Everything was ready.
Tomorrow we’ll leave for the jungles to the south. Far to the south… and neither Luna nor Sunset would be coming along.
I’d be away from them for… months. This will suck.
I pulled my cloak a bit tighter around myself as I headed outside onto the courtyard. The sky was already cleared, the weather for tomorrow had been scheduled to be clear for the launch and the weather teams had already removed every cloud within ten kilometers of Canterlot.
The stars shone like small beacons of light far above and I stopped for a second, looking up towards them, Luna’s moon shining just above the wall of the courtyard.
I should have named the airship the Enterprise because we’re about to do something that was basically impossible back on Earth.
To go explore a basically unknown area of land. The maps of the jungles in the southern part of Equestria basically said ‘jungle’ and then that just continued until you got south of them to the Zebra lands.
Nopony knew if anypony or any creature lived there. It was as wild as the Everfree Forest.
You couldn’t do that anymore on earth, couldn’t find anyplace anywhere near as wild. Wherever you went, somepo… somebody had already been there before. And likely dropped a snickers wrapper, a coke can, and drew a penis on a rock.
Humans gonna human.
Just exploration like that was something that was from a bygone era but even then there were people living there already.
But that sense of exploration, that didn’t exist on the world I was from. It was something from the past and from scifi series.
I looked up towards the stars and couldn’t help but smile.
To boldly go where no man has gone before, to explore new worlds and new civilizations.
There was a goal with this expedition, but that was what we were doing. The jungles were big enough that you could hide a civilization or two in there. In all honesty I didn’t expect to find anything but possibly ruins, but…
It wasn’t impossible.
It wasn’t something I ever expected to experience to be honest. I had been born too late and too early for anything of the sort, but now. Maybe I should write it down in a journal, that was a thing explorers did, right?
Bet it’d be a best seller too.
Now I really would go boldly where nopony had gone before… or at least for a very long time.
And if I find a fucking coke can there, I’m just done and I’m moving to the moon, be it by magic or by rocket. I’m sure Luna can arrange it if she really tries.
Flicking my ears in amusement at that thought and pulled my cloak a bit tighter around myself as I looked towards the lit up windows of our tower.
Speaking of invading the moon…
Grinning, I started towards the tower again before I paused, one hoof off the frozen ground as I frowned. Did I really have everything packed away and ready?
Not like I’d be able to just pop out and find another notebook or something if I had forgotten to bring enough.
Not notebooks specifically at least, I had an entire box of those, but what if I forgot to bring ink or pens or mango or…
Maybe I should go through the checklist Midnight had given me one more time just to make sure I didn-
Oh Celestia, she’s infectious!
I took a slow deep breath and shook my head. I had everything and if I didn’t have it, Midnight had it stocked and ready.
Even if she by some miracle missed something, then we would still be traveling over villages for the next few weeks on our way south.
It’ll be fine.
I started moving again, giving the guards standing by the bottom of the tower a nod. They were wearing heavy winter cloaks over their armour to help keep them warm. I wanted one, but they were heavy and thick and not really practical when you went in and out like I did.
“Evening,” I said and gave them a nod.
“Good evening, sir,” Silent Knight to the left said and lit his horn, opening the door for me to allow me past.
I trotted past them and up the spiral staircase. The cold inside was chilly but no longer freezing and I knew that our quarters would be nice and warm.
I pushed the door open and entered before I froze.
Luna smiled at me from before the fireplace, “Good evening, My Page,” she said and shifted slightly, stretching out as she lifted one wing, the light of the fireplace playing across her coat and feathers, her mane shimmering with stars and firelight.
“We’d figured we’d give you a goodbye you’re not going to forget,” Sunset added from next to her, poking her head around Luna's wing and smiled teasingly as she rested her chin against Luna's side, her hoof resting on the alicorns cutie mark, “How are we doing so far?”
I would have answered, but I seemed to have swallowed my tongue at the moment.
10410858
It's your fault XD
Midnight and Tempest: Just as I planned.
Got a nasty feeling since we are hitting chapter 40 that this part of the series is gonna end soon. I is sad now. :(
10411355
It won't, you're not even halfway through.
Two chapters in one day? Hiver you spoil us
Oh my!..
Cadance: DISCORD...step away from that wormhole...NOW
Discord: FINE! *angry pout* it would have been funny tho... *sips the can of coke noisily*
A true being of culture would use "Kilroy was here" instead of drawing a penis.
So when we comes back, two pregnant mares are waiting for him, having the craziest of request possible, making him wish we would staied in the jungle as the deity of all Thestrals.
10411425
I doubt it, but, honestly. I wouldn't put it past Hiver to do it to us like that. Like, "Oh welcome back Page, btw your gonna be a dad!"
Page: .............Pardonfuck?
Uuu yeah~ Snu-Snu delux.
THE - FUN - HAS - BEEN DOUBLED!!!
Heh :D
It would be so easy. Just need an air tight object capable of holding one or more ponies in comfort. Preference for it being enchanted for flame resistance. Cast "reverse gravity" on it. Fall up and out into space. Have a unicorn aboard to push the ship where you want to go.
There... ponies can now achieve space flight with just upscale submersibles.
Edit: this ignores a lot of problems they are going to face but it works for a short trip.
Might this perchance a reference be?
advantage of short chapters, almost daily updates
disadvantage of short chapters...daily cliffhangers *flails*
Yeah, Blank Plagiarize really missed the finest opportune name for his airship.... but I can see why naming it Storm King’s Mistake would have an irresistible appeal.
Of course, the rescue ship sent after him could always be named the Enterprise.
10411676
i sure hope so, it's a great series and even if unintentional, I love the reference anyway!
10411676
His shift partner better be called something 'Moon'. If he or she's not I'mma flip a table.
But then you'd stumble over an old golf ball or something, for sure, Page.
Thanks for the early chapter.
10411355
10411359
and here i was about to say that "Repercussions" has ended and we've got to wait for "Explorations". Either way, that is honestly really good news, as i can't go on without Blank Page's story.
Not entirely true, there are forests in Canada (and I think maybe Alaska too?) where for hundreds of miles no human has set foot that we know of. (And maybe in Siberia too? (And I think some parts in and near the Congo that are unexplored, at least by anyone other then small isolated tribes if they exist))
Moar
10412262
Also part of the bottom of the ocean by technicality but we don’t really have the tech to go there right now sooo......
That chapter needs celebration
And all of us and Discord would have cried in victory. Page could make SO many one-liner references.
Man, I feel that.
Why could I have not been born at the cusp of space exploration, where science allowed those curious enough to easily sail the stars?
The correct reaction.
He's going to come home in several months to find two very pregnant mares, isn't he?
10416449
I think Page would actually have an aneurysm if that's the case.
Ugh, can't tease us with the Nightguard and a guard named 'Silent Knight' like that. About 600k words of feelings held in that name haha.
You know, the nice thing about Batponies...
...really LONG tongues
10413956
You just KNOW Discord would show-up at some point a pull a Q if that had been the name.
The checklisting has begun!
10487660
For some reason, I think Midnight had a checklist item that said
somewhere in there... If it comes to organising and checklisting, she's terrifying.
Now I just NEED THERE to be a coke Can! You have obligated yourself to do it!
10412262
The ocean floor is also largely unexplored
What? No socks?
11113281
Lots of sand and rock down there. Might even find a few in suggestive shapes. Making there origin sus
And that’s why I don’t do herding. The risk of being outgunned rises with every member…
Just about 3 years later and that name still holds 600k words worth of meaning to me. Wowie.
I rather have Changelings gonna Ling around with hugs, snuggeling and snacking on others
Page might need a Mango injection after that day/night, because he is about to spill buckets of milk
♡
10439396
That name seems so familiar.
lost my old account and ally saved stories so can't remember
What story is that name from?
Eeyup.