//------------------------------// // Onwards // Story: Rainbow's Lonesome Road // by Centurion Pike-Wall //------------------------------// "F***, f***, f***!" She hissed to herself as she paced back and forth. She had, in her excitement at meeting Daring Do, one crucial detail. Something rather important. Something that could spell a certain disaster for her. Daring Do was an book series. Well, that wasn't exactly why. It was a very popular book series. Even if none of the other traitors picked it up, out of 'respect' or some s*** like that, Twi read them. She was the one who introduced them to her, after all. So, she would surely read the newest one. The one, that had her in it! While she didn't look exactly like her old self, they could figure out if was her. And they would go down to the authors place, and get some questions answered. That would lead them down here, to her. And they would likely the to force her to come home. You know, to be BRAINWASHED! Void growled in anger, then continued to pace. What could she do? Who knew where Daring Do was, so she couldn't just ask not to be featured or something like that. So, that left two options. Wait for them to come to her, or run. She knew that, for safety, the traitors would bring royal guards, or even the princess. Even if they didn't, they would outnumber her, and not right fair. So, that left one option; leave the cave and head toward Kells Keep. Even if it wasn't a town or it was abandoned, she could hide there or get something useful out of it. She then considered her other options. She was saddened to find that there weren't many. Going back to Equestria on her own was a no go. Even if she could hide, her lack of cutie mark and still spectral colored hair would give her away. And she didn't even know which way to go to get back there. That was also the problem with going to any other of the places she'd been. She could go back to them, and they likely wouldn't know to look their. But she didn't know which way to go to get there. So, Kells Keep was her best bet. Her mind made up, she moved to grab what she could. Which, disappointingly, was not too much. She had the sword, connected to a leather strap. The rest of the stuff in the cave was either too big to carry, had no use, or would be too inefficient to carry. As such, all she ended up taking beside the sword was the was of SBs she managed to con Caballeron out of, which she stuck in a small pocket on the scabbard. She then set off from the cave She had called home for almost a month. Immediately, she was met with a problem: the mud. It completely surrounded the Cave mouth, and when she stepped in it, she sank up to her knees. She began to trudge over toward the path, hoping to be free of the mud on the firmer packed, higher up ground. It wasn't easy; the mud constantly trying to pull her downward. Only her constant movement kept her from sinking. Eventually, she reached a ditch along the edge of the road. She tried to climb up it, but couldn't. She was by no means weak, as she would often practice While in the cave. But the mud was even thicker here, making climbing up near impossible. Whenever she would get up a certain distance, she would just slide back down. Getting a handhold was near impossible. As she figured the path was at least somewhat sturdy, it would help her move along faster. So, after failing her fourth attempt, she began to think. Her mind then came to her sword; in particular, it's cross guard. She pulled it out, revealing that it was, thankfully, not coated in the stuff. She turned it around, and gripped the blade in her hoof. While it hurt a little, it certainly did help. She swung it down on the path, the cross guard buring itself in the mud. A quick tug showed that it was actually pretty deeply embedded. She began to pull herself up, the mud now aiding her, acting as a sort of lubrication. Despite this, it still took some time before she was fully out of the ditch. She was coated in mud, with only her back being completely free of it. However, she finally pulled herself up onto the path. The ground on the raised position was still wet and muddy, but considerably less so. It was also more or less clear of obstruction, with only the odd stick or pile of leaves obstructing the path. But her troubles weren't over. When she went to retrieve her sword, she found it stuck. The cross guard was so deeply in the ground, that it was stuck. A few good guys with her teeth did nothing, so Void tried with her forehooves. Even after giving it all she had, it wouldn't budge. Not deterred, she pulled with one last burst of strength. Finally, it gave.... ....and sent Void tumbling off the other end of the road. She fell on her back and slid down, coming to a stop at the crusp of the ditch. Now she was completely covered in mud, and with all her scars, it was not a pleasant feeling. On the plus side, the blade was free from the mud. As she stood up, she saw that the ditch on this side of the road was less steep. This meant she just climbed up the side with little effort. When she was on the firmer path, she put her sword back in the scabbard, unslung it, and set it down. She then took a few steps, and shook like a dog. Most of the mud flew off, save for a few stubborn clumps. She turned around to get her sword, but found it was gone. Alarmed, her head shot from side to side, looking for who had taken her only source of protection and money. She was nothing and no one. Not one living thing, unless you counted the trees and bushes. She was more than a little panicked. If something could steal her weapon and only money so easily, how easily could it kill her? Knowing she could do nothing about it, she proceed to move along the road, eyes darting side to side. She hoped that whatever it was would not try to attack her.