Rainbow Dash Around the World

by MagicS

The Vanished Kingdom of Hoofica

Thunder rumbled in the sky as Rainbow Dash made it to the large northern forest of the kingdom. A bolt of lightning momentarily lit up the horizon to the east, perhaps a foreboding sign, perhaps just coincidence. Either way she had a lot of trees to pass over and she couldn’t just speed by them since she needed to try and look down into the forest to find the ponies now living there. The foliage was thick though, the large pines and redwoods all clustered together, and the natural darkness from the sky didn’t do her any favors. It was apparent pretty quickly that she wasn’t going to be able to just scan over the whole forest and find what she was looking for. She was going to have to go down into it and search more thoroughly.

At least she had just had some food and water. Regardless of how the rest of the day turned out she didn’t really have anything major to worry about.

Her eyes briefly turned south, looking into the heart of Hoofica. Nothing major to worry about yet. But there was something very, very, wrong about this place. Even compared to some of the other places she had been to, it gave her chills. Blizzard may have been a merciless despot but even he believed in what he was doing and that his way was correct. Resin was insane but she too also thought she was doing something good.

What was the point in making your own ponies as miserable as possible? Rainbow Dash just didn’t understand.

The scope of Blizzard and Resin’s control also was nowhere near this... the Eternal Pegasus Empire was really just that one big sky city, and the Metal Mountain was the same. Nothing like this. Nothing like an entire kingdom that stretched for hundreds of miles in every direction. With multiple towns and cities, all sorts of different environments like forests, lakes, rocky mountains, wide-open plains and more. How could this all happen? Why?

A hard frown settled on her face. She was getting to the bottom of it, and soon.

She was sure as she visited more places here that she’d get more of the big picture too. And Cropduster had mentioned something about posters that would explain things. So later when she was in Far Rock she’d keep her eyes open for them.

That was for then though and this was now, she had to find the outsider ponies first.

Rainbow Dash sighed and dipped below the treeline to search through the forest. It was even darker down here, she could barely see anything at all. Only a few more flashes of lightning really gave her the vision she needed. She was lucky though that her eyes were already pretty sharp, and her vision probably better than most ponies, otherwise she may have already smacked into a tree or two.

Maybe I should get down and walk? She asked herself. Walking was lame but it might be more helpful here. And less dangerous.

She hardly saw or heard any animals either as she went through the trees. Not like she’d blame them for being scared or so messed up from how the sky looked all the time. Fluttershy would have a word to say about that. And she already knew that this place was severely in need of a Pinkie Pie party too.

Rainbow Dash finally decided to drop down entirely, her hooves hitting the moist and cool forest floor, and took a look around. Nothing but trees and darkness. She couldn’t see very far through them either.

“Hello?” She shouted out to the forest. Not like these ponies should be scared of her or anything, right? She didn’t need to hide from or sneak up on them.

There wasn’t an answer though so Rainbow Dash just sighed and started walking deeper into the middle of the forest.

She wasn’t going to be getting a warm welcome here like she did from Cropduster. That was pretty obvious. Rainbow Dash tried to look for something like a clearing, or any trails, to see if they had been used recently. If traveling merchants had gotten trapped here they might have brought their wagons with them.

In the end she more or less just continued walking from tree to tree, whistling loudly to show she wasn’t trying to sneak up on anypony if they saw her first. It was a good way to not appear dangerous or threatening. Every now and then she cupped her hooves around her mouth and called out for any ponies but if they heard her they still didn’t bother answering.

“Geez, couldn’t they have chosen to hide out somewhere easier to find?” Rainbow Dash grumbled.

Thunder still roared high in the sky every now and then as Rainbow Dash kept walking. Must’ve been annoying for all the ponies here to get used to this weather. Her eyes glanced up through the tall trees to look at the rolling black clouds, they still gave off a weird feeling to her. If they could be dispersed with the usual pegasus magic surely ponies here would have done so already? Maybe she could try anyways.

As she walked past another tree and looked around them for any sign of ponies, she paused.

There was something on the ground.

“Really?” Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow as she looked down at the vine tied in a loop resting on the forest floor. It was the most simple and cliche hoof trap possible. Like it had come right out of a Daring Do story, that was part of why Rainbow Dash recognized it in the first place.

“Like I’m going to fall for that,” Rainbow Dash snorted and hopped over it.

And immediately got snapped up by a net that had been covered by a pile of leaves right beyond the vine.

Rainbow Dash hung suspended about ten feet above the ground, trapped in a net with an annoyed frown on her face.

“Oh. Okay.”

She sighed and dragged a hoof down her face, looking at the vines that the net was made out of. Honestly she could probably break out of this real easy but she wanted to wait a second and see if anypony would come by to help her. It would probably be a better first encounter than if she wrecked their stuff.

“Hellooooo?” Rainbow Dash called out to the forest once more. “Pony caught in a net here. Mind helping me out?”

This time she did slowly get a response. As Rainbow Dash watched from her spot trapped in the net, swaying slightly above the ground, ponies emerged from deeper in the forest. They came from behind trees and from the darkness, a full dozen of them, all surrounding her. And as they got closer she noticed quite a few of them were carrying sharpened sticks. They had unwelcoming grimaces on their faces, but in their eyes Rainbow Dash really only saw fear and worry.

“Uh... hey,” Rainbow Dash said as they crowded around her.

“Who are you and why are you here?” One of them asked, a unicorn stallion with a stick held up in his telekinetic grip.

“My name’s Rainbow Dash, and I came here looking for you guys,” she answered.

“Is she an Inquisitor?” A scared pegasus mare asked.

“She doesn’t look like one. And besides, they’ve never bothered to come look for us,” the unicorn answered. He raised an eyebrow at Rainbow Dash. “You’re another outsider aren’t you? Trapped here just like us.”

“Bingo,” Rainbow Dash nodded.

“Should’ve been our first guess...” another unicorn snorted and shook his head, lowering the “spear” he was carrying.

The unicorn still affixed an uncertain glare on Rainbow Dash. “Can never be too careful. You definitely don’t look or act like anypony who’s been here in Hoofica for long, but before we let you out of there can you prove to us that you’re not an Inquisitor? Got anything to say?”

“Well I just came by from the little shack Cropduster put up if any of you know him. And if any of you ponies are from that little village north of here, I was just there earlier today and met Big Red. He told me about what went on with Hoofica suddenly vanishing and some of the ponies he knew going to check things out but not coming back. That’d be you, right?” Rainbow said.

He nodded. “Yeah, some of us are from that village, I’m a worker for the Aux-Lemm Corporation if you’ve heard of them though. Anypony here from the village?” He asked around the group.

A few stepped forward, including the pegasus mare from earlier.

“You met with Big Red? Are things okay in the village?” She asked.

“As far as I could tell,” Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I didn’t stay there for more than a quick minute, but the place wasn’t falling apart or anything. He didn’t want me to come south though cause he was worried the same thing that happened to you would happen to me. Can’t say he was wrong about that now. I think he’s still worried about all of you who have gone missing. But obviously they aren’t sending anymore ponies to check things out anymore.” Her eyes then glanced at the unicorn stallion. “And you’re part of Aux-Lemm? I met a pony named Cart D’Evron in the Great Camel Desert back north. You know him?”

“I’ve heard of him from others, but never worked with him myself. Well, I guess that’s decent enough proof that you’re not an Inquisitor. Just another unfortunate outsider. We’ll get you down real quick,” the unicorn said.

The group worked together to loosen the vines and knots that held up the net. Rainbow Dash had to admit the construction of it was pretty clever. It wouldn’t really stop a strong pony from getting out but if it was somepony dangerous who got caught it would still delay and distract them enough. In just a second the net was lowered and she was able to crawl out of it, then it was reset back to how it was and the leaves used to obscure it once again.

“You guys really think you need traps and everything?” Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow as she watched them hide the net.

“We’re not taking chances,” the unicorn said. “The Inquisitors and the rest of Hoofica don’t seem to care about us, or maybe even know we’re here, but it’s still better to be safe than sorry.”

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “Fair enough. You all got any names by the way?”

“Vert Minske,” the unicorn answered.

“Blue Teardrop,” the pegasus said.

“Gulf Runner.”

“Chatterbox.”

“Wheat Crackers.”

“Osmondo.”

“Silent Night.”

And so forth did the ponies introduce themselves to Rainbow Dash. A mix of ponies from close by and ponies who were more well-traveled like Vert. She could tell that just from the names. Seems no matter where outside you were from, they all stuck together on the inside. Anypony not from Hoofica had to do that. She wondered if there were similar groups like this elsewhere in Hoofica, like one along the southern border.

After the introductions, Vert led her and the rest of the group through the forest to their “home”. At first it looked like some just a few hastily, and poorly, made shelters in and around the trees. Branches tied together with tightly packed dirt and leaves for roofs, grass curtains, dug out holes in the ground acting as fire pits. But as they went further she started seeing some more long lasting shelters made from carved wood, repurposed wagons that had been dragged inside the forest along with other supplies, and even a few small log cabins made where there was enough room between the trees.

The other ponies living here also made themselves known as soon as the party returned.

Rainbow Dash watched as pegasi, unicorns, earth ponies, mares, stallions, young and old, all came from the various huts and hovels to see what the commotion was.

“Hey,” Rainbow Dash waved to them all.

“This is Rainbow Dash,” Vert announced to everypony. “She’s an outsider just like us, she arrived here earlier today.”

“You came in through the north then?” A teenage earth pony stallion asked. “Did you stop by my village?”

“She did. Spoke to Big Red,” Blue Teardrop answered for her.

Rainbow Dash nodded. “Yeah, I did. Now before any other pony asks or gets any ideas, I don’t know a whole lot about how the outside world is doing either. I’m a traveler from far away and I’ve just been flying across this whole part of the world looking for adventure and I don’t really stay in any one place for that long. So sorry but I’m probably not going to be able to tell you too much. I’ve kind of been concerned with my own things.”

“Don’t anypony start to mob her anyways,” Vert said. “Let’s all be polite the same way any civilized ponies should be. She’s in just as bad a situation now too.”

“Welcome to our little den then,” an older earth pony mare said. “Make yourself at home for as long as you want. We’ve got plenty of food and water.”

“You should just stay with us forever to be honest,” Chatterbox from her group said.

“Yeah,” another unicorn from the hideaway spoke up. “There’s no sense in leaving or going anywhere else, not when things are the way they are in Hoofica.”

Rainbow Dash held up a hoof. “Hold on, I know you guys are just looking out for me, and from what I’ve heard about what’s going on here you’ve got reason to be worried about your fellow outsiders and everything, but I’ve got my own way of doing things. I’m not going to just stay here in this forest. I appreciate the offer and the help and all that, but I’m going deeper into Hoofica to figure all this out and put a stop to it. That’s just how it is with me. When I see ponies in need, I don’t leave them hanging.”

Vert raised an eyebrow at her. “You really plan on doing that? Are you crazy or just plain stupid?”

“Both,” Rainbow Dash snorted. “But believe me, I’ve done things like this before. I’ve been to bad places like this before. And I can’t just let them be.”

“Well if that’s what you want...” Vert awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck.

“Please, I really don’t think you should do something like that,” Blue Teardrop said as she walked right up to Rainbow Dash, grasping her hooves. “Stay here with us where it’s safe.”

A chorus of agreements rose up from the other ponies around. They didn’t want their new arrival to go out and pointlessly put herself in danger.

Rainbow Dash detached herself from the other pegasus. “Look, I’m glad you’re all worried for me, I appreciate it. But I can’t. I’d heard about this place since I first flew into the Great Camel Desert, and I’ve been excited to make it here and figure out what’s up ever since. Now that I’m here and I’ve heard about the crazy Queen and how all of you and the other ponies of Hoofica are suffering... I’m putting a stop to it. And believe me, I can handle it. I’ve flown from very, very, far away and I’ve faced a lot of challenges and stopped a lot of bad ponies while on my adventure. Hoofica is just one more stop.”

“You’re certainly an interesting pony. I hope that’s not all just hot air you’re blowing,” Vert said to her, a not entirely believing look on his face.

“It isn’t, okay?” Rainbow answered. “I can’t prove it to you, but just believe me when I say that I’m definitely returning this place to normal. That I’m definitely bringing down that wall and letting you all get out of here and go back home. That’s my promise.”

Rainbow Dash saw the other ponies mumbling to each other, most of them obviously not believing her. Most of them probably devoid of hope after being stuck in this place for too long.

“At the very least then-” Blue Teardrop started. “Please stay here for the rest of the day. Just spend the night, get some rest. Even though you said you didn’t have much to share with us about the outside world we’d still like to hear it.”

“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash nodded. “I can do that. And anyways-” she looked up through the trees at the dark sky. “I’ve kind of lost track of the time too.”

---

In the center of the little hideaway, Rainbow Dash sat in a circle with the other interested outsiders who wanted to learn any sort of morsels of information about how things outside were going. And about what Rainbow Dash actually planned to do. Of course since even Dash herself didn’t know aside from “fly on until she found somepony to punch” she didn’t have much to say on that topic either.

“Seems you actually still need plenty of help when it comes to learning about Hoofica and just what you’re up against,” Vert said to her.

“Uhhhh...” Rainbow Dash awkwardly glanced away.

He snorted in amusement. “Well, can’t blame you for being uninformed. Just make sure you don’t do anything stupid without knowing what you’re getting into. The Queen of Hoofica lives in Hoofica Castle in the center of the kingdom by the way. If you head straight south you’ll get there eventually.”

“I could just ask for directions from ponies too,” Rainbow Dash shrugged.

“I don’t advise that too much,” Lila Blossom, another mare from the hideaway said. “I’m one of the more recent arrivals here, and I went to Far Rock briefly when I came in. Most of the ponies here aren’t as welcoming and selfless as Cropduster. They’re not going to be happy to see you or spend time talking. Everypony is afraid and just hiding out in their own homes.”

Rainbow Dash frowned. “Well... I guess that’s not perfect but I’ll see what I can do. I don’t plan on, like, imposing on anypony or anything. But I know I’m definitely going to have to ask some... Hooficans? About what’s going on and if they know anything more. They’ve gotta have a better idea of things the closer you get to the capitol.”

“Good luck,” Vert said.

“Thanks,” Rainbow Dash grinned.

She wasn’t sure if that good luck was actually genuine or sarcastic, but she accepted it anyways. Just like she accepted the wooden bowl of soup that was pushed into her hooves a minute later. Not like she was super hungry, but why refuse? Apparently it was close to “evening”. Not like she could tell without a clock. Either way it was a good soup, and she was offered a tent afterwards to sleep in.

“I hope this is comfortable enough for you,” Blue Teardrop said as she showed it to Rainbow Dash.

“After what I’ve been through, anything that isn’t a bed of jagged rocks is comfortable,” Rainbow told her.

“Well… guess you’ll be leaving as soon as you wake up. I really don’t think you should though! This whole country is dangerous, it’s crazy in here!” Blue Teardrop pleaded.

“I get it,” Rainbow Dash said and then smiled to her. “And that’s what makes it an adventure.”

“I just don’t think I understand you...” Blue Teardrop said.

Rainbow Dash shrugged. “That’s alright. Not everypony has an appetite for awesome adventures. It’s not like I’m happy to hear about things being bad here but danger? Evil ponies? You bet that gets my heart pounding in excitement for when I can kick some butt and save this place.”

“I hope it goes well...”

“Heh, don’t worry about it. I keep my promises,” Rainbow Dash winked.

Comments

[TheCommunistDog]

Huh

In today’s chapter: Rainbow finds the little ‘outsider’ hideout.

[redmar]

Rainbow Dash is not wrong even if things turn out to be more difficult then she expects.