When Rainbow Dash emerged on the top deck of the Noble Jury, she saw Bellesmith, Pilate, and Kera standing close to one another beside the entrance to the cockpit. She shuffled her hooves and trotted directly towards them.
A strong hoof gripped her shoulder.
Rainbow paused and glanced aside. She sighed through a weary smile. "Don't you fret one bit, Josho. I can handle an aching head just as well as you can."
Josho snorted. "The kid." He motioned with his horn. "She knows."
Rainbow opened her mouth, blinked, and glanced towards the bow. "She does?"
"Yup."
Clearing her throat, Rainbow nodded. "Well, thanks for the update."
Josho released his hoof. "Don't thank me yet."
She raised her eyebrow at that. Nevertheless, she trotted onward, passing by Zaid who was fidgeting awkwardly at the sight of the pegasus. Rainbow half-saluted him and came to a stop besides her close friends.
"...were only a hoofful of foals my age. And when I say 'foals,' I mean they were all at least six years older than me and wanted nothing to do with a little filly." Kera sighed. "I swear. The village is full of old ponies, nothing but the dead and dying."
"A lot of time has passed, Kera," Belle said. "Maybe it'll be different than you remember."
"What's it matter, anyways?" Kera frowned. "The place is a huge bucket of lame. We all know the decision that I'm going to make."
"It'll be best that you visit the township, Kera," Pilate said. "For one last time before you leave it for good."
Kera's eyes sparkled. "What if I told you that the next door neighbor did horrible things to me when my foster parents weren't around?!"
Belle's brow furrowed. "And... you've waited until now to tell us something so terrible... why?"
"Unngh..." Kera groaned. "I knew that wouldn't work."
Belle rolled her eyes and sighed through a tired smile. "Oh, darling..."
"One thing's for sure. They never called me 'darling' there."
"Oh! Uhm..." Belle fidgeted. "Well, that's... uhm..."
Kera giggled and playfully kicked the mare's fetlock. "Will you chillax already? It's just like Pilate said—only a visit."
"Erm..." Belle nervously glanced at the zebra. "Right."
"What's this?" Rainbow Dash spoke up as she stood close to the trio. "Did we find a dentist out here in the middle of nowhere? Wow, what rotten luck, kid!"
"I do not need to see a dentist!" Kera barked, pouting. A second or two ticked by, and she ran her tongue along the length of her teeth, nervously.
"Rainbow Dash," Pilate remarked. "Nice to hear that you're up. We're making our way to... uhm..."
"Lerris. Right." Rainbow nodded. "A town with a name like that could certainly use a dash of awesomeness."
Kera giggled. "Ohhhhh yeah. Like you wouldn't believe."
"Lemme guess..." Rainbow leaned in, smirking. "Tiny town?"
"Pffft. Microscopic."
"Lots of old, dusty buildings?"
"You bet."
"Thatched roofs and dirt roads?"
"Exactly!"
"Tons of old ponies and boring farmers?"
Kera gasped. "Rainbow! How... how did you know?"
"I lived in the same town a good chunk of my life," Rainbow said with a wink. "Only it was called 'Ponyville.' And I brought awesomeness to it on my lonesome! Can you believe that?"
"Heh. You bet..."
"So, tell me something." Rainbow tilted her head aside, gazing at her curiously. "How can a town be totally lame if it gave us a pony as killer spunky as you?"
Kera blinked. "Uhmmm..."
"Give it a chance, kid." Rainbow reached in to ruffle the filly's straight green mane. "You might find out that Lerris will need this visit way more than you will. They've been having to tread water for the past few years without their coolest little citizen, after all."
Kera's horn glowed as she straightened her bangs, glancing up at Rainbow with a nervous smile. "Wow... I never thought of it that way."
"The key is not to think. That's what works for me." Rainbow pivoted towards the mare gawking at her. "Catching flies, Ding-Dong?"
"Uhhhhhh..." Belle closed her muzzle, gulped, and gave a faint smile. "It's very nice seeing you up, Rainbow."
"It's very nice being seen by you." Rainbow blinked. She craned her neck. "Zaid, how're you doing over there?"
"I'm... urp... rediscovering my airsickness."
"Airsickness?" Pilate's metal brow furrowed. "Blessed Spark, is that even possible?"
"No comment." Rainbow pivoted towards the cockpit. "Hey, elk-boy! Are we getting close?"
"Close to what, paint bucket?" grunted the pilot from where he sat.
"Floydien. Seriously. The parasprite's out of the bag. Are we getting close to Lerris or aren't we?"
"Floydien spots a hazy splotch on the horizon. If it is not the alleged village of filly filly, then Floydien guesses it's glimmer's mirage!"
"You know, there even times when he goes over my head," Pilate muttered.
"Well, I think I understood him just fine," Rainbow Dash said. She spread her wings. "Of course, you guys know what comes next."
"What're you doing, Rainbow?" Kera asked.
"Good idea, Rainbow." Belle rested a hoof on Kera's shoulder. "Just don't take too much time. You know how freaked out we get when you're silent for long."
"Maybe I'll sing a tune while I'm at it."
"And frighten them before the Jury gets there?" Belle giggled. "Rainbow, please..."
"Lerris Wrap-Up Lerris Wrap-Uppppp!" And Rainbow shot away in a prismatic blur, rocketing due east.
"I don't get it." Kera's muzzle scrunched up. "What's she doing?"
"Scouting ahead, I do believe," Pilate said.
"Hey!" Zaid shouted over everypony's heads, eyeing the flight of Rainbow. "Check to see if they have any cows!"
"Zaid, honestly!" Belle sighed. "She's beyond earshot at this point."
"Hmmmmph..." Zaid folded his forelimbs. "If there isn't even milk in that town, we ain't touching down. I swear!" A beat, and then his eyes crossed. "Oh right. Airsick." He spun and hurled his head over the Noble Jury's port side. "Blrrughghghhghghlll!"
As Rainbow Dash flew over the sloping hillside that led towards the small smattering of buildings, the first thing she noticed was a distinct rumble to the north. She tilted her head to the left, squinting. Dark clouds hung over a jagged set of snowy peaks several miles away. At first, she literally thought that there was a volcano spitting out its contents from the center of the geological mess. Her mind went into full gear, and she realized that it was only a storm front.
Relaxing in mid-flight, Rainbow's eyes trailed the churning sky. Most of the atmosphere was filled with thick gray clouds. It wasn't the same miserable look as what loomed over the battle of Seclorum's camp. Rather, everything felt calm, serene, and maybe a little bit too wet. She glanced down and noticed that the valley was pockmarked all over the place with rivers, lakes, and tiny ponds. The only patch of dry land was the very same spot upon which the village was built.
There was a "downtown" in the center, consisting of maybe five large buildings—but all the rest were tiny huts in comparison. To the west, several cottages stood like gravestones, sputtering tiny trails of chimney smoke into the moist air. To the northwest, three large patches of farmland stretched, sandwiched between a bog to the west and a rather large river in the northeast that connected to a series of rivers running south from the northern mountain range.
Rainbow glided close by the buildings, flying unabashedly low so as to take in as many details as possible. She saw that multiple rain-gutters lined every edge of the buildings' rooftops, and they led to a series of aqueducts that funneled through the city, passed under grated planks, and led to the farmlands in the northwest. Lerris was obviously a town used to a great deal of precipitation. At first, Rainbow guessed that this was the explanation for why there were hardly any ponies in the street. However, as she glided around the tallest building, she heard mumbling voices. Glancing down, she saw a thick group of ponies gathered under a wide-stretching overhang that shadowed the majority of a concrete courtyard—the town's only stonework foundation. At first, Rainbow was confused, until she gazed up at the sky. Though she could barely make out the glow through the overcast, she realized that it was high noon.
"Hmmmph... Lunchtime." She glanced down at the ponies—mares and stallions still oblivious to her levitating presence. "Taking a massive break midday? These guys must be old."
There was another roll of thunder to the north. Rainbow glanced towards the mountains. Once more, her eyes were drawn to the crystalline surface of the lake that gathered towards the northern edge of town. It was during this second glance that she spotted a dock with several small fishing boats. One stallion stood out in the open, seated on what looked like a stool, aiming his fishing line out into the rippling waters. Rainbow fidgeted in the air, stuck between the huge gathering of elders in the building beneath her, or the lone figure far away by the lake.
"Hmmmph... buck it."
She twirled about and flew north, passing through narrow streets and over flower gardens. A dog barked or two, and she swore that she heard a mare gasping from a second-story window, but other than that Rainbow swore that the town made no fuss about her entrance.
At last, she came within earshot of the stallion. This made a difference, for the old unicorn was singing casually to the rippling waters with a raspy voice.
"When the serpents dance by Nagu'n's chance, and gone is the sting that battle brings..." He cast his line again and hummed to himself, horn glowing. "Hmmmm... Then we will return to the stars. Yes we will, oh mountains, yes we will..."
"Gotta clear up those thunderclouds over them first, huh?" Rainbow said with a smirk.
The stallion's ears perked up. Pulling his fishing rod back, he tilted his head away from the rocking boats along the dock. "Greenbriar Melody? No... your voice is a different pitch. Then who...?" He turned around, peering at Rainbow Dash with blue eyes set deep and dark within a gray coat. Swirling lines stretched old and faded across his muzzle, collecting just beneath his throat. "An outsider..." It sounded like both an inquiry and a declaration. Whatever the case, the corner of the stallion's lips curved. "...how remarkable."
"Er... yeah..." Rainbow's ruby eyes remained locked on the faint tattoos touching a part of his face. "Uhhh... H-Hi there!" Rainbow waved. "My name is awesome, and I'm Rainbow—I mean... Darn it!" She seethed into the misty air. "Been so dang long since I met new ponies..."
"Those wings..." The stallion rested his fishing pole down and stood up from the stool, grunting from the effort of unflexing his brittle limbs. "You surely must be from the west." He took a deep breath, smiling tiredly. "Then it is true. The war is over."
"How... do you know?"
"Only with open borders could a pony like you reach a territory this deep beyond the front. And—as we all know—Ledomare is full of amazing diversity, even if many of the minorities are constantly trounced upon." The stallion trotted slowly around her, admiring her wings. "All that's east of here is Xonan cities and blizzards. I very much doubt you would have come from the lands across the frozen sea."
"Uhhh... yeahhhh..." Rainbow squinted at him. "And you? You're... you're..." She bit her lip. "Just what the heck are you?"
He chuckled. "Oh my. It's been so long since we had an outsider. I've forgotten how to give a brief explanation."
"Try me."
The stallion cleared his throat. "I was born Ledomaritan. But I lived a good two decades in Xonan lands. As you can see..." He pointed at his marked face with a smile. "It took some... cultural adjusting."
"Well, good to see that you survived."
"You kidding?" He chuckled raspily, coughed, and chuckled again. "They fed and clothed me more than when I lived for the Queen."
"But... like..." Rainbow Dash made a face. "Wouldn't you have been a total scrub in their society? 'Third Born' and all that crap, cuz you weren't born there?"
"It's amazing what kind of a lifestyle can bring you true happiness, so long as you have self-respect and honor intact," the stallion said. "Years ago, I came here because the war was turning even the most amicable of neighbors into monsters. I've been happy to live in a land where the only guarantee is the next day's rainfall." He wheezed, cleared his throat, and smiled weakly. "Even if the humidity is less than desirous."
"Well then..." Rainbow smirked awkwardly. "Good... f-for you?" she squeaked.
"Oh, do listen to me." The stallion sighed as he trotted over and leaned against a wooden post of the water-lapped dock. "I forgot how much I prattle on when there's a visitor." He gazed up at her. "You know a lot about Xonans. I can see from your expression that you've seen a lot. Maybe even too much." His eyes narrowed. "What brings you to our little village, Miss..."
"Rainbow Dash," she finally clarified. "And... uh... my friends and I are traveling east by a skystone ship called the Noble Jury and—"
"Skystone!" The stallion's blue eyes twitched wide. "Nagu'n, spare me!" He glanced north. "You'd have to blast your way past mountains, tornadoes, and lightning to even come near to those deposits!"
"Wait..." Rainbow squinted. "You mean to say that we're near to the northern edge of the world?"
"So you do believe it, then?" The stallion smirked.
"Believe what?"
"That there's an 'edge.'" He rubbed the joints in his neck and exhaled, "Any airship—or pony, for that matter—that bothers to fly north will eventually meet destruction. That's what makes skystone so rare, after all. It's a life-threatening occupation to harvest the stuff."
"You seem to know a lot about that."
"Mmmm..." He smiled with an ounce of pride. "Only because I tried harvesting it for two years."
"Oh?"
"Yes. And half of that time was spent recovering from my horrible injuries in the process." He winced. "I'd much rather travel east and see what's beyond the fabled Grand Choke."
"Grand... Choke..." Rainbow muttered aloud.
"You heard of it?"
Rainbow did a double-take against the horizon. "Yowsers. Yes, I have. Just... been a friggin' long time." She blinked, then gazed down at him with a smirk. "How come all you old ponies are the ones who know about the ends of the earth?"
He shrugged. "We spent our youths dreaming of them, and then our adult years realizing they were not worth seeing."
"Jeez. Sounds depressing."
"Not when I take into account the pleasantries of the life I've settled for." He gazed up at her. "This village... this Lerris... it brings me great joy. I have many friends here. I wouldn't trade it for anything."
"Well, that's pretty snazzy."
"Hmmm... indeed." He nodded. "So, this Noble Jury..."
"Right. We're on a long voyage and—"
"And yet you stop here?" The stallion raised his eyebrow. "Wishing to do trade before scaling the Xonan mountains, perhaps? Surely you would have passed by Archer Point by now. I'm certain Rutledge's little filly, Collins, would have roped you into bartering things already."
"Actually, we met Collins and all of her sappy friends." Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Talk about a bunch of bored villagers. Still, they were super cool to us, and we totally needed it after all the crap that we went through."
"Ah. So she gave you a warm welcome, then. Quite typical of her. I would very much like to meet with her elders again now that the borders are open."
"I'm sure you'll get your chance."
"I'm afraid that we're not exactly in the position to trade with any group besides Archer Point at the moment," he said with a humble smirk. "Unless of course you're in desperate need of rice or fish."
"Actually, it's not food that we're looking for." Rainbow fidgeted in midair. "We have something... er... somepony who needs to pay this place a visit. Well, at least we figure that it would do her some good..."
"Oh?" He blinked. "Are we talking about an ambassador? A delegate from the west?"
"Er... no." Rainbow gulped. "She actually lived here once. She's just a filly." She slowly looked up. "Kera's her name."
The stallion pronounced the two syllables quietly on the tip of his tongue. Suddenly, with a breathy gasp, his pupils shrunk and his body slumped back. "Radiant Moon... Benevolent Blue..."
"Uhhhh..." Rainbow leaned forward. "Excuse me?"
He gulped and dryly murmured, "They fostered the little foal of whom you speak." He brushed his graying bangs back and shuddered. "At least... they did until an entourage of Ledomaritans with violet uniforms snatched their child away in the middle of the night... and murdered them for attempting to resist."
Rainbow gritted her teeth. "Nightshade."
The stallion's blue eyes fell upon the waters. "It's been nearly three years, and still our town weeps their tragic end. Not a day goes by when we don't think of the joy they used to bring to our halls and fields." He gulped and gazed up at Rainbow with a positively foalish expression. "You say... you s-say that their child lives?"
Rainbow slowly nodded. "I... uh... I came to scout out the place before the rest of us made a landing."
"You... brought her back here?"
Rainbow winced. "It's not quite that simple. You see, these two ponies..." She smiled slightly. "My friends—they've kinda sorta adopted Kera. They met the little scamp through a bunch of crazy events and now they're sticking to each other tighter than glue. But, the thing is, we've got a super-mysterious voyage ahead of us, and it sure as heck isn't going to be all that safe."
He nodded. "If you're attempting to pass through the frozen sea, then that can be assured."
"So, like, it was one of my friend's bright idea to bring Kera by this place—her hometown—so that she can see the place with her own eyes for one last time." She rubbed her shoulder, squirming in midair. "Or... y'know... for the first time, assuming she decides she's better off sticking around here."
The stallion gazed at her gently. "Sounds like your friends—these new foster parents—are quite wise. Not to mention selfless."
"Yeah..." Rainbow gulped. "I know."
Silence.
"Well..." The stallion winced as he shifted his old bones and trotted away from the dock. "The first order of business is to inform the rest of the villagers. Seems only fair, especially if your skystone vessel is nearly here."
"We can totally meet on your own terms n'stuff, Mister..."
He glanced up at her. "Huh? What? Oh..." He chuckled. "'Golden Happenstance.'"
"Huh..." Rainbow blinked. "That's an awful lot of syllables in your name, dude."
"Yes, well, that's true of most old pony names in these parts, Miss Dash." He chuckled dryly, then sighed. "If it makes anything easier, everypony around here simply calls me 'Hap.'"
"Very well then, Hap. Thanks for being so cool about all this."
"I have no other recourse but to receive this 'Kera' with open hooves. You see..." Hap gazed up with a twinge of sadness. "I was one of her godparents."
"Really?"
"Yes..." He nodded gravely. "Radiant Moon was my sister..."