//------------------------------// // Amidst the Ruins // Story: Majesty: Queen of the Castle // by Paradise Oasis //------------------------------// "I dunno, this place is really creepy." Tornado said with a shiver, looking at the eerie decor all around her. "Are you girls sure you want to set up camp here?" "Ohhh, don't be such a fraidy stallion!" Wind Whistler chided flapping above the mountain boy pony's head. "These ruins are the perfect place for us to set up camp!" The seven ponies had arrived at the center of the valley, where what appeared to be the ruins of a small city stood at the crossroads of two very ancient traveler's roads running though the Rainbow Valley. Majesty had felt the ruins would be a safe place to set up camp for the night, seeing how the first set of ruins they had stayed in been advantageous against the goblins in their last battle. It was not yet evening as the party began to set up camp, but they were all grateful for the rest it would bring. "Wow, the rainbow valley looks incredibly beautiful." Ice Crystal noted, standing at the edge of the ruins, and looking back up the path they had first come from. "It's more forest-y than the jungle we came though in Flutter Valley. But why do they call this place Rainbow Valley?" "The answer to that is right above your head." Hollywood pointed a hoof skyward, causing everybody to look straight upwards. "If you look high into the sky, you'll see a wonder that not even the ancients knew existed!" As their eyes gazed skyward, they noticed a long, beautiful rainbow arching high above the clouds, filling the top of the sky with colors. Even now, as the sun was setting, the giant overhead rainbow filled the night sky over the valley with color. "Whoa, is that...?" Thundercloud asked in awe, his voice trailing off as he stared at all the bight colors. "The rainbow portal to earth, yes." Holly wood finished, looking between the stallions with a smile. "It's how the humans and the other races first came to our world. The rainbow lights up the night sky over the unicorn run, and touches down in Dream Valley to the east. It's a beautiful sight for any pony, wither by day or by night." "Uhhhh, Holly? Don't you mean everybody?" Wind Whistler asked in confusion. "Everypony isn't even a real word." "No no Windy, I meant 'every pony', as in two separate words. I was just referring to equines who might wander through here" Hollywood corrected . "But I do admit, 'everypony' does sound like a really stupid word." "Yeah, just like 'anypony'!" Windy replied with a giggle. "Or nopony!" "Or somepony!" Holly laughed back. "Or manypony!" "This is a riot!" Wind Whistler fell back, laughing hysterically. "Too many ponies!" "I don't get it." Ice Crystal said in confusion, watching the two mares laugh over their own joke. Thundercloud just shrugged. Meanwhile, Applejack and Majesty were on a tower in the center of the ruins, getting the layout of the land before they set up camp. The princess was staring down at the other ponies, amused by their little joke. "Look at those goofs down there, just having their little fun." Majesty chuckled. "It amuses me Wind Whistler can get along so well with Holly, even with how much she dislikes her." "Yep yep, the airhead gets along with the bimbo, no real surprise there." A.J. replied, half ignoring the princess, as she unrolled a bunch of maps on an old stone table. "We've got more important things to worry about, kid, like figuring out where we're going from here." "Say, Applejack? Do you wonder what kind of place this was?" Majesty asked, looking down at all of the crumbling walls, and toppled stone pillars. "Did you ever winder what the ancients built it for, or what they did here?" "Can't say I ever gave it much thought, kid. Nor that it warranted much thought." Applejack looked up up from her maps, and pointed a hoof at a pony statue with both wings and a horn on it. "See kid, I've heard the ancients believe in a lot of silly stuff that ain't worth wasting time on. They were a bunch of wierdoes with heads too big for their bodies and ridiculously giant eyes. They paid lip service to friendship, but let their rich and powerful ponies get away with bullying and walking all over other mares and stallions." A.J. stamped her hoof on the table, snorting angrily. "The best thing we Ponylanders ever did was driving those losers out of these lands, and good riddance to them, I say!" "Wow, you don't like ancient ponies, and you don't like modern ponies." The princess sighed. "Is there anything or anybody you do like?" "I like ponies who don't ask stupid questions, and don't waste my time." A.J. turned back to her map. "Now, are you going to come over here and help me figure this thing out, or not?" "I'll be there in a sec." Majesty looked back down where the others had been. "Hey, everybody but Tornado up and left! Where the heck did they all go? What are they doing?" "Tornado's standing guard like I asked him to, Ice Crystal went off with Wind Whistler, and Hollywood's gone with Thundercloud." Applejack raised an eyebrow. "And as to what they're doing.... you're a grown filly, kid. You've seen the looks those mares have been giving those stallions, and vice versa. what do you think they're doing?" "Ugh, I don't want to even think about it!" Majesty rolled her eyes, trotting away. "You always seem to think the worst of people, A.J., I think I'll go talk to Tornado, instead." "Suit yourself." The earth pony replied, again not looking up from the map. Applejack was so engrossed in what she was doing, that she didn't hear the two didn't hear another earth pony come up behind her with ropes, and suddenly spring on the unsuspecting mare. "Hey, what are you-!?" A.J. snorted in surprise, struggling against the other mare. "Let me go!" The two ponies wrestled against each other, kicking and biting. Applejack was strong... but the other mare had gotten the drop on her. "I'm really sorry about this." Rapunzel sighed, pulling the ropes tightly around A.J.'s legs, before gagging her. "But I really have no choice." Far below the tower, the sound of two ponies giggling and laughing could be heard from a cluster of trees just outside the ruins. "Ohhh, Icy, you're so energetic!" Wind Whistler gasped for breath, trotting out into the clearing, and pushing some loose strands of hair back into place in her messed- up mane. "Now you wait here, and I'll be back in a few minutes, okay?" The Pegasus mare trotted over to a nearby stream, and was cleaning herself up as an earth pony mare snuck up on her with a rope. Windy had barely gotten out of the water, when the other pony jumped her. "Hey, what gives?!" The Pegasus squeaked, as the earth pony pinned her to the ground. "A.J., is that you in disguise?! Is this some sort of joke?!" "I apologize for doing this to you." Goldilocks whimpered, holding back the tears in her eyes. "But I am compelled to obey." An earth pony mare was stronger than a Pegasus mare, and Windy couldn't fly away with her wings soaked. Goldilocks soon had Wind Whistler tied up and gagged, and was soon off with her captive to join her twin. "Let's get out of here, before the others find out." Rapunzel whispered to her companion, dragging her heavy sack along by her mouth. "There's no way the two of us could take that unicorn, the flutter, and the stallions all by ourselves "I'm glad we didn't have to hurt the others." Goldilocks replied, dragging her struggling sack along the ground as well. "Rugmatot should be happy with these mares." The two ponies vanished into the forest with their captives, slowly trotting their way back towards Wantall's castle...