//------------------------------// // Three Fifty Times Two // Story: Odrsjot // by Imploding Colon //------------------------------// Accompanied by a train of royal maidens, Princess Lasairfion trotted gracefully on board the Lightning Bearer. Lines of Xonans--soldiers and laborers and officers alike--all bowed low as her hooves shuffled liquidly by. The only pony who wasn’t squatting low was Arcshod. The large officer stared at Lasairfion and gave an off-color smirk. Lasairfion looked back at him. Slowly, her lips curved. With a flip of her lusciously long mane, she gestured towards the far end of the dangerously stocked vessel. Spinning about, Arcshod shouted towards the disguised ponies on board. They stood up, shouting back in mesmerizingly melodic cadence. While they ran in opposite directions to mind their stations, the Princess descended a central stairwell and disappeared into the bowels of the massive Ledomaritan dreadnaught. Then, with a slowly increasing hum, the hangar space of the Sacred Hold lit up like a giant blue candle. The engines of the Lightning Bearer came to life, heating up the air and blowing hot wind into the manes of rows upon rows of laborers who stood on the ledges overlooking the disembarking vessel. The Sacred Hold rumbled all around. Bits of dust and debris fell onto the humble ponies’ manes. With deep breaths, they bowed and murmured prayers to Nagu’n, accepting their fate as the Lightning Bearer began its thunderous voyage, the Princess in tow. “No no…” Kera trotted in tight circles, pulling at her oddly long mane. “No no no no no no! This cannot be good!” Dalen glanced around at the emptied brig. His brow furrowed. “It would seem as though your friends valued their lives more than they desired your company.” “There’s gotta be more to it than that!” Kera’s voice squeaked. “Maybe they were in danger! Or maybe they had to get away from the Princess’ lackeys. Or…” She gasped in a shrill voice. “Crap biscuits! They’re totally trying to find me, aren’t they?!” “Child,” Dalen spoke above the sound of the rumbling Mountain around them. He floated the runic tome so that it avoided the curtain of dust falling down in a steady stream. “We do not have much time on our hooves. If I am to salvage the glory of Nagu’n, I must expose the book of Oss Tray Oh to her immediately. Everything else is forfeit.” Kera collapsed to her knees. The unsettling vibrations through Sacred’s Hold only rattled her all the more. “Where could they have gone?” She clenched her eyes shut. “Think think think!” “It will be a miracle if they make it to any form of escape in one piece,” Dalen said, trotting over to rest a hoof on her shoulder. “The Sacred Hold is experiencing hitherto unimaginable turbulence. It seems to me that the Goddess is no longer satiated by her song. She wishes to branch out and devour a new chorus.” The room shook again, but he managed to keep his balance. “However, if I can reach her beforehand…” “Yeah yeah… I get it,” Kera muttered as she slowly sat up. “We might stop this giant egg from cracking.” “That’s for Nagu’n to determine, not us mortals.” Dalen took a deep breath. “You were instrumental in retrieving Oss Tray Oh’s book back. I cannot ask you to undertake this next part with me.” “No. I… I gotta help make things right.” Kera trotted lonesomely across the table in the center of the room. “I mean, I’ve stuck my head in deep enough as it is, and… and…” She suddenly gasped, her eyes wide. “The satchel!” “The… satchel…?” “Rainbow Dash’s saddlebag!” Kera pushed through the clutter of stuff. “It’s missing!” She blinked, then grinned wide. “That must mean she took it! Or one of the others did!” “I do not understand the significance, child.” “It means they weren’t taken somewhere! They busted out! Maybe they even have Rainbow Dash with them!” She let loose a girlish shriek, clamping her hooves over her tiny mouth. “Mmmmf--Awww shoot! They must be looking for me!” Shivering, she glanced up at the dust falling loose from the rumbling ceiling. “I’ll totally be the end of them and crud!” “I must make haste.” Dalen was already trotting swiftly out the door. “I cannot ask you to follow me, child. But if you do, I will do my best to keep you safe.” “H-hey!” Kera wadded desperately after the tattooed stallion’s swishing tail. “Wait for me, darn it!” “Unngh!” Rainbow Dash nearly fell from Khao’s grip as another wave of turbulence rocked through the body of Sacred Hold. “Someone sedate that giant, two-mouthed whale already!” “We’re lucky to still be alive,” Khao grunted. “At the rate at which Nevlamas is gaining power, she’s liable to tear this place to shreds any second.” “When you say gaining power…” “She hasn’t produced any chaos strips since the last time she’s fed.” “So…” Rainbow Dash blinked as the two slinked through the dark passageways. “That means…” “...she’s powered up to unleash as much chaos energy as possible.” Khao took a shuddering breath. “She will follow Lasairfion’s vessel to the Eastern Front….” “...and she’ll unload all of her inner butt-fuggliness onto Seclorum’s camp,” Rainbow Dash murmured. “The machine layer will be exposed to her wrath. Between Lasairfion and Nevalamas, nothing will stand in the way of the Dark Divine infecting the bowels of this world with pure discord.” “That’s… uh… a bad thing, right?” “Were you born yesterday?” “I’m being serious here!” Rainbow winced as another wave of dizziness shook through her, coupled with the shaking of the Hold all around. “How the hay do we even stop something like that! I can barely trot an inch without fainting!” She frowned. “Your bracelet did crap, by the way!” “My what?” Khao shook her muzzle as the two rounded a corner in the labyrinthine hallways. “Whatever the case, the rest of the Herald is waiting for us and the book. We just may be able to use the lavender flame--coupled with your power, Harbinger--to restore the glory of the Angels to Nevlamas’ senses, thereby canceling out her chaos energies before there’s a chance of ruining what’s left of the ring.” “So, basically I’m just your tool all over again.” “This is not something that deserves debating,” Khao muttered against the pegasus leaning on her. “The fate of this entire plane is at stake, and the Herald is ready to intervene on its behalf. Just what are you prepared to do?” “What I wanna know is this…” Rainbow glared at her captor/savior. “The Ledomaritans… the Xonans… and all the ponies that are in the path of Nevlamas’ wrath. What happens to them? Do we somehow get to save them too?” Khao’s face was coldly straight as she said, “They’re loss will be but a trickle in the ocean of necessity. It’s the world below--not above--that takes precedent.” The blue hairs on the back of Rainbow’s neck raised as she frowned. “Now that’s totally uncool.” “You can use any euphemism for it that you please.” “And what if it would please me to shove my hoof up your--” “Rggggh!” A mare’s voice rang from up ahead, followed by the sound of a metal hoof slamming hard into a wall. As Khao and Rainbow Dash rounded a final turn, they spotted twelve Ledomaritans, Zaid, Nightshade--and finally Roarke standing at an open doorframe. “By Searo’s Womb!” the bounty hunter growled. “Who in the Hell could have wanted it more than us?!” Khao’s face went pale as a sheet upon seeing the opened doorway. “By the Host… the book…” Rainbow Dash squinted tiredly. “Roarke…?” Everypony jerked to look--including Nightshade. Zetta gasped. Zaid smirked. Basso blinked and turned to glance at Roarke. “Rainbow… Dash…?” The metal mare almost smiled. Just then, her lenses glinted with a strange light, and she tilted her head aside until they reflected Khao’s glaring figure. The Heraldite’s muzzle tensed. Suddenly sneering, Roarke opened all of her leftover missile compartments at once and began a vicious charge. ”You get your slimy hooves off of--” The wall exploded behind her from the cleaving swing of a mana-glimmering broadsword. “Gaaah!” With a shout, Zytharros slammed into Roarke’s armor, plunging the two of them through the next wall and into the chamber beyond. Dust and glowing serpent trails followed their maddening dive while everypony else collapsed painfully to their sides. Rainbow sprawled over Khao in her helpless attempt to get up. “Nnnngh--Roarke!”