It was the morning of the Summer Wrap-up and Foalsdale was abuzz with ponies getting ready for the fall and those enjoying the last few hours of summer. By the afternoon, everypony in Foalsdale, and most of the E.W.E.F, would be pitching to change the seasons.
While Arata had helped to change the seasons in Nippony, they had always had unicorns to change them with magic. Besides Blaze and Vox, Foalsdale had no unicorns, in fact there were only two pegasi in responsible for maintaining the weather. It had only rained twice since Arata arrived in Foalsdale. He was told this was because organizing rain was much more difficult than cloud bursting, however during the fall and winter months the pegasi had to work almost nonstop to keep up with the weather schedule.
Due to Foalsdale’s start as a logging town there was never a need for large amounts of rain. Since the logging industry died down more and more ponies were growing concerned with their inability to grow crops. The mayor had set up several programs to attract more pegasus ponies but so far they had been ineffective. The E.W.E.F’s presence had proved very valuable for weather control. While the mapping teams were on breaks they would lend a hoof with the weather. Recently ponies had started to produce enough carrots and celery to make a profit.
Unlike with winter wrap-up, summer wrap-up mostly involved rounding up animals and helping them prepare for fall and later hibernation. After all of the preparations for the falls were complete the town always threw a festival, this year they hoped it would go better than the Summer Sun Celebration.
Arata and most of the E.W.E.F. were sent to the edges of the Hayseed swamps to start preparing the animals. Arata was put on a team with Vox to distribute food for the animals so they could store energy for hibernation.
“Vox, I still don’t entirely understand what we’re supposed to be doing.” Arata said as the group made their way to the edge of the swamps
.
Each pony was carrying a saddle bag full or carrots, potatoes, and celery. “We just distribute these to the animals that we find. It’s pretty simple.” Vox answered.
“But aren’t they wild animals? They aren’t anypony’s pet so why wouldn’t they just run away?” Arata added.
“I don’t know. They just don’t. You can ask Blaze about it when he’s done setting up the festival grounds tonight.” Vox answered as they walked further into the swamps. Vox seemed to be getting more and more uncomfortable with every step she took toward the swamps.
“Are you okay Vox? You seem a bit on edge.” Arata asked.
“Oh, right. I forgot you haven’t actually seen me in the swamps for extended periods of time.” Vox explained. “I’m really bad around bugs. I can’t stand them.”
“You mean things like spiders and stuff?” Arata asked.
“No, any kind of bug. Even things like that blue butterfly over there,” Vox pointed off to the right. “They look cute, but they have no concept of personal space. I hate it.”
While Vox finished her thought Arata looked in the direction she was pointing, after a few seconds of scanning Arata spotted the butterfly resting on a branch almost too far away to see. “I can’t believe you saw that from here.” He said. “But missed that spider on your back.”
Vox’s horn lit up. “Nice try, but I can read your mind.” She mocked.
“I thought you said you wouldn’t do that again to me?” Arata said.
“You’re the one making up spiders here. Not me.” She continued to walk seeming a little upset.
“Sorry, I didn’t realize how much it bothered you,” Arata apologized. “Is there a reason you’re so afraid of them?”
“I hate things being on me. It’s just the feeling that I can’t control something as basic as that,” She replied.
“Oh, I guess that makes sense.” Arata replied.
“Most ponies don’t get it so I don’t blame you. Just never tell me there’s a spider on my back again unless there really is, okay?”
“Got it,” Arata spotted a rabbit off to the side of the trail. “Hey look! Let’s try to feed it.”
“Go for it,” Vox said levitating him carrot. “Honestly I’ve never tried to do this without magic, so you’re gonna have to wing it.”
Arata closely walked towards the rabbit and extended the carrot in his hoof. The rabbit stopped and walked closer to Arata. Hesitantly it got close enough to grab the carrot and ran off into the bushes.
“Hey it worked!” Arata smiled. “This shouldn’t be too hard after all.” As Arata finished his sentence a small family of rabbits leapt out from the bushes onto Arata’s saddle bag. “Oh Celestia!”
Vox began to laugh uncontrollably at the scene unfolding in front of her.
“Could you help me?!” Arata shouted trying to buck five rabbits off of his back.
Vox continued to laugh but her horn lit up and the rabbits were slowly lifted off of Arata.
“Well I guess that’s one way to feed them.” Arata sighed.
Vox finished her laughing fit, “You’ve got that right. Also that was funny enough to make up for the spider thing.”
“Hey can I ask you a question?” Arata asked.
“Is it bug related?” Vox teased.
“No.” Arata answered.
“Then go ahead,” Vox smiled.
“Why is Blaze so excited about this cider trip?” Arata went on, “I’ve never seen him like this.”
“Well….” Vox stopped to consider her words. “He has what I would call an ‘addictive personality’. You’ve seen it with things like his pipe. Since cider is seasonal he only has a short window to get his fill so he tends to over indulge.” Vox sighed. “I’m not a fan of him smoking or hitting the cider, but he is fairly responsible with all of it, he stays in control. It’s really one of the things I admire about him, his constant control.”
“That makes sense,” Arata added, “I guess I’ll see how good the cider really is soon enough.
Arata felt that he had become significantly closer to Vox recently, and that he was finally starting to understand the Empress Arcana.
Vox and Arata finished distributing the rest of the food to the animals without incident. Then they returned back to the town just in time for the start of the festival.
…
The town was alive with ponies singing, dancing, playing games, and going to other stalls that ponies from around the town had set up. Arata, Blaze, Camphor, Vox, and Compass Rose had decided to attend the fair as a group.
“So where do you guys want to go?” Asked Arata.
“I was going to go dancing with Vox,” Blaze replied putting his hoof around Vox’s shoulder.
“Iiiiiii saaaw a tarrroott caarrd reeeaading booth ovveeerr theereeee,” Camphor pointed.
“That sounds like fun!” Compass Rose chimed in.
“Yeah, let’s check it out!” Arata joined in.
Arata was the first pony into the booth. There was a sheet hanging around the booth and it resembled a tent. Inside was a waiting area with two chairs and small dividing wall. A pony came around the small wall to great the visitor.
“Oh! Arata kun!” Lexi smiled, “Did you come to get your fortune told?”
Camphor and Compass Rose entered the tent as well.
“Yeah! All three of us want to!” Arata said excitedly. The spirit of the festival was visible in every pony and Arata was no exception.
“Arata kun why don’t you come back first then I can give your friends their readings,” She smiled walking back behind the wall.
“I had no idea you were into things like this,” Arata smiled.
“I’ve read a lot about this kind of thing. I’ve never really had chance to test it out on anypony before. Do you know anything about the cards?” She asked.
“Just a little, I wouldn’t say I’m an expert.” Arata answered. ‘if only she knew about Igor and Caroline’ he thought to himself.
“Let’s start with a simple three card spread. The first card will tell us about your past, it’s a good way to make sure the reading is accurate, the second shows us the present, and the third shows us the future.”
Lexi began to shuffle the cards; she took enough time to ensure that they were well mixed before she began. She quickly placed three cards face down and began the reading. She flipped the card over to reveal a pony carrying a bag followed by a dog, the card was marked with the number zero.
“The fool arcana, let’s see. This usually represents the start of a journey, freedom, inexperience, or creativity. Does that sound accurate to you?” Lexi asked.
Arata was surprised that the first card to come up matched the arcana of his first persona, as well as what had Igor had told him in the velvet room. “Yeah, that is pretty accurate.” He tried to hide most of his surprise, but didn’t have enough expression.
“You looked pretty shocked. Guess it must have been a pretty good card, let’s move on,” Lexi flipped the second card over to reveal a mare wearing elaborate robes and a large hat. The card was marked with the numeral II. “The high priestess, hmmmm this means that your present is full of mystery. It could also mean that there is some kind of interference from higher powers if you believe in that kind of thing. “
Arata hid is surprise much better this time around. This was all too accurate for him to believe. Now the cards were predicting the Alicorn in the lake and the uncertainty that he and the rest of the E.W.E.F. team felt. “That seems a bit farfetched,” he bluffed. “I don’t really see that much mystery in my life.”
“Then let’s flip the final card and see what you future holds.” She flipped over the card to reveal a tower being struck by lightning with the numeral XVI written on the bottom. “Oh dear…” She trailed off.
“What does that mean?” Arata asked hesitantly.
“The tower represents disaster, or a sudden change. It always has a negative connotation.” She quickly swept up the cards, “This was only my first time doing a reading like this. Why don’t we try again?” She smiled.
Lexi shuffled the cards again and again until she was sure that they would get a more accurate result. She placed three more cards face down and began again. “Okay. So first we have…. Fool… followed by priestess and…. Tower… that’s statistically improbable… I’ll give it one more try.” She shuffled the deck again and placed down three more cards. “Fool, priestess, tower… again. I wouldn’t worry about it if I were you.” She smiled. “It’s just a game. It’s not like these actually tell the future.”
Arata was fairly uncomfortable at this point “Yeah, I doubt there is anything significant about the reading. Should I send in another pony?”
“Yeah,” she replied. “Let’s try Camphor.”
Arata walked out of the room and gestured for Camphor to head into the back. He sat down next to Compass Rose who could tell he was a bit fazed.
“Hey, did your reading go okay?” she asked, “I mean I know it’s all made up but hearing that things will go a way you don’t want them to can upset any pony.”
“Yeah, it just got me thinking about the future, and how little I know about it.” Arata answered.
“Well don’t let it get you too down!” Compass Rose smiled, “We’ve still got the rest of the festival to enjoy before the fall!”
“Yeah,” he smiled. “You’re right. I can deal with the future when it gets here, for now I just need to have fun.”
They both paused as they heard a shout from the other room.
“That’s not even possible!” Lexi shouted walking Camphor out of the room.
“What happened?” Arata asked.
“He got lovers for all three.” Lexi responded.
“Why is that bad?” Arata asked.
“Because there was only one in my deck….” She hung her head and walked into the back room. “I don’t think fortune telling is right for me. Thank you for coming by though.”
Compass Rose was a bit sad that her fortune was never told but she followed Arata and Camphor out of the booth.
“So where do you two want to go next?” Compass Rose asked.
“Iiii vooote we fiinnd soomee food, I got wicked munchies,” Camphor looked around for anypony selling food, and sure enough there was a stand selling pies four stalls down. “Awwwsooommmee they have piiieeeee.” Camphor darted off leaving Arata and Compass Rose alone.
“Do you want to join him?” Arata asked.
“It’s a bit early for pie. Want to go find something else to do? I’m sure Camphor will catch up,” Compass Rose’s teal eyes met Arata’s. Usually she was floating a few hooves off the ground so no pony really made eye contact with her.
“Sure, what do you think we should do? This is my first time at a summer wrap-up in Equestria.” Arata liked the idea of dancing, but didn’t have enough courage to ask Compass Rose if she would like to.
“Let’s try the seven legged race! That should be starting in a few minute.” Compass Rose grabbed Arata’s hoof and pulled him off towards the direction of the race.
“Are you sure I’ll be able to keep up with you?” Arata knew he could if they were running, but he had seldom seen Compass Rose with her hooves on the ground.
“You trained with Ivory right? I’m sure you’ll do fine.” She continued to drag him until they were at the starting line.
There were ten pairs of ponies assembled; among them were Tonic and Panacea, Ivory Shield and Penzance, a pair which Arata hadn’t expected to see, and several other ponies from the town. After registry Arata and Compass Rose were given their place and waited patiently for the race to start.
“Okay here’s the plan. When you hear ‘go’ run as fast as you can. Got it?” She asked.
“Yeah, I got it.” Arata smiled at her not knowing if she was serious or not.
The race announcer and judge walked in front of the lineup and began to address them. “All right everypony! This race will take you all around the festival grounds, which ever pair makes it back first is the winner! Now I normally don’t have to say it, but for the two pegasi, no flying allowed. Now who’s ready to run?!” The group cheered loudly along with several ponies lined up to watch. “All right. On your marks!” Arata could feel Compass Rose getting ready to bolt, “Get set!” Arata lowered himself to the ground and tensed his legs, “GO!!”
Arata and Compass Rose darted off on the command leaving most of the group in the dust. Tonic and Panacea were doing surprisingly well, keeping around fourth place, while Ivory Shield and Penzance were surprisingly just behind Arata and Compass Rose.
The race worked its way past the dance floor where Blaze and Vox had stopped dancing to cheer on the runners. Arata and Compass Rose still maintained a strong lead, with Penzance appearing to get tired.
The race continued on with the two functioning surprisingly well tied together. They made their way around the grounds until the finish came into view.
Seemingly out of nowhere Ivory Shield and Penzance caught up with them and made a strong push to beat Arata and Compass Rose. Arata had run too far to lose now. He could feel himself burning up inside and Taliesin’s presence driving him to run faster and faster. Now he was dragging Compass Rose toward the end, and before he knew it they had won the race.
“We have our winners!! And in record time too!” The announcer shouted followed by cheers from the town.
“I didn’t think you were that fast,” Compass Rose said gasping for breath.
“I didn’t either,” Arata smiled.
“Here’s your reward!” The announcer walked over and handed the duo a fresh pie.
“Well done you two,” Ivory Shield clapped as she approached. “I knew you were good but I didn’t expect that.”
“I agree that was quite impressive,” Penzance added.
“Thank you,” Arata chuckled, “I guess I didn’t realize how much stronger I’ve gotten in Equestria.”
“We’ll leave you two to your reward,” Penzance said excusing himself and Ivory Shield.
…
Arata and Compass Rose met up with Camphor and shared their pie with him, before heading to find Blaze and Vox. It was the end of Arata’s first summer in Equestria, and he was ready for whatever the fall would bring. He hoped that it would be the end of the lake, and endangering everypony.
No matter how hard he tried to put aside the thought, the fortune that Lexi had given him still worried Arata. Two of the three parts were more accurate than he cared to admit, and the third predicted upheaval, or disaster.
What kind of disaster could be in his future? There had to be something Arata could do to stop it. Even if Arata didn’t have the strength to stop it alone, his team could. Maybe it was time to pay Igor another visit.
Arata tried to put these thoughts aside as he spent more time with his team and Compass Rose. In the final hours before the fall Arata, Blaze, Compass Rose, Vox, and Camphor, joined in with everypony in town and danced all night….