Rainbow squeaked like a distressed filly.
She trotted forward, only to stumble, her front left hoof splashing deep into seawater. The raft had split from the collapsing mast, and several logs spread apart to expose the depths below. Thrashing about, Rainbow rolled onto a dry surface again.
She hyperventilated, her wide eyes darting all around the surface of the raft in the dim morning light. Gnashing her teeth, she lifted every loose piece of debris, including the shattered remnants of her lean-to.
“No... oh no...”
She fumbled and felt around and searched every square surface of the craft.
“No... please... no no no no no no no!”
Seething, Rainbow Dash spun about, staring at every horizon. Her dizzy spell had lasted an untold amount of hours, but the ocean around her was dead-still. There was no reason to believe that she had drifted toofar. Plus, Arcanista's bag wasn't completely full of junk. For all Rainbow knew, it could very well have been buoyant... or at least neutrally buoyant.
Nostrils flaring, Rainbow Dash flapped her wings. She leapt—only to fall flat on her chest.
“Ooomf! Nnngrh...” She snarled, angry at her own forgetfulness. “Darn it!”
Hopping back onto her hooves, she flapped her wings... then flapped them harder. It was no use. Her body refused to fly.
So, panicking, she fumbled with her bagstraps until she untied Luna's satchel. Shrugging it off her flank, she positioned it neatly in the center of the remaining raft, took a deep breath, then dove straight into the placid waters around her.
Splassssh!
Rainbow Dash plunged into the depths. She was blind. To her aching shock, there was no seeing further than a few feet ahead of her muzzle. The morning light just wasn't bright enough to pierce the depths. What's more, the salt water stung her eyes. After a meager bit of thrashing about, she kicked her way back up to the surface.
“Scrkk-gaahgh! Sptt!” Rainbow pony-paddled around the raft, slapping her forelimb across the bent wooden logs. She dragged Luna's satchel to the edge, rummaged around inside, then grabbed Scootaloo's goggles. Tossing the satchel safely back into the center, she fitted the eyepiece around her skull, took another deep breath, then dove again.
Rainbow sank through the murky depths. There were no fish, no detritus, no hints of anything but bubbles and dense lifeless water. Thinking fast, her lungs aching with each prolonged second, she ran a hoof over her pendant so that her ruby pendant would glow. But nothing happened—short of a tiny strobe of scarlet light, that is. There was no helpful searchlight to expose the depths of the ocean. And even if Rainbow could illuminate even a fraction of the expanse, how was she to find Arcanista's satchel amidst all of that? There was no telling how far the satchel could have sunk. It could be on the ocean floor for all Rainbow knew.
That didn't stop her from trying.
Splashing and sputtering, Rainbow surfaced and resurfaced constantly, floundering about, peering through her goggles as she swam tiny, frantic circles through the upper layers of the salt water desert that she was stranded in. She paddled and swam and kicked until every limb was sore—including her wings. Her body was thoroughly soaked, and she could feel her lungs struggling to give her the regular supply of oxygen. Having fasted as much as she did over the past few days, Rainbow simply lacked the strength to dive any further—even if she was lucky enough to find Arcanista's satchel. And would she even be able to salvage the Nebulum and Heaven's Slices? The only thing keeping their enchantment even remotely intact was direct exposure to the harmonic energies in Rainbow's Element. But on their own, sunk in the sea, and exposed to the elements?
Rainbow Dash splashed to the surface one more time. She shivered in the cold currents, gazing at the undulating expanse all around her. She knew that there was no point in pursuing what was lost any further. So, cussing under her breath, she twirled about.
She couldn't see the raft.
“... … …!!!” Rainbow spun and spun, wings and legs thrashing. She let loose several inarticulate bursts of fright.
Then—past a wave of water formed by her own struggles—Rainbow finally saw the tell-tale sign of drifting wood. In her frantic, blind searches, she had inadvertently put over forty feet of distance between herself and the Scootaloo.
So, with steady motions, she stroked and swam towards it.
But—after a solid minute of kicking—the raft didn't appear to be coming any closer.
Rainbow's eyes twitched beneath her goggles. Gritting her teeth, she pivoted her body sideways and kick-stroked with both her front and rear limbs. She felt the water gliding past her, but it was doing so at a snail's pace. Horror gripped Rainbow's heart as she realized that the same mechanics of the Choke that made it impossible to fly or cast a sail was now flustering her attempts to swim normally. Nevertheless, she persisted, kicking and stroking faster as she attempted to return to the one and only source of buoyancy.
For what felt like a half-hour, Rainbow stroked and stroked. She inched towards her destination, her limbs numb. The sun rose, glaring into her eyes. A foggy condensation formed across her goggles and her mouth quivered from the bitter taste of salt water. There was barely even a tingle left in her senses by the time Rainbow reached spitting distance of the raft.
“Nnnngh!” She flung a hoof out.
It splashed ineffectually into the water, just inches shy of the raft.
“Rrrr-raaaugh!” She lashed again, dunking her body in the effort. She sputtered up to the surface, wheezing for breath as she fought to stay afloat. “Mrmmmf—Celestia!”
The pegasus lunged again, once more coming short. Her body grew cold. Gravity tugged at her harder and harder, as if a whirlpool was trying to drag her under. Then, with a calm breath, she pivoted about and tilted her head forward. Her teeth gripped to an edge of the raft, and she pulled the rest of her body forward. At last, she was within grabbing distance, and she rolled onto the dry wood.
“Grkkkg... spkkt—augh! Kaff! Kaff!” Rainbow crawled, squirmed, and inched her way to the center of the raft. There, she curled up with her back to Luna's satchel, dripping all over with ocean water. Rainbow Dash was a shivering, numb, soaked mess.
But she was alive... for what it was worth.
A lump formed in her throat—the first thing she felt since the anguished act of swimming took it out of her. She was aware of how terribly empty her stomach was—and how dry the back of her mouth. Now she was stuck on the raft, with nowhere to swim or fly, and a dead ocean stretching on all sides.
The pegasus never thought she'd miss the stale-tasting enchanted gift of the Val Roans as much as she did then. She was too exhausted to cry, and yet too panicked to fall asleep. So she did the next best thing.
She covered her wet face with her forelimbs, rolled over, and waited for the Sun to roast her pathetic body.
For what it is ever worth...
...The concept of "pony-paddling" is adorable.
That being said...I don't know....
I just don't know.
When she started going underwater, I was hoping for a chance that she'd at least find something interesting. But, this is the middle of wishy-washy nowhere.
. . . I'm pretty sure it is flashing shorter and shorter. Will RD go all chaosy when it dies? Maybe the Choke is different. . .
probably not. . .
Honey, that attitude won't get you nowhere. Then again, you're already in nowhere, so it doesn't really matter...
...
Eleven chapters to go!
5762458 Well, assuming it saps all magic, it's likely it would negate chaos magic as well.
Rainbow dies. Calling it now.
Why am I calling it? Well, you see, if I expect it then it can't happen, because nobody is expecting the ending to this book.
I mean, that's how it works, right?
5762508 Nah.
i.imgur.com/10Mnb5j.jpg
Something inquisition something unexpected something dark side.
The east horse is toast; austraeoh has failed. There will be no book seven. It was all a gigantic head-fake. That is the ending no one is prepared for.
5762508
SSnE said we wouldn't be prepared for it, not that we wouldn't expect nor predict it.
I mean, sure, you can expect RD to die, but are you prepared to bear the heart-wrenching sadness that will ensue?
Guh... I still don't get how people can enjoy swimming, just getting my face wet makes me start to panic a little.
Well... we now know they weren't talking figuratively when they said the elements turned against them. They are actively halting any attempt at progress she's making.
-Treachery and deceit, kingdom of conceit Yaerfaerda.
Theyre dead Dave, theyre all dead.
Next thing you know therell be the hallucnation of a rowboat of a fisher looking for Curious Squid or something.
would be most unpleasant if the extreme distortion in teh magic and the water surface mirror finish make like the transdimentional mirror.
Shall I bring them though now, sir?
5762494
But isn't the magic weakening because this is the edge of the world? And if the world is surrounded by chaotic miasma or whatever it was, then it stands to reason that chaos will only grow stronger the farther out she travels.
It makes me wonder why magic is failing... Does this universe use leyline theory or something else? I don't think we understand the basic magic theory/system here, yet.
5762494
Wouldn't that mean Rainbow could theoretically take off her pendant and be safe?
5762536 Or the rest of the book would be about the journey West by...Flash Sentry? I forgot who he was accompanying. Shining Armor, maybe?
5762546
img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131105174433/mlp/images/6/61/FANMADE_Fluttershy_scared_by_theflutterknight.png
Pls no
Zaid why did have to go and say that! Now I'm even more paranoid. This fic will be the end of me, I swear. Gonna start having nervous breakdowns or something.
5762553: I demand an explanation as to why you sign your comments with that. I demand it. Do not question my orders. My will is immutable, my command beyond reproach, and you will obey me without any form of contradiction or conceit or I will eat your dog.
5762554: You confuse me. Yes, always.
5762565: Probably.
5762564 I don't think we're at the end of the plane though. Chrysalis mentioned Rohbredden being past the Grand Choke, and magic apparently existing there.
5762603: Shining Armor, Cadance, and Flash.
5762546: Eh. I never really liked her anyways. Shit-tier waifu.
5762536, you're toasted, go to bread.
Let's assume I was wrong and there will be a full twelve books. It's possible.
Rainbow Dash is becalmed with a vengeance. Short of some deus ex machina, she is stuck there indefinitely. If Axan hasn't saved her ass by now, it doesn't seem likely she ever will.
Rainbow Dash is effectively immortal. Yes, she will die. She has died before. But what good would coming back to life be if she's still stuck there?
There is only one out that I can see: the plane itself is dying. It will take a few centuries, but eventually the machine world flames will all be extinguished. This may free RD from the Grand Choke. Of course, everypony she knows will be long dead, apart from alicorns and divines, and Equestria will be in extremely poor shape--and RD will know it if she regains contact with Luna--but she still has her mission to restore harmony. The harmonic side of the plane having turned to chaos doesn't really hurt her, when she was close to leaving that side anyway.
Okay, how the hell did that expedition ever make it across the Choke to Val Roa? I mean, at least Rainbow was able to fly for a while early on. But in the words of Mr. Jackson, this is some fucked up, repugnant shit. Even if they died shortly after arriving in Val Roa, they have my respect for getting there at all.
Also, I've considered the possibility that Rainbow will die at the end of this book. In fact, I've been considering it since roughly book five. It's always seemed oddly appropriate to me that Rainbow pass on after reaching the far eastern edge of the world, when she had no more sunrises to chase. Thing is, I'd anticipated that maybe one of the Jurists, or all of them even, would carry on the torch for her. But now? They're way the hell back in Val Roa, with lives to live. If Rainbow dies now, what then?
At this point, I think it's more likely that Rainbow will live, even if it's not in the same form. I stand by my reading of the word "Yaerfaerda" as implying some kind of rebirth. I've volleyed the idea of her becoming an alicorn or a draconequus or something along those lines, but it's hard to say. That's kind of the neat thing about the story right now: It could go almost anywhere.
When that's one of the better options to spend your time with, you're kinda boned.
5762494
5762565
Doesn't her having a severe dizzy spell/chaos attack indicate that the chaos inside her isn't being negated?
5762508
5762536
5762546
A lot can happen in eleven chapters...
5762650
Wasn't that already confirmed, though? Didn't Axan say that the world was dying way back in Silvadel?
5762631
You are just cementing your place as an antagonist in the Dark Side.
img0.joyreactor.com/pics/post/full/skeleton-santa-claus-Terry-Pratchett-comics-1742620.jpeg
Hours? How could it have lasted hours? That doesn't sound good, not at all. But it's the Choke. Maybe it'll get better. Or maybe not.
-Spirit
5762688 That's what I'm referring to.
To add further speculation, note that Chrysalis may still be alive too, and with Val Roa having fallen to chaos, lacking any resident alicorns to fight it off, she will be free to go east and find Rainbow Dash.
So, here's the question: Does Rainbow wait a week to die of dehydration, or plunge into the depths and wait for oxygen deprivation to do it in 5 minutes or less?
Or does she take the high road out? The element of Loyalty is barely hanging by a thread, and getting weaker. Chaos energy still affects Rainbow Dash.
I'm calling it now, the element runs out, chaos consumes Dash, and then we get the Deus ex machina we've been waiting for.
5762715
SQUEAK.
i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/526/389/531.jpg
5762723
Which will fill up eleven chapters?
And one last thing:
Chrysalis will find Dash's mummified corpse floating in the ocean. She will remove the pendant just long enough to revive her. She will then carry her to the far coast and help her past Verlax. But before they can reach the edge of the plane, they are ambushed by Shell. Defeating him takes the remainder of book seven and all of book eight. That will be the last we ever see of him—until book twelve, where he'll be waiting for Dash at the Midnight Armory.
I bet it will end with a huge wave from the West hitting the rest of the raft and flinging Rainbow Dash East while in the middle of a chaos attack. The last line of this book will be of her watching the water get closer and as she falls she accepts her very soon "demise", or her "corpse" washing ashore on the East side of the ocean.
Well, that explains why those sailors were fucked over. Forces just aren't met with an equal and opposite force anymore. How the hell did they get across in the first place? That's some legendary shit right there.
I still think a water train would work, because its pushing against tracks, not water. Cave Johnson, get to it.
5762622
Something tells me that Phoenix kitten won't mind you eating her dog.
Holey ship! That's some nasty water. If it took her more than an hour to return, then that search must have been an intense few ones long.
I'm really interested how this (lack of normal) physics work. If it's like there's hardly friction, it should be easier to propel the craft, unless the air is as frictionless as the water.
Which it probably is.
Welp.
Okay. You're toast.
5762804 Well, you certainly don't sound like you're prepared for it.
5762622 I can question your orders as much as I please. I don't have a dog.
Cause it's a nice and concise little rhyme that sums up the main story arc for this book.
From my little set of rhymes.
Burdened Loyal heart,now she is the Spark. Austraeoh.
Broken shattered wings,listing in their slings. Eljunbyro.
Scattered and alone,friends away from home. Innavedr.
Together and afraid,the hunters due be paid. Odrsjot.
Long lost legend found,hidden darkness crowned. Urohringr.
Treachery and deceit, kingdom of conceit Yaerfaerda.
These will expand as the books go on and I will sign my comments with them once I've come up with one for the appropriate book.
Sure, roasted meat is good, but self-cannibalism won't get you anywhere.
... I'll check myself out.
5763183 Hmm.
Okay poet kitty.
*pets Phoenix Kitten*
Well damn. It's looking more and more likely that Rainbow's either going to die on this trip, or she's going to get some kind of intervention from higher powers to help her across the last stretch. Or, maybe she'll just let Discord go rampant and see if he'll let her cross the seas. Could be fun, either way.
24
5763269 Yhey. I has the approval of our resident shipping empress.
*purrs and leans*
"Gritting her teeth, she pivoted her body sideways and kick-stroked with both her front and ear limbs."
fc00.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2014/222/5/b/mommy_where_do_pegasi_come_from_by_heir_of_rick-d7uk2v7.jpg
Dash is pretty much doomed
$5 to get to the other side she needs to go deeper. If the ocean is the very edge than if she dives down she will be going "up" towards the other side.
And so the Trauma Line Conga continues
I wish I could draw. The end of this chapter would make for an amazing picture.
This whole situation just keeps getting worse and worse for RD. Heck I kind of wonder if there will be a point where physics breaks down enough that the water just becomes solid (not ice just completely solid water)
I was waiting on a seapony to help her towards the end, but then I remember that this is a lifeless plain devoid of all magic.
5763198 Hey, the salt water will cute the meat for you!
I'm catching up.
Two hundred chapters to go.
Not sure I'll make it before Yaerfaerda wraps up, but I'll damn sure try.
Keep flying, Jurists. May there be wind at your backs.
5762874
Plot twist: Shell is Luna and so knows exactly what's going on and where he can appear for maximum drama.