September 10, 2015
Driving through the Great Plains is the antithesis of an experience. There’s nothing out there. Other than some rolling hills, there’s no terrain to mention. During one stint on a Kansas state road, we drove for forty miles without making even a slight curve or seeing a stop sign.
The weather wasn’t as hot as Texas, but we were all still in the process of rehydrating. I can only imagine what would have happened if we’d had to spend too much time outdoors chasing Tirek or whatever.
Speaking of Tirek, we were less concerned with his next destination, though we were figuring roughly Denver. With some coordination, we were hoping to put our plan into motion.
Tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac...tac-ding!
As Luna typed a letter to Twilight with a pencil held between her teeth, explaining the situation and requesting backup, she occasionally paused to take a sip from the biggest Big Gulp cup we could get from a gas station. I mentioned rehydration, but Luna drank like, well, a horse.
She also wore the sunglasses we had bought her. Out on the Plains there was no terrain or trees to block the sun.
The scenery got slightly more interesting as we got into Colorado. We headed for Colorado Springs. Buzz Aldrin was there raising awareness for NASA and promoting space exploration. Being an Air Force town, they were receptive.
Chrysalis, unable to resist being the center of attention, was doing some sort of pin-up girl photoshoot.
We managed to get the two of them wrangled and in the same place to make plans. We needed a secret place to meet, one where neither Tirek nor angry bikers could find us.
Fortunately, in Colorado, I had a buddy who owned a train.
That sentence would usually cause confusion and require clarification, but this whole trip had really changed my standards for what was and wasn’t weird.
Otto the owner-operator engineer greeted us at his siding and showed the way to the stately string of vintage Pullmans. Drawing the shades on the dining car, we got down to business.
We sat around a table. Chrysalis changed back to her native form and stretched before joining us.
Otto had gotten a brief explanation from me about the whole deal, but was still freaking out a little. Rather than spend time on that, we tried to steer the conversation back to the topic at hand.
“Setting a trap for Tirek would probably work best with Chrysalis as bait,” said Buzz Aldrin. Coming from him, Chrissy didn’t protest.
“But first we’ll need a way to reverse his magic stealing,” she quickly added.
“And I have a plan for that,” said Luna. “I know Twilight Sparkle has the ability to help us. We must contact her.”
Luna showed the letter she’d typed. “We’ll need your magic, Chrysalis, to send it.”
“I don’t know that spell,” Chrissy protested. “Much less who to address it to.”
“Which is why I will be assisting you,” said Luna. She looked at Otto. “We will need a little space.”
“No problem.” He showed us to a large boxcar that had been just as lovingly restored as the rest of the train. The wood floor was clean and Luna laid out a few runes with a piece of coal, frowning at the effort of dredging up the memory to use them and also at the taste.
“It has been quite long since I have learned this,” she said by way of explanation. “But I have always believed in backups. This is a way to share magic.”
“What will it do?” Chrysalis asked nervously. “Are you really sure you want to share my magic?”
“Certainly not, but it is our only option,” said Luna. “Do not worry, however. I no more want to possess changeling magic than you want me to have it. Now, please activate the spell by touching your horn to the center.”
Chrysalis cautiously stepped forward and knelt to begin the spell. The runes glowed green with her magic.
“Step back and place your hooves here,” said Luna. She stepped to an opposite set of marks.
The two of them twitched as the spell went into effect and green magic washed over their hooves. For a moment, I thought Luna would turn into a changeling version of herself, but explorative fanfiction aside, that would have been really creepy.
“Now,” said Luna. “I have the letter. Follow my lead.”
The piece of paper slowly lifted off the floor with magic. It hovered between them, rolled up and then, with a flash, vanished.
“Spike should have it now,” said Luna. She glanced down at the floor, then at Chrysalis, pausing before stepping away, breaking the spell.
“And now, we wait.”
Minutes passed and there was no reply. Luna said perhaps there was a time zone difference and Spike may have been sleeping. She had been nearly a month on our planet and had lost track of time. I could tell that troubled her.
“Should we maybe get moving?” I said. “Since we just used magic and all. Just in case Tirek is looking for us, which he is.”
“We can do that,” said Otto. “Hey Sandy, do you want to drive a train?”
“Do I!”
We went to select a locomotive. There were various steam engines around, but I stopped short in my tracks when I saw a yellow and grey monster casting a shadow over them all. “Is that...a DDA40X?”
“I thought you would appreciate that,” he said. “Come on, let’s load your Fiat into boxcar and get this show on the road.”
We got everything hooked up. This was going to be awesome. Riding the rails limited our flexibility a little, but we could always use the car again.
I was up in the cab with Otto when we pulled out of the yard. The enormous locomotive moved the short string of cars with ease. Much as I wanted to stay there, though, I headed back to the sleeper car to check that everything was all right.
Maria seemed to enjoy the train, as she didn't have to help me navigate. Chrysalis was obsessively checking her DeviantArt page with her cell phone. Buzz Aldrin was quietly working on some papers that appeared to contain a lot of science.
Luna sat beside a window, staring at the scenery rolling by. There were a few storm clouds coming in as we headed west for Denver.
“How do you think this is going to go?” I said.
She shrugged. I couldn't see her eyes behind her sunglasses.
I wanted to mention how she'd given in and asked for help. I decided not to.
Luna took a sip from her drink. For a while we sat.
