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Gazing to the Ocean of the Sky

by David Silver

Chapter 50: 50 - Episode 9, Rolling Rolling Rolling

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Cherry wrenched down a lever, conjuring a soft but deep thrumming through their beloved metal beast. "Ready!" she called out to the others.

Indigo shoveled up some of the dried heat and sent it into the hungry belly of the beast. "Ready!"

Berry raised a hoof over the final lever. "And now, I, master of machines, will press the last switch."

Cherry rolled her eyes. "Go on!"

Indigo bobbed his head. "I can't take the suspense."

Berry didn't keep them waiting longer. She pressed down on the lever, forcing it down several loud ratchets before they were all roughly thrown from their hooves.

Their train had moved!

Quickly, they scrambled back to their hooves to see the ground around them was moving in response. The train was rolling without a rail. Sure, it wasn't nearly as fast as a train on a proper set of tracks would go, but they were going!

Cherry leaned out the window that had no glass to give a spirited whoop of delight. "We did it!"

Indigo leaned back and clopped his forehooves with building excitement. "Where are we gonna take it?"

Berry tapped her chin. "I had some ideas for that, but, for now, how about we park next to Twilight's tower there?" She thrust a hoof out at Twilight's big purple monument.

All three worked together to keep the metal beast under control and began piloting it towards the friendship castle.

At that castle, Spike peeked out the front door. "What's all that noise?" He looked left and right before his eyes settled on the red train coming towards him at an uncomfortable rate. "What the?" What could he do? He thrust out a claw. "Stop right there! This is, um, royal property!" It was still coming. "I-I mean it. Stop right there! C'mon!"

Loud grinding whistles came from it as Spike stood his ground, bravely trying to defend his home. He'd already lost one so violently.

When it was too close, he squeezed shut his eyes, unable to watch it smash into him and the tower together.

The sound stopped. Was he flattened? He dared to crack open an eye to see his claw was resting on the front bumper of the train. He had stopped it? He stopped it! He let out a nerve-wracked laugh as he pumped a fist. "Yeah!"

Cherry hopped down from the train lightly. "Hey, Spike. Is Twilight home?"

Spike pointed at the train. "Did you see that?! I stopped it!"

Cherry didn't have the heart to correct Spike. He looked so happy about it. She raised a hoof and patted him on the shoulder. "Good job, but you shouldn't make a habit of that. I don't want my favorite dragon getting hurt."

Indigo and Berry were next off. With a bright flash, Twilight popped into being, gaping at the huge train parked right in front of her house. "Why is this here?" she asked, hoof pointed at the bright red monstrosity that dominated the view.

Indigo turned back towards it. "We got it working. It carried itself here, see?"

Twilight gave a little nod as she approached with slow steps. "I... see. It can't stay here."

Berry pointed at Twilight. "That's why we need your help. It's time the dry lands and the wet lands came closer together." She brought her forehooves together in a mighty clop. "Don't you think so?"

Twilight imagined swamps and deserts somehow getting closer together. "I... don't think I'm imagining this correctly. What do you want to do exactly?"

Cherry moved up beside her rival and threw a leg over her. "We want to ferry ponies into the ocean and out of the ocean."

Twilight slowly sank to her haunches as Spike caught up with her. He scratched at one of his cheeks. "Can this thing work underwater?"

Indigo bobbed his head. "That's why we need your help, to make it work under the water.

Berry smiled from underneath Cherry's leg. "We have a design all worked out, but it's going to need some of that magic of yours to seal the deal, literally."

"Literally?" Twilight trotted to the stairs leading up onto the engine. "You've done an amazing job. From the way they were describing it, I wasn't sure, to be honest, that you could get it moving again."

Cherry blinked softly, following after Twilight. "If you didn't think we could do it, why'd you let us keep working on it?"

Twilight gestured at it. "Because the important part can be the journey, not the destination. You learned a lot working on this, I imagine, right?" The three nodded at her. "And you had fun doing it, right?" They nodded again. "So, even if it never moved, you weren't wasting your time."

Indigo suddenly burst into a smile. "I understand. Still, it's even better that we did get it to move."

Twilight couldn't argue that. She looked over the maze of intricate pipes and multitude of switches and other controls. "I wouldn't even know where to start..." That wasn't entirely true. She'd start with a book. "So... Run that by me again? You want to run this into the ocean?" She raised a brow at the idea. "You do know these aren't made to do that."

"Yet." Cherry stood tall and proud on her dry swimmers. "That's where you come in. The train needs to be kept dry, at least up here." She gestured around the engine car. "The dry power won't work wet. If you can keep it dry, then it shouldn't matter where it is."

"Well, sure, I could do that easily." They smiled hopefully. "But only for a little while."

Berry approached with a frown. "This is the part where you tell us how we do go about it, right?"

Twilight tapped at her chin with a hoof. "A full scale enchantment is no simple feat. It takes time, preparation, and--"

Indigo clopped down a hoof. "Tell us what we have to do, um, Princess." His bravery eroded towards the end, ears dipping, but he didn't back down.

Spike raised a claw in the midst of a shrug. "Maybe we should send them to Canterlot."

"That... actually isn't a bad idea." Twilight nodded. "In fact! I think it's time I showed some faith in your abilities." She sat down on the smooth metal. "Since you've proven yourself so far. If you feel up for it, you'll go by train, not this one of course, to Canterlot. And!" She raised a hoof for emphasis. "You'll be allowed to do it on your own."

Berry beamed with pride, but Cherry wasn't as certain. "Thank you, Twilight, for your faith in us, but..." She pointed at Spike. "I nominate Spike to come with us."

All three seaponies gazed at the startled Spike. "M-me?" He had a claw to his chest, surprised at first. but he began to warm quickly. "Well, I suppose you would pick the best. I'll get you there nice and safe, and I know my way around Canterlot. I was born there, you know."

They didn't know that. Indigo bobbed his head. "Alright, so you know where to get somepony to do the work?"

Spike raised a single finger, only to slowly lower it. He looked to Twilight with a sheepish grin.

She gave a patient smile. "I'll write up a letter to bring with you. I know a few ponies talented enough for the task."

The matter was settled. With a note quickly written and surrendered to Spike, all three were prepared for their journey to Canterlot.

Except for Twilight's soft cough. "You will move this away from the castle, I trust? It's not staying here while you're gone." She hopped down from the engine and pointed back where it had been. "It was safe over there and it can wait--"

"She," corrected Berry. "We'll move her for you, Miss Twilight."

They moved the train back without anything breaking. Spike was duly impressed, riding the machine as it moved. "Wow! You really did fix it!"

Cherry tilted her head. "You sound surprised."

Spike went red in his cheeks. "I didn't mean anything by it, it's just that, you know, seeing is believing."

Indigo tapped at the metal floor. "I think feeling is believing, in this case."

With the train parked, they began their dry swim to the 'official' trains.

Cherry snorted as she went. "They're only more official because they get to have tracks, and stations. We'll get those too! Eventually..."

Spike perked a fin at Cherry. "Yeah?"

Cherry bobbed her head quickly. "Uh huh! We'll have a station up on the dry and some stations down in our bigger cities and then we'll run the train back and forth between them, carrying ponies comfortably into and out of the dry lands." She clopped her hooves as eager visions of the future danced behind her eyes. "Some of the cars would be full of water, and some would be kept dry with the same magic that keeps the engine dry, eventually. At first, they'll all be wet cars, for ponies like us." She pointed at Indigo, Berry, and herself.

"You don't dream small," said Spike in a complimenting tone as he purchased tickets for them all to Canterlot, using the funds Twilight had given him for the trip. "Hey, think I could visit one of your cities?"

Indigo threw a leg over Spike and nodded. "That'd be great! Then we could be your tour guide instead of the other way around."

Berry nodded. "It's only fair that we return the favor. Thanks for the help."

Cherry blinked at Berry. "You're being very nice today."

Berry darkened in her cheeks. "What? I can be appreciative! Besides, he isn't my rival, you are." She stuck out her tongue at Cherry.

Cherry threw a leg over Berry and they hugged gently. They might have been rivals, but it was far from a bitter rivalry between them.

As the train lurched into motion, all three sea ponies moved to the windows to watch the dry move past them. They were fairly sure they'd never get tired of seeing it, especially when going to exciting places. They were raising upwards towards the great city in the mountains known as Canterlot. It was sure to be quite... dry, but also to have horny ponies beyond comprehension.

Cherry gave a nervous giggle. "I can't wait..." She didn't have much choice. Waiting was what they had to do, at least until the train arrived.

Spike had his claws behind his back and was rocking on his dry swimmers. "Don't worry. I'll keep you on track and we'll find that enchanter in no time at all!"

Indigo looked to Spike curiously. "Who is it?"

"Oh, lemme see." He dug out the letter. "It looks like we have to find--"

Author's Notes:

What pony are they going to see?

Did Twilight triple check that letter for typos?

Next Chapter: 51 - Dancing Estimated time remaining: 31 Minutes
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