//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 // Story: Tomorrow is Always a New Day // by Wheller //------------------------------// Chapter 7 “All right, everybody out of the tent.” Twilight Sparkle, Vinyl Scratch, and Rainbow Dash slowly made their way out into the open air. They froze; partially because of how cold it was, but mostly because there was a Gryphon pointing a weapon at them. Twilight was more interested in the weapon, she knew what it was, but she’d only seen one before. The Gryphon was holding a rifle, its long barrel lined with an extremely sharp looking blade which protruded several centimetres out, so that the weapon could easily be used for shooting, slashing, or stabbing. There was a gap between the barrel and blade on the forward part where a Gryphon could grip without worrying about the blade cutting into them. The stock had a handle that protruded down, allowing for another grip where the Gryphon could easily pull the hair trigger. Out of the right side, a small metal bolt extruded, Twilight knew this was how the weapon was operated, because the firearm she had seen before, the one belonging to Roy Melbourne, operated in exactly the same manner. The Gryphon was floating in the air flapping its wings, Twilight realised that this was the only way such a weapon could be operated, as Gryphons were normally quadrupedal like ponies were. Meaning this weapon had to be used when flying. Twilight had been focusing on the Gryphon’s weapon. However, Rainbow Dash was more interested in its owner. “Gilda?” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. The Gryphon looked over at the Pegasus in surprise, but did not lower her weapon. “Rainbow Dash?” Rainbow nodded in affirmation, smiling at the Gryphon. Gilda scowled at her, raising the gryphon rifle above her head and smashing Rainbow in the face with the back end, knocking her unconscious. “Pick her up,” Gilda said coldly. Vinyl lifted Rainbow with her magic and set her down gently on her back. Blood trickled down from the pegasus’ stained rainbow coloured mane and onto the ground. “March.” Twilight and Vinyl certainly had little choice, they started walking. They didn’t ask where they were going they had a feeling that Gilda would... point them in the right direction. They walked nearly an hour in what Twilight guessed was somewhere in the northerly spectrum, She wanted to ask Vinyl, who’s freaky accurate sense of direction would know, but instead, she had a more important question that she wanted to risk asking. “Do you want me to carry her for a while?” Vinyl shook her head. “Unicorns aren’t exactly known for their strength.” “You’re a unicorn too, Vinyl.” “I’m abnormal,” Vinyl said. Twilight was somewhat surprised when her companion didn’t grin at her, as she normally would have upon making a statement such as this. “NO TALKING!” Gilda roared at them, brandishing her rifle in their general direction. The two unicorn mares remained silent. ... They walked for several hours. Vinyl was still carrying Rainbow Dash on her back, and showed no signs of tiring. Rainbow Dash did have the advantage of being both a Pegasus and a mare. Pegasi were lightly built to give them an advantage of manoeuvrability, not to mention that mares of all three races were smaller and lighter than their stallion counterparts. But even with this, Vinyl still had to have had some ungodly amount of endurance in order to have continued to carry her as far as she had. Twilight would have been lucky to have gotten a 20 metres carrying Rainbow. Vinyl had to have carried her 20 kilometres. Twilight was tired. They’d made a much brisker pace than they did crossing countryside when they were still in Equestria, but even if Gilda wouldn’t have been there to maim her for complaining about it, she wouldn’t have anyway, because she knew that Vinyl had it so much harder. Eventually they stopped, Twilight found themselves in the middle of a camp of some twenty gryphons. “Look what I found!” Gilda called out triumphantly. “Good for you Lance Bombardier!” one of the other gryphons called out. Twilight and Vinyl could tell that this gryphon was being sarcastic. Twilight guessed that “Lance Bombardier” was Gilda’s title. “Make yourself useful Gilda. Go stick ‘em in the holding pen,” another gryphon called out. “Yes sergeant!” Gilda called back, pointing her weapon at the ponies again and they marched again, this time only a short distance to a small fenced in area. Gilda forced them inside, shutting the door behind them and leaving without another word. Vinyl lifted Rainbow off her back, gently setting her down on the ground, and subsequently collapsed from exhaustion. ... She heard a creek flowing. That can’t be, they’d all be frozen over. Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; she looked around and found grass. She was lying in the middle of a field, the sun shining brightly over her head. What in the name of...? Humming, she heard humming, Rainbow perked her head up. She wasn’t in any old field. She was in the one just across from Fluttershy’s cottage. She could see it! She looked around and saw the familiar yellow Pegasus, holding a watering can in her mouth and allowing it to drain on several flowers at her hooves. “I don’t get it,” Rainbow said aloud, half talking to Fluttershy, half talking to herself. Fluttershy jumped little in surprise, typical Fluttershy, the meek Pegasus was afraid of her own shadow, let alone a sudden word from a pony who she probably thought was asleep. Fluttershy looked over to Rainbow Dash, she opened her mouth to speak, causing her to drop the watering can, and was frightened by the noise it made, she squeaked, but otherwise quickly regained her composure. “Oh good! You’re awake! I was afraid that you’d sleep all day... although I suppose that would have been all right if it was what you wanted to do...” Fluttershy said, her voice trailing off. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, and got to her hooves, she felt a splitting pain, and clutched her head. “Oh... my, Rainbow, are you okay?” Fluttershy asked as she made her way over. She gasped. “Rainbow... you’re bleeding!” Rainbow was, she felt the warm sticky blood and found herself gulping. Fluttershy was deathly afraid of blood. She could tell that the meek Pegasus was nervous, but was surprised to see Fluttershy fight through it. “Come on. We’re going to get that nice and bandaged up!” Fluttershy said reassuringly. The two pegasi crossed the field to Fluttershy’s cottage, quickly bandaging Rainbow’s head before Fluttershy fainted from looking at it. “What happened Rainbow? You weren’t bleeding when you went to sleep,” Fluttershy asked her. Rainbow wasn’t sure. The last thing she remembered was setting camp with Vinyl and Twilight the night before. “I don’t know... Last thing I remember was being at the Hoofson Bay...” Rainbow said. Fluttershy looked at her friend nervously. “Um... Rainbow? That was like, four months ago.” Rainbow didn’t believe it, how could she just not remember four months passing? Although, she did suppose it would explain the lack of snow if it was spring now. “I need to find Vinyl and Twilight,” Rainbow said. “Who?” Rainbow Dash’s eyes widened. “How could you NOT know who that is!? Twilight is our friend!” “I know who Twilight is!” Fluttershy squeaked, she’d been assertive towards Rainbow, but had surprised herself by doing it. “Who’s Vinyl?” And then a realisation hit her, maybe Vinyl didn’t come back with them? “Doesn’t matter right now, we need to go see Twilight.” ... Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash knocked on the door to the Ponyville Library. The door opened and Twilight was standing in the opening, she smiled at her friends, but gasped in surprise when looking at Dash. “Rainbow! What happened to your head!?” “I don’t know,” Rainbow shrugged. “Twilight, I need your help, where is Vinyl?” Twilight looked at her oddly. “What?” Rainbow facehoofed, which had turned out to be a poor choice of action, because it sent a throb of searing pain through her head, she ignored it. “Please tell me you know who Vinyl Scratch is.” Twilight gave her a deadpanned look. “Of course I do Rainbow, don’t be ridiculous... I just don’t know where she is. I haven’t seen her in months. Neither have you, to the best of my knowledge.” Twilight stepped out of the doorway, ushering the two ponies inside. They discovered they weren’t the only visitors to the Library. Sitting in a corner was an all black unicorn stallion with amber eyes, which for some reason looked very familiar to Rainbow Dash, but she couldn’t place him. “Oh... my, I’m sorry, we didn’t know you had a guest Twilight.” Fluttershy said. The black unicorn rose to his hooves. “Oh, don’t worry about me, I was actually just leaving. I’ll see you tomorrow Twilight?” Twilight smiled at the other unicorn. “Of course,” and with a polite smile to Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash, he departed from the Library. “Who was that?” Rainbow Dash asked. Twilight’s face turned bright red. “Oh... that’s, um, Nightshadow, we’re kind of... together.” “What?” Rainbow Dash asked in surprise, “Since when?!” “It’s been about... oh, five months?” Twilight said, embarrassment still filling her face. “What?” Rainbow Dash said again. “Why is this the first time I’m hearing about this?!” Did you know?” Rainbow said, looking to Fluttershy, who quietly shook her head no. “Oh... well, um, we’re not like... official or anything. It’s just that, well, I’m not seeing anypony, and neither is he... and we do spend a lot of time together... maybe I’m being presumptuous but...” Twilight’s voice trailed off again, causing Rainbow to facehoof, sending another round of pain through her. “Fluttershy? Don’t let me do that again.” Rainbow was even more confused now than she had been back at Fluttershy’s cottage. Something wasn’t right here, and she intended to get to the bottom of it.