Brony Recon: Ascension

by Freescript the Bard

Prologue Part 4: Spring Ahead

Kind Greetings' POV

"Ugh… why did Chloe tell him not to look over the edge?" I wondered angrily as I woke. "Stupid reverse psychology…" Unconsciousness isn't sleep by a long shot. You don't feel rested at all, instead feeling just as alert as when you entered it. Rather, it's like a short hibernation.

My first perception was that I was underneath a small hill of rocks. Luckily, none of the rocks were big enough to do any significant damage to me. Sure there were some… more than lightweight stones I would need to dig myself out of, but it was a manageable task.

My second perception was voices. They were talking in hushed tones, not unlike the way somepony would speak respectfully around the deceased. Unfortunately, being buried didn't exactly do wonders for my hearing. As Sky would say, the acoustics in here were terrible.

Okay, lying under a mound of stone with snow filtering through to land on the back of your neck is fun and all, but I still needed to get out. Alright, earth pony strength, don't fail me now! I began pushing against the rocks burying me with my back, using a natural strength any pegasus or unicorn would be jealous of. I may not have gotten a lot of exercise besides my morning jog through Canterlot, but I still had the athleticism of the high school track star I was.

The mound shifted at the pressure I exerted upon it, the sound of a few stones rolling off it permeating the walls of rock. Consequently, the load on my back became lighter with less weight to hold me down. My head burst out into the sunlight, momentarily blinding me with the combination of the light reflecting off the snow-capped conifers.

When the whiteness faded, my first sight was Rainchaser and Skyblaze staring at me. Rainchaser's eyes were a raw-looking red, as if she'd been crying heavily. I turned to Sky. "What happened?"

The blue pegasus looked at the ground and scraped a hoof on the ground. "Aegis fell," he said in a sorrowful tone. "The avalanche pushed him over after we were knocked out."

The statement hit me like a freight train. I looked at Rain, who had resumed sobbing, but appeared to have run dry of tears. Aegis was gone. One of the bronies, our brother, had been thrown off the cliff, two hundred feet down to the pine forest. Nick, the humble bookworm jockey from New York, was gone.

But being usually insensitive, all I could get out was, "oh." I facehoofed so hard I nearly knocked myself out again.

Sky gave a halfhearted chuckle. "Always impassive, huh Benny?" he said. "C'mon, Rain. We have to go." She didn't move, looking over the edge of the cliff. "Chloe, remember that you have somepony else waiting for you."

Skyblaze always seemed to know how to handle tragic events. He looked as if he hadn't shed a single tear this entire time, belying his usual semi-dramatic self. Markus had always surprised me with his will, being stronger than one would think. His support had gotten Sam through his grandfather's unfortunate passing two weeks before the mission, bolstering the emotional brony with fortuitous words of consolation.

Rain, motivated by Sky's words, turned away from the torn-up spot in the path. There was a sadness and longing in her eyes, evident even to an emotional hopeless like me. She missed him dearly and didn't want to abandon him to the rocky bottom. But Sky was right; Rainbow Dash needed her. Especially when she broke the news to the rainbow pegasus.

>><<>><<

Skyblaze's POV

It was a quiet trek back to Ponyville, to say the least. Everypony, even the emotionally hopeless Kind Greetings, was shaken by Aegis' sudden passing. I almost felt guilty at my strength and ability to cope. Almost. It wasn't that I was glad I wasn't shattered, but my emotional fortitude in times of great sorrow was something that people- and ponies, given the situation, -rally to.

…Which didn't help my megalophobia. When ponies look for a leader in me, I will oblige without hesitation, but that didn't mean I had to like it. With what I've seen in Earth politics, and even Equestrian nobility, power leads to corruption and corruption leads to abuse of power. I couldn't trust myself enough to handle that kind of responsibility. It may sound controversial, given that I am not only getting married to a Princess to become a god-like alicorn Prince, but am also a bard with undefinable limits, plus the fact I can do a sonic boom, and I…

No, stop. I can't break down over that. I need to stay strong for Rain and Ben. They need a hope, a support. Rain was going to be a hard case, as it hit her the hardest. She had loved Nick as much as she loved Rainbow Dash. Possibly more. I wish I could be there when she breaks the news to Dash, as there's no telling what the rainbow-maned pegasus would do.

As the town came into view, I put a wing over Rain's shoulder as she leaned against me for comfort. She needed this, as Ben was the only other soul here, and with how impassive he is, he may upset her by saying something. Sometimes, all you need is a shoulder to lean on, both figuratively and physically. Talking only makes it worse, unless the pony wants to do so, and even then one must be silent and have them let it all out.

Rain stirred against my side, looking at us in turn. "I'm gonna… go see Dashie…" she said shakily, fluttering towards the cloud-home in the distance. I made no move to stop her. Rainbow Dash would be more understanding to the one she loved. As much as I wanted to go with her, I still had to tell Storm. Ben and I had agreed earlier that I would go to Storm and he would tell Shift.

"I guess I'll… see you back in Canterlot?" I said uncertainly to Ben.

"No…" Ben replied, shaking his head. "I'm gonna stay with Derpy and Dinky tonight. I just need somepony to lay next to, you know?" I nodded to him understandingly. He started down the path to town as I took to the air, making my way over to Caramel's house on the edge of town.

Night had fallen hours ago, and I was wide awake. Such was the life of being betrothed to a Princess of the Night. The stars seemed to shine a lot more than usual, though. I'll have to ask Luna about that when I get home. Looking up into the night sky was basically impossible while flying conventionally, so I had learned how to fly with my back to the ground. From the air, the night was almost twice as clear, allowing me to see every star on most nights when flying with Luna.

Shaking my head, I got back to the dismal task at hand, aileron-rolling back to a normal flight position. Because of the balcony on Caramel's second floor, I was able to land on a proper perch, allowing me to land silently and with more grace. Which made the next few moments my fault.

I walked up to the door and blatantly opened it, immediately regretting it. In the light of a dim purple glow, I made out two figures in the bed. One was the source of the light, her horn glowing profusely. The other was a stallion who froze as soon as I walked in the room. The awkwardness was so thick in the air, I could cut it with a knife. I wonder if Shift could feel it.

"I, um, probably shoulda knocked first…" I said, the blood rushing to my face. Silently, I cursed my confounded wings for being just as obvious as Storm's horn. "I… think I… should just check back… on the morrow…" Great. Now I was going Canterlot accent on them. "Farewell then!" I could still feel the blush on my face as the air whipped past me at near-sonic speeds.

>><<>><<

I landed on Luna's tower balcony, desperately trying to get my blush down. It was bad enough that I was late, but if Luna caught me with a blush and slightly rigid wings, I was toast. I checked the room, making sure my fiancé wasn't in sight. She was probably in her study, I thought. Casually, I trotted into the room.

"Ahem." Dammit! Luna can be a ninja sometimes. I turned to see a smirking midnight alicorn looking at me. "There seems to be more red than usual upon thine visage."

Aw schist. Stupid blue coat. "I was… just thinking of you, beautiful…" She raised an eyebrow, making me wince. I stared at the ground and tried to form the unfortunate truth on my lips. "I may or may not have walked in on Caramel conducting oral sex on Storm's horn…"

We stared at each other for a moment. Suddenly, Sure Hoof, who was on duty that night, jumped at the sound of a trumpeting laughter. He simply smiled and sighed. It wasn't the worst thing he had heard from the room he was constantly 'commissioned' by his blue pegasus friend to stand outside.

"We have not indulged in that for a while," stated Luna matter-of-factly. "Mayhap you have forgotten what I taste like?"

I gave her a sidelong look. Then, thinking back to the memory in question, I recalled something. "I never told you what your horn tastes like…"

She gave me a look. "Beg pardon?"

"That first night I gave you horn, you asked what it tastes like," I said, going to a seductive tone. "…and I believe I need to be reminded before I can form an answer…"

"Hmm… shall we foray to the bed?"

"Nah, that's what wings are for." She gave me another look, but it never hit it's target as she looked at thin air. The unsuspecting Luna then gave a start as she felt a nibble on the tip of her horn. "Whoa, watch it! You trying to impale me?"

"I give you praise for your speed, my love…" she trailed off as I began licking the horn, now glowing. Normally, because of her pegasus origins, only her wings gave any sign of arousal, but as my tongue stimulated the reaction, the room was coated in a midnight blue light. Recalling my purpose, I tried to identify the taste. The results were surprising.

"Irish cream expresso…" I whispered in wonder. "With a bit of a cinnamon spice."

Luna nearly gave another small jump. "Really?" I flew into her vision and nodded. "Well… I never would have guessed." She sat on her haunches, seemingly deep in thought. "Suddenly, I feel like Starbucks." …or not.

"Heh, you're cute when you kill the mood," I said flirtatiously. "Maybe I can help that…" Hovering close, I planted a kiss on her lips and pressed deep. Luna closed her eyes in bliss and pushed back. Soon, it escalated into a kiss-of-war as we tried to overpower one another with our lips locked. Unfortunately for me, I needed to breathe.

I separated with a gasp, drawing in air. "How the buck can you hold your breath that long?"

"Alicorns have no need of oxygen," she said slyly. "How do you think I survived a thousand years on the moon?"

Never thought about that. "Alright, then," I said with a rather good Trottingham (North British) accent. "Shall we foray to the bed so you may demonstrate this lack of necessity to respire in an environment suited to said ability?"

"After you, kind sir."

Any thought of my lost friend had vanished in the moment. I hate dwelling on things, as well as it being physically impossible. My mind can't hold one thing for long, easily getting distracted and wandering to other things. The fact that my imagination was on metaphysical steroids didn't help. Besides, how could I be sad in the arms of the mare I loved? I wanted nothing to spoil this moment. Call it shallow, but it's how I cope and keep going. Just think about the good things in life. Like kissing my fiancé.

>><<>><<

Sure Hoof sighed as he heard silence from the other side of the door. Perhaps they had gone for a night flight. He shrugged and leaned on his spear, hoping to catch a few winks. Almost immediately, he was woken by the sounds of passion in the room. Growling out a chuckle, he pulled his helmet over his eyes, deciding that a nap would do him good.

Had he not been sleeping at the time, he would maybe have noticed the dark-coated pegasus outside the stairwell window. The intruder watched the guard from under a dark grey cloak with glowing green eyes.

Comments

[LightningAce7]

Yay! Onward to the mane story! I can't wait!

[X_SkuLkeR_X]

its five thirty in the morning and i just finished the first recon story... *sees this* well... sleep is over rated. anyone with me?

[Freescript the Bard]

1033825
Why doesn't everypony SLEEP! Sleep is good! When I get good sleep, I write better! Srsly, everypony, go to bed, get at least six hours of sleep, have a cup of coffee or tea in the morning, and you feel like taking on the world!

[aebed]

good chapter though Nottingham is in the east-midlands and it's really more of a south-east accent

[Indigo Tornado]

dun dun dun!!!!!!!

[Chrome Masquerade]

"Alicorns have no need of oxygen," she said slyly. "How do you think I survived a thousand years on the moon?"

I was under the impression that she was sealed in the moon.
Still, that's a clever out.