The Olden World

by Czar_Yoshi

Days Of Drifting Doldrums

"Land ho!"

Valey rubbed her head crossly, sitting on the deck of the Immortal Dream. "You know, that would be a whole lot more exciting if we hadn't spent the last two days backtracking just so that we wouldn't get stranded again when this one quits too..."

A guard looked at her. "Now that we're down to one thanks to your filly making them attack, we can't afford to risk getting stranded."

"We risked getting stranded the moment you decided to use them for propulsion in the first place," Valey growled. "Now we've wasted a bajillion days of travel! And don't blame Starlight for trying something when no one had any better ideas."

"We could have waited and come up with a better plan," another guard pointed out.

"Guh..."

"Look, being delayed to Kinmari is bad for us too!" the first one insisted. "None of us are winners, here."

Valey was already trotting away.

---

In Shinespark's room, a bed poofed and groaned as Valey flopped down with a sigh. "Can't hide it from you, kiddo: sticking your neck out there the other day was not the best way to endear yourself to our guests."

"I know," Starlight grunted, huddled in a corner with books and a few snacks and showing no intention of moving.

"I didn't see it," Maple murmured, "but it reminds me of when Hemlock's crane broke so long ago and you saved Gerardo's ship from falling. But we didn't leave Riverfall immediately after that, did we? How did we help you deal with the pressure then?"

"Don't remember." Starlight turned a page.

Maple frowned in concentration. "Didn't Amber and Gerardo do a stunt, or...?"

"Bananas!" Valey groaned and rolled over. "The smell of tension on this ship is so thick I feel like I'm gonna choke. We need a good plan and we need it now, because this is absolutely not working."

"I wish I had more to offer. I'm trying my best," Maple apologized, her eyes the same midnight blue as Starlight's new aura ever since the day Starlight got her artifice and she had pocketed Glimmer. "I think we're just so out of resources not even we can make it work. All of you are so creative and resourceful, but we've just hit out limit."

Valey blew a raspberry at the ceiling. "Maybe I should have flown for it. Tried to reach this university place before we turned back. If I hadn't been asleep when it happened, I would have yelled at them to keep going and then have us try to fly and get help if we did get stranded. It's a school on an island, how can they not have a million boats of their own? They could rescue us!"

"Didn't they say it was nine days at full speed from here to the school?" Maple asked, eyes shadowing with concern. "Even you can't fly for a full week without rest or sleep."

Valey grumbled.

Maple's face fell. "You know, it might have nothing to do with getting us out of here, but I was glad to get to see you so happy when you returned. Even if we've been drowning in our own troubles for the last month, and they're dragging you down too now that you're back in them, I'm glad I got to see you smile."

"I know, right?" Valey tossed a hoof. "I was feeling great, and then it was like, hey, we're stranded and everyone's in a real bad way. And so I was like, bananas, let's get this problem fixed and then back to being happy. You know what's wrong with that? That's exactly how I've been feeling all throughout the Empire! Oh, if only we could solve these million impossible things that are completely screwing us, life would be great! Once those are gone, we'll have a real party! And now we're right. Back. In the same exact place. Odds are, we're gonna get hit by more bad luck before we even come close to solving this one."

Maple's ears fell.

"That's why we can't let that happen," Valey insisted, sitting up. "Not while we're still so close. We don't have a bunch of racist griffons and evil sphinxes and crazed scientists breathing down our backs, and for once I don't have to worry about that meteor. Crossing that ocean is the only thing standing between us and the chance to actually get somewhere better. And we gotta figure out what we kept doing wrong and change it while there's still time to try. I'm frustrated, but I haven't lost my second wind yet. I just dunno what to actually do."

"What will we do once we get there?" Maple bit her lip. "I know it's important to stay hopeful, but do we know this university will actually help? I'm honestly asking, I didn't hear the guards talk about why we should go there."

Valey took a breath and looked at the door. "Honestly? I dunno. But they made it sound like it's not a war zone, it's not in the grip of an evil chancellor, and might actually be the kind of bastion of civilization we've been looking for. And even if it's not, their princess will be able to find us and we can negotiate with her or whatever for the right to stay here."

"Worst comes to worst, we can wait here for Princess Celestia to get back," Maple hummed. "How bad of an idea would that even be anymore?"

"Might be what we have to do. I'm not worried about us starving or dying or anything." Valey shrugged. "We've got food for a month or two, more if we stretch it, and I've got no intention of losing to anything that tries to whack us. Except... you know... her."

"Chrysalis is gone," Starlight insisted from her corner.

Valey sighed.

With a slow shuffle, Maple climbed out of her bed, stepped over and put a hoof on Valey's shoulder.

Valey raised an eyebrow. "Aren't you injured?"

"It's been a month," Maple answered. "I'm far from comfortable, but I did have Princess Celestia's healing spell. And you look like you're feeling alone."

"Heh. Thanks, girl." Valey gently patted her back. "What I'm feeling is like we're inches away, and yet miles away at the same time. What I need are ideas. Say we do have to wait for their honcho. How do we get the ship in any better of a mood so it doesn't have to stagnate like this for however many more weeks it takes?"

"It's a good question," Maple said. "When I was getting back on my hooves last year, I had a lot of tricks that helped, but most of them relied on having supportive friends, or being able to walk around in Riverfall. And I don't think there's anyone here who's completely okay."

Valey huffed. "And the land around here is probably full of nothing. See, though? This is why I wanna reach that island. I've been thinking, and I'm one hundred percent sure settling down and getting to know more ponies than just a hoofful on this ship is good for us."

"But we can't," Maple agreed, "so we need to find something to do in the meantime. Do you think some sort of celebration would help raise spirits?"

"A celebration? Of what?" Valey tilted her head, curious.

"Of me feeling good enough to go cooking and having enough food to cook with." Maple nodded at the door. "And we don't need to be celebrating anything in particular to have one. Even just treating ourselves to a feast might help raise spirits."

Valey rubbed her chin. "Alright, I'm liking it. What else?"

"I don't have anything else." Maple stiffly shrugged, trying not to move her barrel. "But if we ask our friends, they might have something to pitch in?"

"It's something to do." Valey flipped upright, landing on the floor. "And that's a whole lot better than laying around. Let's see what we can-"

She slid the door open with a whirl, revealing the talon of Gerardo Guillaume, inches from knocking.

"Oh, hey, Birdo." Valey winked. "So, new plan is to have a feast. If we can't do anything to get us quicker to the island, we gotta boost morale while we wait, and I'm not sitting on my butt while-"

"Apologies for the interruption." Gerardo reached inside his uniform, produced a glowing sound stone, and held it where everyone could see. "But I have a problem that requires a unicorn."

Starlight and Valey both tilted their heads. "Who's it from?" Valey asked. "We're all here, aren't we? Don't tell me you gave the other one to Pancake..."

Gerardo offered the stone to Starlight, beckoning for her to activate it. "On the contrary, it was last taken possession of by the leader of the very griffon gang who were likely to be upset by our taking the last brood beasts to use as propulsion..."

Maple swallowed.

"Hope he's not looking for trouble," Valey remarked, a faint grin on her face. "For his sake. So?"

Starlight's aura congealed around the sound stone, and within seconds it activated, a crackle of static making its way along the connection. "Hello?" Gerardo said into the stone.

"Huh. It's you," Gunther's voice carried, broadcasting into the room. "I'm surprised the soldiers didn't rob you blind enough to take this, too. Where are they?"

Gerardo blinked. "Who, the Equestrians?"

"Yes, that's who. Are they still commandeering your ship?"

"What's it to you if they are?" Gerardo narrowed his eyes.

"Because my sources say you turned back after suffering some engine troubles, and I've been following you. It turns out a little spending goes a long way in Griffonstone toward getting yourself a ship and a crew. So if my calculations are correct... I'm a lot closer to your destination than you are."

Everyone in the room stared at each other.

"Go get your captors. I've got an offer or two to propose..."

Comments

[Professor Blu]

Here I am, Seeing this on the feature tab. I click on it... and I see 866 chapters... Allons-y

[Phoenix Kitten]

9923898
Lock, load, and face the madness.

[Phoenix Kitten]

Gunther does not hold the Equestrian royal guard in the highest esteem.
Guys, you made contact with Celly, don't let that windbag talk you into doing anything stupid.

[Oberth Effect]

"You know, that would be a whole lot more exciting if we hadn't spent the last two days backtracking just so that we wouldn't get stranded again when this one quits too..."

They're lucky the last beast didn't choose to quit on the way back. Did they have any contingency plan at all for if/when the beasts decided to stop cooperating? As Valey pointed out, it seems a bit risky to rely on coercing the beasts as their first and only option, although to be fair it's not like they had many other options to use as backup at the time. Perhaps they could have used some of the trees nearby to jury-rig a sail?

"I wish I had more to offer. I'm trying my best," Maple apologized, her eyes the same midnight blue as Starlight's new aura ever since the day Starlight got her artifice and she had pocketed Glimmer.

Interesting. So perhaps Maple's eyes reflect the color of any magic she has pocketed? In that case, why midnight blue instead of teal, since Starlight's and Glimmer's auras are normally teal? Maybe her eyes are reflecting some "deeper" magic? If that's the case, I wonder what would happen if a less unusual unicorn were pocketed.

"Huh. It's you," Gunther's voice carried, broadcasting into the room. "I'm surprised the soldiers didn't rob you blind enough to take this, too. Where are they?"

Two questions here (assuming I didn't just forget something stated earlier):
1. How is Gunther powering the stone?
2. Did the soldiers do something besides sealing away the brood beasts to have this reputation of stealing? I feel that the singular action of sealing away the beasts wouldn't warrant a general reputation for stealing, although perhaps I'm underestimating the importance of the hunt to the griffons.

And perhaps this communication would cause Gunther to figure out that Gerardo was lying earlier?

It turns out a little spending goes a long way in Griffonstone toward getting yourself a ship and a crew.

So is the crew going to split up? From what I remember it was more important that the guards reach the university than the crew of the Dream, and it seems that there are plenty of supplies to wait on the Dream for a reduced crew. Splitting up would also take care of the growing tension on board. The only problem with splitting in that way is that I can't imagine the guards making it to the university in one piece if they're being transported by griffons, given their animosity, so perhaps one or two of the Dream's crew would end up travelling along with the guards to try to keep the peace?

And given how expensive Griffonstone has been already, if getting a ship and crew is just a "little" spending, I can't imagine what strategies could be used to make that a "lot" of spending over the time/distance needed to get to the university.

[Phoenix Kitten]

9923932
Gunther stole the stone they had rigged to Valey's old flashclub, so it has a self charging mana battery to power it.

[Oberth Effect]

9924094

Ah. For some reason, I thought that the crew of the Dream still had that particular contraption. Thanks!

[Czar_Yoshi]

9923932

And given how expensive Griffonstone has been already, if getting a ship and crew is just a "little" spending, I can't imagine what strategies could be used to make that a "lot" of spending over the time/distance needed to get to the university.

Gunther is technically a prince, and his family sure didn't set up shop in an exiled compound in the forest because they wanted to be altruistic with their royal treasury. And now that he has three fewer siblings to split the family treasure stash with...

He's very, very rich. He can do what he wants.

[Oberth Effect]

9925620

Woah woah woah, Gunther is a what?! When was this revealed?

I guess that could explain why the regalia was so important to his siblings (although to be fair, it would probably have been important to most griffons)

[Czar_Yoshi]

9925658
This chapter.

He and his friends were called The Children of the Forest King, after all.

[sploopy slooder]

what does Gunther even want?