Treble
All of this riding in the backs of trucks is getting rather boring. It feels as though months have passed since I last had enough time to write in my journal. Everyone is being quiet, including Chase, who I expected to be the most talkative out of any of us. Its been hard to avoid being seen by the drivers and delivery stations, but, thanks to Chase knowing an invisibility spell, we have so far succeeded escaping from detection. I'm sure writing about the repetitive nature of our adventure would be kind of boring, so here is a brief summary of what has happened. Basically, Rose and I have become ever closer, having so much time with each other, and Dusty and Chase have done the same. Other than that, life has been pretty boring.
So, after several days on the road, specifically on Wednesday the 20th, the truck is rocked by a huge explosion. It jerks us all awake, and causes the computer to go haywire.
"What is going on?" cries Rose, "What was that?"
"I don't know," I respond, unsure of what to say. Looking down, I notice the screen is showing the outside, as a huge rainbow-colored disc shoots across the sky. "Hey, guys, look at this!"
"It looks...like a sonic rainboom," says Dusty.
"A...what?" asks Chase incredulously, "Did you seriously just call it a sonic rainboom?"
"Uh...yeah," Dusty retorts, "Its something that only Rainbow Dash can do. She breaks the sound barrier and creates an explosion that can split solid rock, and shake entire mountains! Its also useful for discovering special talents."
"Well, that sounds kinda awesome!"
"Guys," I interrupt, "That's not important right now. Something is up with this thing."
Suddenly, a voice sounds from the speakers, saying, "Power has been restored. Location update received. Magical distortion linked with a portal in Dubuque, Iowa. Proceed to location to scan energy."
"What are we waitin' for?" shouts Chase, "You heard the thing, let's go!"
"Chase," I answer, "If you haven't noticed, we're kinda stuck in here, with no way out until we stop."
"Fine, but as soon as we stop, we need to get out of here."
I close the console, and sit down to think about how convenient it is that the computer suddenly got a boost when the sonic rainboom happened. My personal guess is that, like any computer, it takes time to boot up. After being off for 25 years, it understandably would take a long time for that to happen. The magic from the rainboom gave it the energy to finish loading. Not to mention it has been off for at least half our journey. Over the past few days, I have been using it to check on things like news, weather, and current location. A while back, we crossed the border into Iowa, finally. We stopped in Davenport, and accidentally took the wrong truck and traveled northwards on Route 61. When the computer received the "update," we were on Route 20, near a little town called Peosta.
"Hey, Treble," says Rose, shaking me out of my reverie, "Whatcha thinking about?"
"Nothing," I respond.
"Come on, I know you well enough to see you're thinking about something."
I sigh, "Just about the convenience of what happened back there. Its as if something has been steering us towards a specific goal. As if, to this...entity, all we are is pawns in a much bigger game."
"And what do you think we should do?"
"I think that we should see this thing through to the end."
"Well, then, that's what we should do."
Gradually, the truck starts to slow down. We are reaching a stop for either a loading or for the driver to switch trucks. The back of the trailer creaks open. Unfortunately, we are completely exposed right now. We all line up at the door, ready to make the dash for safety. The doors fully open, revealing us to several men in the station. We make a break for it, but not before I notice a sign that says Royal Oaks Development. As we run at top speed, the surprised voices of the people grow quieter. After galloping across a thankfully empty Route 20, we stop to catch our breaths.
"Whew," breaths Chase, "I haven't had that much excitement since we left East Hartford! So, Big Boss, where are we and where are we headed?"
"Well," I answer, checking the computer, "It says that Dubuque is about twelve miles northwest of here. According to this, to get to our destination, we must cross the Mississippi."
"How are we gonna do that?" asks Rose, "It would be easy if we were human again, but we definitely can't swim across, and I can't fly or do magic."
"Actually, we can easily cross," says Dusty confidently, "There are two strong pegasi to carry you across, and one unicorn who can teleport. It should be a snap."
"Also," I add, "Our average speed is enough that we can make it there in an hour. Come on, standing here isn't going to help us any."
Chase
So, we finally made it. Here in Dubuque is my way back to Equestria. Its amazin' how much I've changed. Anyway, there is still one final obstacle, the Mississippi River. Unfortunately, there is no walkin' bridge across the river, and swimmin' isn't gonna work, the current is much too fast. On the bright side, we can see the opposite shore, and all I need to teleport is line-of-sight. Chargin' up my spell, I catch a last glimpse of the far shore, takin' a picture in my mind. Usin' the image of where I want to end up, I release the spell, causin' the magical energies to wash over my form. I open my eyes to see that I have made the trip over.
Exhausted, I turn around to watch Treble, Dusty and Rose strugglin' over the river. To my horror, I see Rose flounderin' against the current, tryin' her level best to stay above the waterline. Thinkin' quickly, I prepare a powerful telekinesis spell. Now that I cast it, I can feel the magical strain on my mind. Slowly but surely, I bring her above the water and into the pegasi's capable hooves. As I pass out, I watch them arrive on the shore.
Wakin' up, all I can see is a red ceiling, and I can hear the whisperin' voices of the ponies I call friends.
"Look, he's waking up," says Rose.
"It sure did last a long time," Treble comments.
"Hey, guys," I say, still groggy from my recovery, "Sorry you had to wait for me. By the way, where are we, exactly?"
"Some barn outside someone's house," Dusty explains, "Apparently, we aren't the first ponies these people have met. They were kind enough to let us in. Oh, and what happened, why did you suddenly collapse like that?"
"I magically overexerted myself. It takes a lot of energy to teleport that distance. On top of that, I had to save Rose. I couldn't just let her die, now could I?"
"Well, don't do it again, alright? I don't think I could lose you."
"All right," I laugh, "It won't happen again."
Suddenly, the door opens. In walks a young girl, probably eleven or so. She looks at all of us and smiles. "Thank goodness you're awake!" She exclaims, "I was so worried when I saw you on the banks."
"Its all right," I say, smilin', "Thanks for your concern. Hey, Treble, don't you think its time to go?"
"Yes," he responds, "It is time. I showed the map to the farmer, and he said that he'd take us to the indicated place. Apparently, there is an abandoned school there, and some time in the '90s, there was an incident that tore the door right off the building. I have a feeling that we will find your portal to Equestria there."
I remain silent. I'm not sure about whether or not I should go back there. I want to spend more time with the group, especially Dusty. We bonded well together on the way over here, bein' into a lot of similar activities. We both love sports, are into the same music, and even have the same appreciation for hard work. Its just, I don't have any attachment at all to my home world, and all my friends will be leavin' me all alone.
"Yo, Chase," says Dusty, smackin' me in the face with her tail, "Treble said let's go! Come on!"
I blink, "Oh, sorry. Yeah...let's go."
Exitin' the building, I see a large, blue pickup truck with a horse trailer on the back. Sighin', I enter the trailer with the others. We trundle down the road, passin' one other house. I look back to see my friends standin' there. We all stare at each other, not exactly sure what to say. Its really awkward. Minutes pass, seeming like hours. Finally, the truck slows to a stop.
Followin' Treble, we enter a large building. There, in the middle of the hall, was a statue. It depicts a mare standin' on her back legs, lookin' pretty fierce. Treble's computer started to make a beeping sound. Out of a small hole in the leg, a scanner popped out. Runnin' over the statue, the beeping increases in speed. The scanner slides back under on its own.
The computer voice thing speaks up. "Portal data scan complete. Time to opening: three days. Now able to detect other Equestrian portals. Genetic scans indicate universe of origin of Treble Clef. Portal location: Dubuque, Iowa. Location of target: O'leary's Lake."
"Well," says Treble, "That was certainly interesting. Hey, Chase, now is the time to decide. Do you want to go back to your original home, or do you want to come with us? Its your choice."
"Yeah," I say, now completely sure of myself, "I want to come with you. I feel like I need my friends around me. If there's anythin' that I have learned through this it is that we are all in this together. And besides, I think you may need all the help you can get."
"Great!" shouts Dusty, rushin' over to me and giving me a hug, "I knew it! Thank you!"
"Uh...yeah...any time."
We leave the building. I look over at Dusty, and realize just how much I actually mean to her. Its kinda cute. Even though we just met, I feel like I've known her forever. We approach the truck. The farmer, a tall, tanned man, is waitin' for directions from Treble. He goes up to him and tells him. The man smiles. I just know, whatever he's thinkin', it can't be fun.
Treble
Lately, Chase has been a little withdrawn. Its not like him. Well, its almost over. I think about all the things that have transpired since the change. So far, our trip seems to have taken much longer than I had expected. Distances seem longer, time seems slower, and the world seems emptier. Since starting, we have picked up another pony, traveled half way across the country, and ran into a kind family. Luck seems to be on our side throughout our adventure.
We are traveling fast down the road. Fairly soon, we stop by a small pond attached to the river. In the parking lot there, we get out of the trailer. The computer tells me to go down the walking path to our right. Following that, we reach a clearing, and the beeping signals that we are getting closer to the location. On the screen, I can see a red dot indicating where exactly the portal was. Looking around, I don't see a thing.
"I wonder how I'm supposed to open this portal," I think out loud.
Without warning, the computer makes a loud crackling noise, and a hole opens up in the location of the dot, surprising everyone.
"Whew," breaths Chase, "That scared me."
"All right, I guess this is it. Hey, mister," I turn to the farmer, who followed us to the portal, "I have a favor to ask. Could you send this journal to the address on the inside cover? I would be extremely grateful."
"Sure," he replied, "I can certainly send this. What does it have written in it?"
"It contains the story of the past ten days. I want to be able to send the truth out into the world, starting with the people living there. Its imperative that they get that."
"I give you my word that they will get this. Now go, before that thing closes. Join your friends, they may need you."
With that, I take a deep breath, and plunge into the open portal, causing it to close behind me.