The Olden World

by Czar_Yoshi

Riverfall

The morning air was like a slap to the face as Starlight stepped out of Maple's home, but she didn't notice it for long. She was too busy looking, for the first time realizing what the earth pony's idea of a village was.

Cylindrical dwellings much like theirs were scattered almost without thought or placement, stretching as far as the eye could see... though due to the lack of any straight roadways, that wasn't very far at all. Starlight couldn't see a thing that wasn't some shade of red or brown, with the hard-trodden dirt plazas that separated buildings and the dim, canopied horizon.

They were situated in a forest of perfectly straight, branchless trunks that reached impossible heights, the top so far above that Starlight couldn't make out anything but a sea of muddy color. The trees grew wherever they pleased, be it in the middle of a thoroughfare or neatly behind something that didn't seem to be in use.

It was utterly directionless, without roads, landmarks, distinguishing features or even the hint of a gradient to tell one where to go. The half-dozen ponies out and about didn't seem to care, slowly going about their ways with their eyes closed and features relaxed. Starlight half-wondered if they even had destinations at all.

"Pretty, isn't it?" Maple asked, appearing beside her and shutting the door.

Starlight was practically cross-eyed, trying to find anything that looked planned or even stood out in the chaotic, peaceful neighborhood. "How do you tell where to go?"

"Hee... It's pretty big, too..." Smiling just as carelessly as the ponies around her, Maple began walking, heading in what seemed like no direction in particular. "Look above you."

Starlight gave upwards another glance. It was almost dizzying, between the straight brown trees and the distance they stretched for, but she quickly realized what Maple wanted her to see. Ropes bedecked with colorful pendants were strung between combinations of houses and trees, and after a bit of staring it became apparent that they weren't as random: color was related to direction.

"Those are guideposts?" she asked, unsure of a better word.

"Mhmm!" Maple chirped, a spring in her step despite the sharp morning air. "They take a bit to learn, but they tell you whenever you're heading toward anything interesting." She smiled down at Starlight as she walked, turning to avoid a house almost by instinct. "But don't worry about needing to do that any time soon. If you ever want to go anywhere, I'll be happy to come with you!"

"So where are we going now?" Starlight asked, briefly stumbling in her effort to match the older mare's pace.

"The bathhouse," Maple said frankly. "Probably a good idea to get you looking nice, first."

Starlight couldn't protest. She wasn't hung up on fashion like some of the fillies she knew back in Equestria, but it still felt nice to be clean. It would probably be nice to get wet without the imminent threat of hypothermia for once, too. After all her negative experiences with water lately, she could use it. The last thing she wanted was to develop some sort of phobia.

"...So, where's the bathhouse?" she asked after several minutes of walking.

"We passed one already," Maple informed her as if it was the most natural thing ever. "But the one we're going to is downtown. You'll know it when we're getting close."

"We passed one?" While not a protest, there was a certain demand for explanation in Starlight's voice. "Why?"

"Because I'm friends with the mare who runs this one," Maple said. Apparently that was all there was to it.

Starlight wouldn't admit it to anyone but herself, but she wasn't holding up as well as she imagined she would. Perhaps it was because she was full, or perhaps laying and resting for the last week had taken the edge off her exploration-induced stamina, but she could already feel the tug of gravity on her legs. Maybe it was as simple as the fact that now, she didn't need to keep moving.

To distract herself, she kept looking around the town, searching keenly for more things of interest. The longer she stared, the more she realized it wasn't the same all the way through, merely so different from anything she was used to it took an acclimated eye to tell one kind of different apart from another. There was variance to the houses, whether they were made of light wood, dark wood or some reed-like material that looked like incredibly thick, notched straw. The size of everything was subject to change, from tiny pathways where two buildings were squeezed together to byways wider than they were long, and the number of stories present at a time could be anything between five and one.

But no matter how hard she looked, two things about the town seemed completely static and unchanging: all the other ponies she saw were earth ponies, and they were all mares. A slight feeling of uneasiness bubbled within her, and at one point she checked and made sure her matted forelock was covering her horn.

Maple was right, however: Starlight did indeed notice when downtown was approaching. Aside from a slight uptick in the heights of buildings and an increase in bridges built high-up between them, the road around her grew looser and looser, transitioning from hard-packed dirt to soft beach sand. And then, in a hard line, the sand was gone, replaced by glass.

Starlight stopped to take a moment to stare, and Maple let her. Stretching in front of her, the town roads were a mirrorlike sea, flawless and reflective to such a degree that she saw a perfect double of every pony walking on it shining below. When she looked down through the glass, her eyes were met with a cloud of suspended, wildly-colorful rocks ranging from pebbles to the size of her hoof. The glass ran down nearly as deep as she was tall, ending in a gray, unobtrusive bottom wherever she was able to see past the rocks.

"Woah..." Starlight poked cautiously at the surface. "What's this?"

"A gift," Maple replied, grinning at her curiosity. "It looks slippery, doesn't it?"

"Yeah," Starlight mumbled, poking it again. The edge of her hoof glided effortlessly across the pristine surface... but the moment she put it down flat, it was like she was standing on glue. Her hoof simply wouldn't budge in any direction but up, no matter how hard she forced it.

In the distance, a pony was pulling a wagon across the glass with no trouble at all. Raising her head, Starlight gave Maple a questioning look.

"The stones are enchanted," Maple explained, stepping confidently onto the substance. "They hold your hooves in place. Wheels, too. Even when it's raining, this place gives you the best traction in town..." She sighed and closed her eyes, reliving memories. "Once, when this was new, I twisted a hoof trying to dance on it. It's that strong. It's still being made, too. Some day, it's supposed to cover the entire town. I can't wait until it's finished up to my house. Isn't it pretty?"

Starlight nodded mutely, still investigating the magical surface.

"It also means we're not far," Maple offered. "Ready?"

Standing with all four hooves on the glass, Starlight nodded. She slid her saddlebags to a more comfortable position, and they set off, continuing into the heart of Riverfall.

Comments

[Walpurgisnacht]

You paint a very interesting picture.

[Hap]

Interestinger and interestinger...

[alamais]

all the other ponies she saw were earth ponies, and they were all mares

[Texus]

all the other ponies she saw were earth ponies, and they were all mares

I didn't saw that part and only in the comments, but I hope this story isn't following the 2/3 Mares and 1/3 Stallions idea.

[PropMaster]

The idea of a town using colored talismans and string as roadsigns is really cool.

GRDC: 3

[mustangdrew4]

If they used that stones enchantment on a path up along the "edge of the world cliff" it would be rather possible for them to get across the mountains with it as well.

[StormLuna]

All earth pony mares? Well anything is possible in fan fiction. I see nothing wrong with it, doing a story with all mares isn't difficult when it comes to MLP....and if you're like me, they're is always crazy reproductive magic that would make stallions completely unnecessary....although normally unicorns are necessary in my ponyverse.

[Merula]

... what happened to the stallions? Something is defo not right here

[Walrusesarecute]

But no matter how hard she looked, two things about the town seemed completely static and unchanging: all the other ponies she saw were earth ponies, and they were all mares. A slight feeling of uneasiness bubbled within her, and at one point she checked and made sure her matted forelock was covering her horn.

Maybe war? camps? or possibly a red herring?