The Immortal Dream

by Czar_Yoshi

Travel Plans

By the time we left the school, it was mid-afternoon. I was feeling above average, the mystery of the school library put successfully behind me with no adverse consequences. Lissa and Flarefeather, by contrast, clearly saw this result as less of a relief and more of a fun adventure, and I didn't have the heart to lower their spirits by talking about how much worse this could have gone. And as they had no desire to put a stop to the day's fun so early, I soon found myself talked into leading them back to Puddles' ship to make formal introductions.

It was silly, considering they clearly already knew her - at least well enough that Flarefeather already knew where she was going when the two of us went to visit Geirskogul. I had my suspicions, though. It seemed like Lissa hadn't quite figured me out, and had taken my resistance to her flirting as an unwillingness to talk about my travels.

Lissa and Flarefeather copied each other's mannerisms and acted similar on the surface, but where Flarefeather had naively bashed her head into my cynicism over and over until she broke through, Lissa was quicker to back off and re-evaluate her strategy. Perhaps too quick, since I wasn't averse to giving her what I figured she actually wanted: details about the broader world.

Hence where Puddles came in. Flarefeather needed no ulterior motivation to think hanging out with a friend of mine sounded fun, but Lissa probably wanted to watch Puddles interact with me, and see if there was something she could learn about how to do so more productively herself.

All that was just a hunch, of course, but it was something I would do, and Flarefeather had said we were similar. Besides, I liked to think I knew my own behavior well enough to recognize it in others. Ironic, then, that Lissa could simply solve all her problems by asking me in a straightforward manner. My problems never did that. Unless they did, and I was just as blind as she was...

That was a discomforting thought.

Either way, that was how I found myself standing outside Puddles' ship, instructing my new friends to wait an acceptable distance away while I went in to find if my host was amenable to the idea.

"Sounds good!" Flarefeather chirped, saluting with a wing. "And take all the time you need. We never get bored together."

Lissa gave Flarefeather a sly smile.

I nodded. "Just don't make me come back to anything I wouldn't want to see. That I wouldn't, not that you wouldn't. I shouldn't be long."

We parted, and I boarded the airship, taking a quick look around and determining that everything was - as always - the way it should be. Coda still sat frozen in my room, frost somehow dripping from her eyes despite being encased in a huge boulder of ice.

Puddles herself was on the bridge, sitting at the navigator's desk to the side of the controls and sifting through a pile of paperwork. "You're home early. Getting bored of Wilderwind?"

"Not quite," I answered stepping closer. "How are things here?"

"Everything is pretty much in order," Puddles said, aligning her papers by tapping the stack's edge against the desk, then putting them down and spinning her chair around to face me. "I'm thinking we leave for Izvaldi at dawn tomorrow, though I could bump it forward to this evening and do a night flight if you don't care about the scenery. Wanna go over any plans for what you're doing once we get there?"

"Actually..." I grinned hopefully, tapping my wing spokes together in front of me. "I've been making some friends while I'm here, and was wondering if there was any chance you'd be willing to meet them before we leave? Maybe impress them a little?"

Puddles laughed. "You want me to suit up and go on parade to show off your connections? Sure, I could use a break from this anyway. When and where?"

"Well, they're waiting outside," I began. "And I could make them wait as long as you need. But do you think showing them the ship would be too much to ask for?"

Puddles blinked in surprise. "Depends what kind of friends we're talking about. I like to give people the benefit of the doubt, but this is my house..."

I wandered over to the windshield to see if I could point them out. "Well, you probably already sort of know them a little, and they should be right-"

Yep, they were there, making a show of petting each other's manes. What was I expecting? I shook my head and looked away.

"...Never mind," I said, remembering that I had a sentence to finish. "They're not complete strangers, though."

Puddles got up, curious, and looked out the window for slightly longer than I had. "The Wilderwind Escorts?"

I realized too late that I was going to have to answer a question about why I chose to keep this company. "I told them not to do anything too embarrassing..."

"I didn't know you were into that!" Puddles nodded approvingly. "And those girls are notoriously difficult to impress. I don't suppose my trip with you up the tower gave you an opening, heh?"

"It's not like that," I pointed out, reddening in annoyance. "But, yeah, it did."

"And I suppose that's why you want to meet them in my company again..." Puddles mused. "I don't know what it will do that I didn't accomplish the first time, though. I'm not very talkative as the Black Knight."

"Any chance you could be your more talkative self?" I suggested, swishing my tail hopefully. "Part of the reason we get along well is because they're looking for travel advice, but I know very little about the Empire itself, or the areas it would be practical for them to visit."

Puddles looked confused. "Travel advice? Those girls don't usually leave this city."

"Why not?" I asked, though having full-time jobs was probably reason enough on its own. "What kinds of things do you know about them? I just know those two as friends, as of a day or two ago."

Puddles nodded absently. "Well, for one, most of them are too politically valuable to be kept on a long leash."

I blinked. "Politically valuable?" Did this have anything to do with how Flarefeather told me she was Izvaldi royalty by blood, albeit outside the line of succession?

"Right. I guess this usually isn't the kind of thing that gets explained to outsiders," Puddles elaborated, straightening up and adopting a teacher's demeanor. "Wilderwind's escorts are all special in some way. Most of them have some potent secret, like dirt on a powerful authority figure. They're the people who aren't important enough to become players in the game, at least not without flailing blindly and having a terrible time of it, but are important enough that they can change the stakes if they come into play, or would make attractive pawns to someone truly powerful. So the city keeps them on display as a sort of show of force. Same principle as hanging weapons on your wall. It's meant to intimidate anyone important enough to recognize those girls' strategic value."

She tapped on her desk with a frown. "So if you're in an escort's position, you have two choices. Wilderwind comes to you, and you accept their employment - degenerate job, room and board, powerful political protection - and then abide by the conditions that you don't try to do anything with whatever your special edge is. Or, you turn them down and try to go it alone, be your own force in the world and fend off any other powerful interests who want to use you on your own power. It sounds like a raw deal to us free spirits, but to them, it's a no-brainer."

As she spoke, I cringed harder and harder, my insides twisting up in primal revulsion. That was exactly what I had gone through in Ironridge. And she was telling me Wilderwind had an entire class of creatures in the same boat, paraded about like collectibles by some government that purchased their loyalty out of fear through cushy, restrictive deals?

No. No, no, that was stupid! Things couldn't work like this for so many people, they weren't supposed to! My situation was an anomaly-

"Are you okay?" Puddles asked, concerned.

"I'm not some free spirit," I muttered, in a trance. "That's just like how I was, in Ironridge. Special enough to make a difference, but not enough to do more than struggle. The local powers fighting over who could use me as their pawn. And now here in the Empire, with Rhodallis, it's the same. I'm just like them. Only, I can't live with the deals I'm offered. I'm in a constant battle to be the one who gets final say over my life, getting carried along and bounced from place to place and from fight to fight. I've never been powerful enough to take a single action that's not either a sacrifice or a gamble, but I've always been powerful enough to have there be something I can do. They're... just like me."

Puddles' face creased in sympathy, and she stepped over and put a hoof on my shoulder. "Refusing to sing to someone else's tune is the definition of a free spirit. And if that's how you truly feel, then you're in good company. Taking the easy way out and signing on with someone more powerful who I don't agree with is anathema to my ideals, but I sometimes have to do it anyway to get the resources I need to do my own thing. It never quite feels like you can rest easy, does it?"

I nodded, grateful. "Even if we chose to stick our heads up and accept this lifestyle, though, it doesn't mean it's one I'd recommend to anyone else. If that's really what's going on here, I probably owe it to my friends to be up front with them about why leaving Wilderwind isn't a safe dream to entertain. Would you...?"

A realization crossed my mind, and I blinked, trialing off. "You know all this because you've tried recruiting them to your cause before. With your whole thing about trying to inspire people to take responsibility for their land's future, and becoming a symbol and all that. Since they have an edge that would let them do more than most!"

Puddles grimaced. "It was a while ago, but yes. And it didn't end well."

I folded my ears, debating whether to ask to hear about it anyway. "What was your takeaway?" I asked instead.

"That's a long story," Puddles said, shaking her head. "Too long for today, at least while your friends are waiting. If you want to encourage them to leave Wilderwind behind and go see the world, I'd say you know the risks just as well as I do."

I looked at the floor, took a breath, and made my decision. "I'm not trying to impress or flatter them. Let's just be honest about what it's been like for us out there, at least as much as we can without touching on secrets or sore subjects. Try not to hide our bias, and let them interpret it how they will. Think you can help me? And maybe that it would be more authentic if you went as yourself rather than the Black Knight?"

"Meh..." Puddles shrugged. "I don't think I'm very inspirational without it, but I suppose that's not the point, so I guess it should be fine. And they probably know who I am beneath it anyway. So knock yourself out. But I'll leave most of the talking to you unless prompted." She nodded, bestowing her blessing on my endeavor.

"I think you're plenty inspirational," I told her with a smile, less because I had seen her in action and more because it felt like the right thing to say. But I felt it, too. It was nice to know I wasn't the only one out alone in the world, struggling to do the things I believed in.

"Thanks," Puddles chuckled, waving me out. "Let me get all these papers put away before they arrive."

---

Lissa and Flarefeather were still doing their best to disobey my instructions not to let me come back to anything I didn't want to see, but at this point I just shook my head and sighed. "Well, you're welcome aboard," I told them, standing at the ship's entrance. "I'm not sure this will be exactly what you're expecting, but come on in."

Flarefeather barely waited, bouncing up and into the ship. "Thanks, Hallie!" she sang with a grin, slapping me on the back with a wing as she passed. "I can call you that, right?"

I did a double take. Part of me instantly protested, saying only my Icereach friends were allowed to call me that... but I had left both of them behind. In doing so, hadn't I forfeited my right to be picky about that?

"Sure," I managed, conflicted. "Knock yourself out."

Lissa passed by me as well, wearing a sure smile that I could tell covered a hint of nervousness. I brought up the rear, closing the hull-side door in my wake.

As I watched them, my mood immediately started to rise. The ship's interior had always had a homey feel, dark wood trim providing a rustic vibe and carpets that obviously had to be replaced every few years making it come across as a house as well as a vehicle. But some part of it must have been sleeping before, because as they inspected it, it slowly came more alive.

Maybe it was just my imagination that the colors had lightened, or the corners no longer felt as empty. But I knew, the same way I had known something was amiss in the library, that this was the way this ship was meant to be.

"Hi," Puddles greeted, putting on a friendly smile and sitting in the hallway to the bridge. "Welcome to my ship?"

She spoke with a nervousness that probably stemmed from her lack of armor, a fixation I definitely needed to ask more about. So far, it seemed more like she wanted to hide her identity than her body, so it couldn't be exactly the same as my situation, but still, I suddenly felt bad for being the one who did get to armor up.

"So you're the Black Knight," Flarefeather said, going in with the same earnestness she had used to sledgehammer me into submission. "I heard you were a mare under all that armor! Bet you remember me, right?"

She struck a pose for good measure, Lissa lurking directly behind her.

"I've been up the tower a few times," Puddles admitted, clearly awkward in the role of host.

Flarefeather blinked in slow confusion. "Wait, are you secretly shy?"

Puddles gave me a look that said these are your guests, remember?

"Look," I started, preparing to come to her aid.

Before I could continue, Flarefeather got right up in my face, looking like it took significant willpower for her not to squish my cheeks in delight. "This is crazy! Why didn't you tell me the Black edgiest-of-edgy Knight was secretly cute? How did you get lucky enough to stay here?"

She took a step back, sobering up just a bit, and nodded at Puddles. "Your secret's safe with us, by the way. But seriously, how actually did you wind up getting in here?"

I glanced at Puddles, who clearly had no qualms with letting me answer. "Won mutual respect through a duel in the cursed desert of Gyre," I said with a for-me-it-was-Tuesday shrug.

"You're pulling my tail," Flarefeather rebutted, wearing a skeptical but impressed smirk that practically begged me to stick to my story.

Lissa, however, looked put out. "Come on, why do you act cool for her but not for me? Don't I merit a little adventurous flexing and embellishment too?"

Flarefeather aggressively waggled her eyebrows at Lissa, which saved me from having to answer a question I legitimately had no reason for.

"It's true," Puddles said, nodding along with my version of events.

"That's how it happened," I agreed solemnly. "There were some extenuating circumstances involved, including pirates and my friend... Speaking of, since you came all this way, you want to see her? The one I came to the Empire to save?"

Coda wasn't exactly a sculpture to show off, but Lissa had mentioned having ideas that could potentially help me. So if she knew anything at all, it was better to get that conversation started sooner rather than later.

"So," Flarefeather mused aloud as I led them to my room, "if a duel is all it takes, I know my way around a sword... Wanna fight, Miss Black Knight? See if I pass muster as someone worth knowing?"

Puddles giggled awkwardly. "Meh-meh... I'm afraid I don't really like fighting."

Lissa raised an eyebrow. "That contrasts with the actions you regularly perform in a public and visible way."

Puddles shrugged. "If it's for a good enough cause, I can make an exception."

I pushed open my door, sensing a perfect segue. "And this is a good enough cause."

Coda was right where I left her, face set in frozen determination.

The mood instantly froze as well. "You weren't kidding," Lissa said, face serious as she looked Coda up and down... and sympathetic as well, a first for the emotions I had seen her display.

"That's not a normal kid," Flarefeather pointed out. "She's the size of an adult, even though she's obviously young. And wings and a horn. And then there's..."

She bit her tongue, looking like she wanted to say more, a wrenching look on her face that was equal parts heartbroken and wary.

For my part, I blinked, completely having forgotten that Coda's appearance was far from regular. Furthermore, she was wearing her changeling queen crown.

Flarefeather had been interested in my bracelet ever since I told her it was cursed. How obvious would it be to other ponies that Coda's crown and my bracelet were the same kind of thing? My heart rate spiked; would it be possible for Flarefeather to figure out what I was based on this information? Actually, forget Flarefeather, what about Puddles?

I steadied myself with a deep breath. I'd deal with that if it happened, but not invite it sooner than I needed to. "Let's go back to the foyer, or the bridge," I invited, gently nudging everyone back toward the door. "She's not going to get better by ponies staring at her."

---

I met with no resistance, and soon we were all on the bridge, the ship's largest and most open area.

"Well," Lissa said, "that stinks. I feel sorry for her. You think you've got any chance at fixing whatever's causing that?"

I shook my head. "Dunno, but I won't easily take no for an answer. You made it sound like you knew something that might help?"

Lissa shrugged. "Well, I was going to make an offer to press the Night's Boon and get you access to their trove of Mistvale loot, just in case you found anything in there that would help out while saving you a trip up north. But, you kind of torpedoed that by finding their cache yourself, so at this point all I can do is say please on your behalf. And all this could do in the first place is maybe help you get better at sarosian magic to make your journey easier in general... Not the greatest gift, but it's what I've got."

I chewed my tongue in thought. "I want to pursue this lead in Izvaldi first. But there might be a point to coming back here to look into that afterward. I already learned quite a bit from going in there today, after all..." I glanced over at Puddles. "You'll need to come back here eventually to see Geirskogul again, yeah?"

"And there are two hotties here it sure would be a shame if you never saw again, riiight?" Flarefeather grinned suggestively. "Ironclad reason to return, right there."

I grinned too. "Yeah." It would be nice to stop leaving my friends behind, one day.

"I assume you wouldn't want us to come with you," Lissa said, making my ears twitch. There it was. The question I had suspected was waiting in the wings all along.

This one was on me to answer before it even got to Puddles. "Is that really such a good idea?" I asked, turning to face her. "I know what you said during lunch, about having limited opportunities here in Wilderwind. I also know enough about your job to guess there's a really good reason why you were offered it, and that if you cut ties with Wilderwind, other employers might get pushy about asking you to sign with them, instead."

Lissa shook her head. "I'm not expecting you to say yes. But, you are seasoned travelers. Especially you, whose reputation is a known factor." She nodded at Puddles, then took a deep breath. "I'm too young to content myself with living like this for the rest of my days. And even if I wasn't, our current position with Wilderwind can't last, whether it's due to political instability or another extinction event or whatever."

"That's true," Puddles said, nodding slowly. "I don't know how much longer the Empire's current political situation will last. I don't know the particulars of why you're working for Wilderwind, but if they're the safe option and striking out on your own is the risky option, none of us can know how much longer they'll remain the safe option."

She looked away. "At the same time, I can't recommend you leave in good faith."

"That's the opposite of what you say in public," Lissa pointed out. "Telling people to take responsibility for their communities and the problems around them. Running away might be a weird form of taking responsibility, but before we can take care of the things around us, we need to take care of ourselves. No?"

Puddles bit her lip.

Lissa narrowed her eyes and folded her ears, but then let it go a moment later. "Anyway. I'm using my time to plan. As the one with the most experience, it would mean a lot to me if you can hear my plans out and tell me where I'm being a dummy or overlooked something important."

Puddles relaxed instantly. "I can do that," she said, cheering up. "What have you got?"

Lissa nodded, serious. "First are the end goals. We don't want to live on the road forever. The idea is to settle down, get a house, work normal jobs, start a family, all the normal stuff. As you're clearly dancing around, we have political targets on our backs in the Empire, and can't just do that here. Second, I have a brand and Flarefeather doesn't. I want to fix that. I've heard that in the Plains of Harmony, almost everyone gets brands, so going there is how we'll get her hers. I know border passes are hard to find, and this is asking a lot, but that's the dream."

She cleared her throat. "Next, for our resources, we both are good in a fight, and we both have some connections among the Night's Boon we could call in a favor or two from. I also know that Yakyakistan is the only place that's still giving out border passes. So, we're going to wait for the Night's Boon to have a reason to mount another expedition to Mistvale, find a way to join it, and cross all the way over to Varsidel from northwestern Mistvale. Then we swashbuckle our way west, and by the time we reach Yakyakistan, hopefully the cultural differences should be big enough that we're just two random ponies, no imperial baggage at all. And from there we ask around, set up a base, and see what it'll take to get across the border."

Slowly, I blinked. "Is this why you wanted to steer me into checking out the Mistvale stuff? So that if I wind up with a lead that requires me to go that way, you can come with?"

Lissa shrugged. "I do want to help you. What's wrong with doing it in a way that lets Flarefeather enjoy your company for a while longer?"

Flarefeather giggled. "I'd be nowhere without your motivation, but remember to set some goals for yourself too sometime, babe."

"Right." I shook my head, trying not to think about myself and Corsica back in Icereach, eagerly obsessing over a very similar plan. "Problem one: Yakyakistan isn't safe. Possibly one of the least-safe spots to be in the world right now, actually. If you care about avoiding extinction events like the war that toppled the Empire, stay away at all costs."

"Seriously?" Flarefeather blinked owlishly. "What gives? And why?"

I sighed. "You know what a windigo is?"

Puddles perked up a little.

"Ice monsters, spirits of wrath that freeze stuff and possess ponies?" I tilted my head. "They're supposed to cause blizzards if too many are together at once, and they really like starting wars? My friend, Coda, is like that because she tried to fight some? Currently, most of the world's windigoes are sealed away under Yakyakistan, and the few that are free are trying to make Ironridge and Yakyakistan go to war in order to break the seal and set all the rest of them free."

"That's... bad," Flarefeather said, wowed. "Is anyone doing anything about this?"

I thought back to what I had been doing before getting spirited away to the Empire by Unnrus-Kaeljos. How were Starlight and Twilight doing? Had they wound up going north, and were they making a difference? What about Corsica, Leif and the rest of my crew? Even Papyrus...

I shook my head. "Maybe. Hopefully it'll be enough. Honestly, once I save Coda, that's probably what I'll be working on next, too. If I'm not too late."

"That's some serious moxie," Lissa pointed out. "We're past the point where you say stuff just to impress us, you know. Are you being serious?"

Puddles, for her part, looked deeply conflicted. "I need to talk to you later, about this. Once we're alone."

I nodded. There could be a lot of reasons why, but my money was on the one connection both of us knew the other knew about and yet neither had broached out of respectfulness: Puddles' cake-hungry doppelganger in Ironridge.

"Dead serious," I apologized. "Also, border passes - they're called Writs of Harmonic Sanction - are pretty rare. I'm not saying it's impossible to get one, but if you're thinking of going to Yakyakistan because it could be easier there, the supply is probably getting cut off until this war is over. I can't imagine Equestria giving out more passes to a government that's currently hostile and under the sway of supernatural malevolent forces, at any rate."

Technically, that supernatural malevolent force was Chrysalis. But I didn't need to complicate the picture any further.

"Great," Lissa sighed. "Thank you for doing exactly what I asked and sinking my plans before I committed and got us in deep trouble. Ugh, I thought this all fit together perfectly, too..." She shook her head. "What do you recommend? Suppose we had to get out of Wilderwind in a hurry. I get a pretty good look at the inner workings of government there, and I think I'll have plenty of forewarning in an emergency, but if we did have to leave in a hurry, where would you go?"

"Mistvale," Puddles said. "Specifically the valleys. I used to hear about how they were mostly unmapped, even before the war. If you had the resources to stockpile food and supplies in advance, you could wait out almost anything down there. And it's less than a day's flight away to reach the fringes."

Lissa winked gratefully. "See, I knew seasoned explorers could come through!"

Flarefeather, however, was a bit more hesitant. "Just as long as you're not thinking of using that place as a hideout, right? You know the one. It might be easier to stock, but there are definitely others who would be able to find it..."

Lissa shook her head. "Of course not! Mistvale is massive. Why would we pick the one place... Actually, let's discuss this one later."

I raised an eyebrow, and I knew Puddles was doing the same. "Is this anything we should know about?"

"Nahhh." Flarefeather dismissed me with a wave. "And forget we said anything. Contractual obligations. Stuff we're not supposed to talk about."

Really? What did a place in Mistvale have to do with her claim to the Izvaldi throne...? Eh, whatever. I shook my head.

"Anyway," I said, changing the subject. "We're heading to Izvaldi tomorrow morning. Dunno when we'll be back. I think me and her have some stuff to discuss between ourselves before we set off, so..." I gestured to Puddles, then nodded to Lissa and Flarefeather. "Is there anything more you want to ask here? I could maybe come catch you later tonight, if it's too early to say goodbye."

"I got what I needed most." Lissa stretched. "But if I can give you some advice in thanks?" She turned to Puddles. "Get your act together. Telling people to do one thing in public and then the opposite thing in private is lame. I don't know how you can put any conviction behind your actions if you're peddling in contradictions like that. Maybe you can't, and maybe that's why you don't get more attention. Maybe people can just tell. But I do appreciate your advice, and will put it to good use."

She turned to me next, and nodded. "And you were good for more than you let on! Same tip as before: it costs nothing to impress people, even if you're not really feeling it. Try it out sometime. And good luck with your friend. If you do ever find a reason to head deep into Mistvale, remember that I'd love to help make such a trip happen."

I nodded back in appreciation. Puddles just looked wounded.

Flarefeather's goodbye was much more simple. She looked me up and down, bit her lip, tongued her cheek, and then whispered, "Can I feel your ears one more time?"

"I can literally come by tonight if you'll miss me that badly," I pointed out. "But, fine..."

She showed remarkable self-restraint, only rubbing them for a second or two. I found myself able to put up with it.

Then I saw them to the door, waved, got waved at, and finally found myself alone on the ship with Puddles. The ship's atmosphere settled back into its stately, sleepy air, and the corners felt just a little bit emptier.

My heart sank. Was this the right choice, leaving my friends behind again? It wasn't like the alternative was sane or sensible, at least not the alternative where I hauled them along to wherever I went next... which was going to be Izvaldi, where Flarefeather's lineage had the highest potential to get us into trouble. There was another alternative, of course, one where I stayed here instead and put down roots, giving up on goals that required leaving.

But that would mean abandoning Coda. And that was unthinkable.

So I turned to Puddles, ready to talk shop and find out what she had to say.

Comments

[Okie Brony]

More adorableness from Lissa and Flarefeather.

Here's to hoping our favorite ponycicle gets defrosted soon. 🤞

Also, first!!

[KMCA]

Flarefeather continues to be best side side character.

[PropsValroa]

Quite some implications here. Halycon will probably cross what Starlight had to deal with, the notion of never being satisfied with the world, always having some goal, or wanting to settle down and hang up her coat, so to speak. Halycon has some deep goals here. I wonder if she'll get a look at the original STANZA in Izvaldi.

[sploopy slooder]

hey every "main" character needs their own squad, and with only puddles id say were short a few ponies. Halcyon has the trauma, theyve got the gay, its a perfect setup for a new gay trauma squad.

[Venlinelle]

I’m cashing in on all the chapters I’ve let build up, finally!

Halcyon, please do something about your mom. We haven’t seen her in a while and she’s not doing great.

I also dearly hope Flarefeather sticks around; she’s far too cute and gay to only be here for a few chapters.