//------------------------------//
// IV 
// Story: Panthalassa 
// by WritingSpirit 
//------------------------------//

.


IV


.

Cape Silverwatch was a three-day trip away from Canterlot. It was situated on Voskós Crook, a large, rocky Manehatten-sized island off a section of the western Equestrian coastline close to the borders of the southern deserts, connected to the mainland only by an isthmus. The island was mostly forested with a pair of tall mountains in the center, the town itself taking up most of its eastern coastline. Formerly used as a fortress for detaining prisoners in times of bitter conflict, which was destroyed in a fiery explosion as a result of some gunpowder barrels being struck by lightning, it was rebuilt as a small merchant village and trading port, drawing in settlers from all over and quickly became one of the most recognized tourist destinations in all of Equestria.

A total of seventeen carriages — nine for us professors and assistants, four for the guard, and four for transporting our combined equipment and supplies — were chartered for our expedition, setting off from the capital through Ponyville and stopping for a night at Appleloosa, before making a leisurely trip towards Seaward Shoals. As the path from then onward was precarious and too narrow for our carriages to pass through, we had to finish the remainder of the trip on our four hooves, hauling what equipment we could carry for the time being. The rest of our equipment will be brought over in the next few days, as I've mentioned earlier, with a select number of guards assigned to stay behind at Seaward Shoals to keep watch until they've all been fully transported.

We arrived at our destination on summer's eve, sighing in sheer relief when the town's blue-domed roofs emerged from between the last of the rocky hills. The final downward bends of the dirt path before us faded into a road of rigid cobblestone, bridging the rest of the world with this quaint sanctuary. Marking the town entrance on the other end of it was an alabaster archway, adorned with carved bells of bronze that sway heftily in the stray coastal winds with the glummest of tolls. It was perhaps not the grandest welcome for us into the pearlescent embrace of Cape Silverwatch, yet it was breathtaking all the same, for there were many beautiful things that mere images conjured in an auditorium could never hope to capture: the distant waltz of the waves, the fuzzy and frivolous scent of the ocean, the calm and soothing ambiance flowing between the whitewashed walls, the gentle caress of each individual stone beneath our hooves as we made our way into the town. One would proclaim that Cape Silverwatch was a paradise that prospered down to its smallest detail, to which I say it's a proclamation well-founded.

Briefly handing over our permits and other relevant documents for inspection, the guards posted at the archway soon escorted us through the city. Despite the circumstances surrounding the Emancipation, the narrow streets were still filled with ponies trotting about, taking in all the sights and sounds that this otherworldly place has to offer. The local ponies greeted us with the brightest and gracious of smiles; a technique mastered from year after year of welcoming tourists. We had leisurely traversed through the winding streets, the domiciles around us no taller than that of three ponies stacked on top of each other, their walls painted a glossy white. Almost around every corner, there was an outdoor cafe, if not a shop selling scented candles and mosaic pottery. There were some notable sights, like a small library overlooking the ocean and a winery, and were it not for our expedition, I would not hesitate to arrange a visit.

We were lead to the Silverwatch Guards Barracks, one of the town's several multistoried buildings standing tall amid the low-lying houses by the mountainside. According to Vellum, the structure itself was once a monastery, built back in the early days when worshiping Princess Celestia as the Goddess of the Sun was still common practice. Remnants of that past still remain, as evidenced by the sun motifs on the wrought iron gates that we passed by as we entered, as well as the now-empty belfry jutting from the roof of the barracks. Cantering across the tiled grounds to the entrance, scattering a flock of pigeons in the process, we were asked to place our luggage aside, before we were brought to the main offices. In there, the guards gathering around a large table had their eyes glued intently to the various assortments of documents and photographs fanned out before them, only to perk up when they've noticed our entrance.

"You must be the expedition team Her Royal Highness had sent," one of the ponies spoke up and approached us, his coat a dark mulberry and his royal yellow mane tied into a braided bun. He looked to be in his late thirties, if not early forties if the slight creases on his forehead were of any indication. His tangerine gaze, though sincere, was piercing, carefully eyeing each and every one of us as he stuck out a hoof towards Professor Brightward, who shook it flusteredly. "Sergeant First Class Vale Brackens. A pleasure to finally meet."

"Professor Slate Brightward, expedition leader. Likewise."

A nod. "Her Royal Highness wasn't kidding this time when she mentioned an expedition team," he remarked, before letting out a chuckle. "No offense meant, f'course. We don't get much visitors on business here, royal or otherwise."

"Considering the locale, I'd expect it to be so," Professor Brightward responded as such, the two of them sharing a light laugh; something tells me that he and the sergeant are going to enjoy each other's company. "I suppose that you have been briefed on our prospects from my last letter."

"I was just running it over with the company, in fact." With a cock of his head, he beckoned us over to the table. Getting a closer look, there were some photographs of Latreia's Lagoon, the atoll which was also the supposed source of the Emancipation. What caught everyone's eyes, however, were the multitude of pictures showing the turquoise doors of several different homes around town, their surfaces all splattered in various crisscrosses of what I'm hoping was red paint. It unsettled me as it did everyone else, even some of the guard, though the sergeant was not one of them.

"They're pretty much the reason why I've requested another platoon from Canterlot," he said with a grimace. "Been happening since that light came up in the sky, so says the locals. All I can say is our vandals must really love the occult."

"It shouldn't be a concern for us. Right?" I asked the question on our team's mind.

"Don't think so. Vandalism is no stepping stone to anything too drastic. Certain it's just a bunch of yobs looking to ruffle a few feathers. Nothing a stern warning couldn't fix. Just a pain to manage this and your expedition at the same time, that's all." Sergeant Brackens cantered off to the side before returning with some files. "I suppose we have a lot to talk about what our plans are for the next few days. Perhaps it's best you all settle in first, though I need one pony from the team to stay behind and help me with looking over the necessary papers. I know this is royal business and all, but the bureaucracy here would be after my flank if we don't have the proper warrants. Any volunteers?"

It was pretty obvious to everyone on the team who can best fill that position. With a rough nicker, Professor Brightward turned to the rest of us, his frown growing when faced with all our sheepish smiles.

"You've heard the sergeant. Get to it."





We had the privilege of having the proper accommodations arranged for us at the behest of the princesses. For the whole duration of our expedition, we were sojourned at the Polytima, a hotel located several blocks down the street from the barracks. It was a modest establishment, as most things are in Cape Silverwatch, easily blending in with all the homesteads along the hilly pathways. Despite that, we remained in awe of its amenities the moment we trotted inside the lobby, for the Polytima reveled in simplicity, what with the rattan swing chairs hanging from the ceiling instead of the usual lobby couches and the aquamarine bottle lamps glimmering upon the driftwood tables. The reception counter was itself a craggy stone slab that seemed to have been dredged out from the bottom of the ocean, behind from which stood a mare of a pale beige coat and swirly coral mane tied up into a ponytail, her smile as pleasant as the hotel itself.

"The name's Olive Branch, owner of the Polytima," she said with a practiced dip of her head. "I know this place doesn't seem like much compared to many others, but we do the best we can. It really, really is an honor to grace all of you with our hospitality."

"We'll be in your care," I spoke up for the team as the hotel staff scurried over to tend to our bags. "Do you happen to know a good place for dinner?"

"Oh, well I..." she feigned a cough. "Well, I personally recommend the restaurant across the street, two blocks down. Their salads are particularly exquisite. They come in pretty sizable servings too! B-But not that you needed to know that, of course!"

Olive's words really had been a gross understatement; we had ordered six bowls of lentil salads, which as it turns out was equivalent to almost twenty-four bowls back in Canterlot. We had also ordered three bottles of a locally-brewed liqueur known as kitron, the dreadful amount of which actually arrived at our table I refuse to divulge to anyone else to this very day. Despite our blunder, we quickly turned it around when Silica suggested making it a celebratory welcome feast, and we did exactly that, perhaps a bit too enthusiastically. Professor Brightward could only groan and shake his head when he and the sergeant joined us a little later, though he was quick to warm up to the idea once he had his first glass. Now, if you had asked me, our first night in Cape Silverwatch went without a hitch. Some of the others would disagree, though I would like to add that they were also the ones who had passed out after having one too many drinks at the dinner table. All in all, it was a wonderful feast, even if we had only been celebrating our arrival.

"Think your best bet would be the graphene antenna I mentioned earlier," I faintly recalled from that night the words of Professor Sinusoid, one of the four head physicists on the expedition team. It was deep into the night then. Half of the team had fallen asleep at the dinner table whereas the rest of us were still conversing among ourselves, trying our best to delay our eventual submission to slumber, be it by fatigue or alcohol. "It's still in its preliminary stages, but we have so far tested it with N-O abbreviation for naturally-occuring ethereal waves modulated down to a frequency of a T-lux. If we go by our experiment alone, it's highly likely you'll get some results."

I thanked him for his insight, having approached him to inquire about acquiring the proper apparatus for future experiments. Even after such a raucous celebration, I believed I shouldn't remain idle in my pursuit of the ocean's best-kept secrets. With all these fellow society members around, I had thought it best to approach them, hoping to broaden my perspective and diversify the palette of options laid before me, though I do concede that it may not have been done at the most appropriate setting, considering that most of them were in a drunken stupor at the time.

My team of assistants were no different— well, most of them, as Silica loathed being around alcohol and had been so long before I even met her. She immediately took her leave once she finished up her share of the salad and the drinks started coming in, shooting her rare and elusive grimace at the bottles as she left. On the contrary, I'm pretty sure Redshift and Jade each emptied out more than a few bottles by themselves, though the latter pony had already dozed off on her coltfriend's shoulder by the time I saw them again. Upon noticing my lingering stare, Red gave me a flimsy wave, to which I responded with a terse nod.

Vellum, last I saw, had been deep in conversation with Professor Brightward and Sergeant Brackens; I imagined he had many an inquiry regarding the historical background and cultural makeup of Cape Silverwatch. The trio were still talking when I found them on the restaurant's external wooden deck, standing at the balcony and looking out into the ocean with bottles in hoof. The sergeant was the first to notice my presence, greeting me with a cordial nod as I made my way towards them. "Everything okay, Miss?" he asked.

"Just wanted to join in. Everyone else is a little preoccupied at the moment." I turned my glance to my two fellow academics still staring out into the ocean. "Can you see it from here? Latreia's Lagoon?"

Professor Brightward gestured towards a patch of ocean northwest, hidden behind the isle's rocky cliffs. "Thirty to fifty-five minutes' ride in that direction. Got some treacherous rocks that we'll have to make our way around. The tides there can be really choppy in a storm, so we may have to do some rescheduling if the weather's acting up." 

"Not that the locals here would be insane enough to want to go there when it's raining anyway," the sergeant piped up. "They can brave a storm or two, but not on the way to the lagoon. The whole area's been known to sink a few ships, even in broad daylight."

"So wait, we're using the local sailors to help us?" I asked him.

"The veteran sailors, of course. They know these waters better than anyone. Plus, their schooners can carry any heavy equipment that your team had brought here." Sergeant Bracken was visibly troubled as he said that. "Now, I don't suppose the team's going to do anything to the lagoon itself?"

"No," the three of us said in unison. "Never," Vellum added exasperatedly.

"Good. Caught the ire of some folks when they heard about where the expedition was taking place. Some of them didn't want their little lagoon to be trampled upon."

"With good reason!" Vellum (again) blurted out a little too loudly. He turned to us expectantly, only to gawk at our blank stares, mine in particular. "Et tu, Moondancer? Seriously? It's a cultural heritage site! On top of it being a natural wonder, it's the site of the garrison instrumental in a land-to-sea skirmish that successfully repelled the Vattensprang Raiders in the Battle of the Five Trenches! Two hundred ponies against three thousand invaders in two weeks!"

"Well, I'm glad you know our history, even if it's a little embellished," the sergeant replied with an awkward chuckle. "It was also a pilgrimage site back in the day, though most ponies tend to gloss over that fact. Pagan worship's still a touchy subject for some, apparently."

I found myself looking back to the lagoon. "So, what do you think's waiting for us there?"

"Coral, if you're lucky," Professor Brightward responded. "Fish. Saltwater."

"Sand," Vellum added, stifling a snort. "Lots of sand."

I momentarily despaired at how aggravating my fellow professors can be at times.

"That sounds about right," Sergeant Brackens laughed along. "Anything more than the usual, I'd say we'll have every right to be worried."

"Since we're on the topic, you were here, right Sergeant?" I asked a question that has no doubt been lingering on the team's mind. "When the light shot up in the sky that day, you were here, weren't you?"

A curt sigh. "We saw a light coming from around where the lagoon was, just like the rest of the world, that's it." Sergeant Bracken's frown hardened for a brief second when he said that. "Look, I've had ponies from out of town pestering the townsfolk over and over if there was anything else we saw. Truth is, we're as clueless as anyone else. I wish I can make up some things just so we can get this all over with, but that's not my job. No, my job's to do what's best for the city, and right now, it just so happens to involve helping all of you."

I wanted to protest, but Professor Brightward gave me a light nudge.

"I know you've all discussed whatever great big ramifications were there in this world back in the capital, but out here, you should know we don't really care about those things," Sergeant Brackens continued. "All we care about is whether we can all go back to live our normal lives, some of us more so than others. As the days go by, you might find that those ponies may be a little more than happy to prove that."

"Was that supposed to be a threat?"

Vellum, unwisely, made that claim.

"That was a warning, Mr. Bound, but feel free to take it as you see fit," the sergeant pointedly responded with a glower. "We want answers more than anypony else, don't get me wrong. Are we willing to discard our livelihoods in the process of obtaining it? That I wonder."

"We just want to help," I spoke up in our defense. "Honest to goodness."

"I know, Miss. That's why I'm alright with your team coming here in the first place, but you must know that there may be some things here that cannot be helped in the first place, no matter how hard you try. Believe me, I've learned that the hard way." Sergeant Brackens cast his gaze out the balcony again, this time to the homesteads below us. "Cape Silverwatch is home to these folks, Professor, and they would defend it passionately against anything they see as a threat to their daily lives. Anything. And if enough of them deem that the threat is you?"

The sergeant downed the last of his bottle.

"Then you're gonna have a bigger problem than an apocalypse in your hooves."





Sergeant Brackens's grim words had echoed in my head for a while, even after we've returned to our hotel rooms. I think I must've mulled over them for almost an hour in the dark with only the distant sprays of the ocean in the background to keep me company. I found myself looking out at the town sometimes, wondering just what Princess Twilight would do were she here right now. After all, she's always the one who sets out on expeditions to save Equestria. I had considered writing to her to enquire about it, only to decide otherwise as I realize she may still be busy with her negotiational efforts in the northwest. Nonetheless, I wholeheartedly believed that our expeditionary efforts would be solely secluded to Latreia's Lagoon, and in no way would it affect the rest of the town.

To an extent, I was right.

"Professor Moondancer! Professor~! Wakey wakey, Prof!"

"Okay, I'm up, I'm up!" I pleaded for mercy, my hooves immediately fumbling in search of my glasses. "I'm up, Silica, I'm up, now can you please stop shaking me? Go check on Red and Jade for me, please."

"Will do, Prof!"

I suppose that's what I get for sharing a connected room with Silica Summerwind, not that I minded. I can't say for certain that it's a prospect I'll be looking forward to for the rest of our stay here, but she would be a great listener, should I need one. It may be surprising, but she can be attentive at the most important of times. Then again, with how much she idolizes me, it may just be an attitude she reserves towards me.

"Red and Jade are awake, Prof!" Silica declared, skipping back into our room. "Jade's still in the toilet from last night, so they might take a while. Red says sorry."

"It's fine, they probably won't be the only ones anyway." Pretty sure the rest of the team were still hungover as well, if the light migraine at the back of my head was of any indication. "Guess our expedition's gonna start off a little late."

True to my words, the expedition team had rendezvoused at the wharf seventeen minutes behind schedule. Professor Brightward spared no words in castigating us on the way there, though I admit I was personally too weary to catch even a snippet of what he said. Sergeant Brackens was already there waiting for us and chatting with two gruff-looking ponies, all of them chuckling when they spotted us dragging our hooves along the pier.

"Team looks worse for wear, Professor Brightward!" the sergeant remarked.

"They'll be fine, won't we?" he turned to the rest of us, who could only groan and nod in concession. "I'm pretty sure a little boat ride would wake them right up."

A snort. "If you say so." Sergeant Brackens gestured to the ponies by his side. "These two will be your captains for the expedition, Captain Kedge Hawsepiper of the Zenith and Captain Strake Holystone of the Eurus." Both of them stepped forward, the former nodding as he studied us, the latter tipping his captain's hat. "I've sent out a notice a week ago asking for help and they were the first to volunteer."

"Got our own crew and everything, so don't you worry none 'bout the heavy lifting," Captain Hawsepiper chirruped. "Just focus on figuring out the whole expedition business and leave the rest to us."

The expedition team was split into half to be assigned onto the ships, with my team of four joining Professor Brightward and Vellum Bound onto the Zenith along with the teams led by Professor Sinusoid and Professor Axion of the physics department, Professor Polyhedra of mathematics, Professor Octyne of chemistry, and Professor Corona, the team's lone biologist. The ships themselves were large carracks akin to those used by the naval explorers of yore, their triple-masted builds easily outsizing the many yachts and schooners around the harbor.

"Had her for a while now. My pride and joy," Captain Hawsepiper said, beaming when he noticed our marveled looks as he led us all up along the gangplank. "Can always rely on her for all my shipping work, but this'll be her first time being part of a full-fledged expedition! And to the lagoon, no less!"

"You've been to Latreia's Lagoon before, right?" Vellum slipped a question in.

"Many times, though not with a ship this big!" he bellowed with laughter. "Doubt you can fit her between the rocks without sinking her to the bottom anyway. Only way to get there is to anchor along the side, lower the rowboats and use those instead. We have some of the crew to manage with the rowing as well, so all you have to do is sit tight."

A collective sigh of relief washed over the team.

"Can't believe we're finally here," Jade said, looking out into the ocean once we placed all our satchels and equipment below deck. "Days and days of planning, all leading up to this."

"You excited?"

"Of course I am, Red! Aren't you?"

"I am, I am, it's just..." Redshift sighed as the three of us turned to glance at him. "What if there's nothing there? Like, what if we surveyed the whole place, top to bottom, and we find nothing?"

"Well, we could always try again tomorrow," I pointed out.

"Prof's right!" Silica gleefully whistled. "Plus, hello~? We're gonna be here for as long as everyone in this expedition wants to be! Princess Celestia got us all covered!"

"Yeah, I get that, but what if there's really nothing in the end, Silica? What then? What if this whole expedition ends up being a bust?"

Silence befell the four of us.

"Stop bumming us out, Red," Jade warned.

"I'm just saying—"

"Shut up. Shut. Up."

"JJ, I'm being realistic here—"

"—and I'm asking you not to ruin it for us, Redshift Ruff. I don't want to hear that coming from you. Anyone but you."

"I..." Red sighed again, before he let out a flustered chuckle. "S-Sorry, just... I guess I was just being nervous. I mean, look at where we are! Look at the ship! It's like we're part of the Equestrian Armada! Look at where we're heading! What we're doing! It's—I just—I... I dunno, I don't think my heart's ready for this."

"I don't think my heart's ready either," I admitted. "But hey, even if there really is nothing waiting for us in the end, at least we can say that we had a great time, right? This is Cape Silverwatch we're talking about! Having a great time's part and parcel of the experience!"

Red was quick to warm up that idea, and before long, we were once again chattering excitedly about the possibilities of discovering unrecognized sources of arcane energy on the atoll. I will admit, I hadn't expected Redshift Ruff of all ponies to be nervous about the fruits of our expedition. He was always steadfast and headstrong, sometimes to his detriment what with his brashness thrown into the mix. He may have a point of the expedition possibly leading us nowhere, but for it to come from the pony who would proudly proclaim 'we may never know if we do not try' on a weekly basis was slightly disconcerting. Jade shared my look of concern as well, and considering their relationship, I was certain she was more well-equipped at quashing any further qualms Red might have than I could ever be. With that in mind, I left it alone.

Thanks to the habitual efficiency of the crewmembers, the ships set off from the harbor at ten in the morning as scheduled. The journey to the atoll took a total of thirty-five minutes, though we spent another twenty after anchoring deliberating over our apparatus. Once the rowboats were lowered, it took another fifteen minutes of paddling around and in between the scattered steeples of rock, taking great care to avoid the errant tides before finally, finally, a slip of green emerged from between the treacherous towers.

Latreia's Lagoon was, by no means, small. It was easily twice the size of Canterlot, if not larger. We've safely made our landfall on the southeastern coastline and began by surveying the land in groups of four to six. To aid with that, we had prepared and provided to each group a Pylon of Surveillance, an invention of Professor Brightward's making which was basically a magic-infused crystal that acts as a repeater for surveillance-based spells. The pylons, six in total, were planted in the ground at designated checkpoints and activated with a magic-kindling spell which will keep them running for four months. As Professor Brightward had designed them to decay without any adverse effects once their deed is done, we wouldn't need to worry about requiring to retrieve them once our expedition comes to a close. Until then, the pylons would bounce any surveillance-based signals in between each other, of which can be received by a projection-based display that would accurately reproduce a live topographic map of the atoll that we can view back at Cape Silverwatch.

Apart from setting up the network of pylons, we were also tasked with collecting various samples of flora and fauna from different parts of the atoll to be brought back for temporametric dating. With most of the atoll covered in a dense forest, there were a lot to choose from. In addition to that, we also brought back some rocks and soil samples to analyze their mineral and chemical contents, and to compare them with samples found in Cape Silverwatch as well as other various samples from around Equestria that we had prepared in and brought from Canterlot. We've also collected some seawater samples from around the atoll for similar tests. The thought process we had in doing was as such: should the Emancipation alter the environment in any way shape or form, there will be an aberration in the concentration of contents of the samples around the atoll, whether it be arcane or mundane.

All in all, our first day on Latreia's Lagoon was spent on the above tasks. Subsequent days spent on the atoll amounted to further surveyance and a more exhaustive inspection of the atoll wherein we traversed through the humid forests and monitor for any manifestations of arcane phenomenon as well as noting down geographical landmarks to help in navigation for future voyages. Most of our time, however, was spent back on Cape Silverwatch, where we focused on analyzing our collected samples in hopes of finding any semblance of irregular elements. With how uneventful the days were as they dragged on by, I was constantly reminded of Red's uncertainty in the possible insignificance of the results this expedition would bear. Some nights, I found myself believing that would certainly be the case.

Once again, I was proven wrong.

It happened two weeks into our stay at Cape Silverwatch. We were opening up the makeshift laboratory the guards had reserved for us at the barracks like we did every morning. The lights were flipped on, the apparatus were all set up and ready to go for another long day of work. All of us were busy working and chattering among themselves, only to stop once Professor Brightward fired up the display with the topographical map of Latreia's Lagoon and we all took a glance, thinking it would just be another ordinary day.

"That... that wasn't there before..." Our leader's uncustomarily harried words were met with silence. "You're all seeing this, team? I'm not the only one dreaming this, am I?"

Stunned as he was, we all shook our heads, and with good reason.

For where there had previously only been just a black emptiness representing the seawater trapped in the haphazard lines forming the irregularly-shaped rim of the lagoon, there was now a minuscule blip right in the middle.

A blip that assumed the form of a perfect circle.

"Somepony go get the sergeant. Now."