Equestria Threadfall

by David Silver

17 - Securing What We Have

Against the howling wind, they began to pull the balloon. Spike was free of Luna, quickly darting around as quickly as the wind let him to undo where the fabric of it was caught on things to let it move. A powerful gust lifted him up to slap down against the very fabric he was working on, leaving him dazed a moment before he shook it off. "Almost clear!"

He scrambled up along the fabric-covered rocks, pulling bits of the balloon free. With a sudden bit of motion, it all began to move. Luna and Pinkie were drawing it towards the closest cave they had seen. Spike remained with the cloth, making sure it didn't catch on anything until it was all clear of the first wave of rocks. That hazard cleared, he began to gather it all up as best he could, folding and piling it up.

Pinkie was suddenly beside him, joining in the folding and gathering of it all until it was one neat pile to transport instead of a trailing mess of cloth. "Good idea, Spike! Not like we're gonna fly it right now." She took it all from him, bouncing ahead to catch up with Luna.

Not that Spike allowed himself to be left behind, swapping what friendly horse he was attached to and hopping onto Pinkie's back. "Let's get inside." Clutching to her was a far sight easier than struggling against the wind himself. "Maybe Twilight's in there."

"That'd be nice," agreed Pinkie, a smile on her face. She was the only one who wasn't entirely squint-eyed against the flying dust.

Soon they had the balloon safely tucked into the cave, the wind doing little more than make its fabric flutter. Its fire could be seen better, no longer being basically blown out constantly. Luna's magic glowed around the fire box, feeling around it until she found the knob and twisted it, making the fire shoot out larger before she went the other way and turned it off. "There, no reason to waste fuel."

Spike gave a thumbs up as he slid down off Pinkie. "Hey, Twilight! You in here!"

His voice echoed against the stone, but no reply came with it. "Guess not..."

Pinkie bounced past him, pronking gaily now that they were out of the wind. "She's either close by, or really not close by."

Luna hiked a brow at their pink friend. "That does not narrow our options." Her magic plucked Spike from the floor, placing him on her back. "Shall we press inward or return to the windy exterior?"

Spike considered that, rubbing his chin with a finger. "If I was Twilight... Luna, can we try something crazy?"

Luna looked over her shoulder at him. "What manner of crazed idea do you imply?"

"I love crazy ideas!" chimed Pinkie, looking up to Spike with obvious enthusiasm. "When all the obvious choices are gone, they're the ones that work."

"Yeah, uh, when we teleported." He wove his fingers through the air. "I felt the rock and pulled you towards it. I don't usually feel anything while I teleport, but..."

"But, we teleported so far," finished Luna. "I felt your pull, but I could see nothing." Her expression lightened to a little smile. "You saved us, brave Spike. How does this relate to finding Twilight?"

"What if we did it again?" He pointed back outside. "I know Twilight. If we..."

"We would not teleport so long," cautioned Luna, cutting off Spike. "It would be the barest of an instant"

"But it's a chance, right? Teleport back to the first cave, the one we left Maud in." He pointed where he thought that was in relation to them. "Hopefully, I can feel Twilight."

"Wow!" Pinkie reared up, her hooves on Luna's side as she grinned at Spike. "That really is a crazy idea. Good job!" She jumped up, plonking down behind Spike and hugging him. "I'm ready to give it a try!"

Luna smirked at her two companions. "Teleporting to the other cave shouldn't be too dangerous... Spike, do not pull me. We are in a strange place, a new world. A mis-aimed teleport could lead to us being thrown into stone. Simply... feel. If you get an impression of Twilight, tell us of it after we finish moving."

Spike saluted before grabbing onto Luna's billowing mane. "Ready! Alright, Twilight, wherever you are, let me see you." He closed his eyes and took a slow breath, further preparing himself despite already declaring his readiness.

"We're going." Her horn flashed and they were in the between space. Luna looked straight ahead, unseeing. Spike could feel Pinkie's hooves around him, but she was also unseeing and unmoving. Spike looked around, but his movements were slow and lethargic.

He had to feel. Feel Twilight.

They appeared with a flash. "Again!" shouted Spike the instant he could. "Please, again!"

Pinkie bounced lightly behind Spike. "Yeah, teleporting's fun and Twilight never enjoys it. Again!"

Luna ignored both of them, looking around the cave. "Maud? Is everything alright?" Not that Maud was there.

"Yeah. Yeah. Yeah," came the echoing reply from deep in the cave.

Luna nodded softly. "Good. We're looking for Twilight."

"Okay. Okay. Okay," replied Maud in echo, not sounding excited, as usual.

Pinkie gasped dramatically. "That was really thought of you, Lu--"

She didn't get to finish, Luna teleporting.

Spike didn't try to look around. Physical movements in that other space were just too slow. He tried to feel for Twilight, for any pony besides the ones he was already in contact with. He felt something.

They were back in the physical world. "Mmmf! Um, I think I felt Maud." He looked to where the impression had come from. "She felt... as grey as she looked, so calm."

Pinkie was giggling joyfully. "That sounds like her. Alright, if you can find Maud, you can find Twilight, no problem!"

"I concur. Relax yourself, and we will try again." She turned in place, facing where Spike had directed. "This is tiring, but it is also working, I hope." She took a slow breath. "I am ready when you are."

Pinkie squeezed her dragon friend. "I'm super jealous, in the good way. Why can you see stuff in there?"

"I dunno..." He held sure to Luna's mane, eyes closing. "But it isn't about looking. I have to feel her. Twilight, we're looking for you... Ready."

With a flash, they were in the between space. He could feel Luna beneath him. He could feel Pinkie's arms wrapped around him. There was Maud, placid and grey. They were moving, so quickly as to be impossible to feel other than the impression of speed. Twilight...

They appeared, Luna heaving for breath. "Please... tell us... you found something..."

Pinkie squeezed Spike fondly. "We'll go again if we have to."

"Easy for you to say!" Luna shot Pinkie a cross look.

"I did... I... think I did." He pointed to a solid stone wall. "That way. Another pony, not one of us. It has to be her. It has to be!"

Pinkie drew out her rope. "Time to go flying a princess-dragon? I'm getting better at it!"

Luna held up a hoof. "Spike, were you able to get more than a direction? Was she above or below us?"

"Could... we do another hop?" He suggested with a nervous smile.

Luna deflated in place. "I am fatigued. Teleportation is no simple trick at the distance I am going."

Pinkie tilted her head. "I've seen Twilight hopping all over the place."

"Yeah--" Spike shrugged softly. "But usually little hops. A little hop wouldn't help us. By the time I even started feeling anything, we'd already be out of it."

"Precisely so." Luna moved for the exit with the clip-clop of her hooves against the foreign rock. "If Twilight is out there, it is up to us to find her. We do not abandon our own. Aside, only she knows what to do after Maud's survey is complete."

Pinkie jumped down to the ground, her rope trailing behind to where it was tied around Luna. "I'd love to keep riding, but it's time to fly a kite instead. You two ready?"

Luna answered by stepping outside of the cave. With spreading wings, she was nigh instantly blown into the air. Pinkie grasped her side of the rope all the tighter in her teeth, getting her kite under control and slowly advancing where Spike had pointed.

Luna let out a little grunt as they hit the end of the rope and it dug painfully into her. "Would that there were other ways... Remain alert, Spike. If she is not underground, we may yet spot her before Pinkie has the chance."

"She could even be flying," noted Spike. "Like you were, working really hard just to stay in one place and not get blown away."

"I pray this is not the case." Luna's eyes swept even as she raised a hoof just over them, trying to keep the worst of the dust clear with little effect. "Where are you...?"

"That's what I wanna know..." Spike was with Luna, scanning the sky as far as they could see, which wasn't that far with the howling dusty wind blowing past them.

"--Ike!" called something that went past them with an intense Doppler effect.

Spike's head twisted instantly towards it. "What the? Twilight?!"

Luna was already banking, trying to face the direction the sound had come from. "Stay strong, Miss Sparkle, we come for you!"

Down below, Pinkie felt her Kite tug in a new way. "Huh." She turned and began in the new direction, not fighting the will of the kite. "If you're sure." Though the kite seemed to want to go that way, the wind was battering it in a lot of directions. It was up to Pinkie to drag it along, there in the relatively calm wind of the ground. It was times like that she was kinda happy to not have wings.

Luna could feel the rope pulling her forward in the direction she had banked towards. "We owe Pinkie a word of thanks. Spike, do you see what made that sound?"

"Twilight!" he shouted against the howling wind. "Can you hear us?! We're coming!"

A flash, almost hidden in the dust, announced the arrival of their lost alicorn. She barely had the time to meet Spike's gaze before the wind wrenched her away.

Spike jumped, his little wings opening. Luna's hoof barely missed him as he was blown away from her like a bullet. "Spike," she screamed, unable to follow him.

He was buffeted and slammed by the wind as he tried feebly to right himself. "Twilight! Where are you!?" he shouted despite it, as if he could help her despite being lost himself, careening out of control at the mercy of the wind.

"Spike... Spike! Over here!" There was Twilight, trying to fight the wind, somewhat even as she waved at him frantically. "Spike!"

"Twi!" He smiled hard enough to hurt, so relieved was he to see her, intact. "Comin'!" He began to paddle and flap wildly, trying to get closer to her.

Suddenly, he was engulfed in her magic, wrenched over into her waiting arms. She hugged him tightly, choked sobs reaching his ears. "Oh, Spike! I thought I was lost forever! Wait, are you lost too?! I can't..."

Spike was pointing down. "We have to get lower. We already found the balloon. We just need to get you to safety. Luna's flying up here too, looking for, uh, both of us now."

"How?!" she hysterically demanded. "I tried to fly down, it doesn't work. I can't teleport to what I can't even see and have no idea how far away it is. I can't short hop fast enough to not be blown by the wind again."

She still held him, preciously tight against her body. "Oh, Spike. I really messed this up. Is the balloon safe at least?"

"Yeah... it's fine," he said, a little less enthusiastically. "Luna's coming... She'll rescue us."

Author's Note:

But... how? Spike was their detection tool.

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Comments

[Chrome Masquerade]

"That'd nice," agreed Pinkie, a smile on her face. She was the only one who wasn't entirely squint-eyed against the flying dust.

That'd be nice

[Chrome Masquerade]

Pinkie bounced past him, pronking gaily now that they were out of the wind. "She's either close by, or really not close by."

i.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/272/461/2a0.jpg

[Venerable Ro]

Ah, the problems of atmospheric insertion.

[Booster Spice]

Burn it Spike, do better than NASA and light up your location.

[Frustration in Excelsis]

And now we wait for the next chapter to drop!

There's a weird sort of appeal in watching a setting you love get smashed to pieces by a catastrophe. Perhaps it's just the emotional response and the chance to feel heartbreak safely, by proxy. Perhaps it's more about seeing characters struggle to survive, adapt and evolve and make desperate alliances, and then stand blinking in the ashes and set to work to build something new.

[David Silver]

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I hope I portrayed things accurately, both in its low points but also many of the admirable traits we love these characters for, shining in this moment of trial.