The stallion admitted to himself that he should have thought this through a bit better. Here he was: stuck between a potentially deadly fall and something potentially worse. He didn't want to think he could do anything else unnecessarily impulsive.
And then he climbed up onto the ledge.
And then he bounded off the ledge with all of his might.
"You're a real tactician, y'know that?" he muttered to himself chidingly. Despite the rationality behind his actions, or more-so the lack thereof, he was glad to be out of the city. Now, he just had to look down and see if he was getting close enough to the tree branches. He peered down below to catch sight of a seemingly infinite abyss of nothingness.
When it finally clicked in his brain what was going on, a state of panic ensued. He closed his eyes as his descent continued. And upon opening them, he found himself lying under a tree, screaming from fright. Within a few minutes, he had calmed down.
"Why can't I ever have nice dreams anymore?" he asked himself out loud as he climbed back up onto his hooves. He was tired of these nightmares, of having to sleep in the woods most nights, and of traveling. Since jumping the wall, he had spent his time traveling from city to city in search of a new place to call home.
In the three years leading up to now, he had not found such a place. While he did admit that perhaps he was being a bit too picky, he did not want to repeat the event that made him leave Colton behind.
And he had already had some close calls, regretfully.
Having stood up and brushed out his fur, he withdrew a map from his saddlebags. The sunrise gave him just enough light to see that there was a town nearby. Putting the map away, he began trotting down the road towards what would likely be another rest stop.
"Ponyville... By name, it sounds like a 'One-horse Town'!" he exclaimed before chuckling to himself. He then made a mental note that he won't always have the luxury of having nopony around to hear his bad jokes.
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"Wow! Ponyville is so close! I bet I'll be there in five minutes!" he thought to himself, an odd sense of optimism taking hold of him.
That was three hours ago.
Finally, he was here. The town bore a sort of look that while not nearly as sophisticated as, say, Manehattan, was certainly not a shanty town by any means. It looked... Comfortable. The residents, too, looked relaxed as they went about their business. Well, at least those not staring jaws agape at the one-eyed Unicorn standing at the town gate. As comfortable as his spot was, he felt as though it would be best to go and ask about an inn. Scanning the scenery, a sight caught his eye.
"That mare sure seems social. Maybe she might know where I can fi- Wait, are those balloons tattooed to her flank?" he thought to himself. Ignoring the sudden shift of his attention, he approached the mare. "Excuse me, Miss. Would you know where I can find an i-"
And like that, the mare took off screaming. Not wanting to take the risk of causing a greater commotion, he turned towards the town gate. Perhaps the next town would serve as a better place to settle down.
"Hey! Where are you going?" called out a voice. Turning towards the source of the noise, the Stallion found himself looking at a lavender Unicorn mare trotting up to him. Looking around, he saw nopony else around.
"Look, I didn't mean to do anything! I was just about to leave before I cause more problems" he said, unsure of whether he should have even stopped to talk. She didn't look angry, though, so maybe he made the right choice.
"That's just how Pinkie is, don't worry. Do you need help with something?" she said, reassuringly.
"I don't want to burden you. Really, I can just leave".
"Not at all! What do you need?"
"Well, if you're sure, then I was hoping to ask where I can find an Inn".
"Here, I'll show you the way, Mister...?"
"Thanks, Miss. Please, do lead on". The mare merely sighed, and the two walked along.
True to his first impression, the town appeared to be a very relaxing place. The populace definitely seemed to get along very well, to say the least. The buildings looked just furnished enough for comfortable living, too, which was a definite plus. Trees aren't very good shelters from the elements, after all.
As the pair continued towards the inn, the mare spoke up again.
"So, what made you decide to come here?" she asked.
"Traveling. I figured this place might make a good place to settle down, at least for a little while".
"Not quite ready to return home yet, huh?"
"You could say that, yes".
"So, where'd you come from?"
"A place. Rather far away too, I doubt you've heard of it".
"Try me".
"Colton".
"Colton? That place isn't far away..."
"Seriously? Hold on...". The stallion reached into his saddlebag and removed a map. He studied it quickly after unfolding it, resulting in a displeased look forming on what could be seen on his face. "You've gotta be kidding me!"
"Weren't you following the map?"
"Well, yes and no. I paid attention to the roads. It made it seem so much farther away..." he said, disappointedly.
"As opposed to on the other side of the Everfree Forest?" she asked. He merely nodded his head, and the two walked along. They soon arrived at an inn, and the stallion disappeared momentarily to purchase a room.
"Okay! New question for you, Miss" said the stallion, in an oddly cheerful manner.
"Yes?"
"Is there a place I can work around here to earn a few bits? I may need to resupply..." he asked, allowing the joy he seemed to feel a moment ago to disappear.