Another day spent in the marketplace of Blue Coral Island, another lunch spent at a nice little local dive. Senax and Breakwater were having a good day. Despite the long amount of time they had spent here already they were making the most of it every day. Helped that Blue Coral Island was a naturally fun place to be. Right now for lunch they were at a shack by the southern beach that specialized in various kinds of seaweed wraps. They’d been eating and talking and pony watching for almost two hours, right now the hot sun was directly above them in the sky but it still wasn’t time for them to leave yet.
“I think I like the seaweed wraps with carrots better than the ones with cucumber,” Senax said.
“You’ve always really loved carrots, that’s not a surprise,” Breakwater said.
She shrugged. “Favorite vegetable.”
“I’ll remember to stock up on more the next time we leave,” Breakwater rolled his eyes.
Senax smiled. “That’d be a nice souvenir to leave the Archipelago with.”
“First we’d have to leave at all though.”
“True.”
After all this time there hadn’t been any sign or notice from the High Priestess or any in the Sarraroccon Order yet. No contact at all.
“Do you want to start heading back to the Inn?” Senax asked Breakwater.
“Sure, not like we have anything else to do here,” Breakwater said.
“Tired of pony watching?”
Breakwater sighed. “We’ve been doing that for days now. Let’s just go back and then once it’s dinnertime we can eat at the Inn’s restaurant again. I think I’m just a little tired.”
“Alright, we can go then,” Senax said and went to stand up from the table before stopping and looking at him with a bashful expression. “One more seaweed wrap to go?”
“Go right ahead...”
With a half-eaten seaweed wrap in her hooves, Senax led the way back along the road to the Saffron Inn. They didn’t stop anywhere along the way, more than familiar with all the paths and places of the island now. A few friendly ponies waved as they walked by and they waved back of course, but that was about it. There wasn’t even anything especially eventful or interesting to look at in this area of Blue Coral Island. Just leaves that fell from the trees and coated the ground. At most there were a few very small parks, more just clearings really, where ponies and families could take a rest and play around in.
It wasn’t long until they had gotten back to the Inn, and still with plenty of time left in the day. The establishment and the too-luxurious suite they had been staying in was a familiar sight to them now. As was the matron of the Inn herself, who always greeted them with a smile behind her desk as they walked in.
That didn’t change as they opened the sliding door of the Saffron Inn and walked by her desk.
What did change was the matron calling out to them.
“Oh wait! Please hold on one moment!”
Senax and Breakwater both stopped in front of the desk, surprised at the mare’s outburst. The two of them shared a look before Breakwater spoke up. “Yeah? What is it?”
The mare smiled at them as she reached under her desk and pulled something out—a red envelope. “This arrived for you just earlier today. I was explicitly told to give it to you-” she said to Senax. “Whenever you came back.”
Senax gasped slightly and reached out to take the envelope, turning it over in her hooves she saw that it had no name or any other sort of indicating marks or words on it. Just a plain red, glossy, envelope.
“Who delivered it?” Breakwater asked.
The mare shook her head. “He didn’t tell me his name, but he knew yours and said… well, he said it had something to do with the Sarraroccon Order. I um… I didn’t ask questions after that.”
“Fair enough,” Breakwater shrugged and glanced at the mesmerized Senax. “You want to take that up to the room and open it?”
“Yes,” Senax minutely nodded, her eyes still glued on the envelope, unblinking.
Breakwater nodded to the matron. “Thanks for this, and it looks like we might not be here much longer.”
The two of them stood in the sitting room of their suite with Senax still holding onto the envelope. She hadn’t yet worked up the nerve to open it. Breakwater had to admit too that he was a little nervous. Is this what they were finally waiting for? A bead of sweat was even rolling its way down the side of his head. Senax bit her lip and moved a trembling hoof to the glued shut leaf of the envelope.
“Let’s… let’s see what it says,” she gulped and tore it open.
Inside was a single piece of folded up paper. Senax discarded the envelope and unfolded the letter to read what it said—Breakwater was looking over her shoulder the whole time. What was written on the letter didn’t take up much space. The message was rather simple all in all:
Gather your friends and go to Black Sand Island. A servant named Ill Wind will come by on Manta Ferry to take you to Pink Salt Island to see the High Priestess. Do not take long.
“Oh, I’m glad they want us to hurry,” Breakwater sarcastically snorted and rolled his eyes.
Senax took a deep breath and let out a long sigh. “I’m just… really happy to finally get this letter.”
“I wonder if anything happened recently to trigger it or if they just got bored of spying on us eating here.”
“Black Sand Island is the island Rainbow Dash went to,” Senax said, ignoring him. “We have to go get Gilbert and Daylight first and then find her there.”
“Shouldn’t take long to find the two of them—Gilbert is probably sticking out like a sore hoof right now. And even if it does take us some time I’m not going to feel bad for making the High Priestess wait,” Breakwater smirked.
Senax nodded. “We should still get going right now.”
“Yeah, I know. I’m sure everyone else is going to be happy to learn things are moving. I think I won’t check us out of here just yet though, we might still need the room later, who knows?” Breakwater stretched and walked over to the door. “Ready to hop on your first Manta Ferry?”
The merpony smiled and put down the letter. “Ready.”
Gilbert today was enjoying a production of a romantic-comedy being put on in one of the few parks of Red Beach Island. The troupe performing it wanted a more open and outdoors environment instead of a stuffy theater. Of course he was just as enthralled with this play as any other. He and the rest of the audience were seated on folding chairs that had been set up in the grass, it wasn’t a big audience but everyone was still enjoying what they were watching.
“This is great...” Gilbert said as he wrote something down in a new journal he now carried with him. He had procured it so he could write reviews of everything he saw, even though he would likely never publish them he still enjoyed the process immensely.
It was while he was in the middle of that that he felt a tap on his shoulder.
Gilbert blinked and turned around to see two familiar faces staring back at him. He resisted the urge to stand up and shout during the middle of the play—but failed completely. With his wings shooting open he jumped out of his seat and yelled. “My friends! How wonderful to see you after so long!”
Immediately he was shushed and glared at by everyone else in the audience. Gilbert blushed and ducked down before whispering much more quietly to Breakwater and Senax. “P-Perhaps we can talk over here instead?” He pointed to the trees away from where the play was being put on.
“Probably for the best,” Breakwater grinned and the three of them left the performance behind.
“I’m surprised you’re here. Did something happen?” Gilbert asked them.
“Maybe you’ve lost track of how long you’ve been away but yeah—something happened,” Breakwater said.
“Something good though,” Senax added.
Gilbert’s eyes lit up and he smiled. “You mean-?”
“Yes,” Senax smiled, though a bit uncertainly. “We received a letter from the Order telling us to meet with the High Priestess. Now we just need to go get Daylight and then we can all meet up with Rainbow Dash on Black Sand Island.”
“Excellent! Well, I suppose I can leave right now. The play was nice but this is far more important, I’m so happy that you’ve finally got something to look forward to, Senax!” Gilbert said.
Breakwater looked at the journal he was holding. “Don’t have any important work to finish?”
Gilbert shook his head. “No, no, this was really for my own pleasure more than anything. Let’s go!”
“Let’s hope Daylight is just as easy to find as you,” Breakwater said.
They found Daylight Gleam lying sprawled out fast asleep (well past noon) on a beach chair surrounded by empty drinks. By the look, and smell, of her she had taken to the idea of being on vacation better than any of them. Senax had tried poking and shaking her to wake her up but so far to no avail. Other ponies had gathered around to watch.
Breakwater sighed and rolled his eyes. “Gilbert, would you please wake her up already?”
“Can do!” The griffon smiled and started poking a talon into Daylight’s side. “Daylight, it’s Gilbert, would you like to write a new entry down in my journal?”
Immediately her eyes, bloodshot as they were, snapped open and her pupils turned to glare at the griffon. “For the last time—no.”
“That did it,” Breakwater grinned.
Daylight blinked, taking a second to realize that something was wrong, and sat up on her beach chair. “Wait, what are all of you doing here?” Immediately a dull pain came to her head and she groaned, lifting a hoof to her forehead. “Ohhhh… I am too hungover for questions right now.”
“You really let loose,” Gilbert said.
“We got a letter from the Order, Daylight.” Senax explained. “We’re heading to Black Sand Island now to get Rainbow Dash and then we can finally see the High Priestess.”
Daylight took a deep breath and closed her eyes. “And that’s happening today? It can’t happen after I sleep all this off?”
“No, it can’t,” Breakwater said.
“You’re acting more like Rainbow Dash right now. You really had a fun time at this resort, didn’t you?” Gilbert asked her.
“Too much to drink… not my fault,” the unicorn sighed and rubbed her temples. “Also please don’t say I’m like Rainbow Dash.”
“There are worse ponies to be compared to,” Gilbert grinned.
“Either way you’re going to have to get over your hangover on the trip to Black Sand Island,” Breakwater said.
“Wait… I need to get on a Manta Ferry right now? Feeling like this?” Daylight blanched.
“Well look on the bright side, if you need to throw up the ocean is all around you,” Breakwater patted her on the back.
“I think I’m already sick…”
Despite Daylight’s protesting, Senax couldn’t help but smile as the four of them were back together. It had been too long since seeing her grumpy face. Now they only needed to retrieve the last member of their party.
Rainbow Dash was balancing on top of a pole.
To put it more accurately, she was balancing on one hoof, on top of a pole less than an inch in diameter, that was twenty feet over the ground. While also holding two heavy buckets of water in her hooves and balancing another one on top of her head while blindfolded. While also being pelted in the stomach with rocks thrown at her from below by two of the warriors training here. Seravy and Geyser were maybe even throwing a bit harder than they needed to be.
And yet Rainbow Dash didn’t flinch or show any signs of falling. Despite the length of time this had gone on already she felt like she could take it forever.
It wasn’t to be though.
“Seravy. Geyser. Stop,” the voice of Master Wasabi came in. And with her sharpened ears, Rainbow Dash could hear the hoofsteps of others walking with him. “Rainbow Dash, there are those who have come for you.”
A grin immediately came to Rainbow Dash’s face. She knew exactly what that meant.
The three buckets of water were tossed high into the air, she reached up to undo the blindfold and hopped off the pole while flipping through the air and landing on the ground. The three buckets then came back down one by one and Rainbow Dash perfectly caught and balanced them all one on top of the other. The tower was then carefully placed on the ground while Rainbow smugly laughed to herself.
“Easy.”
“Well you still love to show off just as much,” Daylight said to her.
Rainbow Dash finally looked over at the group that had walked into the training ground with Master Wasabi. Her four friends were standing there and smiling at her—all of them very happy to see each other.
“Heh, took long enough,” Rainbow said and walked over to them. “It’s time?”
“Yes,” Senax nodded. “We’re going to see her.”
“Great,” Rainbow Dash cracked her neck and took off the white robe she was wearing before grinning at Wasabi and hoofing it over to him. “Here, dude, you can have this back. And thanks for all the training.”
Master Wasabi nodded to her. “You are welcome, may you travel well.”
Rainbow Dash in turn nodded to him and the other warriors before joining her friends, and the five of them started walking away. When they were totally out of earshot she turned to Senax. “So what exactly is happening now? The High Priestess said hi to you?”
“A letter was sent to me from a pony in the Order. We’re waiting here now for a Manta Ferry to come and take us to Pink Salt Island—that’s where the High Priestess is,” Senax explained.
“Got it, guess we’re going to the beach where the Manta Ferry that took me here dropped me off,” Rainbow said.
“Yep,” Breakwater nodded.
Meanwhile, Daylight looked up and down Rainbow’s body and noticed that the pegasus looked even more athletic and in-shape than before. Her muscles were slightly more defined. “You look… different.”
“Thanks, you look… you actually look terrible,” Rainbow said to her.
“I kind of took relaxing at a resort a little too far...” Daylight muttered.
“Well either way—I did come here for a reason after all. Next time Godfrey shows his face… he’s going to be surprised,” Rainbow Dash punched her hooves together. “It hasn’t been long but I’m a lot stronger.”
“I wish you good luck with that then,” Gilbert said to her.
“Not going to let any of you get hurt again,” Rainbow said and winked at Senax.
Senax smiled. “Thank you.”
Rainbow Dash smiled back. “Let’s hope that Manta Ferry comes by to pick us up quickly. I’d really like to get back to someplace where I can fly.”