//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 // Story: Whatever Way the Wind Takes You // by kudzuhaiku //------------------------------// From the journal of Gloomy August— Jasper Picklesworth is a very gloomy character indeed. I’m not sure what happens to a pony that makes them expect the worst from everything. It is like he had no hope of anything good ever happening. He has no faith that things will just work out. He’s sorta sad and I don’t know what I can do to help him. But I think things will work out for him. He has a friend. Gleamgood is super bright and cheery. Well, of course Gleamgood is bright, he’s a crystal pony. But Gleamgood is, well, good, and he strikes me as the sort who will keep an eye on Picklesworth. No matter how bad things are, things just work out. That’s what they do. They might not work out as expected, but life happens and just keeps going. In my own life, I was kinda disappointed when I discovered my talent, and I’ll admit, it kinda gets me down sometimes, but then I cheer up when I think of all the farmers that need rain. It all worked out. Our night together was a bit strange. Gleamgood was great, but Picklesworth called me stupid. He said I was stupid because I was a mare that trusted myself in the company of two stallions I didn’t know. I know what he is getting at, and I know that the world can be a dangerous place, but I want to believe in the good of ponies. I mean, these two fellas turned out alright and I know that trouble lurks around every corner, but this time, it all just worked out. What he said does have me thinking though, I should be careful, but if I’m careful, that feels like I’m expecting the worst from somepony and somehow, that just feels wrong. It’s confusing and I don’t know what to do. I want to believe that the world is good. It was an odd feeling to have walked so far. Gloomy had spent most of the day walking along behind Picklesworth and his cart. Walking was rough, Gloomy realised. It took forever to get anywhere. They had walked for most of the day and had covered about as much ground as Gloomy could cover in an hour or so of flight. At least, it felt that way. Gloomy was never one to keep track of distances very well. Walking along the road was a very different experience than flying over it. It took a lot more effort, a lot more work, and there was a lot less in return. It was thirsty, dusty work, and Gloomy was glad that she had helped out with the water situation. It was rough, being an earth pony. Having to walk everywhere was time consuming and took a lot of work. No wonder Picklesworth was so grumpy. Gloomy understood now, and she felt super bad for him. He grumbled with almost every step he took and Gloomy didn’t protest much about his complaining. Being stuck on the ground sucked. It was going to take forever to reach the Crystal Empire at this rate. It would take months to walk across Equestria. Trying to coax her brain into working as she walked, Gloomy did a little math. If a pony traveled about twenty to twenty five miles a day walking, it would take about forty five days to cross Equestria. That was as the crow flies with two cities on roughly the same parallel. A diagonal line would be longer. Gloomy knew that a pegasus could make the same trip in five days of actual flying, not counting the days of rest. Gloomy had a profound realisation that earth ponies and unicorns had it rough if they wanted to take part in continental travel. This was something one never thought about as one flew overhead with the countryside below in a blur. Gloomy also concluded that Picklesworth and Gleamgood were having a far more meaningful journey than she was. They had to work harder, and as such, it meant more. There was an alarming crackle from Picklesworth’s spine as the earth pony stretched. The group had stopped to take a break at a junction where the road and the railroad tracks met up and remained together. It was the passage to the Crystal Empire and just as Gloomy had thought, it was just north of the Galloping Gorge. “It’s nice to stop,” Gleamgood said as he slipped his saddlebags off. “From here on out, it’ll be an easy trip home. The grade will be a little steep and the tunnel might be bit scary, but I think we’ll make it.” The crystal pony gave himself a shake, sighed, and then sat down in the grass. “There’s a tunnel?” Gloomy also slipped off her saddlebags and took off her bobby helmet. She stretched her wings, sighed, and then reached up with her hind hoof to scratch behind her ear. “Two tunnels,” Gleamgood replied, “one is for the train to pass through and they built another tunnel for caravans and wagoneers. They didn’t want anypony hit by a train.” “Is it dark and spooky?” Gloomy’s ears perked forwards as she felt a little concern. “It can be a little dim, but they do have lights in there. The rangers patrol the tunnels from time to time and make sure the lights stay on.” Gleamgood began to fumble around with his canteen so he could get a drink. He managed to get the stopper off, lifted it in his fetlock, and swallowed some water. “With our luck, all of the lights will be out,” Picklesworth grumbled. “Oh, cheer up, Picklesworth. Look for the good in the situation. In the tunnel, you won’t have to worry about rain or bad weather.” Gloomy gave the dumpy earth pony her best smile and batted her eyelashes at him to try and make him feel better. It usually worked. Most of the time. There was a grunt and Jasper Picklesworth scowled. He rolled his eyes and shook his head in disgust as he turned away from Gloomy. The irritable earth pony sat with his ears drooping, and a miserable expression upon his face as he considered the road ahead. “Miss, we could use your help to make sure we have plenty of water before we enter the tunnel,” Gleamgood said to Gloomy. “That is, if you don’t mind.” “Oh, I don’t mind. I’ll stay with you until you reach the tunnel and I’ll fetch some clouds. Just how big is this tunnel anyway that you have to worry about water?” Gloomy blinked a few times as she reminded herself that earth ponies had to walk and the distances could be long. “The tunnel is forty seven miles in length. It is the longest tunnel in Equestria, but not the longest tunnel in the world. Heading north, it’s an uphill journey. There are campgrounds in the tunnel for weary travelers and sometimes there are supplies left behind by kind rangers or travelers, but you can’t count on them, or so my guidebook says.” “A good three days in the dark,” Picklesworth grumbled in annoyance. “And walking uphill as well. This was a bad idea.” The earth pony shook his head and pulled out a battered old feedbag from his cart. “It’ll be the death of me.” “Oh, cheer up,” Gloomy said in a chirpy voice. “I flew into a whole bunch of tornados and a dangerous storm and I’m still alive. It’s just a tunnel. At least somepony was nice enough to make a tunnel through the mountains. It’s better than trying to walk over the mountains or around them.” Picklesworth’s ears stood up at the sound of Gloomy’s overly chipper voice. He winced, shook his head, and then slouched over as he did his best to ignore the entirely too perky pegasus that dared to point out things he should be grateful for. Just as Gloomy was about to say something else, her ears perked at the sound of a banjo playing. Her head turned, cocking off to one side so that she might hear better, and she saw Gleamgood doing the same. A banjo was not a sound that one heard very often in the wilderness. Watching, waiting, Gloomy heard the sound of the banjo coming closer. Her head turned and she watched the road, peering down between the trees, curious as to who was coming. She figured it would have to be a unicorn—an earth pony or a pegasus could not walk and play the banjo at the same time, but a pegasus might fly. Much to Gloomy’s surprise, she saw a diamond dog. A very large, very, very big diamond dog. He looked friendly enough, he was playing the banjo after all, and the banjo looked very small in his paws. Meeting a friendly diamond dog seemed like a real treat. Gloomy began to smile her special smile without even realising she was doing so. The music came to a stop and the diamond dog stood in the road a fair distance away, looking both hopeful and curious. He waved, slung his banjo over his back, and then continued forwards. Gloomy rose to greet him, extended a wing, and waved. “Hi!” “Hello,” the diamond dog replied as he drew nearer. “My name is Hachikō and I come from the east.” The diamond dog came to a halt again and then bowed at the hips, his long tail wagging behind him. “I am making my way north to the Crystal Empire.” “Pleased to meetcha,” Gloomy said, “I’m Gloomy.” “And I am Gleamgood.” The crystal pony pointed with his hoof. “Over there is Jasper Picklesworth. He and I are also heading for the Crystal Empire.” “Wonderful,” Hachikō said in a booming baritone. “Would you like another traveling companion?” The diamond dog gave his new acquaintances a hopeful look. “I’m good at keeping away trouble and I’m told my banjo playing is pleasant.” Gloomy was almost overcome with excitement. This was why she had left home. Not only was she meeting new ponies, but also new special friends, like Hachikō and right away, she decided that she liked him. He was friendly. Well, mostly friendly. She noticed the handle for a sword sticking up from his shoulder, and a second sword hung from his middle. For a brief second, this bothered her, but then she realised that the wilderness was dangerous and he was probably super friendly and he would never use those swords unless he had to. Besides, who was she to judge? Maybe he used them to chop vegetables. “So, Hachikō, what puts you on the road? Why are you heading to the Crystal Empire? Is that your final destination?” Gleamgood looked up at the much taller creature. The diamond dog sat down in the grass, made himself comfortable, and began to rub his own ear. “I am Rōnin... and I left my home. A mistake was made… a terrible mistake. Now, I roam the world, trying to right a great wrong. I try to do good. I have no final destination, but I will continue to roam to where I am needed.” “I’ve heard of your kind.” Picklesworth turned his attention upon the diamond dog. “You’re from Inujima. Your homeland is going through a revolution.” Bowing his head, Hachikō said nothing. “How do you know this?” Gleamgood asked Picklesworth. “I read the papers,” the irritable earth pony replied. “A war happened. Brothers fought. Inujima is becoming a dark place.” “It is,” Hachikō admitted. “I failed in my duties to hold back the darkness. It is a fight I could not win. Rather than be swallowed by the darkness, I fled.” Intrigued, Gloomy waited for the diamond dog to say more, hoping that a bit more of the story would come out. “There is no glory or honour in suicide,” Picklesworth said in a gruff voice. “You were right to get out. You’re better off here, where you can serve your honour and your ideals. We appreciate that sort of thing here in Equestria.” “My friend, I must confess, I am surprised.” Gleamgood turned and studied his earth pony companion. “What?” Picklesworth said in a short tempered voice. “I’m allowed to have depth.” Saying nothing, Gleamgood the crystal pony nodded. “So, uh, tell us more about yourself,” Gloomy said in the friendliest voice she could muster. “We were just stopping to rest after a long morning of traveling and I’d love to hear about your adventures…”