//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: As The Abyss Swallowed The Sky // by MSPiper //------------------------------// Leading Line was both thrilled and terrified. He'd distantly longed for a return to the excitement and danger of days gone by, the exhilaration of testing his wits against the unknown perils of lands beyond the farthest reaches of equine civilization, but the love he'd found and the daughter with whom he'd been blessed meant he'd been content to bask in the comfort of home and hearth. And then the family he could never replace had been summoned before Princess Celestia, and tasked with spreading the light of friendship to a newfound nation more distant than any known before – together. Little Glisterstring was overjoyed, of course, and spent the rest of the meeting bouncing off the floor, off the walls, and in one heartstopping moment even off Princess Celestia herself. The Princess laughed away his profuse apologies as she got back to her hooves, and assured him there was no harm done. More surprising was that his dear Aventurine also dived upon the call without the worry that had clipped his wings. It seemed she'd been secretly nursing a nascent yearning for the wonders he'd described, more intense each night the three of them told their tales while they stargazed from the cirrus clouds at the roof of the world, and the risks to be found in any true quest had lost the strength to dash her resolve. Princess Celestia knew of his past, the adventures he'd embarked on since colthood, and professed her utmost trust in his ability to secure the supplies they'd need for the journey. The sole provision she furnished was a crystal sphere whose insides shone eternally with a brilliant arrow pointing towards their destination, the domain of The Child Of Sea And Sky. The gravitas of the moment was briefly undercut by Glisterstring wondering how in Equestria they were supposed to hold the thing, and Princess Celestia teasingly assured her that not holding it in Equestria was the point. A brief discussion informed them that while scoring the sphere's surface was not recommended, as the glow that would inevitably catch in the scratches would make the compass arrow hard to read, nothing they could do would actually prevent it from working – even if it were shattered, each of the shards would continue to house a guiding light within. Breaking the sphere right then and there so each of them could have a piece was immediately vetoed. Instead, Aventurine offered to rig a system that would let them install it into and eject it from his skyboat's navigation console at will, inspired by a design she remembered and admired from the life she'd lived before. Though it had been many years since he'd last set wing for the unknown, Leading Line had not lost his touch, and his skyboat was stocked and ready to fly within the week. Family and friends turned out in droves to wish them fair winds and safe travels, and the colt in him who'd relished sneaking off for parts uncharted just couldn't get over the strangeness. The journey proceeded with uncommonly little incident, and they moved with such speed that he even acquiesced to detour for the safer wonders he'd spoken of in his tales. Watching his awestruck Aventurine and giddy Glisterstring make themselves part of the memories of his youth filled him with a heady rush he'd never felt anything quite like, and it was enough to keep his mind off the threats they were carefully threading between. The rush settled into a quiet euphoria as they passed beyond the furthest reaches he'd ever visited before, but it remained as intoxicating as ever, and made him regret that the crystal compass was beginning to point ever more downwards in sign they grew close to their destination. Leading Line found himself surprised when their course led them to the brink of a sun-bright sea, and then berated his foolishness as he realized just why his love and life burst out laughing. Little else indeed could be more meet a domain for The Child Of Sea And Sky. Though they had been flying for most of the day, the light was ideal for spotting any ships or islands they might encounter, so they chose to press on until the coming dark cloaked their sight. The storm came upon them without warning in the night, and the first they knew of its arrival was when the ceiling smashed them through the bed of clouds they shared. Its ferocity was unmatched by any Leading Line had ever been unfortunate enough to encounter, reminiscent of the tales of destruction Aventurine carried from the life she'd lived before, and no amount of dazed and groggy weather magic was enough to break its sway. His efforts to control their flight were cut short when a particularly vicious gust caused Aventurine's rig to finally give up the ghost, and in the split-second before the crystal sphere landed like a cannonshot between his eyes he couldn't help but laugh. Leading Line woke to the sound of waves in his ears and the scent of brine in his nose. He took several long moments to let his battered body bask in the soothing warmth of the sun, massaged by the wind in his feathers and rocked by the roll of the sea, before he finally mustered the strength to open his eyes. His gaze immediately snapped to the crystal sphere, secured in a net that had been lashed most very thoroughly in place, and all wonderings of what had happened to him and to Aventurine and to Glisterstring fell out of his aching skull. A blink and headshake confirmed it was no trick of the light – the arrow was pointing straight down. With great care he got to his unsteady hooves, wings half-extended like a newborn foal who was only just learning to stand. Not a single cloud broke the bluest sky he'd ever set eyes upon, and not a single island broke the distant horizon where it blended with the luminescent sea. Surrounding the wreckage of his skyboat, though, the depths were filled with color. After another blink and headshake failed to dispel the sights surrounding him, he stumbled his loose-jawed way to the side of his dear Aventurine, whose feathers were a frightful mess but whose speech was animated as she talked with a creature slipped out from a foal's storybooks. She gave him a loving nuzzle and swept a wing out over the water, where Glisterstring had joined the myths made real in diving through the waves. A moment later Glisterstring realized he was there and took to the air, dashing over in a burst of speed that showered them with excitement and salty spray. "Papa, papa, look! I told you, I told you! I knew seaponies are real!"