//------------------------------// // Chapter Sixteen - A Celestial Journey II // Story: Summer Bound // by Windsocks //------------------------------// Stepping through the tear in my new human form, I came across a very odd sight. The building I found myself in was occupied by humans all eating and chatting. However, the eating and chatting were obviously not the weird part. What was rather peculiar, was the fact that their eyes were all trained onto me the moment I stepped through the tear. Then the impossible happened, the humans managed to surprise me! It took all of my might to simply keep myself from jumping out of my armor as a thunderous roar of applause erupted throughout the small cafe. Utterly confused as to what was happening, I shook my head in an attempt to get myself back to the task at hoof. “I will find Kenneth and River!” I told myself inflicting another cheer from the crowds, “Even if I have to scorch this entire planet to do so!” The crowd grew silent at my second statement, seemingly confused. At this time, I was pulled aside by a young male wearing a green t-shirt with a coffee cup embroidered on his right sleeve. “Look, I’m sorry to interrupt your inner monologue -or whatever it was, I don't really care-, but you either buy something or get out. While the crowd did like your little performance you pulled off here, we have rules that need to be followed. You can't just walk in and expect to get a spot, people wait weeks to get a gig here.” The man stated as he started to guide me to the door of the establishment. As he continued to push me towards the exit, my right eye twitched, “Do you know who I am! I’m the goddess of the sun! How dare you command me to leave!” And with my anger gave way to my only hope of arriving on earth without raising suspicion. “Yeah, yeah, a true goddess. Come back when you have the money or applied for a spot like everyone else,” The man stated as he gave me one final push out the door. Either the young man was stronger than he looked or I still hadn't gotten used to this form as I fell over onto the sidewalk. My golden armor clattering against the cold concrete surface. I could feel my anger start to boil to the surface as I stood up and turned back towards the small business. “Mark my wor-!” was all I could say before a female pushed passed me on the sidewalk, then a male did the same thing, mumbling something about how he wished people used sidewalks for how they were intended to be used. “WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PLANET!” I finally yelled out in frustration. This caused an elderly male to pass by and pat me on the back, “We’ve been trying to figure that out for eons hun. Welcome to New York!” I turned my head to look at him, but he was already gone, mixed in with the crowd. The sound of horns blaring and people shouting were the only things I could hear. The streets were filled with metal vehicles most of which were colored yellow and black. Each one rumbling with unknown power as they idled in traffic. Looking up I could barely see the sky above, as large concrete buildings took up the vast majority of my view. What little of the cyan sky I could see had large metal objects flying through it, scarring the sky with their white trails. Was this what Kenneth had to deal with on a daily basis? I thought to myself as a person poked his head out of his vehicle and shouted at the car in front of him. As if things couldn’t get any more hectic people started to flash their devices at me. It was all so much to take in, my mind was running a mile a minute trying to decipher what was even going on. The most I could hope for was that this all would blow over soon. As the white light faded from Kenneth's view; he looked around to try and find out where he was. To his amazement, he was back at Oaklyn lake in his old run-down boat shack. It was pretty surreal to see that even through all the years that had undoubtedly passed the boat still hung there secured by ropes, dangling two feet from the water. “Welcome to my lair!” River stated as her horn lit up and bounded my hands to a nearby support beam. “Your lair? This is my family's boat house,” I retorted, “Hell even the door has my last name on it!” “Your family's dead, so I'm just taking what was left unused.” “Wow way to rub salt in my old wounds. I really could have done without remembering that.” Ken stated leaning his head against the wooden support beam. “So what do you do now huh? If you’re so powerful then why don't you just take over Equestria right now?” River raised an eyebrow at him, “I’m surprised your brain could come up with such a logical thought.” “And I'm surprised you were actually able to hide all this” Ken commented gesturing towards River with his head, “without raising any suspicion.” River didn’t reply, instead opting to sit across the room from him, “Now tell me why we’re here in this run-down boat house instead of Canterlot? I mean you could be sitting on Celestia’s throne by now if you just stayed.” Ken continued. Letting out a large sigh River spoke up, “it’s funny that you still don’t get what's going on here. Why would I even bother to get you? My magic might be powerful now, but just imagine what it would be like if I infused it with yours!” “You said I didn’t have any more magic, that its essence was ripped out of my body,” Kenneth restated. River rolled her eyes at that, “I also told you that I was ‘helping’ you to figure out a solution to a problem that I was personally responsible for.” “Toche,” Kenneth stated still somewhat confused, “so how are you going to do this? You going to suck the energy out of me like a vampire?” Ken asked bringing his head back up so he could look River in the eyes. River chuckled at his response, “No of course not, natural magic is ‘usually’ if not ‘always’ more stable when used by the pony -or person in this case- came from. You see, my plan is already complete just like I told you. Celestia is no doubt already on her way here, and it’s her anger towards me that will ignite the inevitable chain reaction in your body.” “And what is this ‘thing’, that will spark the wick?” Kenneth stated not really buying into anything she was saying. River smiled, “The emotion of guilt and terror you’ll feel when you see a loved one turned into a monster. You will watch on as Celestia takes my life, the mare you have grown oh-so-fond-of killing another.” “But if she kills you how will you get your ‘immortality’ huh? Ever thought of that?” Kenneth said pointing out the obvious flaw in the plan. Getting back to her hooves River walked towards Ken, “Ever wonder about my name? River? You cannot kill something that is not -as you like to call- alive to begin with. When this form dies I’ll be able to pick a new host this one of much more potential. Like a river, I will keep flowing no matter what you try to do.” “Oh great another extremist, it's not like Earth has enough of them already. Let me tell you something River, once you die you die. There is no second chance, maybe when Celestia shoots a bolt of magic through that thick skull of yours you’ll see. But, as for right now, you still have a chance to stop all of this.” Ken lectured. “Humans, you think you know it all, don’t you? It shall be you whose eyes will open when Celestia ‘the beloved ruler’ strikes me down.” And just like that River turned towards the door and exited the boat house. While it all didn’t blow over immediately, hope was still strong with me as I walked down the crowded streets of New York. My eyes darting all over the place as large electronic billboards flashed their flashy advertisements, and street vendors all but shoved their products down my throat. Though it pained me to say, it kind of reminded me of Canterlot on steroids. Maybe this is what the future held for my beloved city. Sadly, while my hope was high, I had nothing to go on. Sure, I could use some magic to locate Kenneth, but here in a crowded city -where even the alleyways were stuffed- would only serve to bring more attention to me. Not like I wasn’t already, walking down the street cladded with golden armor. Ironic as it were, a city filled with people and I still couldn’t get help even if I wanted to. These humans only seemed to care about their own lives. While it did help me stay under the radar, I couldn’t help but feel bad for the humans that were too absorbed in their cellular devices to even notice something that stood out as much as me. I started to wonder if Ken was like this before he came to Equestria. Was he just as absorbed in his worlds modern day that he forgot to even take in the world itself. Along with that train of thought, I finally started to understand what it felt like to be in Kenneth's shoes in Equestria. All alone, not being able to really trust anyone. Looking at the sidewalk lines the thoughts continued to plague my mind. They kept sending shivers down my spine every step I took. Did Ken really belong in Equestria, or would it be better if he stayed here when this all was over? A place where he could start anew with his own kind rather than living in Canterlot amongst different beings. As much as I didn’t want to think it, I knew the answer. Lifting my head up, a small street shop caught my attention. More specifically a card rack that was left just outside the shop for people to peruse. Weaving between the crowd I raced towards the rack and picked up the card that had caught my attention. It had a picture of a lake that looked oddly familiar, the text “Missing you at Oaklyn Lake” was spread across the front in large font. Taking the card, I went inside the shop and walked up to the store clerk, “How far away is this place and in what direction?” I all but shouted. A bit taken back by my tone, the clerk took a second to recover from the initial shock, “In a hurry for a vacation I see,” He started, taking the card from my hand and looking at the picture, “Ah Oaklyn lake, beautiful place. My father used to go there with his friend’s way back when. Wish I had the money and time off to go there.” He commented with a long look in his eyes. Already irritated from the day's events I finally cracked, “Shut-up!” This was the first time in a long time I had lost my cool over something so trivial. The poor store owner was left wide-eyed with a look of fear stretched across his face. Taking a deep breath, I restated my question, “I just need to know how I can get there.” For the second time during this conversation the store clerk had to recover, “I-It’s about a five-hour drive north of here. There's a bus that goes to Oaklyn every day at six at the port authority bus terminal.” “What time is it now?” I pestered the man. Rolling up his sleeve he looked at his watch, “Cutting it close if you want to make the bus today. It’s five o’clock right now and the station is across town.” “North or south?” I continued to question him as he continued to fiddle with his watch. “How much north can you get? We're five minutes from the water, of course it's going to be south,” Before he could even look up, I was already out the door and back in the crowded streets. “They really need to beef up the educational system,” He commented now alone in the shop. Entering the crowd, I looked up for the sun, but could not find it. Once again, I found myself fighting off the irony of the situation. Here I was the goddess of the sun and I couldn’t even find it with all these buildings in the way. Not only that, but all of my ways of determining the cardinal directions were useless here in this urban environment. Letting out a sigh of frustration, I looked around trying to find anything that could help. Turning towards the road I came to see a glass booth with a map on it. Finally striking some form of luck I ran over to it and quickly got myself re-orientated. Just as the store clerk stated, I was going to be cutting it close with time. Even in a dead sprint and with nobody on the sidewalks I would get there with only a few minutes to spare. So, I did what anyone would have done in this situation. I started to run; I started to run like my life depended on it. At first it was kind of awkward running on two legs but eventually, it all came to me naturally. It almost amazed me how fast and maneuverable the human body was compared to my pony form. Sure, I was faster as a pony, but as a human I found myself weaving, ducking and even sliding around people like it was nothing. All around people gave me weird looks as they watched me race past them. My golden armor clinking and clacking with every step. My breaths became more rugged as my stamina started to run dry, the downfall for wearing such heavy armor. Then it hit me, like a wave of power my legs went numb and I felt like I could run faster and longer. The human body sure had its pleasant surprises, it was almost as if they were built for these types of situations. Thankfully, since the streets were already packed tight crossing the roads was not a problem as I slipped between the cars. Each one letting me know I was an idiot by blaring their horns at me. Yet, I didn’t care. They could keep honking at me. For I knew that every second I wasted would be a second this world was in danger. Ignoring all the noises I ran faster. The feeling like I was invincible was starting to settle in. It was like nothing could stop me! Whistling a little toon to himself, Ken watched as the door to the boathouse opened to reveal River once again. She had a bowl of what looked to be some form of soup in her magical grasp. Even though he had seen it before in Equestria, to see magic being used here on Earth was pretty surreal. Nonetheless, he raised his eyebrow as River levitated the bowl in front of him, “You’re actually going to feed me? You’re the worst evil villain I know of.” River rolled her eyes, “I didn’t come all this way to see my plan die from starvation. Now eat up before I have second thoughts.” Not the one to argue with food, Ken swooped up the food with his now freed hands and started to go to town. It had been a full day now since he had last eaten, and he was not going to let any of this soup go to waste. River looked on towards her captive from the other side of the room. The more she took in this ‘human world’ the more it fascinated her. A species built with the idea that magic was no more than folklore and fairy tales; and yet here they are breaching the technological advancements ponies would die to have their hooves on. By the time she had gotten herself out of her stupor, Kenneth was already done with the soup. What surprised her was that even though he was completely free with nothing holding him back, he made no move to escape. Either he knew there was no chance of escaping or he was very stupid. “This all can’t be for power,” Ken finally stated as he looked over to her. River raised an eyebrow at this, “Why can’t it be? Hmm?” Ken leaned his head back up against the wooden poll, “Everyone has their reasons for gaining power. It’s not simply because they want it, more of what they can achieve with it. So, what is your goal here once you have the power huh? And don't give me that take over Equestria bullshit, there's more to this than that.” Once again River found herself pleasantly surprised on Kenneth's observations and use of deduction. Just one day with her, and he had already started to untie the truth of what was going on. Was it because she was already caught lying multiple times or was it the fact that humans may be more intelligent than she had originally thought. Nevertheless, she would make do with lying once again. Letting him in on her true motives would make room for a counterattack, and that was something that River took pride in avoiding this far. On the other side of things, Kenneth had a plan of his own stirring. He knew full well that whenever he would ask something as important like this, River would just blow him off with another lie. Once again, he was right, for at the moment River was going on and on about how she would use the power she gained to rebel and make a better world. But as Kenneth liked to think, there was some truth in the lie, no matter how much you tried to cover it up. From this, he could already see her fake facade start to fall apart at the seams. River didn’t want this power for world domination like any classic villain. No, from what she was telling him, she wanted this power for revenge. Something that was much more cliché in our modern world. The only question was to whom was this revenge geared towards. A question that came to him by the end of Rivers little speech. Not only had she been cozying up to a certain princess her entire life in order for her to get here, but she had also planned for that certain princess to come here to Earth where they would be alone with nothing to stop her. This, of course, was a theory that only needed to be proven right, and what better way to prove a theory right then make River blurt it out from frustration. Which, if this was really all about revenge should be easy. All he needed to do was say nice things about Celestia and maybe, just maybe she will spill the beans. Bursting through the Port Authority bus station doors panting, I came to see hundreds of people all running around. The building was packed tighter than Luna’s sky on the winter solstice. Thankfully, however, I still had ten minutes to lose due to my dead sprint all the way here. Yet the more I look at the large crowd in front of me; the more it would seem that I would have just enough time to figure out what bus I needed to get on. Without a second thought, I pushed myself into the fray towards a large monitor attached to the ceiling. From a distance, I could see a lengthy list that scrolled every few seconds, displaying multiple names and times. Like a moth, I clung to the only light around and pushed my way towards the monitor. With my hopes held high, I found myself before the screen in mere seconds. Looking up I could see the names of what I could only assume were different bussing companies and their destination/arrival times. My eyes darted across the monitor hoping to find one that read Oaklyn, but the more I read the page the more my hope started to dwindle. Every new page that scrolled on by was devoid of the one name I was looking for. At one point, I was about to leave and find another way to Oaklyn when the last page of the board came up. Instantly my eyes snapped to the familiar name on the board. My heart almost stopped when I read that it was already in the boarding phase. Shaking the negative thoughts out of my head, my eyes snapped to the bus and gate numbers. I don’t think I have ever remembered a number as quickly as I did with these two. Using all my leftover strength I once again dove into the crowd, pushing and shoving people out of my way. To anyone in Equestria, my actions would be frowned upon and I would be called out even as a princess for shoving ponies aside. Yet, here in ‘New York’ it was almost as if these people encouraged it. After all, if I didn’t do what I was doing now I would have already missed the bus. Every step I took reignited the fire in my lungs, every breath was a chore as I fought to keep my vision from blurring over. It seems that all these ‘added’ abilities come at a cost, I thought to myself as I finally got to a break in the crowd. The area I found myself in was massive, the sound of the buses filled the room as the smell of burning oil filled the air. Looking around I could see multiple buses sitting at their gates and the people swarming around them. Shifting my gaze, I came to see the gate numbers upon the pillars. My mind immediately went into overdrive as I skipped from one pillar to the other looking for the one that held the bus I was looking for. Time was short and if I didn’t find it within the next couple of seconds I would be sure it would be gone. Pushing passed another group of people waiting for their bus, I finally came to the gate I was looking for. Sadly, however, the bus that was at the station was already starting to roll away from the gate. Without even thinking about the consequences, I reached deep down into my soul and pulled my magic to the surface. The area around me started to glow golden as my eyes locked onto the bus driving away in front of me. I am not going to miss my ride! I yelled to myself as I completed the spell.