-Ponyville Lake, Fortitude-
“We will not be taking up your hospitality much longer Pinkie, we need to be going!” To where I did know, we were attempting to get thoroughly lost here. The ‘Mists of Travel On’ could get us across and around the world in a heartbeat. “We are having much to do.”
“Thanks for visiting and I just want to say that you’re really cool Skelly!” Pinkie Pie enthusiastically hugged Skelly who returned the hug. “You’re the one ghostly pony I won’t want to go away with a laugh!”
Skelly rubbed the back of her head and smiled, she then got in the boat.
“Are we forgetting anything?!” With what little money we had left, Flamberge bought a meager amount of supplies. We should be fine for a while and Travel On would not try to kill us by putting us in a dangerous place, unless we are somehow angering magical boat.
“Not that I can be thinking of… Skelly is going to be the one rowing oar yes?” Turning to our friend, I waited for her to commence with transporting us to where we were needed most.
Skelly started to work the oar and mist started building up around the Viking gondola.
“Goodbye guys, come visit Ponyville again sometime real soon!” Pinkie’s voice drifted off as we disappeared into the mists that were transporting us somewhere new.
It didn’t take long, barely a second, before the mists receded and we found ourselves in a very odd predicament.
“We’re in the clouds!” Yes Flamberge, I can see that, I am not being blind.
“Only Flamberge is capable of flight, why would Travel On bring us here?” We heard a yawning noise and we looked down at the floor of the boat, I became a bit shocked when I saw a familiar pegasus sitting up among us. She scratched lazily at her sides and looked around. “Oh right, we are not coming back to relieve Pegasus of watching boat.”
“Where are we?” The pony stated with sleepy eyes blinking themselves into awareness. “How long have I been asleep for?”
“It is being the next day and I believe we are in Cloudsdale.” That would explain the cloud buildings and the architecture, along with winged ponies and a few griffons flying around.
“Oh good, I guess I won’t have to worry about being late.” The mare ran a hoof through her blue mane and stretched out her wings, she hopped out of the boat and started walking. She stopped and turned back to us. “Thanks for the lift… however you got a wooden boat up here to sit in the clouds like this. It is something that I’m not about to question the logistics of, if you can’t recall who I am, I’m Sunshower. If you ever need anything related to precipitation or cloud moving, then ask around for me!”
Sunshower lazily trotted along the clouds for a bit and then flapped her wings and took off towards the cloud city.
Skelly rolled her eyes and started to work the oar again, obviously that was all that was needed of us here as the boats mists started surrounding us once more.
The swirling soon died out and we found ourselves gently drifting through the water in an ornate city with trees full of pink petals. We passed under a bridge with sculptures of long snake like dragons and was red in color.
“Where do you suppose we are now?!” Flamberge was lost, I was lost and I doubt Skelly has been outside of Soar Way before meeting us. She’s only been to Ponyville and Cloudsdale, even now she looked at the many things with wonder.
“I am not knowing, but we will face whatever quest that Travel On seeks to give us.” We drifted up to a simple looking dock and then the boat stopped right next to it. Its magic anchored it to this very spot, so I am thinking we need to get out here. “We are needed here, so we must find what we need to do. I will look into asking a blacksmith if they can make a shield for me and will keep an ear out for trouble.”
“I guess I can scout around the city and try not to stir up trouble!” Flamberge turned to Skelly afterwards. “Who are you going with Skelly?”
Skelly tilted her head and looked between us, she pointed to me and I nodded to her.
“We should ask where we are and gather information first brother, then we can find out why we’re here!” Acknowledging Flamberge’s words, we got out of the boat and went our separate ways.
Flamberge took to the air to look around, Skelly and I walked into the busy streets with many beings crowding the area. Ponies, Griffons, Diamond Dogs and so many other beings, the odd ones were the pony like dragons with long necks.
There were food stands all over the places with small bits of white smoke rising up from them, tall buildings had lots of ropes hanging between them and we were coming from a quiet place at the edge of the city.
“So how are we going to find out where we are? I am not willing to accost someone against their will Skelly.” I received a flat look from Skelly, so I explained myself. “I would prefer to be polite in a new land, I am not wanting to cause trouble here.”
Skelly just gave off a motion of an insufferable sigh, but she nodded and accepted my explanation even if she didn’t look happy about it.
“Things seem peaceful…” I started to walk along the river looking around at all the beings moving about, the river was quiet and we made our way down it until we came to another bridge.
I went up onto the bridge and sat down in the middle to look at the water, Skelly sat next to me still looking around. We wanted to get lost, but now that we were, I had no idea what we were doing.
We were needed here obviously, that is what Travel On does!
It is being a very slow adventure so far…
Something slammed into the bridge behind us and rolled, we both looked to see a familiar thestral. Well at least she was familiar to me.
“Blade?” I received a strange look from Skelly for knowing the thestral, I was more concerned about why she was here. “She is being old friend from Airship Mauled.”
Was that what Travel On brought us here for, to aid an old friend who once worked for the good witch Kuril before disappearing into the unknown? Well it is more known now that I can see where she is… in front of me of course!
She was slowly getting up and had a hoof on her head, she looked hurt and I looked in the directions she had come from.
“Look out!” I bellowed to Blade, she shook her head and her eyes widened as a pegasus wearing dark blue clothing that covered their entire body swooped down to stab at Blade with a short, straight blade.
I moved, but I would not be in time. Fortunately for us and unfortunately for the pony wearing clothing that hid their appearance, Skelly pushed Blade out of the way and was stabbed through the chest.
Gasping, I grew angry, but then I grew calm as I took in the situation more clearly. The stallion, as I doubt that was the shape of a mare’s body, looked shocked to have stabbed Skelly clean through.
What was really surprising was that not a drop of blood was spilled, despite Skelly having a sword through her chest and out her back.
She is still apparently a skeleton despite looking like a normal pony, otherwise the sword intersecting where her heart and one of her lungs happened to be would have been far more fatal than it is.
Skelly inhaled and narrowed her eyes at the stallion who visibly flinched, Skelly brought her axe down and broken the blade an inch from the hilt.
While this was happening Blade got up from being shoved aside by Skelly and looked quite surprised to see someone else take a sword for her. To see that Skelly was still moving and broke the sword made her turn to me with a look of confusion.
The pony wearing the dark blue garb backed up holding the broken hilt, staring at the large amount of metal still piercing cleanly through Skelly with shock. He tossed the broken hilt aside, reached into his clothing and quickly launched a very straight knife into the other side of Skelly’s chest.
Skelly gave him a silent glare and pointed her axe at him, she was fairly intimidating with a knife three fourths of the way through her chest and the broken off sword bit piercing clean through her normal looking pony form without a drop of blood.
“Oni… ONI!” The stallion screamed while pointing a hoof at Skelly, he quickly turned tail and started running away from us as fast as he could.
“I am thinking that we need to figure out what Oni means and quickly or this may become a problem Skelly.” My skeletal pony friend nodded as she placed the axe across her spine and looked at the weapons imbedded in her. “Are you needing help with that Skelly?”
Skelly reached up with a hoof and tried to pull the knife from her chest, it seemed to be stuck. She then tried the blade and wrenched it free from her body leaving no blemishes behind in her pristine white fur, Skelly would be really hard to hurt without a blunt weapon to crush and destroy her bones.
Blade came over and ran a hoof over where Skelly had been stabbed and blinked in confusion, I know I would be confused if I saw Skelly get stabbed lethally if I was not knowing the truth behind her existence.
Blade turned to me and seemed a bit surprised to see me, she pointed at the knife. Skelly looked a little confused.
“Blade is being mute, her vocal chords are being too strong and destructive. Blade Bright this is Skeletal Noria, she is good friend and mute because her vocal chords don’t exist anymore. Skeletal Noria, this is our friend Blade Bright.” As I looked at the two of them, they stared blankly at each other with curiosity. “We call her Skelly, if we are being around long enough you will see why being stabbed is not hurting her. Now hold still Skelly and I will get knife out!”
I reached for the knife and grasped it, Skelly turned her sight away from Blade and nodded to me. I tugged roughly and the knife came free of Skelly’s ribcage, she wasn’t hurt nor did she feel any pain.
Skelly could feel pleasure, but not pain? Pain lets you know that you are alive, in Skelly’s case she is half alive and I'm somewhat glad that pain is not what she can feel.
“Is there an Oni here, I can only smell one faintly, just a smidge I sense.” We all turned to see fox with golden fur and six blue tipped tails. “No not Oni I smell. Hello good mistress Blade Bright. Are you well today?”
Blade nodded as she took the knife from my hoof and looked it over.
“Why are you talking funny?” I knew the fox was a great spirit of some kind, she seemed to know Blade.
“I speak in haiku, I am now a friend of you, who here smells of bones?” Not knowing the strange fox and was wary of her narrowing eyes, I was hesitant to give away Skelly’s secret. Skelly bravely raised her left hoof attracting the fox’s attention. “You are a pony. Strange that bewildering scent. Life and death twisted.”
“Who are you?” Turning towards me and away from sniffing Skelly, the fox smiled impishly.
“I’m the lovely fox. Mystic Sweetcakes Crumble Tail. I assist you now!” The fox smiled brightly, was her name really Sweetcakes Crumble Tail, it was very odd.
“How do you know Blade?” I looked to Blade, she was rubbing her head as if she had a migraine.
“Traveler searches, finding all the wondrous stars, the moon beckons her.” The six tailed Sweetcakes seemed to smile sadly. “To free the nightmare, destroy it out of prison, the six will gather.”
“Can you please be a bit clearer?” At my annoyance the fox chuckled audibly.
“The four stars open, she is one of the sky bound, become prisoner.” She pointed to Blade who narrowed her eyes and firmed her jaw. “To be free of jail, Blade will give up precious thing, it is not her wings.”
Blade seemed to be more curious about that last statement and looked a bit scared.
“Where are we currently?” I pointed to myself and a calm looking Skelly. “We got transported here by magic on a thing that takes us where we need to be.”
“Welcome to Neighpon friend! You have good need to be here. Please, enjoy your stay.” So we were in a place called Neighpon according to Miss Sweetcakes. “There is danger here, you should be wary of, happy to guide you!”
The fox bowed to me, Skelly and a groaning Blade who started to cry. It seemed like Blade has been having a lot of problems with this fox, still I watched as Blade stuck the knife up under her left wing for safe keeping. It was strange that she didn’t have a weapon on hoof before now.
“I do not annoy, I am quite cheerfully sweet. Come, a meal, my treat!” Sweetcakes the bright blue eyed fox turned and started walking into the city.
Blade sighed and started to follow her with me and Skelly trailing behind. I started to inform Skelly about Blade and how I know of her.
-Neighpon Training Grounds, Flamberge-
I was in a place with many neat weapons and ponies practicing with them. I landed and watched as a pony stood on his hind legs and his left hoof grasped the hilt of his weapon, with a flash he shot forward and back barely visible.
The straw dummy cleaved in half vertically and horizontally into eight disparate parts.
“That’s rad!” I wanted to be able to do something like that. The pony with the straw hat must have heard me as he turned his head slightly.
By instinct I quickly drew my sword and a clang range throughout the yard below making many ponies stop in their training to look at us with awe.
He was suddenly right next to me on the fence that I stopped to rest on, this place was so huge… how was I ever going to find my brother and Skelly in all this again? Well I could find them at night, Skelly would definitely attract attention.
“Very good… for a foreigner with such a powerful weapon. Does she listen to you… or do you listen to her dragon?” The pony muttered as our swords were pressing roughly against one another, his average blade was resisting the heat of my sword quite well. My weapon heated up in the area the swords were pressed together and the pony quickly pulled his blade back. “She is quite a fiery weapon, yet she sleeps so soundly despite not being used enough...”
“We are good friends.” I saw the pony nod slightly.