//------------------------------// // XII – The West // Story: From the West They Came // by Not That Anon //------------------------------// Hunger. The meager breakfast failed to stave it off for long. I suspected as much in the morning and now that the scheduled lunch break came and went without a meal, it was painfully obvious how right I was. Since the kelpies abandoned the pursuit, we encountered no further surprises. The calm sea stretched in every direction, far as the eye could see. It was driving everypony insane. We needed something, anything, to take our minds off the imminent threat whispered to us by the shadow of starvation. With nothing better to do, I decided to see how everypony else is doing. No better than me, I found out. The wait was starting to drag on for all of us. A group of sailors was impassionately playing cards in the hold, constantly stealing glances at the empty crates of oats. Midnight was in her cabin absent-mindedly brewing potions and browsing the notes she’s compiled. With no wounded to take care of, Sawbones left the sick bay to clean his tools on the ship’s bow. He was the first one to see our destination in the early evening. “Land!” he cried out. “Land, captain!” The navigator checked the charts and confirmed his observation. “The map leads there. Only… if I’m being honest I expected it to be larger.” I saw what she meant as soon as I picked up the spyglass. The island was a tiny round piece of land sticking out from the sea. Not a single bush or a tree grew on it despite the seemingly trimmed grass covering its surface. The island had a single pier, unsurprisingly pointed in our direction, but no other pony-made structures could be seen. The water in its proximity had a mysterious purple color. “Dock there,” I commanded. “If there’s anything the west taught me thus far, it’s to not expect anything and prepare for everything.” She shrugged. “As you say, captain. At worst we could graze there.” I took Midnight and Sawbones with me to explore this newfound island. The results were clear; probing the earth confirmed that there were no hidden entrances or illusion spells put on the island. It was a disheartening thing to find out but after everything we’ve been through I wasn’t about to give up so easily. The grazing idea, undistinguished as it was, was quickly rejected. Despite the gnawing hunger in our stomachs, not one of the sailors could bring themselves to eat the grass here. Everypony – even Midnight – agreed that for some reason it seemed wrong, sacrilegious even. Perhaps that was for the best as the purple water around the island turned out to be magically acidic and, according to Sawbones’s tests, capable of dissolving a pony unlucky enough to fall into it in seconds. This was the right place, we were sure of that. The light of my homecoming mark was shining brighter than usual and Midnight found traces of ancient magical residue that resembled our Princess’s magic. We only needed to find a way to access the secrets hidden here. I spent the rest of the afternoon on the bridge, entertaining various theories before ultimately dismissing them all. After several hours spent on this futile endeavor, when the Sun began to set, I heard the door behind me open. I turned around and saw Midnight, though she held her head lower than usual and there was a hint of uncertainty in every step she made. “Any ideas?” she asked. I shook my head. “No, at least nothing that could work. From the way you’re looking at me I’d guess it’s the same for you.” “You have a keener eye than most, Vigil. I like that.” She stopped by the wooden railing. “But your guesses could use some work.” “I’d be honored to learn from the best,” I said with a shallow bow. “Was that flattery, mockery or an offer?” Midnight smiled and took off her hat, her long navy blue mane blowing on the wind. “But no, the reason why I’m unsure is that I have found the solution.” “I hope you’re not planning on organizing ritual sacrifices or something –“ I paused and glanced east “– unless you want to row this boat back home yourself once we’re done here.” “…home…” she sighed. “You’re putting a lot of stock in the promise of someone who doesn’t currently exist.” “I do.” I nodded. “I want to believe that you’re right,” Midnight sat right next to me and held my hoof. “Perhaps then…” She released my hoof and shook her head. “This island is making me sentimental, dammit.” For a while, neither of us said anything. “You’ve received the map to this island in the dreams,” she said wistfully, “wouldn’t it make sense if the place that it leads to would have to be found in the dreams, too? By everyone who wants to enter.” “A shared dream?” I asked. “Can you really do something like that?” “Of course not,” she said, “But normally you can’t dreamwalk, either, and yet that’s what you did under the effect of that potion I gave you. It contains a bit of the same magic that Princess Luna used. If everypony took a sip…“ I raised a brow. “Haven’t you said that it can cause madness?” “I did. But a strong centralizing signal – in our case the island’s resonance – could perhaps keep everypony from straying too far and getting lost.” “How much time do you need to make more of the potion?” I paused. “Actually, can you even make more?” “I don’t need to.” She smiled and levitated a large bottle from behind the door. “Not wanting to let it get into the wrong hooves, I took all of the supply with me.” “I’ll gather the sailors and ask for volunteers. I won’t force anypony who doesn’t want to risk madness or worse.” I looked at the mysterious liquid and scrunched my muzzle. “Once again we’re doing something that could only be described as stupidly risky by the sane folk. Our luck is bound to run out very soon.” “If all goes well, this will be the last time we have to rely on luck.” She stared into the sunset. “Midnight?” “What?” “Before I go, can we stay here like this a moment longer?” I asked. Midnight smiled, and for once I could tell the gesture was genuine. “I was afraid you wouldn’t ask.”