• Published 20th Apr 2016
  • 13,195 Views, 2,320 Comments

Gazing to the Ocean of the Sky - David Silver



She can swim far and wide across the waters of Equestria, but it's not enough. There are places above those waters, places she plans to reach. Where biology failed her, her mind would succeed. Equestria better be ready, because she plans to visit!

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49 - End Episode - Dry Power in the Air, Sea Beneath

Braeburn led the trio back to Applejack's side and let them in, but didn't follow. "Ah got something t' check on, but y'all gonna stay here, right? No leaving without Applejack this time. Promise."

Cherry sighed softly but settled down. Though not nominated for the position, her concession seemed to echo in the others shortly. "We promise."

He nodded. "Good. Ah'll see y'all later." He closed the door behind him and they could hear his hooves retreating away from the house.

They didn't have to wait long at least. Just as the boredom became unbearable, Applejack stirred with a mumble. The headache of before had settled and she felt renewed, at least compared to before. She opened her eyes to see three other pairs gazing down at her. She blinked before memory caught up with her. "Ah, good. Yer all back." She sat up slowly as to not bonk heads on the way. "We done missed the whole first day."

Indigo pointed back at the tavern they had been in. "I learned how to play an instrument."

Applejack blinked at the news. "Shoot, it takes longer than one afternoon ta learn how ta play proper."

He pouted a little but became all the more set. "I did! I didn't say I was super good at it, but I did..."

"Easy there pardner. If ya say ya did, than ah believe ya. What instrument did ya get playin'?"

Berry inclined her head towards Indigo. "He learned how to 'tickle ivories'."

Applejack blinked with confusion before it hit her. "Oh! Shoot, ya learned how ya play a piana some?" She slid up to her hooves. "Ah wanna hear that, later. Maybe after we're back in Ponyville."

Cherry smiled brightly as she waved a hoof towards him. "Will you help convince Twilight to get him one?"

She didn't immediately shoot down her idea. "Actually... if'n ya suggested a, ya know, underwater piano. Ah bet she'd get real excited."

Indigo clopped his hooves. "I'd love to try a wet piano, but I want to try dry one too. They would sound different, wouldn't they?"

Applejack frowned a little. "Suppose that's true... Well, there's the one Pinkie used. Ah don't think anypony even touches that one no more. Bad luck they say, bunch a hooey if ya ask me. We can probably take that one." She moved for the door. "Ah hear some ruckus outside that sounds like a good time. Let's see if we can't squeeze in some good times today."

They went outside to find the sky crackling and flaring. The power of the dry was so intense that even in the evening, it made the sky explode with its might. Bright colors and loud bangs shook The Dry beneath them with intense washes of its majesty. It was at once both amazing and terrifying and sent all three seaponies scurrying for cover.

"W-wait! Don't go hidin' because of some fireworks."

Cherry peeked out from behind the barrel she had selected to hide behind. "Fire in the sky? How would that be a good idea?!"

"I don't want to be burned!" cried out Indigo as he quaked behind a post far too narrow to serve as cover.

Berry had ducked back into the house. "Tell me when it's over!"

"Shoot, it ain't nothin' to be scared of." Applejack thrust a hoof up at the multi-color display that flared brilliantly behind her. "Ponies done made it fer lookin' at and enjoyin', not hidin' from."

Indie peeked around his post, then raised his eyes as a bright explosion of yellow and blue filled the sky. "P-ponies made that?" He slowly stepped out, approaching Applejack. "They can do that?"

"Sure can." Applejack nodded confidently. "Now let's get a good spot an' enjoy it." She waved for the fillies to come along and got moving. Though they still seemed shocked, the sea ponies all followed along after her, learning of the glories of what she would call 'fire works', though they did no work besides exploding brightly and loudly? Was that work? Applejack insisted it was.


Elsewhere, Braeburn pulled the lever to get the water flowing through the orchard in a dance of undulating sprinklers and pipes that sprayed water over leaves and across roots as was requested. Everything seemed to be fine, despite the interference. Whatever the sea ponies had done, the machine seemed to be...

He turned in place and saw the area surrounding the lever had become a slurry of water and dirt. He was on an island surrounded by mud! "Consarnit!" While the machine was doing its job to pump water, it was leaking something awful. He pulled the lever back into the off position, but that didn't make the ocean he was stranded in go away, and the cool evening was doing nothing to make it go away... He was trapped.

"Help!" he called out, but the fireworks blazed overhead, threatening to drown out his attempts to call for assistance.


While most enjoyed the spectacle, Indigo raised an ear. Watching the dry power was a bit scary and so looking away from it, even if it had brilliant shades, was a nice thing. The noise he heard prompted him to do just that. Was someone calling? He started moving closer. "Someone's calling for help." He was sure of it. A pony, specifically, was shouting for help.

He broke into a gallop with the others trailing behind, including Applejack.

They arrived to find Braeburn stranded on his island, looking worried and annoyed in equal measure. "There you are! Look what you done did!" He pointed at the mess he was surrounded in. "Now ah can't move!"

Cherry trotted up without fear and sank a hoof into the muddy soil, only to lose it for a moment. The dirt had become like silt at the bottom of the sea and she was pretty sure she could navigate that. "Hold on." She squirmed free of her dry-swimmers and into the mire, even if it made a mess of her fur, and swam with the natural grace of a sea creature despite it. It slowed her progress, being partially solid, but could not stop her from quickly reaching the stranded dry pony. "Come on! We'll get you to safety."

Braeburn blushed faintly as the other seaponies quickly joined Cherry at his island, but he'd have to get muddy to get back. But what was the alternative? He let out a sigh and took off his hat, tossing it across to Applejack before he sank into the mess. The three caught him easily and carried him across before dumping him out onto The dry.

Berry nodded. "Well, there's only one part we did anything to. If there's any place to look, it'll be there. One moment."

Braeburn thrust out a hoof to stop them, but they all vanished under the mud before he could stop them. "Blast it..."

Applejack shook her head. "Look, this one thing ah'll trust them with. Let's give them a moment to figure out what's gone wrong."

"If ya say so..."

Minutes later, a lone part was tossed at the hooves of the two. Cherry pointed at it. "We had the mechanical pony make it bigger."

Applejack raised a brow. "Mechanical pony?"

Berry nodded as she shook herself free of mud. "He had a friend with a snail mark."

Applejack brought a hoof to her face. "Tell me, did the mechanical thing look like two things connected in the center like?"

Indigo bobbed his head. "That's the one."

Applejack threw her own hat down. "Consarnit! What are Snips and Snails even doin' here?"

Braeburn looked confused. "Who?"

"Nothin'... Nothin'... Just two more lost foals in need of rescuing. Look--" She pointed to the piece, covered in mud as it was. "--A'hm pretty certain yer gonna have ta replace that. There's no work those two would do to anything that ah'd trust fer a minute."

Braeburn picked up the broken part and shook the mud free of it. "Ah'll do the best ah can. Shoot. We barely got ta use it..."

Cherry sunk her head low, the others following suit. "We're really sorry we caused all this trouble. I thought we could fix it..."

Part of Braeburn wanted to be furious at the young ponies, but their sincere apology made that hard. He instead grunted. "Ah guess it'll be alright... Look, next time somepony tells ya not to do somethin', ya don't do it, alright? Especially when they's somepony that knows better."

"Yes, sir," all three echoed miserably.

Above them, the fireworks covered the town in bright colors and explosions that Applejack continued to insist were entirely harmless to them all.

Author's Note:

Not every mistake results in a town-destroying explosion, alas. I came here for the booms though! Is that a typo?

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