Chapter 11 - Cloudsdale
Later that morning Arc, wearing his new armor, along with Rainbow Dash, Ember, Sereb, and Scootaloo disembark The Equinox. Looking around at the town from the ship’s deck they survey the area. Scootaloo frowns.
“No one to meet us?”
Sereb turns to Arc. “Did we announce our visit though?”
“Nope. I figured that would be safest.”
Ember brandishes her claws. “Bring em on! I prefer a straight fight to sneaking into town any day!”
Arc rolls his eyes. “Well, some of us would rather do this without filling up the hospital.”
Scootaloo nods. “Right.”
Rainbow Dash appears relieved. “Thanks for understanding, Arc. I grew up around most of these ponies and don’t really want to see any of them get hurt.”
Arc sighs. “While admirable, don’t forget that such a thing might not be possible.”
“I know.”
Sereb grunts. “Where shall we go from here?”
Arc shrugs. “We could start by getting a room at an inn.”
Rainbow Dash groans. “That probably isn’t a good idea. Ponies here are very… easily swayed.”
Ember raises an eyebrow. “Does this have anything to do with Arc not exactly being popular here?!”
“Yeah. “
Scootaloo frowns. “Staying in town might be too dangerous.”
Rainbow Dash gestures to the ship. “Right. So we should probably stay aboard The Equinox at night to avoid trouble.”
Scootaloo moves her hoof in a circular motion. “So… where to then?”
“How about my parent’s house? We should probably check in with my mom first, after all.”
Ember scoffs. “Why? Is she some kind of official?”
Rainbow Dash shakes her head. “Nah. She’s a stay at home mom.”
Arc nods. “Fine. We can ask her about the state of Cloudsdale then.”
Scootaloo grins. “Ready to try out that new spell, Big Brother?”
Ember grimaces. “On whom though?”
“Myself.”
Sereb raises an eyebrow. “But you do not have wings.”
Rainbow Dash gasps. “Right! If it doesn’t work, you’ll fall!”
Arc shrugs. “Then I’ll just Blink back up here or quickly open a portal.”
Ember reaches out to him. “Or I could catch you.”
Sereb narrows his eyes. “That may not be helpful to Arc’s… image, Ember.”
Scootaloo giggles. “But it’d sure be funny!”
Ember frowns. “Fine. Test your spell. But if it doesn’t work…”
“Alright. Here goes nothing.”
Casting the spell on himself, Arc takes a deep breath before walking down the gangplank. Looking down at the clouds for a few moments he takes a large step off. Landing safely on the pillowy ‘ground’ he turns back to the others.
“Looks like I survived.”
Ember frowns. “Har, har.”
Arc wastes no time casting the spell on the others, minus their Pegasi companions. Finishing his task he turns to Rainbow Dash.
“Ready to go?”
Rainbow Dash looks around nervously. “Um… not quite yet. Can I talk to you privately for a moment?”
“Now?”
“Yeah, sorry. It’s REALLY important!”
“Fine.”
Looking to the others, Arc sighs.
“We’ll be back in a few minutes.”
“Okay, Big Brother.”
Ember rolls her eyes. “Whatever.”
Sereb plants his feet firmly. “I shall remain on guard.”
Motioning for her to follow, Arc leads Rainbow Dash back onto The Equinox’s deck. Calling forth his gauntlet he places a sigil on it and powers it up. Teleporting them both to his quarters he turns to her.
“So… what’s up?”
Rainbow Dash looks at him with a pained expression on her face before speaking.
“There’s… something I didn’t tell you before about my parents.”
Arc groans. “Great. Don’t tell me they don’t like humans.”
Rainbow Dash waves her hooves in front of her face as she shakes her head vehemently. “No, no! At least I don’t think they do. But, um…”
She wrings her hooves and looks away before speaking again.
“I… never actually told them… about you.”
Arc shrugs. “Oh. Well that’s no problem. We can meet your mom first before…”
Rainbow Dash interrupts him. “That’s not what I meant!”
“Then what…?”
“They don’t know about the whole ‘herd’ idea!”
Arc raises an eyebrow. “You didn’t tell them about your plans?”
Rainbow Dash shakes her head. “No.”
“Why not?”
“Because they’ll be really upset! I mean… it’s complicated!”
“Well, they’re going to find out eventually.”
Rainbow Dash groans. “I know. But now probably isn’t the best time to deal with this, what with all the political crap going on. That and our relationship is kinda… different.”
“How so?”
“It’s… complicated.”
Arc groans. “Fine, we’ll do this your way for the time being. However I want you to remember that just putting this off won’t make the task any easier in the long run.”
“I’ll tell them when the time is right.”
“Thank you. Was there anything else you wanted to say?”
“Not right now, no.”
“Alright. Let’s get back to the others.”
Powering up the sigil Arc teleports them back to the deck. Walking down the gangplank the pair rejoin the others. Rainbow Dash smiles nervously.
“Sorry for the wait, everypony.”
Sereb looks to Arc. “Is the matter resolved?”
“For now.”
Scootaloo raises an eyebrow. “What does that mean?”
Ember frowns. “Yeah! I’d sure like to…!”
Rainbow Dash hurries forward. “This way, everypony!”
Leading them down the street, the others look around. Ember looks to Rainbow Dash.
“So this town is built almost entirely out of clouds?”
Rainbow Dash nods. “About ninety-five percent of it is, yes.”
Sereb looks around. “And the other five?”
“Mostly furniture.”
Ember raises an eyebrow. “But how do you build things out of clouds?!”
“We do more than just control the weather here. Pegasi have been doing research on clouds for hundreds of years.”
Sereb chuckles. “That would make any race an expert on the matter.”
Scootaloo turns to Rainbow Dash. “Does it have anything to do with that Rainbow Factory you mentioned earlier?”
“Yeah. You see, that’s where clouds are manufactured. A lot of them are used for normal weather activities, of course. But some are altered to make whatever we need up here.”
Ember frowns. “What about rainbows?”
“We make them too, of course.”
Arc grins. “Hence the name of the factory?”
“Oh no. That’s named after the family that originally pioneered cloud control.”
Sereb appear impressed. “Your family?”
Rainbow Dash laughs. “I wish! Nah, they all died out centuries ago.”
Scootaloo narrows her eyes. “From what?”
Rainbow Dash shrugs. “Old age mostly.”
She turns to Arc before continuing.
“As I’m sure you’ve noticed, there’s a LOT of single mares in Equestria.”
“Admittedly I hadn’t really thought about it.”
Scootaloo looks to Rainbow Dash. “Why is that?”
“A lot of ponies just don’t get married and have foals.”
Sereb sniffs the air. “I have noticed a distinct lack of youngling’s smells since coming to Equestria with Arc.”
Ember frowns. “So ponies just don’t have a lot of sex?”
Rainbow Dash shakes her head as she blushes. “What?! No, no! We do! I mean I don’t! But… um…!”
Arc chuckles. “Calm down, Rainbow Dash.”
“Sorry. I’m just… look, this matter is really… personal to me.”
Scootaloo appears suddenly interested. “How so?”
“Well… um…”
Arc interrupts. “Can I assume the birthrate in Equestria is low?”
Rainbow Dash nods. “Yeah. A mare actually getting pregnant is pretty rare these days. But I assure you it isn’t from lack of trying.”
“Is this a problem?”
“Not really. All it boils down to in the end is a really slowly growing population. Which is kinda good.”
Ember frowns. “How is that a good thing?”
“The more ponies living in Equestria the more food we’d have to grow. And while that wouldn’t be too hard, I suppose, they’d also need to find employment to be able to afford such things.”
Arc looks confused. “But assuming it happened gradually over time wouldn’t the land and economy simply grow with it?”
Rainbow Dash groans. “That’s more of a ‘Twilight’ question. I mean, it sounds plausible, yeah. But there has to be more to it.”
Sereb chuckles. “Well, from what I’ve seen, everyone in this land appears to be relatively happy with their lives.”
Scootaloo looks to Rainbow Dash. “What about couples whom don’t want to have a foal?”
“The mare just goes to their doctor and gets a shot. It stops her ovulation cycle.”
Ember raises an eyebrow. “And if they change their minds later?”
“It’s not permanent. If they meet a stallion and want to try for a foal then the mare just goes back to their doctor and gets a different shot to restart ovulation.”
Sereb raises an eyebrow. “Do a lot of mares do this?”
“Most, yeah. It’s kinda a rite of passage when a filly becomes a mare. Their mother takes them to the hospital and askes for ‘the shot’.”
Arc looks away as he speaks. “And did you… um… you know…?”
Rainbow Dash grins slyly. “Nervous, Arc?”
“Sorry.”
“Don’t be. And to answer your question, yes. I got the shot just before moving to Ponyville a number of years ago. And before you ask, no I don’t know about the others.”
Arc sighs as he mutters under his breath.
“Rarity…”
“Did you say something, Big Brother?”
“Just thinking to myself.”
Ember elbows him with a certain look on her face. “Look on the bright side, Arc. At least you won’t get Rainbow Dash here pregnant.”
Arc rolls his eyes. “Thanks, Ember.”
“Don’t mention it.”
Rainbow Dash sighs as she stops and turns to the others.
“We’re almost there. Now then, I do have one request of everypony. Please don’t say a word to anypony here about… the herd thing, okay?”
Sereb nods. “Very well.”
Ember shrugs. “Don’t get why, but okay.”
Scootaloo groans. “I’m still kinda fuzzy on what that thing even is.”
Arc looks down at her. “You and I will have to have a talk about it later, Scarlet Filly.”
Rainbow Dash frowns. “I’m serious here, everypony! My parent’s need to hear about this from me, and me only! And not until the time is right!”
Arc nods. “Agreed. The last thing we need are them getting mad at me. Well… more mad.”
“Thank you. But I’m not actually sure where they stand on this whole political spectrum.”
Continuing on their way the group eventually comes to a decently sized house. Scootaloo gasps.
“This place is pretty big!”
Rainbow Dash grins. “Cloudsdale houses usually are, what with them being so easy and cheap to build.”
Ember laughs. “I can’t imagine clouds costing much.”
“Exactly.”
Sereb chuckles. “Shall we knock?”
Rainbow Dash shakes her head. “No need to do that. Come on.”
She pushes the door open and steps inside before calling out.
“MOM! I’M HOME!”
The sound of hooffalls running toward them echo down the corridor. A few moments later a middle-aged mare hurries toward them.
“Rainbow Dash! Welcome home, dear!”
Rainbow Dash appears suddenly slightly embarrassed. “H-hi mom.”
“Look at you! You’re getting so BIG!”
“I’m a mare now, mom!”
“Well, you’ll always be my little star! I still remember back when you…!”
The mare looks over her daughter’s shoulder at those behind her.
“Oh, I’m sorry! I didn’t notice your friends, sweetheart!”
Rainbow Dash groans. “How could you miss them?!”
“I’m just focused on you!”
“Well focus on something else right now.”
She motions to the group to approach before starting the introduction process.
“This is the Scarlet Filly. She got a medal from Princess Celestia herself recently!”
“Yes, I do remember hearing that on the news.”
Scootaloo nods respectfully. “Hello, ma’am.”
“She’s kinda shy, but just so COOL! And this is Ember. She’s the Dragon Lands’ next Dragon Lord.”
“Sup.”
“Oh my! Such an important individual!”
Rainbow Dash gestures with a hoof. “And this here is Sereb. He’s the Warchief of the Forsaken Tribe.”
“How do you do?”
“He can talk?!”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Rainbow Dash groans. “MOM!”
“I’m sorry. Forgive me, sir.”
“No offense taken.”
Rainbow Dash sighs happily. “And I’ve saved the best for last. This is…”
She looks around before frowning.
“Where did he go?”
Sereb sniffs the air. “Outside.”
Ember raises an eyebrow. “Uh… why?”
Scootaloo shrugs. “I’ll go get him.”
She hurries out the door as Rainbow Dash turns to her mother.
“Sorry. I’m not sure what the problem is here. He’s usually not so… elusive.”
Meanwhile, Scootaloo looks around. Spotting Arc leaning against the house nearby she hurries over to him.
“Come on, Big Brother! Rainbow Dash’s mother is waiting to meet you!”
“Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“Kinda late to be thinking that now. Let’s go!”
Taking his gauntlet, Scootaloo leads Arc into the house. Rainbow Dash gestures with a wave of her hoof before speaking.
“And this is Equestria’s Hero of Light, Arc.”
“Oh! Um… I…”
She steps back nervously as Rainbow Dash frowns.
“What’s gotten into you, mom! You’re embarrassing me!”
She takes her mother’s hoof and leads her over to Arc.
“This is my mother… Windy Whistles.”
Arc waves nervously. “Uh… hello.”
Windy nods as she forces a smile. “H-how do you do?”
Rainbow Dash frowns. “Don’t you have anything else to say to him?”
“What would I…?”
“You’re always so excited to meet somepony new, mom. I can’t tell you how many times I saw you just randomly give somepony a hug over the years. But now you can’t even shakes hooves! Uh… fingers?”
“I… just didn’t know what was proper to do.”
“He’s really down to the ground on social stuff. You don’t need to put on airs, or anything.”
Taking a deep breath, Windy Whistles takes a few steps forward and nervously extends a hoof to Arc.
“H-hi. W-w-welcome to… Cloudsdale.”
Arc nods and takes her hoof in his gauntlet gently. She yelps as he makes contact and jumps back slightly.
“I’m sorry, ma’am. Did I squeeze too hard?”
“N-no. My apologies, but this is all just so sudden! Everypony here is just so… so… important!”
Rainbow Dash looks around at the group. “I guess they are. But there’s no reason to act like that.”
Arc clears his throat. “Rainbow Dash, I think I have an idea.”
Rainbow Dash facehoofs. “Whatever it is, do it.”
Arc nods and recalls his armor to reveal his normal clothes. Windy Whistles appears momentarily confused.
“You’re…?”
“Sorry if my armor scared you.”
“It’s… okay.”
Arc kneels down to looks the mare in the eye. Extending a hand to her, she cautiously takes it and shakes it.
“Was that better?”
“Yes, sir.”
Stepping back, she turns to Rainbow Dash.
“So what brings you back home, dear?”
“We heard that Cloudsdale is siding with Princess Celestia and Decimus over Princess Twilight.”
“Cloudsdale has always been loyal to the true rulers of Equestria, sweetheart. Nothing’s changed here in that regard.”
“But…!”
Sereb clears his throat loudly. “Perhaps we should look around the city.”
Rainbow Dash frowns. “Good idea.”
She stomps toward the door.
“Follow me, everypony.”
They leave the house as Rainbow Dash slams the door behind them. Windy Whistles sighs and bows her head. Meanwhile, Arc and company follow Rainbow Dash back down the path toward the street. Ember is the first to speak.
“That could have gone better.”
Scootaloo nods. “Agreed.”
“I’m sorry about my mom, everypony. She’s usually pretty smart.”
Arc raises an eyebrow. “What do you mean? She just seemed nervous to me.”
Rainbow Dash grits her teeth. “Saying nothing’s changed here! Everything’s changed!”
Sereb looks around. “Has it?”
“Yes! Just look everywhere!”
They do so. Nearly every house has a banner depicting Celestia along with the Crest of Light. Ember frowns.
“Looks pretty clear whose side this town is on.”
Scootaloo sighs. “Maybe we’re wasting our time.”
Arc nods sadly. “That’s a possibility, yes. But we can’t just abandon this town to Celestia and Decimus.”
Rainbow Dash stomps the ground angrily. “Right! They’ll just trash it!”
Sereb looks to her. “So what should we do?”
“Let’s head to the Rainbow Factory and see my dad. Hopefully he’ll be more helpful than my mom was.”
Ember shrugs. “Lead the way.”
Scootaloo grimaces. “Maybe that isn’t such a good idea.”
Sereb growls softly. “Yes. Others are looking at us… negatively.”
They look around to see Pegasi crossing to the other side of the street to avoid getting near their group. Frowning, Rainbow Dash throws up a hoof to a mare as she calls out.
“Hey there, Fleetfoot!”
The mare turns and raises her hoof happily at the sound of her friend’s voice. However once she lays eyes on Arc she quickly moves to act as if stretching and turns away. Scootaloo frowns.
“That was odd.”
Rainbow Dash grits her teeth. “Yeah! What the heck?!”
Arc sighs. “I think we all know why she did that.”
Ember clenches her fist. “Yeah! And it’s still a bunch of crap!”
Sereb growls. “Especially after all you’ve done for this land!”
Rainbow Dash looks up at him. “I’m really sorry for this, Arc. If you’d just like to leave, I totally understand.”
Arc shakes his head. “No, Rainbow Dash. We need to do this.”
Scootaloo nods with conviction. “Right.”
Ember grins. “I’ll stay if Arc does.”
Sereb paws the ‘ground’ nervously. “Indeed.”
Rainbow Dash appears relieved. “Thanks, everypony. Now come on. The factory is this way.”
Turning, she leads them down the street.
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great chapter
Actions speak louder than words, which is why Decimus has to spend so much timne and effort rigging the games so Arcs actions look like what Decimus truley are?
11274213
More like Celestia say this guy is good and everyone trust her so they aren't sure about arc considering the stories about humans don't paint them in a good light. They want to believe but without a proper change of government it doesn't help matters.
11274076
Glad you liked it.
Next up, meet Bo Hothoof.
Hopefully he'll be of more help than Windy Whistles. 
11274213
He's trying to force Arc to play the political game. One that Decimus knows very well.