*Chapter 5 - Moving On
Sometime later, Arc arrives at the local hospital and explains the situation to the medical staff as he lies Cherry on a gurney. The doctor wheels her into a nearby examination room as Ruby follows closely at the stallion’s heels. Meanwhile, Arc and Ember wait outside the building on the street for Ruby to come out. A couple hours later she slowly does so. Arc is the first to speak.
“How’s she doing, Ruby?”
“The doctor said that my sister will most likely be unconscious for a day or two. But should be walking around after that.”
Ember sighs in relief. “Glad to hear it!”
Arc looks down sadly. “Ruby, I… I just wanted to say that... I'm sorry.”
Ruby appears confused. “What?”
“I wish I could have returned your sister to you safe and sound. Not like this.”
“It's alright, Arc. That and if I know my sister like I do, she would rather have to endure this pain for a short time than be forced to spend the rest of her life with a pony that she didn't love. Believe me when I say that I’m sure she doesn't hold any of this against you either.”
Ember walks over to Ruby. “We have to get moving now. Urgent business in the Dragon Lands, and all that.”
Arc quickly chimes in. “On our way back we’ll stop by and make sure all is well though.”
Ruby gasps. “Do you really have to leave so soon? After all, I’m sure that my sister wouldn't mind a bit if you wanted to stay at the ranch another night and get an early start tomorrow morning.”
Arc shakes his head. “Thank you for the offer, Ruby. But like Ember said, our business is urgent.”
“In that case, I wish you both a speedy and safe journey.”
Arc smiles at Ruby. “Thank you. Tell your sister to get well soon and that we’ll be back just as quick as we can.”
The pair walk away from the hospital and down the road to the edge of town. Ember turns to him as they pass the last building.
“Just think of what would have happened if we had decided to pass through town, Arc. Cherry Jubilee would be married to Buffalo Bull right now.”
Arc nods soberly. “It never ceases to amaze me how one small choice can lead to fate altering consequences.”
Continuing on their way, the two walk for an hour before seeing a bridge ahead that leads to Rambling Rock Ridge. Instead of crossing it however, the pair turn off the beaten path and head east. They walk with the river on their left and the Hayseed Swamp on their right. Arc chuckles as they do so.
“Quite the happy medium here, eh Ember?”
“What do you mean?”
Arc gestures to his left at the river. “I really don’t want to go for a swim.”
He then looks to his right before continuing.
“But at the same time I also don’t want to go trudging through a swamp.”
Ember shudders. “Now I see what you mean.”
“But in any case, where do we go from here? You didn't actually tell me how we're planning on traversing the ocean.”
Ember pulls out the map and points. “We follow the river until it empties into Horseshoe Bay. To the south of the a fore mentioned body of water is a small peninsula. There we will find a statue of a dragon and an ancient stone sigil on the ground in front of it. From there I can open a portal to the Dragon Lands. It's how flightless dragons get there.”
The pair continue walking for several more hours before coming to the peninsula and the statue Ember spoke of. Arc looks at the statue and sigil in awe as he speaks.
“These things looks positively ancient, Ember! Do they honestly still work?!”
“I sure hope so.”
Approaching it, Ember pulls a couple of her scales off. Dropping them in the stone bowl in front of the dragon statue she breathes fire at them for a few moments. As if on cue the sigil begins to glow. Ember looks over at Arc and motions for him to approach.
“Let’s go!”
The pair step onto the sigil together and are instantly transported to the Dragon Lands. Arc appears a bit green as they arrive. Putting a hand on his stomach, he turns to Ember and grunts.
“Ugh… let’s not do that again, okay?”
“Sorry about that. I probably should have warned you.”
“About the turbulence or the splitting pain in my forehead?”
Ember appears genuinely concerned. “The first few times teleporting can be a bit... unsettling. Are you... all right?”
Arc nods weakly. “I guess so. But let's just say I may risk it and SWIM back when this is over.”
Ember points ahead as she starts walking. “We should probably get moving now. It's still quite the walk to my house.”
The two continue the last leg of their journey. Arc looks around at their surroundings as he speaks.
“This is a bit strange.”
“What is, Arc?”
“It just occurred to me that we've been in the Dragon Lands for a couple hours now and I have yet to see any dragons.”
As if on cue, a dragon descends from the sky and lands in front of them. Ember facepalms as she groans.
“Did you HAVE to jinx it?!”
Arc smiles nervously. “I’m sorry.”
The dragon looks to Ember and addresses her in the most patronizing voice Arc has ever heard.
“Hey Ember! Long time, no see! Did you find a new pet on your travels?”
Ember appears annoyed. “Hello. Garble.”
The newcomer appears suddenly annoyed.
“What are you doing here Ember!? I thought you were banished!”
“Not that it's any of your business but, I have... personal business to discuss with my d... with the Dragon Lord regarding our Dragon Code.”
The two attempt to walk past Garble, but he still blocks the way. He folds his arms over his scaly chest before speaking again.
“If you and your little pet want to see the Dragon Lord then you'll have to go through me, Ember!”
Ember raises her spear to fight, but Arc puts a hand on her shoulder as he walks past her toward Garble.
“Look, we really don't have time for this.”
He walks closer to Garble before continuing.
“Now then, move… or be moved!”
“Sheesh, fine!”
Garble turns to fly away but stops and turns back to the pair. He points a claw at Ember and grins wickedly.
“Wait a second! I get it now! He's not YOUR pet! YOU’RE HIS!!!”
Ember seethes. “GARBLE!!!”
The young dragon doubles over laughing as Arc turns to Ember.
“Is this dragon as tough as you are?”
Ember raises an eyebrow. “I suppose so. Why?”
Garble glares at Ember. “No way! I'm WAY tougher than you!”
He turns back to Garble, spear in hand. “Then I guess you shouldn't have any problem handling... THIS!!!”
Arc uses the Spear of Hope like a baseball bat and hits Garble squarely in the gut, sending him flying head over heels across the island. His task completed, Arc puts the spear over his shoulder and looks in the direction Garble’s body flew.
“Be moved it is.”
“If it were any other dragon, I’d be angry with you right now.”
“But…?”
Ember shrugs. “What? It was just Garble.”
They continue on their way unhindered. However, evening is fast approaching. Ember turns to Arc as they pick up the pace.
“We should reach Pyreston about the time it gets dark. That's actually a spot of luck, as I don't want any other dragons to see us.”
“Why not?”
Ember appears nervous. “I... I just... don't want any other dragons to see us, okay!? Remember, I was banished!”
Arc says nothing as the pair continue on for a time. Ember groans.
“Look! Can we just keep walking please?!”
Arc looks down gloomily. “Okay.”
The two approach the city of Pyreston. Night has fallen and the streets are, for the most part, deserted. Ember looks around as she whispers to Arc.
“My house is just around the corner! Come on, hurry!”
She runs ahead to the corner and looks both ways. Hearing footfalls, she turns to Arc and hisses.
“Wait! Someone's coming! Hide!”
Arc slowly steps into the shadows as a few dragons pass by. A few moments later Ember again calls out.
“Alright, they're gone! Let's make a run for it!”
Ember hurriedly makes her way over to a small house ahead as Arc lumbers forward much slower than normal. She looks back at him and calls out more than a bit annoyed as she unlocks the door.
“What's taking so long?! Come on!”
Arc eventually makes it to the now open front door. Ember lets him in as quickly as possible and closes the door before casting a Light Spell. She leads him to her couch in front of the fireplace.
“Wait here!”
Ember locks the front and back doors before making sure all the shutters are closed and secured before returning to the living room and starting a fire in the fireplace. She turns back to Arc and smirks.
“Now that's out of the way, how about some supper?”
Arc removes his armor and sets it to the side. Looking to Ember he responds with a tinge of sadness in his voice.
“I'm... actually not feeling too hungry right now.”
“Come on! Neither of us has eaten since breakfast! And that was before the sun came up!”
Ember takes some of the food from her satchel and arranges it on a plate for him. She then makes a plate for herself with some gems from her pantry. Walking over to the couch with both plates she hands one to him happily.
“Eat up!”
Arc accepts the plate. However, it does not seem to brighten his demeanor.
“Thank you”
Ember wolfs down her gems hungrily before looking up to see that Arc has hardly touched his food. She notes that he is just sitting there staring into the fireplace. Seeing something is wrong, Ember puts down her now empty plate, walks over to the couch, and sits down next to him. Putting a claw on his shoulder, she speaks.
“Want to talk about it?”
Arc shakes his head and stands up. “No, thank you. I think I just need some air. I'm going for a short walk.”
Ember looks over to him with panic in her voice. “Wait! You can’t”
“Why not?”
Ember hastily cries out. “Because you might be seen by…!”
She quickly understands what she has just done as Arc sits back down and continues to look into the fire. A few moments later he speaks.
“Ember... I just wanted to say... that I do care for you very much. As a friend, that is. But... well... how do you feel about me?”
Ember looks at him a bit taken aback at the question. “I... I do love you very much and still want to become your mate! I just that I wish you were a...!”
She tops talking as Arc looks over at her. Ember can see the hurt in his eyes as he responds.
“…a dragon?”
“Arc… I…”
Arc holds up a hand for silence. ”Ember, since we first met have I ever treated you differently from any of the ponies we have encountered along our way?”
Ember thinks for a moment. “No. Not that I’ve noticed anyways.”
“Did that change when you and I arrived in Ponyville?”
“Not at all. You seemed the same to me as you always have.”
Arc nods. “We spent most of our time around town completing writs and running errands. And do you know why?”
Ember looks at Arc, confused. “I… just figured it was your job. For money?”
“While it is indeed my profession, more or less, I didn't do it for the money.”
“Then why?”
Arc sighs. “Because I wanted to do for you what Twilight and her friends did for me when I originally came to Equestria. The first few weeks after my arrival, they always saw to it I was accompanied whenever I went anywhere.”
He smiles sadly before continuing.
“At first I assumed it was so they could keep an eye on me, but... well... I soon figured out the real reason. They went with me everywhere, not so much to watch me, but to help the townsponies become comfortable seeing me. I went out alone once in the beginning just for a quick walk around the general area. At the first sight of me everyone ran into the nearest house or shop to wait until I had passed by. That walk lasted maybe fifteen minutes. But let's just say it was the loneliest fifteen minutes of my life.”
Arc pauses and again stares into the fire.
“Twilight found me shortly thereafter and walked with me. As she did so the townsponies cautiously came out and went about their business as usual.”
Smiling, he puts a hand on her shoulder.
“I... I didn't want you to have to go through such a thing so I made sure you and I were always seen together. The ponies were used to my presence by then, and I wanted them to get used to you as well. Well, that and it made me happy when we were together. Even though you were a dragon and not a pony. Such things honestly matter little to me, but...”
He pauses again to stare into the fire in an effort to collect his thoughts.
“...but it just seems to me as if you really don't want to be seen with a... a different species. The few books I found in the Golden Oaks Library on dragons state that they are solitary creatures who seldom, if ever, associate with non-dragons. And even if that is true, I just... I thought you were different.”
Ember looks down at her claws, guiltily as Arc stands up. He looks down at Ember sitting there on the couch.
“I understand that this would probably be a lot easier for you if I was a dragon, but... Ember, I… I will not be sorry for being what I am.”
Ember is silent as Arc’s words cut deeply into her mind. She finds herself unable to look Arc in the eye as he turns away from her.
“Why don't you get some sleep, Ember? After all, we have an early morning ahead of us.”
Arc sits back down on the couch as Ember stands and slowly walks toward her bedroom. “Y-yeah, okay. But...what about you?”
“I...uh… I'll just sit here a bit longer... and think.”
Ember nods as she turns to leave. She gets as far as her bedroom door before she turns back to Arc and calls out.
“Hey, uh…my… my bed... it's… big enough to... to share. If you, ah… want…”
Ember is unable to finish her sentence. Arc shakes his head and sighs.
“Thank you, Ember. But I'll be fine out here.”
Ember appears to want to say more, but cannot find the words. Bowing her head in shame, she turns and walks into her room. Closing the door behind her, she lies down on the old bed and curls up as she thinks to herself.
“I… I can’t believe I did that to Arc! He went out of his way to make me feel welcome in Equestria even after how I originally treated him back in Tartarus originally. He was treated so badly by both the ponies of Ponyville as well as me too.”
Sighing, she continues her thought.
“And he deserves none of it! I have to think of a way to make this up to him.
Tapping her chin with a claw, Ember looks to the door resolutely before finishing her thought.
“And to do that I need to get out of my comfort zone and do what’s right by him.”
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Awwww Ember foot in mouth *10
i think, at some point, EVERYONE has wanted to punt Garble across a small island.
11137618
Very true. At least the wife got a good laugh from that part.
How ‘bout punting him across a continent? That ought to change his attitude in some way >:D
11288661
Who, Garble?
11288727
Nah, I think giving him a free trip around the world would do the trick.