Rainbow yawned as she stretched out. She blinked as her eyes adjusted to the dim light coming through the trees.
She stood from the log and... “London? London, where are you?” She began to panic as she glanced around. “London!” she called out.
“I-I’m here,” he said, coming out from behind some trees and bushes that sat near the log.
“Where’d you go to?” Rainbow asked, walking towards him.
“I-I needed to... go...”
“O-oh... Well, don’t scare me like that anymore! You nearly gave me a heart attack!” Rainbow hugged him before ruffling his mane. She sighed. “Anyway, we should get moving. Do you want anything to eat or drink?”
“No thanks. I’m okay.”
“Alright, let’s get goin’.” Rainbow took her saddlebag from the branch and placed it over her back.
She gestured for him to walk with her.
“Can you fly?” London suddenly asked. He looked up at her with a curious expression on his face. “I have never seen you fly.”
“Of course I can, bud! I just, uh...” Rainbow ducked under a tree that had fallen. “I don’t know. I was able to fly, but I don’t know about it now.”
“Can you teach me?” he asked, stepping over some plants.
“I... I don’t know if I can. I-it’s been a while since I last flew. Plus, last time I was flying, I dislocated my wing. I’m not the best at it. Not even close!”
London kept quiet for a little while as they made their way through the dense forest. “Do you know where we are going?” he suddenly asked.
Rainbow stopped. “No... Surely he had to have put a compass in here, right?” Rainbow allowed the bag to slide off of her back again as she turned to open it. She rummaged through the packs of food and water bottles. She soon found a coil of thin rope, a bag of strange pills, a folded piece of paper, and a compass.
“Yes! I found it!” Rainbow exclaimed. She held the compass in her hoof as she closed the bag again and put it back on.
It was a round piece of shiny golden metal with a cover that came off of the top, which would open to show the needle that always points to true North. The piece of glass that encased the needle was perfectly see-through, as there were neither smudges nor scratches on the surface. The letters N, E, S, and W were in large, bold font for easy reading. The letters, as well as the lines that came off in between each letter, were a light white-green colour on a red velvet background. Little decorations of silver vines and leaves traveled about on the outer case of the compass.
“Which way are we going to go?” London asked, seemingly very interested in the compass in Rainbow’s hoof.
“East. We need to go East. Percy told us to find a city called Wynmeda,” she answered, lining the compass up with North.
“Do you have a map?”
“I don’t know. I saw some paper in the bag, can you grab it for me?” Rainbow leaned down for London to reach inside of the bag. He pulled the folded paper out and hoofed it to her.
“Let’s see...” she whispered, unfolding the paper. From what she could tell, the paper was old. It was dark tan with small black-brown spots scattered about. Once she opened it completely, she saw black lines and scribbles, everywhere. There was writing that she couldn’t quite read with the quality of the old map. The only word she could really make out was large letters spelling out P-Y-R-A-T-H-I-A. “How do I figure out where we are?”
“Shouldn’t we be next to the Pyrathian Kingdom? Look for that on the map and then look next to it,” London suggested.
“I get that... but I can’t read—Oh! Found it. Okay...” Rainbow traced her hoof along the many lines and words. “We are in a forest, so it should be... right there! Itulam Forest? The only forest next to the Pyrathian Kingdom is the Itulam Forest, which it just East of the city, so, yeah...” she thought out loud.
“Itulam... F-Forest? I r-remember my... parents used to tell me about this p-place,” London said, wincing as he bowed his head down.
“What... did they tell you?” Rainbow asked. She sat in front of him and brought a hoof to his shoulder.
“T-they used to say... that they would one day bring me here... because of how peaceful and beautiful it is. They wanted me to have my ninth birthday here... but I... I was... taken.”
“C-could I ask... how you were... captured?”
“I-I lived in a small town called Osset... and I was playing with my friends when a bunch of those... bad ponies came through and started trapping all of the pegasi. I tried to find my family in the mess, but they... were gone. I couldn’t find them. A-and then I was captured by those ponies. W-what about your family?” London had tears on the edges of his eyes, but fought to keep them from falling.
“I... I don’t remember them. I can’t remember anything. The last thing I can remember i-is when I woke up in the middle of nowhere.”
“When was that?” he asked.
“About sixteen, seventeen days ago, give or take. I’m not too sure,” Rainbow answered. She smiled and opened her wings to full length. “How about flying?”
“I-I thought you didn’t want to?”
“Eh, I’m kinda feelin’ it right now. Let’s see if I can remember how.” Rainbow began flapping, and with ease, she rose off of the ground. Below her, London stared at her with amazement on his face. She watched as he tried flying as well. “C’mon Scoo— London! Y-you can do it!”
Scootaloo? Why did that just come into mind? She paused to ponder the thought. Whatever. It’s nothing.
“I’m doing it! Rainbow, look!” London yelled beside her.
London was flying. Well, more like struggling to keep himself up in the air, but still flying.
“Nice job, bud! Follow me; let’s see how fast you can go.” Rainbow watched him. He narrowed his eyes and readied himself by bringing his forelegs back. “Ready?”
“Ready,” he answered, still staring on ahead.
“Keep up!” With that, Rainbow took off... at a slow speed. After a few seconds, she looked behind her and saw London keeping up with her. “Wanna go faster?” she asked.
“No. This is fine.”
The thin air felt cool to the touch. It rushed by as they flew through it. The clouds were just above them, looming overhead.
“I think it’s gonna rain soon. Look how dark they are!” Rainbow said to London.
“Is the rain going to mess up our flying?”
“I don’t think so. Unless there’s lightning, we’ll be fine.”
“What does lightning do to a pony if they are hit?” London asked.
“Well... it burns... them...” She looked to her side, which was now almost completely back to its normal colour.
“I-is that what happened to your side? Were you struck by lightning?!” London flew closer to her, almost longing for answers.
Rainbow was suddenly hit with a... strange memory. Something about it didn’t make sense.
She was... flying fast. Really fast. She could remember the sound of the wind in her ears. The feeling of the air pushing all around her body. And then she could remember... the emotions. Worry. Horror. And amazement.
She could also remember what was around her. Clouds. Dark gray clouds were everywhere below her. Bright flashes rang out inside of them. She dove down into them to... find her way?
What was I trying to find?
She recalled the pain of ice that pelted her from all sorts of angles. Rain soaked her from head to hoof. Then, there was a sudden flash... and total darkness.
“Rainbow?” London asked.
She could still feel that something about the memory was... off. There was something in the memory that she truly felt, but now she didn’t. Something in the memory was now missing. Or somepony.
“Rainbow? Are you okay?” he asked, tapping her on the shoulder as they flew.
Rainbow jumped at the sudden touch. “Y-yes. I’m fine. I just, I don’t know what happened.” She looked at the compass that was still in her hoof. “L-looks like we’re still headin’ East, so we should keep an eye out for Wynmeda.”
“You mean that place?” London asked, pointing a hoof towards something off in the distance.
Rainbow took out the map and opened it. She glanced around and soon found Itulam Forest again. She traced along the darkened spot on the map and just beside the forest was the Port of Wynmeda. “That’s the place alright.” She folded the map and put it back in the bag on her back.
The city in the distance had no walls. There were two tall buildings that stood in the center, with smaller buildings farther out from the center. The port had four large concrete piers that stuck out from the land. Each pier had around forty ships docked at once.
After several minutes of flying towards the city, they began to see the ponies. Even from the distance they were at, they could see that each pony was wearing clothes. The ponies also seemed to be in a rush for something.
“London, wait,” Rainbow said, putting a hoof out to slow him down.
“What?” he asked.
“We need to find clothes before we go in. Everypony in there is wearing something.”
“So? It’s not that bad if we go in without any.”
“But we’re pegasi, London. They would just put us back to work if they see our wings.”
“Oh...”
Rainbow thought for a second. “Here, follow me. I think I know where we can find some clothes.” She dove down towards the ground. They landed behind one of the many buildings. It looked to be a clothing shop.
“What are you doing?” London asked.
“I’m going to see if I can find us some clothes,” Rainbow replied, lifting a black lid that was on top of a large green container.
“But... that’s a garbage bin.”
“I know. We can’t just go inside, we don’t have any money.”
“Ew! Why did you go in?”
“It’s just a bunch of clothes, London. Plus, the only gross trash in here is in separate bags,” Rainbow said, digging through the large pile of different clothes. “C’mere, pick something out.” She gestured for him to follow.
“But...” London tried to protest, “Alright, fine.” He walked to the edge of the bin to allow Rainbow to pick him up. She placed him inside where he saw a bunch of clothes.
London began digging through the pile, trying to find something that would match his overall colour.
“Ooh! How does this look on me?” Rainbow questioned.
London looked up and saw her. She was wearing a red sweater, much like the one she had worn in the Pyrathian Kingdom when Percy walked them through the city. “I-it looks good. Can you help me find something for me?”
“Of course, bud,” Rainbow responded, digging through the pile again. “Oh my goodness! Look! You can match me!”
London looked back up and saw she was holding up another red sweater. It looked to be just his size too. He grabbed it from Rainbow’s hooves and put it on over his wings. “It’s uncomfortable.”
“But it helps hide your wings from other ponies,” Rainbow said, helping London out of the garbage bin.
“I know, I know. It’ll have to do. Wait, what were we supposed to be doing here in Wynmeda anyway?”
“Well, it’s a port, so he—”
“Hey! What are you two doing back here?” a pony yelled from behind them.
They quickly turned to face the pony. It was a unicorn pony who wore a dark blue uniform. There was a golden badge on his vest that shined as he walked closer.
“Were we not supposed to be back here?” Rainbow asked, stepping in front of London.
“Didn’t you hear the announcement?! The mayor is evacuating the city because the North Pyrathian troops are headed this way! You need to get to the docks. Now! Let’s move!” He grabbed Rainbow’s sweater and pulled her forward.
“I can walk myself, let go.” She tugged away from the pony as she grabbed London and let him sit on her back. “Where’s the docks?”
“Follow me.” The pony began to trot down the street. Rainbow followed close behind him. The smell of salt lingered in the air all around them.
They neared a large, flat building. It only seemed to have one story, and it stretched with the length of the port. Large cranes were on the other side.
“Alright, just go inside. There will be ponies waiting to check your bags,” the uniformed pony said as he held a door open for her.
Rainbow walked inside of the large brick building. Sure enough, there was a desk with three ponies behind it. One of them looked up and said, “Hello there. Please give me your bags so I can check them, you’ll then be escorted to one of the departing boats. You’re lucky to have made it here on time.”
London jumped off of her back to let her take off her bag. “Here you go,” she said as she gave it to the pony on the other side of the desk.
She took the bag from Rainbow and rummaged through it. She was a light pink earth pony. She had a light blue mane as well.
“Alright. Your bag is fine. Azure here will take you to Prosperity, the last escape vessel,” she said, pointing towards a pony beside a door. He was an earth pony azure in colour with a white mane. “Here’s your bag, along with your tickets and key. On the tickets is your cabin number and deck number.”
“Alright, thanks,” Rainbow said, taking the bag and tickets. She stuffed the tickets inside the pocket on her sweater and placed the bag back on her back. “Let’s go, bud.”
Azure opened a door that led back outside. As they walked through, Rainbow could see Prosperity right there. It was huge.
I can’t believe I didn’t notice this thing when I was flying!
“Wow...” London whispered.
“Magnificent, isn’t it?” Azure suddenly said.
“Yeah, It’s... giant,” Rainbow responded.
As they walked closer, she took the time to take it all in.
The waves that crashed against the sides of the dock rocked it back and forth slightly. The fresh smell of salt caused her to scrunch her nose every now and then. The ocean was dark green, and had small ripples everywhere. She hadn’t noticed, but it began raining while they were inside.
As for Prosperity, it was giant. The draft was red, and the freeboard was white. In black lettering, the name “Prosperity” was written in bold letters on the stern. The beam of the vessel seemed to be 100 feet across!
They approached the gangway and prepared to cross it when Rainbow stopped Azure. “Can I ask you something?” she asked him.
“Of course. What is it?”
“If everypony is leaving the city, what are those ponies still doing there at the desk?”
“Ah, I see. We will be boarding Miller, a separate vessel. And don’t worry about us. We will be allowed to go once the searchers tell us the city is clear. Anyway, you should get to your cabins before you get soaking wet out here. Safe travels,” he said as he turned to walk away.
“Wait! Where are we going?” Rainbow quickly asked.
“Oh, Prosperity is headed for Equestria. Goodbye!” With that, Azure turned and walked back towards the building that they exited.
“Can you grab the tickets from my pocket and check which deck we’re on?” Rainbow asked as she made her way up the gangway. Two ponies were waiting by the end of the gangway to help them onto the ship.
“It says we’re on E Deck, cabin room 542,” London read aloud.
“Hello there, need any help getting to your room?” the pony asked once they made it onto the main deck.
“No thanks, I got it,” Rainbow answered as she walked past them.
“Okay, just know that Prosperity will be leaving in,” she stopped to check her watch, “thirty-two minutes.”
“Alright, thanks,” Rainbow said. She walked into one of the open doors and made her way to the grand stairs. As she walked down the stairs to the lower decks, she kept an eye on the letters of each level. She stopped when she saw the letter E on the wall and continued on her way to her room.
She walked down the long hallway and found room 542. She used the key and opened the door. As the door swung open, the lights in the room all turned on.
“Whoa, look, Rainbow!” London exclaimed as he ran to the porthole on the far wall of the room.
She closed the door behind her and locked it as she made her way to the porthole. Outside of it was the water not too far below them.
“I’ma take a quick shower. Don’t mess around while I’m in there, alright?” she said, taking off her sweater.
“I won’t.”
“Thanks.” Rainbow dropped the sweater on one of the beds and made her way to the bathroom by the front door. She turned on the light and saw the large shower. She closed the door and stepped inside of the large shower. She brought a hoof up to the handles and turned the red one. Just then, hot water poured out on her body. She bowed her head under the falling water and let it course through her mane.
Rainbow watched as dirt dripped off of her mane and body and slipped right into the drain.
This feels great. I think I’ll make London take a shower after me.
She continued to ponder the thought a little while longer.
Why do I feel like I have to protect him all the time? Is it just because he’s so young? Or... do I really love him... like a family would? She sighed as she scrubbed shampoo into her mane. I really do love him. He’s great. And I will never let anything happen to him. Not while I’m around.