through the rain and over the water, clutching the edge of his boat and flapping heavily, providing as much lift as he could, attempting to stabilize it. "Do something!" he panted, straining. "Anyone! My cargo...!"

"On it!" Arambai charged out of nowhere, horn lighting with a murky aura. It surrounded the boat, pressing upward alongside Gerardo... but failed to be enough, the ship sliding a few more degrees as another rope snapped. "Bah! That's not gonna work!" he growled out at the crowd, looking back as his horn blazed. "Anyone else? Running out of ideas, here!"

"Maple?" Amber asked, a note of fear in her voice as the crowd's panic reached a fever pitch. "What should we-" Her voice was cut off by a burst of artificial wind as a poncho fluttered down over her head, empty.





A streak of purple knifed through the falling rain as the sky filled with snaps and cracks, the boat tilting further and further. The crowd flinched as a set of tiny lilac hooves stampeded by above, leaping from head to head with grim determination and not a single apology. At the head of a wake of agitated ponies was Starlight, flying toward the railing, mind as clear as glass.

Crystals can float in water.

Her horn flared to life like a sword being drawn, crackling with energy as its cyan aura reflected in her eyes. It hummed welcomingly in her ears, apologizing for all the times it had made her head hurt and informing her it was ready to do anything. She sure hoped it was.

Landing in front of the railing, Starlight pushed out a wall of telekinesis, shoving back the ponies around her to give herself some space. They didn't matter. The only thing that mattered was that something bad was happening, something someone didn't deserve... and she was in a position to stop it. Aiming through a gap in the iron bars, she maximized her energy and fired.

Exactly as she did so, the crane's base exploded in a shower of tension, sending debris soaring like rockets across the river. Through some spring-loaded backlash, the crane boom was driven downward, smashing into the roof of Gerardo's boat like an axe and flinging the griffon away. The boom and the boat locked together in free-fall... which was precisely when Starlight's beam struck. F-F-F-Flaaaaashh!

Starlight grunted under the impact, the roar of crystal striking water nearly drowned out by the harsh magical buzzing in her ears. Beads of sweat began to mix with the raindrops on her brow, and she strained, even as she gathered air in her lungs to shout. "Hurry! Push it up on land!"

Panting, Starlight rolled onto her back, leaning against a railing as she focused all her concentration into maintaining the massive gemstone. This was guaranteed to hurt later and would probably put her out for several days, knowing her luck, but she didn't consider that important to think about right then. What mattered was the boat... and she could already feel hooves tapping against the side of her crystal, indicating that ponies were pushing it toward shore.

After a minute of pure exertion, she felt something huge and grainy scrape against her crystal... the riverbank. Silently hoping that no ponies would be crushed, she released the aura as gently as she could, allowing the crystal to fade out and give them some warning. Yells came from below... but no worse. Organizing shouts were heard, and Starlight allowed herself to collapse, horn hissing in the rain.

As she lay there, feeling catching up to her body, she began to be aware of the ponies around her... ponies who were staring at her with reverence and awe. "You just saved that guy's boat," one mare said, pointing a hoof.

"That was amazing," another breathed, holding a hoof to her mouth. "I haven't seen magic like that from even Arambai!"

"Who are you?" a third inquired, leaning in curiously.

"Hey, I recognize her!" a fourth exclaimed, dancing on her hooves. "She was at Sycamore's bathhouse with Amber!"

Starlight stared back at them in horror, comprehension dawning over what she had just done. Gerardo, to them, was some kind of myth... and she had possibly just saved his boat, or at least tried to in a very flashy way. The one thing she wanted was to never be treated like anything special... and now, she had given the entire town a public display of why they should do the opposite of that. It was her second day here. Her second day, and she'd managed to blow it. Already, tears began to sting her eyes.

The mares continued to press in around her. "We should take her down to see Gerardo!"

No. Not that. Anything but that. Starlight closed her eyes, burying her head in her hooves and wishing she had left the boat to its fate. It was probably wrecked anyway. She had to get away, as far away as she could. Anywhere but here. She had to... leave.

Unbidden, her horn lit itself, surrounding her in a harsh teal glow. A strange sensation tingled through all of her limbs, like she was being pulled and compacted from the inside... and suddenly, everything was quiet.