//------------------------------// // Visitation // Story: Expedition to the Cloudbreak Islands // by Starglider //------------------------------// The weather had taken a turn towards cold and damp; fog lay low over Blissful Pastures along with intermittent drizzle: just enough to make their coats damp. Five ponies made their way out from the great airship tethered to the island edge, heading through the meadow camp to the copter parked just beyond. Two of them had been to the island of felines before: Blaze Trails, the green earth pony guide and explorer, and Azure Feather, the recently-turned-pegasus royal guard and master of elemental Air. Two ponies with deep purple fur and manes followed: bat-winged Clashing Gale and feather-winged Cloud Cutter, ready to infiltrate the lair of the sphinxes in search of their missing crew member, Summer Scribe. The final pony was their reluctant leader, Set Sail, who was flanked by the big grey-and-pink hippogriff Reef Skimmer. The team was assembled, their gear stowed, yet one creature was missing: the kirin engineer Nutmeg Inferno, along with the thermal crystals that drove the Second Chance's boilers. "Alright, everypony, we've got too much to do today, and not a lot of time to do it," Set Sail said. The pegasus strode to the head of the group, axe sheathed at her side. "So I see everyone's here except Nutmeg. She was coming with us, right?" "Indeed and it seems she did find time to install that winch," Reef Skimmer said. "Strange she isn't eager to test it... ah, but as I recall the mare does like to sleep in." "Of all the days one could take to do that, she picks today?" Clashing Gale protested. "When we're already late for a challenging mission?" He shook his head, muttering "It is what it is, I guess..." Cloud Cutter just nodded quietly to the captain, her face remaining expressionless. "Hmm. Perhaps you should go fetch her?" she suggested. "Sure, I'll go see if she's in her bunk," Set Sail said, "Anypony else want to check around for her? Could uh, maybe Azure could check the engine room, and Cloud Cutter could check that funny cannon Nutmeg's crew have been installing on the stern? I wanna get out of here pronto." Another nod from the spooky pegasus: the next time anypony looked her way, there was no trace of Cloud Cutter. Azure nodded in turn and headed off as ordered. The stoic guard kept it to herself, but she too was irritated: why would some creature start ignoring orders? Nutmeg knew they had a lot to do, right? The task seemed to be in claw, so Reef Skimmer lay down on the deck of the copter and began to relate the previous night's findings to Clashing and Blaze. "You know that drow we've been keeping captive on that ship?" he began, "Talkative little slip of a thing. The captain and I were asking her about the spidrow, and it turns out..." Nutmeg wasn't the only creature in the engine room, but the other techs were happy to point Azure over to a workbench in the back. The red-ruffed kirin was reared up on it, tinkering with some sort of boxy device. There was a distant, thoughtful expression on her brown-furred, golden-scaled face. A quiet sigh came from Azure as she spotted her target working on another gadget. Of all places... and of all days. "...Last minute preparations, Nutmeg?" she asked calmly. No need to dress ponies down for being late when they might have a good reason, right? Nutmeg's screwdriver went clattering out of her strange, two-toed hoof the moment Azure spoke. Looking up with a nervous grin, the kirin said: "Oh yeah, I'm uh, just fiddling with... I was just messing around with this, must've lost track of time. Is it time to go already? I'll uh... I'll be right there." "The squad has been assembled, yes..." Azure Feather began, but she had to ask... "Is everything alright there, Nutmeg? I mean, this is an important mission, so if there's anything troubling you, it might be better to speak your mind first...?" Her voice carried concern for a friend, as well as the mission's safety... “Oh, no no nothing’s wrong, I mean it’s not like you need me there or anything,” Nutmeg says with a blush, “I don’t have to go, I’ll probably just weigh you down. So maybe I should just...” “C'mon, Nutmeg,” a stallion’s voice spoke up. Nutmeg Inferno looked over to her second in command: Gearshift was standing right there with an amused smile on his face. “You don’t want to stay cooped up in here, right?" the dappled stallion continued, "It’s not like you can’t handle it. You’ve been out there! I can’t believe I’m the one who has to tell you to go out and explore. It’s not like you!” Azure sighed again, this time less quietly. "Nutmeg, you're going to be a valuable member of this squad, I'm pretty sure of that, and besides... we will likely need more..." she glanced at the mysterious device, "...weaponry, should things go wrong here, don't you think?" “Yeah, I’m just...” Nutmeg seemed reluctant to meet the stallion's gaze, but after an awkward pause she turned to Azure with a relieved smile. The kirin stepped away from her workbench to join the purple-maned pegasus, saying: “You’re both right... I’m just being dumb about it, again. C’mon Azure, let’s go.” "Don't go talking like that, Nutmeg." Azure said reassuringly, shaking her head. "I really do think your work's important, and nerves before a mission... well, it's a thing. I'd lose track of time sometimes when I was focused on magical research... a while back," she admitted. “I didn't really have many career options other than developing tech, actually," Nutmeg said as the two left the workbench, "There's a lot of demand for kirin engineers you know...” “Wait!” Gearshift called out, “Don’t forget your equipment!” Nutmeg blushed horribly and scurried off, returning to Azure’s side a minute later bearing her tool saddle and wrench. “Yeah, so as I was saying...” Gearshift was likely the only one who appreciated how troubled the kirin was: he watched the two mares closely as they left the engine room, heading over to the gangplank to get to the chopper. Flight time to Fellis was perhaps an hour and a half, with Set Sail at the helm and Blaze keeping her company in the cockpit. The pegasus guided the Second Chance towards the lower arm of the cross-shaped island, heading for the dense group of islets floating off the southern edge. Here the dense jungle seemed to spill out into the air, with suspended streams and lakes winding between aerial cliffs covered in tenacious plant life. Steering carefully around the vines criss-crossing the bottomless canyons, the captain set the little ship down on a patch of bare rock atop one of the islets. Blaze Trails immediately went looking for dry wood, as they'd need a fire to recharge the thermal crystals. After waiting a little while to confirm no sphinxes were flying out to challenge them, Set Sail ducked into the cargo pit, emerging with a few bottles of the precious magical soda. Clashing Gale gave the beverage a sceptical look, tilted his head and saying: "So this... this stuff actually has magical powers? Then again, judging by what I've seen so far, I'd be more surprised if something didn't..." He just shook his head: pretty much everything he'd seen in this place had been some flavour of crazy. "Yes, it's more like a potion than a soda," Set Sail said, "Cloud Cutter tested it: it will turn you invisible for 10 minutes or so." Winging bottles into Clashing and Cloud Cutter's saddlebags, she continued: "You each have two doses of it. One to get in, one to get out. Beyond that, you'll just have to be very..." the captain looked the pegasus mare's way, "...quiet." "You've been told about the entrance puzzle, and hopefully they don't have any defences set up yet between that and the earth seal. Once you get to the seal... either Summer will be able to get you past it, or you give up and leave the moment you're in danger of being detected," she explained. "Avoid all confrontation no matter what." "Understood," Cloud Cutter said, staring out over the jungle to where it embraced that strange stepped pyramid. "Got it, Captain..." Clashing muttered, following his team member's gaze, then looking at Cloud Cutter herself, wondering what she was thinking. The batpony's brows furrowed as he focused on his orders. "Between you and me? I hope the puzzle isn't active, but if it is... then we have to complete it quickly and quietly." He sounded a little nervous at the prospect: combat was one thing, but mysterious magical locks... "You know the elements and their weaknesses, so you should be fine. If you can't get past it, just come back and we'll try to figure out what to do," Set Sail said, "But we have a limited supply of sodas, so... just be careful. We'll stay hidden here until you get back." "Best of luck, ponies." Reef Skimmer said, with a dip of his head. "One will stay on alert with Azure here, do our best to get any pursuers off your become should it be necessary." A frown, then "Though I sincerely hope it won't be." With that the two purple ponies were airborne, keeping below the treeline as they headed for the great sandstone structure poking up through the canopy. Both nimble and experienced flyers, they easily wove between the tree trunks, pausing to perch on a broad branch as the plaza came into view. A double row of reclining sphinxes... just statues, on each side of a worn and cracked causeway leading to the pyramid's entrance. No sphinxes were visible, but their view was blocked by the intervening trees and no doubt the magical predators could be hiding in any of a thousand spots in the surrounding jungle. Popping the caps off their carbonated potions, they drained the glass bottles and watched each other fade from view before continuing. Gliding down to the temple approach, they caught sight of movement at the other end of the causeway; a lone sphinx, padding off into the jungle. Clashing Gale's hooves softly clopped as he landed, but a swift look at the distant creature confirmed they had not attracted their attention. He couldn't hear Cloud Cutter land, but she was indeed close behind, drifting down to the ground just to his right. The mare moved in almost total silence, perceptible only in the undercurrents of her wingbeats. The two looked toward the entrance to the temple: a tunnel wide enough for a phalanx of sphinxes to march abreast, dwarfing the two little ponies. Seeing no guards barring the way inside, they moved ahead together. There was a little hesitation from the former Storm Piercer team leader, enough for Cloud Cutter to take the lead as they entered the massive structure. Creeping forward one hoof at a time, she noticed a faint glow in the dusty floor. A tracery of fine lines formed a circular pattern spanning the entire width of the spacious stone corridor; the pegasus had only noticed it where a pebble had blocked the sunlight from the entrance, causing a glint in the tiny shadow. The spooky mare reaching with a wing to the left, but couldn't feel Clashing Gale, which was definitely not according to plan. She had to risk whispering aloud: "Clashing, magical trap on the floor," hoping that he would be close enough to hear. Spreading her wings, she hopped up into the air, gliding quietly over the faint glowing lines. To her horror the magical construct immediately began to warble. With a heart stopping chirp, (oh wait no just a chirp), the whole pattern flickered worryingly, then her flight continued unabated, until she landed on the other side. 'Thank goodness this place is as quiet as a tomb' Clashing thought - he might not have heard his partner otherwise. As it was the sounds of the jungle outside died quickly as they moved down the corridor, and the quiet whisper was enough. Unwilling to risk flight, Clashing slowly made his way around the pattern, pressing himself against the sandstone walls. The pattern didn't even flicker this time: perhaps the bat-pony wasn't as skilled at the craft of stealth as Cloud Cutter, but he was certainly no slouch. Not waiting to see if she'd triggered some form of alarm, Cloud Cutter headed further in, slowly, looking hard for any further such traces or other things that stuck out. The two ponies reached the first chamber with its tranquil pool of mysterious glowing liquid, uninhabited and still. There was no sign of the elaborate puzzle the others had described, only a huge open doorway leading further into the temple. Clashing let out a breath - he'd memorised the instructions as best he could, but he was dubious about the chances of opening that massive gate without alerting the sphinxes. Now... if the inside of the temple was unguarded, then one of them could stand guard to ensure the other wouldn't be disturbed. If there were hostiles inside... it would be time for another plan. The pair proceeded onward into the enormous central hall, a forest of square stone pillars lit only by dim flickering light from the alcoves around the walls. Looking around carefully, it seemed there were cobwebs strung between the pillars, and more scattered over the floor - but not the natural cobwebs the others had found. No, these were more of the loose-woven tapestries of golden magic thread, glimmering on the edge of visibility. Clashing Gale instinctively turned to look for Cloud Cutter, forgetting for a moment that she was invisible... and saw the sphinxes instead. A pair of the creatures, great lions with the wings of griffons and the heads of ponies, just lying there in a corner near the entrance. Well placed to ambush anypony that entered from outside, or to respond to any disturbance in the main chamber. Looking closer, it seemed like a male and a female, reclining on either side of a flat board covered in strange shapes and tiny crystals. As he watched one of them stretched out a paw and pushed one of the pieces a few centimetres forward, then looked to the other expectantly. Precious seconds of invisibility ticked away as both CC and Clashing stared in dismay at the maze of golden filaments, seemingly impenetrable even to fliers. But progressively, they realized that one section of the room had no wires crossing it. It looked like a coincidence, but there was a section beyond that, and beyond that. A barely visible tunnel that could be navigated without setting anything off. The edge of Cloud Cutter’s hind hoof barely brushed one wire as she glided through the maze, but she looked back and the wire seemed to hold. Then Clashing Gale landed on top of her in a thumping scuffle. 'Really not the best time' he thought, beginning to scramble off but almost instantly freezing as the two ponies became suddenly and shockingly visible. Fortunately with the sphinxes engrossed in their game on the other side of the huge chamber, they escaped detection until the magic could kick back in. For now at least: there could only be a couple of minutes before the soda ran out. Without a word the bat pony got to his feet and slipped away, with Cloud Cutter following close behind. She extended a wing to lay her feather-tips against Clashing’s back, to prevent another collision as they approached the elemental gate together (and if she was honest, to provide a little comfort - after all they were on their own, far beyond Equestria, deep in a temple built by sphinxes). At last they stood before the gate: an enormous disc of golden metal bearing the stylised mountain symbol of the Earth element. The disc was supported by ornate curving pillars set flush against the wall, blocking all passage into the inner sanctum. Surveying their surroundings, one other feature stood out; an area of broken floor slabs filled with a flattened pile of rubble, all that remained of the spidrow's tunnel after the sphinxes finished filling it in. 'No sign of animated clay dolls' Cloud Cutter thought. The strange magical construct called an Earth Gate made a faint ringing noise as the purple pegasus cautiously tapped its surface. She suspected it would sound out quite loudly if somepony were to bang on it like a gong. Clashing Gale's frustration rose as he realised that time was about to run out - the traps, the cautious approach, now this locked gate, all had eaten away at the limited window of invisibility the potion had granted them. Without that magical stealth they'd be in plain sight of the sphinxes: if they couldn't find a way into the final chamber quickly, things would quickly turn nasty. It was with that in mind that Clashing Gale started to search around the pillars at the edges of the gate - didn't Summer find something there initially? All he could see now was a sizable scorch mark and some cracks in the wall... The ponies' ears twitched as the sound of unfamiliar hooves echoed from one of the side alcoves. They sounded hollow, clicking and tinking like stone on stone. Like all the others, the alcove was occupied by a life-size sphinx statue on a substantial rectangular plinth... and it seemed like somepony was peaking around the edge. The glazed ceramic skin, the blue and white colours, the delighted expression - it was Summer Scribe alright, yet clearly not as a flesh-and-blood pony. She seemed to have anticipated the soda strategy, as she stared straight toward the gate, made a 'come here' gesture with one hoof gesture, then scampered back into her hiding place behind the statue. Clashing just stared as Summer's gleaming tail disappeared from view; this was surely the craziest thing he'd seen yet in these impossible floating islands. Sure, he'd been warned, but to actually see the cute little unicorn like this... well. It looked like she wanted to talk at least, so he trotted over as quietly as he could. The space behind the plinth was cramped, but just big enough for three ponies; he sighed with relief as they stepped out of sight. Cloud Cutter didn’t need to be asked twice. Her mental countdown had less than a minute remaining - assuming it was even accurate - so she hurried quickly over to the alcove. After re-establishing wing-contact with Clashing, she asked “Summer, are you alright? In quiet tones please.” Summer's tail was swaying from side to side, a broad smile on her face: "Oh, more than alright!" Despite her joy at seeing the others she managed to keep her voice to a whisper. "You have no idea how much I can do with this new body. I've got the combined knowledge of all of the previous Oracles to sift through, and I can do more than just make myself." It was a good thing Clashing was still invisible, because his expression was shock and disbelief. Of course Summer had figured out this new magic so quickly, she was a brilliant mind, but still... how could she be so upbeat, trapped in a statue, animating a vase-like replica of herself? Still... it wasn't quite the same as having the pony herself, but Summer like this was still a huge improvement on no Summer at all... "Get this: I thought about making a ceramic sphinx body, and it worked!" Summer said happily. "...More or less. So then I started thinking that if you two didn't come here to break me out, maybe I'd just pretend to be the last Oracle, somehow having survived the discharge of all of her energies, and talk my way out..." "That's not a... bad idea," Cloud Cutter agreed. The blank-eyed purple pegasus seemed distracted as she slowly faded into visibility. "But we're here because the captain wanted to ask that you not be an absolute terror to these sphinxes who... unknowingly hold you here. Our best plan was to try to negotiate with them to procure your release. We don't know how much the sphinxes told you. They said they need a few weeks to shore up their temple against invaders such as the spidrow and err, us. And Summer... Set Sail is... not pleased with you." Summer Scribe slowly tilted her head, unblinking eyes staring at the translucent ponies as she considered. "...Oh. I guess I'll suspend Operation Sphinx Vacation for now, then." Even though she was swimming in a library of knowledge about the Sky Lands, she was still in an information drought when it came to the rest of the team's plans, so she seemed eager to listen. "Well, ok... but the moment you start asking about me, the jig's up, so we better be totally sure that they'd accept anything for the False Oracle's release." The ceramic unicorn sighed and pouted. "Hmm... sorry, Set Sail. Honestly, I wasn't even thinking when I touched the statue. Like, literally wasn't. It was like an uncontrollable urge boiling up inside of me, a voice sweet talking me into reaching out for my wildest dreams and... rrr, I don't think this is going to convince Set Sail. Just don't tell her that part." Sphinx vacation? Clashing Gale looked confused - then realised that he was now visible, and smiled for Summer's benefit. He was happy to see her after all - just not yet over Summer's apparent transformation into an omni-knowledgeable vase. All he could do was watch her closely, keep quiet and listen. The Summer-golem's ears flattened... then perked right back up again. "Oh! By the way! Set Sail's probably going to want to know about the tunnels! The tunnels the molekin dug ages ago that can lead us straight to the laser pyramid in the north from underneath! Unfortunately I can't make a map right now, so would one of you like to memorise some directions?" She looked expectantly (and in all honesty, a little manically) at the pegasus. “We’ll try our best,” Cloud Cutter said uncertainly, “I don’t know what this Undead magic has done to my navigation sense though, so no promises. You truly were... compelled to touch it?” Summer tilted her head, recalling. "Yeah, it was like... The Oracle itself was reaching out to me to invite me in. Funny thing is, I can't find any information about such a thing happening before, but it usually has someone in it, so maybe it just wasn't documented? Dunno." She shrugged her shoulders. "Anyway, if you're ready, you need to go..." She rattled off a short list of landmarks and bearings that should bring them to Catseye Mine, at the eastern end of the old Molekin tunnel network. "...Also, they might have a little spidrow infestation. Not sure if that part's still current," she admitted sheepishly. "Anyway, make it through there, you'll be inside the other pyramid and we'll finally be able to shut down the magical laser and get the Landsharks on our side!" She rubbed her hooves together: simple! "So if nothing else I can at least make sure you can save yourselves, right?" Clashing Gale paid close attention, memorising the directions and nodding firmly... but then shook his head at the idea of saving every creature but Summer. That... was just not an option. Keeping his voice as low and steady as he could, he asked "Shouldn't we at least try to get you out of here?" Summer Scribe nodded eagerly! "Well, that's what I was hoping for! What's your plan? There's Sphinxes on guard. Are you going to fight them to submission, sneak past them or just run for it? I can open the Earth Gate at your command." She'd interpreted Clashing's request as leaving right now, forgetting for the moment what it would do to their chances of allying with the sphinxes. "Even if we could carry the statue out, where would we take it?" Cloud Cutter protested. "Some other highly secured location? Nopony has any idea how to extract you from it so... it's your prison, whether it's here or sitting out in a meadow somewhere." Summer Scribe laughs! "Oh, I don't want to leave The Oracle. I just want to be back with the rest of you and out of this pyramid!" That wide grin was plastered on her face again, even crazier looking than before. "But if you insist, I do know how to get out of The Oracle... if someone else is willing to loan me their body and take my place inside it!" Dismissing that bit of body horror with an incongruous chuckle, she continued: "But I don't want that. I kind of feel like this is where I'm meant to be, you know? Just have to, uhh, get past the Sphinxes somehow. Ahaha." She rubbed a hoof behind her head - it felt strange now she didn't have fur. "Okay, so it seems like you really don't have a plan, huh? We're just hoping Set Sail can talk our way through this?" It was certainly possible, but Summer didn't like how... uncertain, nebulous and in-the-future that feels. What if it backfired and made this her tomb for good?! “Not like my body’s worth staying in anymore,” Cloud Cutter grumbled under her breath. Somewhat less bleakly, she said: “I’m not sure how much of the crew knows this, but there is a chance we might end up moving our base camp to Fellis, if we can get along with the Sphinxes here. So we’re counting on Set Sail to talk our way out of a lot. Once we get back she and Blaze are going to try and make peace with those two-legged cat creatures, whose temple you accidentally... trespassed in. Hopefully without trespassing in anything worse. But what I’m saying is we do have some plans, just... no really good ones.” "So anyway, we're going to try negotiating with the sphinxes," Cloud Cutter summarised. "So I wanted to say you don't have to conceal your presence here, but... your idea of manifesting a sphinx is intriguing. We'll hold off on any confessions if you want to do that. And don’t tell the captain I said so, but anything you can do to ...encourage the sphinxes here to negotiate with us would help, even if it means a little terror here and there." Summer Scribe tilted her head to the side... "Hmm, I see. So we have a lot more riding on the Sphinx's good graces than just having to avoid them if things go south. Ok, I won't do anything rash on my own - I don't want to jeopardize Set Sail's plans. Wish her my luck." As for the other negotiations... she could offer an anecdote at least: "Hmm, you know, the different feline races of this island - the Sphinxes, Mystics and Fellisians - used to get along super well before the war with Kaossandra pushed them all to their limits and rendered the island a shadow of its former glory. It might be possible to re-ignite those old allegiances with some good manoeuvring and charisma. Might be an angle worth trying for?" Mystics? Fellisians? Kaossandra?! Clashing felt out of his depth here. At the idea of trying diplomacy first though... the batpony nodded softly to the idea of diplomacy. "Hey, sometimes it is better to not fight at all... in fact, it often is. See what you can do on that angle, I'd say." All three of them were most definitely visible now, crouching in the shadowy recess between the statue's plinth and the wall of the alcove. Summer smiled back at Clashing. "Yeah, keep my identity a secret for now. I like the idea of being such a nuisance that they want to give me away, but I think The Oracle is too culturally significant for that." She tapped her chin. "...I'll think on it. We've got time. I'll do anything that'll make your negotiations easier." "Ok, but... I just meant, we could take..." the batpony gestured vaguely to the vase form before them. He knew that they'd have no chance to sneak off with the actual statue, but this... at least then Summer could talk to Set Sail herself, right? He wasn't seem confident it would work, but he still felt they had to do something for Summer... Summer Scribe blinked at Clashing: "Oooh, you want to take... this? I mean, I doubt we'll be able to take it wherever we want - my consciousness is still in The Oracle, I'm just possessing this body. Not sure what the range on that is! Not all the way back to Blissful Pastures, I'm certain. But, if the others are waiting in the jungle, and we're done catching up, it's worth a shot: maybe I can say my greetings... it'd, err, well, it'd be nice..." She tapped her hooves together nervously - that might mean throwing this body away for nothing! Buuutt... that's okay, it seemed easy enough to make another. “Thank you, and I’m sorry we couldn’t do more,” Cloud Cutter said with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes (it never did any more). “We’ll be together again as soon as we can, hopefully without any murderous sphinxes on our tails. For now, taking your... semblance out might have to do. Not sure how to do that... if something goes poorly, you can at least get your dolls out of the earth gate, right? I mean...” Cloud Cutter tapped Summer’s side, her hoof clinking on the ceramic. “You are made of earth now.” Summer Scribe waved a hoof confidently, giggling as she was tapped, "Oh yeah, I'm really light. Just don't drop me. ...Or get seen," she said. "I assume you two brought a second dose of invisi-soda, but I can't drink it." She tossed her head dismissively. "This form is nothing permanent for me. Worst case... I can just sneak another me through the Earth Gate, some time when nopony... nosphinx is watching." She hung her head low, smile still on her face. "You know it means a lot to me that you'd invest so much just into coming and saying hi, let alone that you'd pledge to rescue me. I'd totally understand if you decided it'd be easier to leave me behind. Would be what I deserved, right? Ahaha. I could become my own neat little footnote in history, at least." Clashing looked to his companion: "Think we can make it out with Summer? Maybe if one of us makes a distraction, to draw the guard's attention." Cloud Cutter considered it for a second, then asked: "Matter of fact... how small of a doll can you make? If we could fit you in a pocket..." "...Oh! That's a good idea," Summer said happily. "I know I can make a sphinx and a me, maybe I can make a mini me too." She peers off in the direction of the gate. "Unfortunately, opening the Earth Gate is kinda bright and noisy, otherwise I'd love to try it right now. Another time, maybe?" "Clashing and I do have one more dose of invisibility," Cloud Cutter suggested, "If we kept to the sides when they rushed in at the noise... but you'd have to prove you can make a mini pony before we risked anything like that. Otherwise, you're gonna be pretty visible no matter what we do." Summer hmms. "Yeah, I like the idea of deliberately getting the guards' attention by messing with the Earth Gate, as misdirection..." She frowned in concentration, then lowered her head, "Buuuut... I've been trying to make a mini-Summer right now inside of my little jail cell, and it's not coming out great." She decided not to mention the three ceramic sculptures of newborn foal Summer Scribe that had just appeared in there. "Miiiiight need to practice this when I have time to sit down and think." "I wonder what else you could make, with practice..." Cloud Cutter pondered, "A drill? A plate? Curious..." Summer Scribe laughs. "I don't think a drill out of pottery would be able to get much done, but I appreciate the idea." She looked between Cloud Cutter and Clashing - a little sad that she'll remain captive for now, but the talk had warmed her heart - metaphorically speaking. "Well, if I'm not being rescued today, I don't think I should keep you any longer, okay? Good luck with Fellis. I'm sure this isn't the end." A sad nod from Clashing Gale - if they alerted the sphinxes they could easily lose Summer for good, and that was unacceptable. The idea of a mini-Summer was a good one, but that needed the one thing the ponies didn't have at this very moment: time. She would be fine, he told himself, but... ugh. It still felt so incomplete, mission-wise. "Anything else before we get going, Cloud Cutter?" The purple pegasus mare simply shook her head. If she had it in her heart to be upset about this, then her heart would probably beat more than once a minute. "...Send my regards to Set Sail for me," Summer waved to them. "Wish her luck in the mission. I'm sorry." The batpony stepped up to her, hesitated for a moment, then put a leathery wing around her. "We'll be back, Summer... you just stay safe until then, got that?" As much as he wanted to say more - he couldn't find the words, so he pulled away from the embrace and fished his second invisibility potion out of his saddlebags. He glanced at Cloud Cutter - she'd silently extracted her own soda and, without another word, drank it down. "Take care, Summer." With that Clashing followed suit and the two purple ponies faded from sight. Summer Scribe settles back into the alcove, sighing as she watching the two go. She released her hold on the golem and returned to the thought-realm inside the Oracle, planning to search its huge store of memories for more clues. The two ponies carefully flew through the maze of magical alarms and onwards into the entrance tunnel, leaving a pair of sphinxes to sit up and stare into the gloom, wondering where the slight draft had come from. The guards quickly checked the perimeter, but other than a faint scent of equine (no doubt lingering from the previous day's visitors) nothing seemed out of place. Meanwhile the unseen intruders were weaving through the tree trunks, making their way out into open skies. A short flight back to the copter, and they'd be able to share what they'd learned with their friends, and decide what their next step would be.