//------------------------------//
// Legend of the Marenificent Seven 
// Story: Urohringr 
// by Imploding Colon 
//------------------------------//

	"This isn't going to work..."  Smythe trembled, clinging to his side of the cloud as winds along the mountain peaks began picking up.  "This isn't going to work.  This isn't going to work!"

"Hey!  Sivrem!"  Rainbow hollered back as she guided the misty bed upwards and into the tempestuous currents.  "You or one of the other First-Borns tell him to put a sock in it!"

"Erm..."  Sivrem's brow furrowed.  "I feel ya, Rainbow, but what's a sock?"

"Holy crud."  Rainbow chuckled dryly.  "We have got to get you out of this crater!"

"I share Smythe's concerns!" Kitsune spoke up.  "You certain we can manage the winds?"

"Girl, we're pegasi," Rainbow said.  "We are the winds!"

"But wh-what good is a cloud against a bunch of heavy gales?!" Smythe stammered.

"Equestrian pegasi have been building cloud structures that can resist natural typhoons for centuries, Smythe!"  Rainbow glanced back briefly.  "This isn't some crazy trick that I learned on a whim!  This is eons of history being put to the test!"

Jagold gulped.  "I-I just wish it wasn't such a fr-freaky scary test!"

"Calm yourselves, gulls," Jerrio grunted.  "Rainbow Dash, is there a method to this madness?"

"Things are about to get really bumpy really quick!" Rainbow exclaimed.  "The key thing is to keep the bottom of the cloud facing the winds and taking the brunt of the air currents being thrown at us!  I promise you that it won't dissipate like any normal cloud!  I've compacted this thing tight!  It'll act like a surfboard going over a wave!"

"Surfboard?"

"Wave?"

"Look—just flap your wings when I tell you to!  We gotta keep this thing at just the right angle, or else we'll be knocked back to the basin like loose coconuts!  Can you understand that?!"

"Loud and clear, Rainbow!" Rayvinne stammered, wincing against the rising winds.  "Things are about to g-get real, aren't they?"

"Way ahead of yourself, girl!"  Rainbow gripped the front of the cloud tighter.  "Okay!  Sivrem, beat your wings hard!"

"Rrrgghhhh—like... so...?!"

"Harder!  Kitsune, get ready to compensate!  Rayvinne and Jagold!  Keep up the pace!  Everypony hold tight, now!  Things are about to get jumpy—"

A rising gust of air send the cloud flouncing skyward in a savage jolt.

"Guhh!" Smythe wheezed, nearly slipping.

"We're good!  We're good!" Rainbow exclaimed.  "That's just the start!"

"Just the st-start?!" Jagold chirped.

"Concentrate on beating your wings!" Kitsune shouted.  "Rainbow, I feel us teetering to the left!"

"I know!  I'm guiding us along an air pocket!  Just wait for my command!"

"Valkyrie's Shout..."  Smythe stammered.  "This was a bad idea..."

"Listen for Rainbow Dash," Jerrio said.

"Okay!  Kitsune!  Beat your wings harder!  Sivrem, give some slack!"

"Aack!" Jagold yelped.  "We're falling!"

"It's called gliding, girl," Rayvinne hissed through a smirk.  "Just relax!"

"Heheheheheheh..."  Sivrem grinned wide as the entire cloud shook and flounced.

Kitsune squinted across the bed.  "You're enjoying this waaay too much."

"If only you knew how many times I tried this on my own," Sivrem said, smirking.

"I do."

"This is incredible..."

"Keep your head in the game, guys!" Rainbow shouted, squinting over the front of the cloud.  "Okay!  Here c-comes the rough part!  Jerrio!  Smythe!  Beat your wings, give us lift!"

"On it!"

"Rggggghhh!"

"Everypony in the rear, angle your wings out!  And hang on!  This is about to get kaizo!"

As Rainbow said that, the cloud lifted up, almost mimicking the jutting angles of the sky stabs below.  The compacted mists ascended rapidly, swaying left and right as it surfed an air current.  Then, just as the cloud settled still in mid-air...

"And... Stop, Smythe and Jerrio!"  Rainbow glance over her shoulder.  "Kitsune!  Sivrem!  Give us lift!"

The First-Borns did so, forcing the rear of the cloud to raise while the tip tilted downward.

"Jagold!  Rayvinne!  Now you guys!"

The cloud tilted even more.

"Everypony... hold!"

All of the wings stopped beating.  The air howled as the cloud sliced its way forward, shook slightly, then began a maddening plunge.

"Eggshells—" Smythe began.

"Everyone!" Rainbow shouted, clutching the front of the cloud as she angled her wings back.  "Wings spread!  Glide!  Glide!"

"Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww crud!" Rayvinne squeaked while she and the rest complied.

The cloud began a rapid descent, soaring down the southern faces of the Sky Stabs.  Waves of mist and fog parted ways as the ponies slid on through them.  They could hear the pounding of blood in their ears as they approached maximum velocity.

"This is faaa-aaaa-aaast!" Jagold whimpered.

"Woooooo-hooooo!" Sivrem grinned.  "Ha haaa!"

"It's not over yet!" Rainbow hollered.  "We need more lift on the left side!  Smythe...!"  Silence.  She glanced back.  "Smythe?!"

"Nnnngh... c-can't..."  The stallion wheezed, slipping.  "C-can't hang on!"

Rainbow gasped.  "Smythe!"

"Gaaaaaah!"  The stallion lost his grip.  He toppeled backwards like a loose boulder—

"Hnntttt!"  Jerrio lunged out, grasping the loose stallion by his tail.

The Durandanans in the back gasped.

Gritting his teeth, Jerrio strained against the murderous winds and body-pressed Smythe back into the cloud bed, holding him down with his weight.

Rainbow lunged in reverse, planted herself in the middle of the cloud, and spread her wings high.  "Gnnnrrnnnghhh-guhhhh!"  Compensating for Jerrio and Smythe, she managed to catch enough air in her feathers to force the cloud into an upward tilt.  The bottom of the cloudbed absorbed the friction, and the compacted mist thinned all throughout.  The cloud stretched broader, wider.

"It's... it's breaking apart!" Kitsune stammered.

"That's... all... p-part of the plan!" Rainbow hissed.  She glanced outward.  Through thin eyes, she caught treetops and a glinting sun.  "On my mark, everypony jump off and fly!"

"But... b-but...!"

"We'll be slowed down enough to make it work!  Trust me!"

"Listen to her, gulls!" Sivrem shouted.

"Get ready..."  Rainbow hissed above the sound of howling winds.  "Get set..."  A deep breath.  "Now!"

Rayvinne and Jagold lunged forward.

Kitsune and Sivrem flapped their wings.

Jerrio carried a breathless Smythe as they flew off the cloud.

At last, Rainbow dove after them.  She flapped her wings, gliding southward with the greatest of ease.

Soon, all seven ponies hovered together in a flock.  They turned and looked behind them, watching as the cloud plummeted, elongated, turned into a translucent cyclone for the space of three seconds, then dissipated into nothing.

"Whoah..."  Rayvinne murmured, panting for breath.  "Did we actually ride that thing?"

"And how, girl."  Sivrem said with a flushed grin.

"Uhhhhh..."  Jagold blinked from where she hovered.  "Guys?  It's not so crazy windy anymore!"

"There's a reason for that," Rainbow said with a smile.  She pointed straight up.  "Look."

All six Durandanans turned and stared up... up... up.  A veritable wall of rock towered above them, scraping the sky with their lacerated peaks.  Kitsune gasped, her hooves clamped over her muzzle.  Jerrio and Smythe stared in dumbfounded shock, their mouths agape.

"We..."  Sivrem blinked.  "We scaled the walls..."

"I know it was a wild ride," Rainbow said, wiping the sweat off her brow.  She smiled.  "But the bigger the cloud beds are, the less crazy, because they can withstand the punishment better, ya feel me?"  She caught her breath and continued, "Just imagine how easy it'd be to scale the Sky stabs if you had forty Durandanans making the cloud bed instead of just—y'know—one."

"Then..."  Rayvinne gulped.  "Then this means..."

Rainbow Dash pivoted about and pointed in the opposite direction.  "Check it out, guys..."

The six pegasi twirled about.  They immediately gasped.

A sloping valley chock full with fir trees stretched as far as the eye could see.  Glistening lakes ran south, snaking their way into a large body of water flanked by waterfalls and verdant cliffsides.  In the far distance, the forest broke briefly, exposing patches of golden farmland nestled between emerald green canopies.

"Valkyrie's shout..." Kitsune stammered.

Sivrem stared intently, his eyes glazed.

Jerrio blinked several times, practically hugging Smythe at this point.

"There's..."  Rayvinne murmured.  "...there's just so much of it."

"Have you ever seen so much water?" Smythe remarked.

"There are no mists... or mountains," Jagold said.  "You can see forever."

Jerrio felt something stabbing his eyes.  He looked straight up, having to squint.  An unimpeded orb of golden light hovered at the top of the sky, illuminating anything and everything.

"Even the Lights From Above do not hide here," Kitsune managed.

"You think it looks big now?"  Rainbow slowly shook her head.  "You have no idea."

Jagold bit her lip, her eyes glistening with tears. She turned towards Rayvinne and squeaked inwardly with a girlish smile.

"Those... those fields," Sivrem said, pointing to the patch of farmland.  "It appears to have... structures of some sort."  He glanced aside at Rainbow.  "Who or what lives there."

"I have no friggin' clue."  Rainbow gave them a bright grin, then motioned with her head.  "Come on.  Let's find out!"





Several foals ran down a small town's main street while a group of earth ponies unloaded a wagon's worth of wares in front of a thrift store.

"Nnngh!"  One stallion sweated and rubbed his brow.  "Guh... you th-think Green Holler's gonna want to buy a rusty old plow?"

"Pffft.  He'd better," the other said.  "If nothing else, he can get Smoke Trails to smelt this thing down."

"And turn it into what?  Teeth fillings?  Face it, Bronze.  This crud is useless.  Why are we wasting our time?"

"You'd rather spend the day removing the stump from Granny's yard?"

"Ennnngh..."

"Look, we at least gotta try."  One stallion smiled to another.  "We need the money!  And it's not like anything special is just going to come falling from the sky—"

Plop!  Rainbow Dash landed on the store's wooden porch right in front of them.  "Hello hello!"

"Gaaah!" both stallions fell back in the dirt, hugging each other.

Several ponies rushed out of the store fronts, gasping.

One by one, the other six pegasi landed, coiling their wings at their side.  They pivoted, looking all around and blinking.

The two stallions stood up, gawking at the feathery group.

Jagold and Smythe fidgeted.

Curious mares gazed from nearby alleyways, clinging to each other apprehensively.

Rainbow cleared her throat, then trotted into the center of the street.  "Uhhhh... hey, everypony!"  She waved a bright blue hoof.  "What's up?"

An old stallion trotted up, squinting.  "You are, apparently."

Rainbow giggled.  "Ain't that the truth..."

"Uhm... Bronze?" one stallion murmured to the other.  "Did I drink too much moonshine last night, or are a bunch of winged ponies standing in the middle of our town?"

The other gulped.  "I-I think I had one too many sips myself..."

Sivrem turned about, his bird bone necklace rattling.  He saw the old stallion who had trotted up.  He spotted a metal "star" adorning the earth pony's leather vest.  "Hrmmm... Valkyrie Silver."

"I beg your pardon?"

Sivrem smiled proudly.  "The Valkyrie's Light shines upon you!"  He trotted forward and stretched his wings out.  "Tell me, what is this place called?"

The earth ponies simply stared at him.

Sivrem blinked.  He let loose a falcon shriek, causing several of the ponies to jolt.  Turning, he got Jerrio's attention.  "Psssst!"  He whistled, chirped.  "Jerrio!  The bag!"

"Huh?"  Jerrio glanced down at his satchel.  "Oh... uhm..."  He reached a hoof in, grabbed the first thing he saw, and tossed it Sivrem's way.

Sivrem caught a stack of bananas with his wings, twirled gracefully, and held it out before the old stallion in his strong wingfeathers.  "An offering.  Hmmm?"

The stallion raised an eyebrow.  He grasped the bananas, then examined him in his grasp.  A bunch of villagers galloped up, crowding around the sheriff as they gazed and gawked at the fruit.

"Are th-those real?"

"No way!"

"But the eastern trade doesn't come by here this time of year!"

"I can't believe what I'm saying..."

"Ahem..."  The sheriff glanced back up.  "Son, do you mind explaining to me just where in the hay you stumbled upon bananas this side of the world?"

"Why, are they of value to you?"

"Fruit of this kind sells for a high price in the valley," the earth pony said.  "I'd say they're about as rare a sight as those wings you're sporting."

"I p-picked them myself!" Jagold said.

"Huh?"

"Eeep!"  Jagold hid behind Kitsune while the First-Born rolled her eyes.

"Nnnngh..."  The sheriff rubbed his brow.  "I'm getting too old for this."  He squinted at the lead pegasus.  "Just where in the heck are you all from, anyways?"

"Hmmm..."  Sivrem turned, glancing at the epic sight of the southern Sky Stabs to the north.  "I suppose..."  He turned and smiled proudly.  "I suppose you could say that we're your next door neighbors."

The townsfolk chattered in awe.  Slowly, fearlessly, they slipped out of hiding and congregated around the seven visitors.  Mares trotted up, grinning as they began asking questions of Kitsune and Jagold.

Smythe blushed while a few teenage equines began poking and prodding curiously at his wings.

Rayvinne waggled her eyes at a few red-faced stallions before trotting up to join Sivrem in his conversation with the town sheriff.

All the while, Rainbow Dash hovered at a humble altitude.  She glanced across the suddenly bustling village.  At last, she spotted Jerrio.

The First-Born fidgeted as a veritable flood of foals encircled him like adoracute sharks.  They tugged at his dyed tail hairs and giggled, asking a flood of questions.  A filly or two smiled as they nuzzled his fetlocks.

He gawked at them all, shivering slightly.  His head raised and he made eye contact with Rainbow Dash.

Rainbow simply smiled.

With a calm breath, Jerrio finally relaxed.  He reached into his satchel and hoofed out a few apples.  The foals clamored for them, shrieking and laughing amongst each other before taking hearty bites of the delicious fruit.

Rainbow giggled breathily.  Flapping her wings, she lifted up, flying a low orbit around the town as she left the Durandanans alone for a space in time.