For 6 hours we have been in the desert, again. Dorado at least has the forces to keep going, thanks to the large water supply that we have. What can I tell you from this journey, well then, the first two hours could be basically defined with this princess.... Celestia complaining about the sun, about the weather, about how awkward is being on the back of a pony(apparently a horse is unknown to them), and other things, maybe about everything.
But who can really criticize her, I mean yeah maybe she is a little bit excentric per se, but it has been an annoying journey. Freya left us about two hours ago to meet with her caravan of mercenaries, something that I'm lamenting now because she was the only sane person in this frickin' journey.
"Are we there yet?" Celestia asks, crossing her limbs, looking at the horse with exasperation. I am just amused by how many times she has done this, I know that she is trying to exasperate Dorado, and it is working. Dorado turns to looks at Celestia with a glare.
"How many times have you ask that, 10, 20, 100?" he almost exclaims, turning back to look at the front with a snort. Celestia huffs, beginning to play with her mane.
The truth is that we are being guided by a map that Freya gave to us, so at least for me, there is no security if we are going to arrive at some point eventually. The details say that we need to cross the desert and arrive at a jungle just in the coasts of this continent, I suppose, that I have taken the liberty to name it 'Nueva Granada.'
A sense of hope comes into my mind when I see coconut shells buried in the sand, a smile appears on my face, "I believe that we must be close."
"Close? we're still in this frickin' desert," Dorado says exasperated, "what makes you believe that?"
"Look at the coconuts in the sand," I say, pointing at the shells. Dorado looks at them attentively before turning to look back at me with an unamused face.
"That can't be coconuts," he bluntly declares.
"Of course they are!" I say exasperated, throwing my arms to the air, and in the process making Celestia flinch slightly, "why do you say that they aren't coconuts?"
"Well, this is an arid zone," Dorado responds, meeting my glare with a one of his own, "how could a tropical thing arrive here."
I tap my chin, thinking an explanation because he has a point, "hmmm, maybe the swallow flew from a tropical area seeking warmer climes in winter."
Dorado stares at me with a blank expression, before that transforms into a visible confused one, "are you suggesting that coconuts migrate?"
I tilt my head, as the glare is changed to disagreeable face, "not at all, they could be carried."
"What, a swallow carrying a coconut?" he keeps the confused face. Celestia looks at us with an amused face, almost giggling at our conversation.
"It could grip it by the husk!"
"It's not a question of where he grips it! It's a simple question of weight ratios!" he responds, making me flinch for his sudden exclamation.
"What-" I am interrupted by Dorado.
"A five-ounce bird could not carry a one-pound coconut," he finishes, snorting and turning his view forwards again.
"Where did you learn mathematics? what the hell!" I exclaim, he turns to see me again. We are currently crossing a hill, going to the other side of the barren wasteland.
"Listen, in order to maintain air-speed velocity, a swallow needs to beat its wings 43 times every second, right?" Dorado retorts, meeting my frown.
"But, I mean, then-"
"Am I right?" Dorado says interrupting me again. Celestia giggles are audible, but we ignore them.
"Yes, but i-it could maybe be carried by an African swallow!" I quickly assert, pointing at the sky with my hand.
"Oh, yeah, an African swallow maybe, but not a European swallow, that's my point," Dorado responds calmly, as his frown softens.
I tap my chin, "but then of course African swallows are not migratory."
"W-what and how the hell do you know that?!" Dorado begins, "so they couldn't bring a coconut back anyway."
"Wait a minute -- supposing two swallows carried it together?"
"No, they'd have to have it on a line," he responds.
"Well, simple! they'd just use a strand of creeper!"
"What, held under the dorsal guiding feathers?"
"Well, why not?" I retort, the both of us exchanging glares, that are interrupted by a sudden exclamation of Celestia.
"Look!" she points with her hoof the seacoast, that at the end a jungle is seen. Our eyes widen, as a grin appears on my face.
"I told you, must be for something," I whisper to Dorado, something that he responds with a snort, as he begins to walk towards the jungle. At our great fortune, we are going in the correct path. I decided to name that coast 'Puerto Caballo,' for our great discovery. The walking becomes a galloping, something that startles Celestia and grabs me tighter by the waist, something that is rather uncomfortable.
The sun is already setting in the west, the skies are turning into a beautiful orange colour. Both Dorado and I are captivated by the beauty of these lands, but Celestia doesn't even care about it. The fresh breeze, the clean air... I gotta say it, for the first time in a long time, my nose fills with natural and clean air, not the one of gunpowder and smoke that I am used to.
We arrive at the coast near the tropical jungle, immediately afterwards, Celestia and I hop off Dorado's back.
"Yes!!! finally," Celestia says with a grin, running to the cold seawater. I stretch, yawning as my eyes begin to feel heavy, though, hunger defeats my fatigue, and the ones of Celestia and Dorado as well.
"Well," I say, turning back to meet their gazes. Celestia already exited the water, with a more relaxed face, "I am going to try to find some firewood, maybe we can have a decent dinner....." I look at my weapon, "going to also try to hunt something dow-"
"WHAT!" Celestia exclaims, shrieking and backing off to Dorado, "Y-OU ARE H-HUNTING WHAT!!"
I tilt my head slightly and send Dorado a glance, which he simply responds with shrugging with an unamused face.
"Umm meat-"
"MEAT!!!! CARNIVOROUS!!!" she tries to hide behind Dorado.
"W-what?" I try to get close to her, but she keeps shrieking away, "listen princess, w-why? there aren't other carnivorous species in this world?"
"Yes, there are!"
I flinch slightly, "then why are you acting like thi-"
"Because!" Celestia interrupts me, "ponies and carnivorous aren't allies!!! they usually try to kill us, like the griffons!!"
"But Freya isn't a griffon?" Dorado asks, raising an eyebrow while looking at her.
"Yes!" she begins, glaring at the horse, "f-for that reason I was complaining so much, after all, those beasts were the ones who kidnapped me!"
I rub my temples, "one, I am not exactly carnivorous, I am something called omnivore, meaning I can eat both meat and plants," I say, pointing at my canines and then at my molars, "and two, I haven't try to attack you, neither I am planning to kill you, then why are you freaking down!"
She keeps glaring at me, her horn glowing a bit, something that startles Dorado and me, but we don't do absolutely anything, both of us knowing that we shouldn't freak her down, at least at this moment.
I snort, turning back, walking towards the jungle, "I'm going to get the firewood-"
Weird, why always put the herbivore super scared of the carnivorous one, it just doesn't make sense. The jungle is dark, and the moon is beginning to appear on the horizon. At least I still have my-
Dorado neighs, backing off from Celestia with fear. I turn back at the yellow light that suddenly appeared from behind, which is thanks to fire..... fire that came from Celestia's horn.
My eyes widen, and my mouth hangs loose, both of us looking at Celestia with impression and a certain fear, what just happened was magic, real magic, coming out from the horn of this equine, frick, how can this world get any worse?
"W-what," Celestia asks worried, looking at our expressions with a hurtful and fearful expression, "did I do something wrong?"
"Umm.. what-what did you do?" Dorado asks, pointing the fire with his hoof, "how did you do that!?"
"What?"
"The fire thing," I say with a frown, "how did you do it, that was m-magic?"
"Yes?" she accentuated, now looking confused, "what is weird about that?"
"What it-it is magic, you know.... damn it other world," Dorado mumbles, deflating a bit. My impression passes out. I clap my hands to gain their attention again.
"Right, then I am going to hunt something for myself, I suppose that there must be fruit nearby," I say, moving my hand in circles, "you know....."
I lower my head and sigh, walking into the jungle. Dorado and Celestia remain silent, as they both try to get comfortable on the sand. Celestia stares at Dorado with a raised eyebrow, before she sighs and using her magic makes two apples appear, giving it to Dorado that flinches when she brings the apples closer to Dorado with a levitation spell.
"What?" Celestia asks, tilting her head. Her pink eyes soften as Dorado takes the apple with hesitation from her aura.
"I-I am just not used to magic," he takes a bite from the apples, and at the same time, realized something. His hooves changed, the structure of them if we are being more specific, giving him the possibility of grabbing things, "I am very lost," his ears press against his head as he sighs.
Celestia also bites the apples, deflating a bit. She begins to chuckle, "tell me, from where thou come from?"
"W-why?" Dorado says a little bit worried, the change of her voice from sad to subtle is apparent.
"Well," Celestia begins with a small smile, "you are the biggest stallion I've ever seen in my life, you are ummm stronger than most ponies that I have ever seen, and your accent is very weird."
His face softens, "isn't that obvious," Dorado rubs his back, "listen let's just say that I come from a very very far away place, and I am pretty sure you have never visited it."
Celestia raises an eyebrow, "test me."
"Ummmm have you ever heard about the Republic of Colombia?" Dorado responds smugly.
Celestia is silent for some seconds, before obviously shaking her head, "hmph, I have never heard of that nation, weird name," she taps her chin, "and everypony from that nation looks like you?"
Dorado chuckles a bit, "if you are talking about horses, then yes, but we aren't a pony nation, it is ruled by hoomans."
Celestia gives a confused face, "what are horses, and what are hoomans?"
His face changes to a bored one, "I am a horse," he shows himself with his hooves, "and my companion there is a hooman."
"Ahhh right, the hooman," she giggles, "and since when have thou met with this ape?"
Dorado softens his face, "three days ago, I met him in the desert," he glances at the jungle, "reminds me of my master....."
Celestia's eyes widen, "master?" she says worried, "are thou a slave?!"
Dorado looks at Celestia offended, "what, no! I just worked for him, I helped my hooman get to whatever place he wanted when he needed it."
"Hmmm," Celestia relaxes her expression, "that seems to be slavery with extra steps...... and that is why you let me mount you, do you know that if a stallion invites a mare to mount him means that-"
"It is not slavery! and I didn't invite you to mount me with that purpose!" Dorado exclaims, but backs off afterwards, "and my master.... well he was the best person I've ever met in my life."
Shee giggles, before her voice rises a bit "person?" Celestia says confused, "what is a person."
Now, this is the time for Dorado to be confused, he raises an eyebrow, pointing again at the forest, "person is the way for saying hooman, just emmm shorter... I don't know it is just another wor-"
"So a hooman was your master?" she softens her expressions as she sighs, "what happened to him?"
"What?"
"You said was, then what happened to him?" Celestia asks softly, her voice suddenly changed for the way the conversation is going.
Dorado remains silent momentarily, before sighing, "he died in a war."
Silence elapses. The sound of the fire and the magic wood, the waves, and the breeze are the only things heard. Dorado sighs, rubbing his back, "listen princess, I am currently in a dilemma here with you..... it's just all so confusing."
"What is confusing," Celestia asks with a softened face, "you are just bringing me to my fathers right?"
Dorado tilts his head as he raises an eyebrow, "the rulers of the Kingdom of emmm Earth Ponies?"
"Unicorns, the Kingdom of Unicorns right," Celestia says in an exasperated voice. If Dorado recalls correctly, they said Kingdom of Earth Ponies, not of Unicorns. He shifts uncomfortably and sighs, knowing that probably they accepted to bring a princess to a rival kingdom, if it is bad, yes, but if it is necessary for going home, then there is no other option.
"Ummm sure yeah, of course," Dorado says with a fake grin, making Celestia sigh, a smile appears on her muzzle as she giggles a bit.
"What?" Dorado asks, raising an eyebrow.
"It is just weird," Celestia begins, "you come from a strange land, and both of you are helping me...... what did they offer you?"
"Excuse me?"
"Yeah, what did they offer you?" she asks, shifting uncomfortably, "it is impossible that you are helping me without something in exchange."
"Oh yeah right," Dorado looks at the sea. The clearwater is simply astonishing in every sense of the word. He sighs, continuing while looking down, "they offered us to go home."
"So you aren't doing this to-"
"And if I am being sincere princess," Dorado begins, interrupting her in the process, "it is the first time that I've heard about you or your kingdom."
"Impossible," she starts confused, "King Cosmos? does that rings to you."
He shakes his head, "nope, not a bit."
"So you are really from a faraway land huh," she says smugly, "and who is the king of your nation then."
Dorado look at her confused, "we don't have a king, a president is the word you are looking for."
"President?" she says awkwardly, "and this is the ruler of your nation?"
"You can say tha-" Dorado is interrupted by, me.
A bunny passes right in the middle of the two and following him, I appear charging against the animal with my bayonet. If you are asking yourself right now what happened then that jungle is rather interesting if we are being sincere. The sound of the insects, the moon rays that enter the forest through the branches of the trees, the darkness elevates that place, leaving just a beautiful sight of a twisted and medieval forest, I could even rightfully claim that it looks like those in classic tales like Sleeping Beuty or Hansel and Gretel, just that, try to imagine those stories in a jungle, and there you got your mental image.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHH! FRICK FRICK!!!! CARAJO!!!!" I shout as I jump over the fire with a determined face. My eyes are narrowed, and my fists are tightly clenched on the rifle.
Just when I was going to kill the bunny, he jumped, making me bury the rifle on the sand. The bunny falls on my face, covering my view, "DAMN IT!!!! TAKE IT OFF! TAKE IT OFF!"
"What the hell happened?!" I hear dorado exclaim.
A rock is behind me, something that makes me stumble on the sand. I am momentarily dizzy, looking at the bright stars in the endless diamond sky, well, that is until the bunny appears over me, I can swear that I saw a smile on his tiny mouth.
"Animal of the devil...." I mumble.
The bunny sees Dorado galloping towards him, which makes him shriek and immediately runs towards the jungle, disappearing in the midst. I groan as I begin to stretch, my eyes are narrowed, and my body still feels dizzy, that is when I see Dorado looking at me with an amused face, "and they called the Liberals weak..."
I send a glare at him, "frick you...."
Celestia arrives next to Dorado, looking at me with that same unsupportable amused face of her, "I have apples if you didn't catch anything hooman."
I raise my finger, pointing at Celestia, "also.... frick you."
They both laugh, as I slowly begin to stand up. Cleaning up the sand from my uniform, I begin to walk towards the fireplace. I sit in the sand, when suddenly, and apple appears on my hand with no freaking explanation whatsoever. I back off a bit, and at the moment when I was going to throw the apple, Celestia appears beside me with a smile on her muzzle, "eat it hooman, it is magical."
I stare at her with an awkward face, "yeah.... that is maybe the reason why I don't want to eat it!"
"Go on, it isn't bad," Dorado says from behind, "I ate it."
"And I should trust you," I turn my view to Celestia, seeing her with a frown.
"I though apes liked fruits?" she says smugly, something that makes me send her a frown. I look at the apple, it is very weird, it is bigger to any apple I have seen back home, shinier, and even it's red colour is more noticeable.
"I... going to eat it," I begin, taking a bite from the apple, "but I'm highly offended by it."
If I am being sincere, reminds me of childhood memories, where everything was as fresh as the bright blue sky, now when I see my life..... I recognize that I was drawn into a stupid war that divides our nation, only for the greed of others. Here, this is the best food I have ever eaten, even before the war. The flavour is different, is magical and sweet like a candy, its flavour is as sweet as a bocadillo*, but still soft, perfection you could say.
Celestia giggles, "so you liked it."
"Yep," I mumble, a smile appearing on my face, "I loved it."
Celestia snorts, and then yawns, walking towards a spot next to the fireplace, "I am going to sleep now...... I suppose that tomorrow we have a long way to go right?"
Dorado and I exchange glance at each other. He responds to the princess, "yeah- I suppose so...." he rubs his back, "then get some sleep princess."
She giggles again, "thank you for helping me, even if it is for something........."
Celestia immediately falls into the realm of her sister, silence fills the place. Dorado sighs, turning to look back at me. I am currently watching the stars in the sky, the dreamy colour captivates me out of my thoughts, "Jose?"
He interrupts my trance of thoughts, as I turn back to see him, "yeah?"
He keeps staring at me, before, looking at the sky, "I don't like this, feelings..."
"What are you talking about?" I ask with curiosity. Dorado sighs again.
"I.... it is weird, thinking," those words makes me tilt my head slightly, what does he means by that, "even though my old memories are blurry, they seem all so easy..."
"B-but what are you talking about, what do you mean by thinking?" I ask, raising an eyebrow as I turn to meet his disappointed gaze.
"I don't like feeling emotions, they are weird, I felt sad, happy, and felt something weird when Celestia said something about she mounting me, like some butterflies in my stomach," he responds sourly, looking at his dusty hoof, "it was just so easy if back home..... now I feel scared," he looks at me, "before all of this I didn't feel scared, because I didn't think."
I remain silent for some seconds, turning my view back to the sky, "so you aren't happy for thinking?" I look at him again, something that he responds with a disappointed nod, "but- why"
Dorado hesitates, but sighs, "I don't know..... it just feels weird, I don't like that emotion that you humans call, being scared or sad, and I have been feeling them," he stares at the stars, "I just want to go home.... even if I die....and I don't know what I am..."
I am silent for some seconds, tapping my chin while raising my view back at the sky, "you are a person."
"Excuse me?" he says confused.
"Makes you a person," I begin with a soft expression on my features, "a human, you think and act like that, even though when I realized that you talked it was scary, right now I feel like I am talking to another human, and maybe that is the thing that is keeping my sanity on check."
"But-" I quickly interrupt him.
"Being sad or scared isn't bad..... it is good," I stretch, turning my view back at Dorado, "I think that being sad is the strongest emotion of all, even more, that love because, it is the one that makes us act, it is a requirement for being happy, it is not bad, just uncomfortable, the same thing with fear," I make circles with my hand, "just, try to believe that we are going back home very soon."
He plays with the sand with his hoof, "and what is that then, believing in what doesn't exists...."
I look at the stars again, its patterns are not the same ones of Earth, they are different, more organized you can even say, its splendour is an art, "faith, that what you are referring to."
Dorado tilts his head, "and does it works?"
I remain silent, taking my combat rosary out of my pocket, clenching my fist, "yes.... at least that is what I have faith on."
May 13, 1900
Slowly, I begin to wake up, heat is being irradiated upon my skin, as I can hear the birds chirping in the trees, the sun already in the sky, but if we are talking about time, I could say that it is very early in the morning. I stretch and yawn several times. Rubbing my eyes, I stand up. Dorado and Celestia are still sleeping, and the magical fire and the wood disappeared. I stare at its previous location before I simply shrug and take out my combat rosary, saying a Catholic prayer and after that, I begin to silently walk into the jungle once again.
With the sun, it changed, the sunrays enter form the tall trees, and their twisted nature now seems more normal, at least more normal to the standards of this world.
"Herminia Parra.....in whose eyes there are all the smiles of dawn.......and all the sadness of the afternoon," I silently sing. The heat has augmented, bad if you are asking me, as it makes me sweat easily. Now, if you are asking why am I once again in these woods, then it is the same reason why I came here yesterday, food. I am ready with my rifle, pointing at the front of me. One of the things that have me bugging out since yesterday, is that if I recall this Princess Celestia said something about his father doing somewhere thing with her magic, but I suppose she used it correctly yesterday.
I chuckle, that thought, if it was in Colombia she would probably have been killed for doing magic, of what I know and the rules that the Catholic church says, magic is dark in every aspect of it, for that reason someone should never mess up with that kind of things. The only guy that has done weird things back home, or at least what is reported, was in Russia if I am not wrong, Rasputin, the guy that can heal anyone that he touches.
Suddenly, a bush moves behind me. I swiftly move to look at it. My eyes narrow, as I get more comfortable with the rifle. Again, a bush moved behind me.
I turn back with fear, and at that reaction I quickly pull the lever on my rifle, making it ready for firing if I need to, after all, I am not very good in the local wildlife.
"So you did it," a voice says behind me, making me quickly turn to looks t the one who said it........ that thing...
That thing back in the forest with the ponds..... who is this guy...
"Who the hell are you," I ask, pointing my rifle directly at his face. He chuckles while shaking his head.
"My goodness, how could you have forgotten me so fast," he scratches his beard, "my name is Discord."
I keep staring at him, "w-who the frick are you! and what do you want Discord!"
"My my," he begins, looking at me with a smug face, "let's just say, I am the guy that is going to lead you to your real destination."
"What are you talking about?"
"The princess," he says, pointing at the way where my companions are located, "you can't take her to the Kingdom of Earth Ponies."
"What?" I glance at that same direction, turning to look back at Discord with a frown, "don't even think so, I know that you must have something to do with the reason of why am I here."
He raises a paw, "no...no," he begins to wall towards me, "I just said that you were chosen, not selected."
I show a confused face, "that doesn't make any sense!"
"Sure it does," he chuckles, "at least for me."
"Look," I interrupt his laugh, "why are you saying that."
"About the Princess," his eyes widen as his smirk grows, "because that wouldn't be something good to me."
"And who the hell cares about you!!!" I respond exasperated, "I only know that our best opportunity to go home is leading her to that kingdom."
"Oh, it is?" he says, raising an eyebrow, "what if I told you about a shortcut...." he suddenly makes something appear on his hand, a coin, that he proceeds to throw at me.
I stare at it intensely, recognizing the Colombian coin, he just, made it appear. I turn back to look at him.
"I am listening," I say, hesitating at first.
"Just, lead her back home, and you'll have your reward," he simply states.
"And where is back home?" I ask, but suddenly, a voice shouts something from the way of my companions.
"Jose!!!!"
I turn back, and immediately back off a bit. This Discord guy..... just disappeared.
"Jose!!!! where the hell are you!!!!"
I glance at the jungle and back to the previous position of the creature, "I am coming!!!"