//------------------------------//
// Don't Forget the Prestige 
// Story: Ofolrodi 
// by Imploding Colon 
//------------------------------//

The mountains dropped.

And they gave way to a valley—more like an expanse—that was filled to the brim with towering spires.  Row after row of gigantic, jutting structures sliced the sky for as far as the bent horizon could afford.  What's more, each spire reflected a portion of the twilight above, contributing to a grand blue sheen that illuminated the expanse and glinted off of the Herald's gawking expressions.  The reason for the structures' reflective nature was that they were covered all over with glass... and with windows.

They were artificial.  It was a city.

Dead still, ghostly, and devoid of movement... but a metropolis none of the less.  A city like nothing Rainbow Dash had ever seen before.

Her eyes slowly lowered, and she spotted bridges—elevated platforms—that hugged the midsections of the towers.  Her gaze desenced further, and she spotted smaller buildings, geometric structures that were packed together, residential complexes, open courtyards overgrown with luminescent fungae, and countless winding streets that were littered with dormant structures and loose debris.

Rainbow glanced towards Alpha and Omega... and she still could not tell where the city ended... if it ended.  For all she knew, it stretched across the dim continent like an urban belt.  And yet—as she and the rest of her friends continued gazing—it was quieter than death.  A pindrop would undoubtedly send thunder reverberating through the vacant downtown.

"Rarity..."  Rainbow Dash finally murmured, making Ariel and Kepler jolt.  She swallowed a lump down her throat and further whispered:  "Is it... it actually—?"

"Yes, darling," Rarity exhaled.  Her gorgeous eyes were locked on the static spectacle below.  "Purely hoof-built."

"Built... by ponies?"  Rainbow's voice cracked.  "Or by what?"

There was no response.

"Rainbow Dash..."  Twilight Sparkle began.  "Do you remember the sketches we found in Darkreach?  There were... spires beyond mountains..."

"Did they see this as well?" Rarity murmured.  "Or are we the first to feast our eyes on it?"

Twilight looked at the other ghostly unicorn.  "Just how far does it stretch, Rarity?"

She slowly shook her head.  "I cannot tell..."

"Land's sakes..."  Applejack murmured, hovering next to Pinkie Pie.  "...this place could house millions... millions..."  She grimaced.  "M-my mind's got an empty apple core right now.  What's bigger than a million?"

"A million million!" Pinkie squeaked.

Applejack nodded in agreement.  She looked aside.  "Fluttershy?"

"Do... do you detect anything?" Twilight murmured.

Fluttershy bit her lip.

Rainbow looked at her this time.  "Flutters?"

"About... the same thing I witnessed back during our previous treks," Fluttershy said.  "Some mushroom clusters... bioluminescent creatures... animals nestled here and there..."

"In other words..."  Rarity trembled slightly.  "The original denizens are all...?"

Fluttershy's ears drooped.  "For how big this place is... I don't detect a single resident."

Silence.

"What... even is this place?" Twilight murmured.  "How could it have been built on the Dark Side?"

Rainbow's muscles tensed.  "Only one way to find out."

She kicked her legs... and flapped her wings.  Seraphimus flinched slightly, awaking to the reality of the moment.  She watched as Rainbow Dash gently glided out into the urban mess... with Wildcard and Ariel following close behind.