Rainbow Dash Around the World

by MagicS

En Route to the Sea Lion Reefs

Snooore

Snooooore

SNOOOOOOORE

“For the love of—I’ve never heard a pony snore so loudly before! Wake up, Rainbow Dash!”

“Huh—wha?” Rainbow Dash rapidly blinked and flailed her hooves around, startled out of her slumber. She sat up and looked her head around, realizing she was inside the crow’s nest of the Heart of Azure. Lastly she looked up and saw the unamused face of Daylight Gleam peering down at her from the rim.

“It’s time for breakfast, sheesh,” the unicorn rolled her eyes. “I’m surprised you don’t wake yourself up with snoring like that.”

Rainbow Dash frowned and stood up. “Sleeping up here it’s not like it would normally bother you anyways...”

“The entire boat was being rocked by your snoring.”

“Pff, liar,” Rainbow snorted. She then flapped her wings and flew out of the crow’s nest, wincing slightly at a minor pain she still felt every now and then in her stomach. Ignoring that, she looked around at the dawn ocean, the sun shimmering across the waters, and the perfectly clear blue sky above them. “We close to the Sea Lion Reefs?”

Daylight scoffed. “We’re still four days away.”

“Ugh, seriously?” Rainbow groaned, an unhappy grimace on her face.

“Welcome to ocean travel,” Daylight looked at Rainbow’s wings and smirked. “Or any kind of travel for those who don’t have wings.”

“Yeah, great, like I really needed to be humbled.” Rainbow folded her legs in front of her chest.

Daylight just raised an eyebrow at her.

“...okay I get your point.”

“Just come down for breakfast, okay?”

Rainbow Dash immediately darted down to the deck, landing on it and grinning back up at the unicorn now standing by herself up by the crow’s nest. “You were saying?”

“You really know how to be insufferable,” Daylight said as she grabbed a rope and slid right down the mast, jumping off at the end and landing with a thump.

“I know how to be-”

Daylight immediately clamped a hoof over her mouth. “Don’t say fun.”

The two of them walked into the Captain’s cabin together and found everybody else already there—including Breakwater himself. Currently the Heart of Azure had its sail up and its anchor in the water, stopping it out here in the middle of nowhere. Just for the morning though so they could have breakfast together. If their next destination really was four days away then Breakwater was going to want to get as much sailing in as he could every single day.

Four days though… Rainbow Dash was getting a sense for just how huge this ocean was. The Heart of Azure wasn’t even slow when the winds were in their favor, she could tell, there was just so much water to cover. And despite her friends having traveled all over it before she even showed up here, they had come up empty in all their searching. And it sounded like they still had a lot of places to check and had never been to. The Sea Lion Reefs sounded like a pretty out of the way—or at least not very important—place and Rainbow still didn’t know a lot about it. Now might’ve been a good time to ask.

First though, it was still time for breakfast. Water, broccoli, and some kind of really tough bread that almost felt stale but was apparently supposed to be like that. Made specifically for long travels.

“Uhhh… I’m just gonna assume that this stuff isn’t going to taste good,” Rainbow said as she turned the square piece of hard bread over in her hooves.

“You would assume correctly,” Captain Breakwater said. “They don’t make it for the taste.”

“If it does make you feel better there should be plenty of tasty fruit to trade for once we reach the Sea Lion Reefs,” Gilbert said.

“It’ll be nice to have that after we were… interrupted at the Three Spears,” Senax said.

“Still four days away though, so don’t let your mouths water too much,” Breakwater said.

“It really is four days until we’ll get there?” Rainbow asked, dismay evident on her face.

“Yep. You should try spending a year out at sea like I have,” Breakwater said.

“And there’s nothing to really see or do until we get there?”

“Sorry, we’re just not in a part of the ocean like that. We’re away from major shipping routes, going to a place that practically has no resource value or anything interesting about it. You’re just not going to see a lot on the way. Leviathan’s sake, even most of the pirates that would’ve normally terrorized out of the way spots like this are gone because Godfrey already sunk them all.”

“Blehhh...” Rainbow Dash slumped down and laid her hooves out along the table. “Leviathan’s sake...”

“Pick up a few more phrases and you’ll start sounding like a seasoned sailor at least,” Breakwater grinned.

“Yeah just what I want, to go back to Equestria and say stuff like “Shiver me timbers” randomly,” Rainbow rolled her eyes.

“We’ve been out here plenty long and we haven’t lost our minds when it comes to picking up new vocabulary. Also we’ve had to spend far more time sitting around the ship doing nothing than you, Rainbow Dash. It’s only a four day trip, that’s nothing,” Daylight said.

“Look—I’m not saying anything like that. But you know how fast I am. And how fast I usually travel, and how I usually fly on my own. So not getting to do all that is making me antsy. I like having my own pace, you know?” Rainbow said to her.

“Fly out with me later today, we can go off anywhere you want and come back here later,” Gilbert suggested. “Together we can get that urge out of you and you won’t be so agitated anymore.”

Rainbow shrugged. “Yeah, I guess that sounds alright.”

“There still isn’t really anything around to see, just saying,” Breakwater said. “It’s just miles of open ocean all around. The next closest major island is… Turtle Beach, a fair distance south of here. No reason for us to head there unless we get a Trident or Necklace rumor to go on.”

Rainbow Dash took a bite out of her “stale” bread and nearly retched, forcing it down and shaking her head in disgust. “Eugh… I can’t wait till we get to those Reefs.”

“Me too but my reason is just slightly different,” Senax smiled.

“I’ll admit I’m looking forward to it too—though I’m not going to whine about it—I’m just curious about seeing a new place,” Daylight said. “We’ve been to so many odd places, strange islands, countries and civilizations with their own unique cultures, and there are still so many out on the ocean that are just unknown to me. My old explorer self is calling out to me.”

“Hmm...” Rainbow Dash sat back and thought, shooting a glance to Breakwater. “You’ve been to the Sea Lion Reefs before, obviously. You told me a little bit about the place before, but what are the ponies who live there really like?”

Breakwater rubbed his chin, mulling his thoughts over for a second. “In a word? Carefree. They don’t have a lot going on at their atolls and reefs other than fishing, surfing, grabbing coconuts, and moving about to keep ahead of storms. In a place like that where there’s nothing valuable, no reason for big ships or companies to visit, the locals are naturally going to be pretty laid-back. They don’t have to pay attention to time or work like others do. No big worries or nothing like that for them. The ponies that live there don’t want for anything more than they already have, they have no ambition… er, I don’t mean that in a bad way. They’re just, simple, friendly folk.”

“Naw, I get it,” Rainbow said. “Sounds like we’ll at least get a nice welcome.”

“We should,” Breakwater nodded.

“Aaaaaand… you mentioned surfing?” Rainbow asked, intrigued.

“Yeah,” Breakwater snorted. “Figured you’d find that interesting… they get decent waves there most of the time. They use driftwood carved surfboards to make the most of them. Every time I’ve been to the Reefs I’ve seen a lot of ponies out surfing the waves. I think it’s part of their culture, every child has to learn how to surf. The ponies that live there kind of got a religion of their own and everything, I think they worship the ocean itself or something. It’s not as serious as the Sarraroccon Priests or anything but there’s definitely a spiritual touch to their lives.”

“They sound like an engaging group of ponies to meet,” Gilbert smiled.

“You would literally say that about any group of ponies,” Daylight rolled her eyes.

“I agree with Gilbert though,” Senax said. “Any ponies who see more to life and the ocean than just trading money or goods across it must be a very warm and genuine people. I think it’s special to really believe in something greater.” She nervously glanced at Breakwater. “Er, no offense.”

He scoffed. “None taken.”

“I think it would just be cool to meet some ponies who’ve got the time to live a little,” Rainbow shrugged. “I know we’re probably not going to have the time—and we’ve got more important stuff going on—but if the opportunity comes up… maybe a little surfing or hanging out with the locals?”

Daylight sighed in exasperation. “Truth be told, it will probably take us no time at all to find the supposed treasure chest and see if anything’s inside. So we’ll more than likely have plenty of extra time to stay at the Reefs if everyone feels the need to. And after our incursion with Godfrey… even I can see the benefits of just relaxing a little bit.” She looked over at Senax. “But. That’s your call, Senax.”

“I see no reason why we can’t spend an extra afternoon relaxing. We hardly ever do anything like that lately,” the merpony smiled.

“If we’re deciding on a place to have fun then the Sea Lion Reefs are one of the best places for that,” Breakwater nodded. “I met a mare there once and… ahem… probably should only talk about that with Gilbert actually...” He actually blushed slightly in embarrassment.

“Glad that Senax sees the value of fun,” Rainbow Dash grinned and patted her on the shoulder. “Can’t wait till we get there now.”

“Yes, it’s only four more days, not long at all,” Daylight smirked and winked at her.

“Ugh… you killjoy.”

---

“No, Gilbert, I’m not secretly an alicorn or some kind of magically enhanced pegasus or freak mutation. I’m just the best flier in the world. It’s really simple.”

“Well I’m sorry, I’ve never seen a pegasus fly like that before. I didn’t even know it was possible to move like that.”

“I’m just awesome. That’s seriously it.”

“Then what does it say about my brother that-”

“He’s a jerk. That’s what it says.”

“I see… well that is true.”

Rainbow Dash chuckled with amusement as she flew through the air with Gilbert. The two of them had taken a break from the Heart of Azure like he had earlier suggested and were now pretty much just messing around over the waters to the south. Gilbert had a few “questions” for her that made sure there was never a moment of silence between them while they flew. Not that she really minded. Quiet was the thing she didn’t want right now, not with four full days still between them and their next destination. Humoring Gilbert was way more enjoyable, even if the majority of his questions were dumb, than just flying silently over the open ocean.

Especially since like Breakwater had mentioned, there wasn’t a lot to see out here. They were truly in the “open” ocean. Not an island or nary a sea rock was jutting up out of the water. The one thing the both of them had spotted was a pod of dolphins that were happily jumping through the water, going in a different direction than their ship. Rainbow was keeping her eyes open for more, maybe to spot a whale too. There had to be all sorts of life down there, teeming under the surface of the water. The Sea Lion Reefs sounded like a colorful place to explore and see too for that reason.

Fluttershy had once attempted to teach her about various animal ecosystems and how some places could hold hundreds of different species of animals all living together. Coral reefs were something like that. Fluttershy and Twilight would probably have a more fun time when it came to that—Rainbow was definitely more interested in finding the coconut trees and other tropical fruits up on the surface of the islands that made up the Sea Lion Reefs. She wasn’t a huge fan of coconuts actually, but any kind of fruit or thing like that would be great. Coconuts were just like, the most common tropical island fruit weren’t they? Or maybe that was bananas? Or pineapples? She blinked as she realized that she actually had no idea. Either way, after getting her fill of fruit, and stocking plenty onto their ship, she planned to mess around with the locals and have some more exciting fun.

“Ooh, Rainbow Dash! Look below right there!” Gilbert suddenly said.

Rainbow looked down and saw something weird at the surface of the water. She had no idea what she was looking at at first until she noticed some small fins. It must’ve been some kind of fish, but a really odd looking one, it was just lying there flat right on the surface of the water. Wide, stocky, and somewhat oval-shaped. She scratched her head looking at it. “What is that?”

“It’s a Sun Fish!” Gilbert exclaimed. “You hardly ever see them basking like that, they’re a rare sight.”

“Huh,” Rainbow took a second look at it, it was way bigger than she was. She could’ve dropped down and landed on its side by the look of it.

“I certainly hope there aren’t any sharks around, Sun Fish are such majestic creatures.”

Rainbow tilted her head as she looked at it. Majestic might not have been the word she would use.

Actually majestic was probably a word she would never use. Awesome and cool were better words. Those would be saved for like… a swordfish or something.

“Don’t you eat fish, Gilbert?” Rainbow asked him.

“I do indeed, they’re delicious!” He smiled.

“Don’t see an issue with calling a fish majestic, not wanting it to get eaten by sharks, but then turning around and eating tuna or whatever?” She raised an eyebrow at him.

“None whatsoever!” He gave her a thumbs up.

“You’re a real treasure, Gilbert...” Rainbow Dash snorted and rolled her eyes.

“I hope my eating of fish doesn’t bother you too much. You’re not actually upset by it, are you?” An apologetic look came across his face as he nervously tapped his talons together.

Rainbow Dash just grinned. “No, dude, I’m not. Been to plenty of places where fish and meat get eaten. And I knew a lot of griffons and dragons before I even left Equestria. Just making an observation. And maybe having a little fun at your expense.”

“Haha! Well I’m certainly used to having fun made at my expense, so no problem there!” Gilbert smiled again.

This time Rainbow Dash grimaced. “You ever… uh, if you ever wanna talk about that, I’m all ears by the way. You’re a nice guy, Gilbert.”

“Oh don’t worry about it, I’ve gotten over everything that’s happened in the past, since before I even left Griffonstone. I don’t let anything keep me down for long.”

“Yeah… did kind of figure that out about you.”

“Mmm...” Gilbert hummed and looked back over his shoulder, the Heart of Azure no longer actually in sight. “Do you think we should head back? It’s about time for lunch.”

Rainbow looked back too, noticing for the first time how far the two of them had actually flown. “Guess so. Mom might get mad at us if we’re not back for supper.”

“Bwahahahaha!”

Comments

[redmar]

Daylight would certainly not appreciate that joke at the end. Rainbow really is not in her element with such a long time before she can do anything.

[TheCommunistDog]

Op