After many miles into this frozen wasteland, the wind picks up the forward north we when. Seeing a mountain reach in front of us at the event horizon the clouds overhead them.

I begin to think that it would take longer to go around them, I lunch a drone myself towards the mountains in front of us.

The wind made us slow down the suits Rainbow and Spike are working overtime trying to keep them warm.

The drone I lunched reached the mountain reach seeing something I never thought I saw again; remains of nearly a hundred vehicles buried under the ice showing themselves from the drone flying over remains.

The closer we got to the mountains the others start seeing the remains sticking threw the ice-making Twilight leading the pack to stop on the outer edge of the remains.

Rainbow feels the wind cutting threw her like a blade, even with the suit working overtime trying to keep her body warm.

Spike gets on the radio and asks Twilight why we stopped before seeing the remains of a truck that had been nearly buried in the snow was being removed by the strong winds. “Twilight.” Was the only thing he said before seeing the remains next to him nearly scaring him to near death. “Spike?” She calls to him over the radio getting attention from the remains. “Never mind.” That was the only thing he could say still trying to catch his breath seeing his breath from how cold it is out there.

I open the door feeling the cold wind cutting threw me a blade and feeling someone shooting me with a billion of needles straight down the spine of my back. Remembering the rods in my back making it crack and pop as I get out.

“Wait here.” I tell the young pup as I close the door seeing him coming to the driver's side and starting to walk towards the others, Spike turns around to see me walking up.

“James, what are you doing?!” He calls out to me as I walk past Duke’s car. The dog starts to try to find ways to open the door using a front to grab the door handle and using his body to push open the door and start running towards me.

I hear him behind me before hearing something like a loud crash to the left side of me making to quickly react to take over by jumping over the hood of Duke’s car, seeing what made that noise.

Seeing one of the wreaks that were close by side off from top of another wreak and the heavy snow bury underneath them. I look and see the young pup tugging on my pants leg trying to tell me something. “What is it?” I ask him, making him pull on my pants leg more before hearing another crash behind me and another.

Knowing something is coming feeling something underneath the ice before breaking throw sending wreaks, snow, and ice around us. The figure slowly comes up from the hole in the ice, a snake nearly five hundred foot long from what we saw.

From what we could see from it the main body is black like oil with a yellow stripe on its belly. The eyes were a bright orange color almost glowing from a distance.

It turns to face us leaving us nearly a stow making us not to move a muscle if it goes by the site before feeling the wind picking up from the mouth of the pass making the rods in my back to feel like being stabbed in the back making me fall to my knees in pain.

The snake sees this but does nothing yet as I grab the injection needle that I’ve been carrying with me seeing that it has been frozen soiled. With a great deal of pain going threw me the injection becomes completely useless.

I fall over to the ground seeing only the clouded sky in front of me. The others were still scared out of their minds to move to see the snake in front of them seeing that I’m in trouble and can’t do anything about it, before seeing the snake started to move closer towards us.

The young started barking at me, pulling on my jacket trying to get me up before seeing the snake in front of my eyes again looking straight into its eyes, seeing it open its mouth pulling out its vang-like teeth out seeing one of them hover right over me.

Seeing a drop starting to form, I couldn’t move because of the pain. The drop comes down hitting me in the mouth.

The drop didn’t taste of poison it tasted something else entirely. It tastes very sweet and warm. I can feel it going threw my body making the pain going away making me quickly up on my feet feeling a rush.

The snake pulls back a little seeing that I’m alright before turning away from us, digging into the ice leaving us.

Spike and Rainbow saw the most of it while the others were limited from inside their cars and mirrors.

Pinky opens her door and comes running toward me. “James, why did you do that?” She asks me with a worried tone in her voice. I see the body of the snake still going while trying to get a whole of myself of what just happened.

I take a deep breath before answering. “First off, I was trying to get a better look at where are we. Now I know where we are.” Still feeling the heat going through my body.

“Then where are we, daring?” Rarity asks me as I walk up towards them passing AJ’s truck. I remove my sunglasses before feeling another cold breeze coming from the mouth of the pass.

“Snakeskin Pass.” I said out loud answering her question. Which makes Duke and Danny get out hearing the answer over the radio remember the first time they came threw the pass during the second year of the MR Series back in the day.

Remembering that day very well. It was the second track of the ice event.

Duke was driving a 2014 HVS Gen-F GTS Prototype. Painted in black and white with the team logo on the hood.

While Danny was driving a 2005 Pontiac GTO. Painted in the same theme with the logo on the sides.

He was coming up on the mouth of the pass when the road in front of them just caved in swallowing up the three drivers in the front of them with high winds coming from the opening.

We hit the break hard on the ice up the road they were on. The tires were having trouble getting the grip on the ice making both to side on the ice. Duke’s car was fitted with an all-wheel-drive system. While Danny’s was fitted with a rear-wheel-drive making the ice even troublesome for him.

The cave-in hole coming closer and closer Duke nearly came to a stop, stopping with his front wheels coming over the edge, while Danny was still coming too fast going over the edge crashing into the cave in hole below.

Duke throws it in reverse getting his front back on the road, before getting out seeing that his brother has gone over the edge trying to see where he landed.

Seeing that his car is in a mangled mess of what used to be his brother’s car. Before hearing something on the radio. Making him quickly gets back inside hearing that he's crew chief that Danny just use his EJS leaving only a few brushes from landing on the airbag, for things like this.

Duke good to hear that his brother is ok but he is out of the rest of the season. Has for Danny knowing what happens now waiting for his brother to come through the portal seeing the clock still ticking down showing only 80 mins left.

Duke found a way to get around of the cave in hole and reach the end with only five minutes left on the clock.

As for now, James just finishes telling the others about the past and the rumor of a beast that guards the pass and attacks to try to go threw without making a peace offering.

I still feeling the heat going threw my body, which I never felt my whole life and mostly the rods were like they were never there before that surgery that change me forever.

Felt another gust of wind coming from the mouth of the pass making me to grab my hat before the wind try to take it away from me.

The mouth of the pass is only a one-lane road covered in ice and snow with a strong gust of winds coming from the mouth every felt seconds, some gusts stronger than others.

Not only that that pass always changes with the snakes that lay below the ice, not only that trying to get threw without making a mistake would be impossible.

“How would we get through?” Rarity asks me begins to feel the effects of the cold winds coming from the mouth.

“There is only one way to pass through and they’re already in the air.” I answer her question pointing up at the three drones that are hovering above us.

The storm from the south of us looks like it changes course by the high winds above us heading for the pass from what can see in the distance.

“We don’t have long to get through with that storm coming.” I tell the group noticing the storm in the distance.

“How long?” Twilight asks me to make me quickly respond towards it. “An hour, two at the most; if we’re lucky.” I answer her question.

“Then let’s get going.” Rainbow said out loud ravening her engine.

“Rainbow!” AJ shouts to her getting her attention. “What is it AJ?” She asks her in response for being called feeling another gust of wind coming from the mouth of the pass.

“We don’t know what’s in there and we can’t just go in blind and hope for the best.” Applejack tells her.

Before seeing Danny kneeling using his hand to push the loose snow away seeing the remains of his old car in the ice below him making him to shut his eyes to pay respects towards an old friend that he never got to.

Duke sees this knowing that he finally made peace with one of his demons of his past. His brother with everything that has happened of losing his leg during the attack at the Silenzers HQ a few years ago.

Once he gets back in his brother's car takes control of his drone, flying above the entrance of the pass, and begins to send the live feed to Twilight's car. Twilight recalls her drone with the live feed coming from Danny’s drone.

With Twilight still in front of the pack and begins to lead everyone into the mouth of the pass with me taking up the rear.

We try to take it slow going through the pass but the single road is covered with snow and ice making things a little difficult for the tires trying to get a grip. Sliding on every curve fighting our best to get the grip on the corner.

Our speed is limited to only 45 mph to get through the pass if we try to go faster, we’ll end up somewhere we don’t want to be. I remember going through the pass at a faster speed in the past at 75 mph. But this time we weren’t in a race against the clock, so we take our time to get through the pass making sure that everyone makes it through without any issue, or so I thought.

I notice Twilight having trouble seeing her rear end starting to give way slipping on some ice starting to go into a fishtail.

Inside her Twilight trying to stay in control of her car feeling it's starting to go. First trying to hit the brakes which makes her go into a fishtail. She quickly gives it some gas trying to straighten it up, but it didn’t make nearly turn sideways so she turns the wheel in the other direction feeling the car in control once again.

Spike sees this seeing her car doing this nearing sending his own bike into a fishtail of his own, sending his backend out while still in control hearing the rear tire trying to get grip making a trial of broken-up ice into the air behind him.

Twilight gets ger car out of the fishtail and in full control once again, seeing Spike fishtailing his bike on the ice seeing that he has better control than she did.

The first turn was coming up trying to slow down to make the turn seeing they are starting to pick up speed coming from a downward slope.

She sees that she is coming up to fast to make the turn, so the only thing is to do a fishtail maneuver to make the turn. She opens the throttle shifting down a gear in the progress making the engine nearly go into red line.

With only 5 years away from the turn she hits the brakes and turns the wheel into the turn before quickly turning it in the other direction hitting the clutch and sending her car into a drift on the ice.

I see her drifting around the corner seeing small pieces of ice coming from the rear tires. AJ tries to make the turn as well sending her truck into fishtail as well quickly losing control before getting the grip on the ice to get around it.

Duke hasn’t been on the ice for some time now but knows what his car can do causing his back end to go out drifting around the corner without any problem.

I’m the last one to get around the corner seeing I’m coming in too fast to the turn. The only way for me was to drift the corner, but in stand I hit the both main brakes and the E-brake to slow down to get grip on the turn like I have done many times before.

The mark 4 and the others I use before have been built for grip, not drift with the AWD system.

The ice is too slick for the system to get a grip making the car too go wide into the turn missing the apex nearly crashing the car on an ice spike that coming from the ground in front of me.

I was only no more than fifteen feet away when the grip came back to the car making it finally make the turn. With being how slick the pass is now than the last time I came threw here during the last year of the series.

The others carry on not knowing what going on with me taking up the rear. I slowly catch up with them filling the slick patches on the road with ice setting the tires when we got here.

We come to a complete stop with a spit in the pass with two passes. “This place is like a maze.” Twilight said out loud. “What was that Twilight, please repeat.” Spike said over the radio.

“I didn’t realize that my radio is on.” She quickly responded over the radio.

I've been thinking while we’ll stop at this impasse launching my drone seeing how far the storm is coming. On my screen seeing the drone is having trouble getting stable with the high winds taking the storm towards this distraction.

I run the numbers in my head with the speed of the winds coming from the drone recalling my drone and get on the radio. “Guys we have a problem.” I tell them.

“What is it daring?” Rarity asks me. “I just run some numbers in my head with the headwinds coming from that storm behind us, we only have like 15 mins to get threw the pass without making any mistakes.” I answer her question while telling the others.

“And Danny it's best to recall that drone of yours before it gets damaged from the winds.” I tell him. “James, what are you talking about?” He asks me with a confused look about what I just told him. “Listen those headwinds were throwing my drone like crazy before recalling it.” I answer his question.

“James would never put us in harm's way like this.” Duke tells his brother making question his judgment on his friend knowing everything that has happened to them so far. “Really would like to bring up my missing leg and your scares from that day that makes you to drink your problems to forget that day ever happen.” Danny tells with an angry tone in his voice.

Duke takes a deep breath before continuing with his train of thought. “I know how you feel Danny. I still don’t trust him fully, but when he knows something is wrong. That I can trust him.”

“Alright, I’ll do it.” Danny takes the controls of his drone and pilot it back towards us landing in the back of AJ’s truck.

I see his drone landing on the back of the truck and get back on the radio. “Alright, Duke I need you to send a low ranch pulse of only reaching a 5 miles ranch to see where the pass is leading and not lead us towards a dead end.” I tell him over the radio.

Duke questions what I just said. “Are you sure about that James?” He asks me to make me quickly respond with an answer. “I know it is dangerous, but with these low-reach pulses will keep the sides from coming down on us while we trying to get through the pass.”

I take a breath before continuing with my train of thought. “Also, we all remember what happened yesterday with does high-end pulses that made the ice to fall apart underneath us.”

Duke set up the pulse to the reach and power setting before firing the pulse around seeing the pass with a few dead ends seeing the patch to the left is leading towards one of those dead ends.

Danny gets on the radio and asks me something about the pass. “James, there is something about this, that just rubs me the wrong way?” I get the radio with my response. “What is it, Danny?” I ask him. “One, why don’t we use the same path from memory and why are using pulses like this?” He asks me to make me to take a breath before responding with my answer. “We would do that but pass changes with every time that a storm passes through this area. The path we use from before it could be blocked by snow and ice. The snakes go threw clearing one of the paths for the pass for the time being.”

“That's why we're in a hurry now?” AJ asks me over the radio listening in. “Yes, now let's get going.; time is short.” I answer her question with my statement.

Duke gets on the radio seeing the left path is leading towards a dead end. “Take the path on the right Twilight.” He tells her leading the group into the path further into the pass itself.

The path is clear for now seeing the road is not much better making the driving contention worst. Rarity AWD Lambo is having trouble getting the grip on the Icey Road. Twilight leading the pack threw the pass while Rainbow sees those clouds above them getting worst seeing the high winds sending the lower clouds moving faster than the high-level clouds.

Things were getting worst us trying to get threw the pass itself. Making our progress to go down towards a craw making the path leading us to take more time getting through the pass.

We came towards another spit in the path again, Duke fires another pulse-like before seeing the right path is blocked this time. “Left Twilight.” He tells her over the radio leading the group threw the path in front of us.

The driving contentions improve a little bit, but not by much. My wheels begin to slip making me to fall behind only by 20 feet away. The grip I was feeling on this path making me have alarm bells going off in my head. Remembering that this path is the more dangerous part of the pass seeing the path begins to open up seeing the road widening into a near-frozen lake on the left of us and steam vents off in the distance towards the other side of the path and a side of the mountainside with the pack in the snow on it.

Parts of the lake that hasn’t been frozen near the vents in the water there don’t look like ordinary water remember it looks more like mercery than anything else. The steam is covering the path in front of us.

I hit the brakes nearly coming to a near stop while the others keep going. I feel something is wrong with this place. I get out of the car and walk out towards the frozen lake making my way towards steam vents.

Seeing the steam coming out full blast one of them hitting me in the face knocking out cold.

A few miles ahead Fluttershy taking up the rear now seeing that I’m not there following them and gets on the radio. “Has anyone know what happen to James?” She asks them.

“What!” Rainbow said out loud questioning what she just heard.

What are talking about Fluttershy?” Twilight asks her. “I mean that he just disappeared.” Fluttershy answers her friend with a concerned tone in her voice.

“Me and Spike will go back and try to find him.” Rainbow said over the radio hitting the brakes on her bike during a 180 turn with Spike with a worried look on his face.

Rainbow starts to head back towards where I was last seen, with Spike following not too far behind. They weren’t the only ones Applejack hit the brakes on her truck as well and turn around to follow them as well.

Meanwhile back at the car, the young pup feels the cold air noticing the driver's side door is standing wide open and begins to worry about where I when. Getting out of the car threw the still open door hearing a sound of an engine coming towards him.

Rainbow sees my car with the dog outside making her to hit the brakes making her to come to a stop before she could do any damage to my car or hurt the young pup.

Spike and AJ stopped only a few feet away, Spike gets off his bike noticing that my door on the driver's side and that the engine is still on.

“Strange?” He said out loud heading to the driver's side wondering before hearing another engine coming seeing that both Pinky and Rarity coming towards them.

They stopped next to Applejack truck; Pinky comes running towards the car with a terrified worry look on her face.

“James where did you go?” She asks out loud trying to hold back tears noticing tracks leading away from the car and the young pup sniffing the trail before running and following the tracks.

Pinky begins to follow with Rarity and Rainbow.

Elsewhere.

I begin to wake up from being knockout seeing something in the gassers seeing that there is a hot spring with someone swimming in it making it hard to see who's there with the steam making things tuff to see acting like a thick fog.

I get closer to the hot spring to see who is and see something that shocks me. “What are you doing here?” I ask the person.

The person moves showing himself and it is the leader of the Reds and my creation. “Nice to see you too James.” He tells me taking a sit on the other side of the spring making me wonder something.

“Is this real?” I ask him to make him too quickly response. “No, this isn’t real.” Knowing that answers one of my questions.

I see him grabbing something to the left of him looking like a detonator arming the device making a red light to light up.

I have no idea what he is planning and knowing I have to be careful and get the detonator and deactivate it, even if this place is real or not.

If I keep him talking, I might be able to do it.

I remove my sunglasses and rage to wipe them down with the steam fogging them up letting him see my green eyes. “Why are you here?” I ask him before putting them back on activating a mode on my sunglasses to hack the device to fool him without him realizing.

“I here inside your head for my own reasons.” He tells me not answering my question as my glasses lock on the device and it take a few seconds to complete.

“What are those reasons?” I ask him again before hearing voices in the distance maintaining focus on the device for a few more seconds.

He notices something is off and begins to move out of the water showing that he is wearing trunks and now the detonator is hacked and has been deactivated leaving the light on to think that still active.

“To kill all the Silenzers and end the war.” He tells me grabbing a handgun which is his revolver and aiming it at me. “The war ended after you attack the main base and killed everyone there.” I tell him getting my cigar and begin to light it, taking a drag off it.

Now he notices something is off still aiming at me firing at me all the rounds at me missing every shot. “What the hell?” He asks out loud checking his gun seeing the sent rounds before ejecting them.

“I know that I put live rounds.” He said out loud answering his own question while I take another drag from my cigar.

“You said yourself that this place isn’t real.” I tell him taking another drag making him turn his attention towards the device that is still in his hand moving his thumb over the trigger and hitting it. Seeing it did nothing and throw it at me and come running at me taggle me to the ground and begin to hit my face knocking me out hearing my name being called out.

“JAMES!!!”

I start coming around hearing voices in the distance calling my name. “JAMES!!” The voice calls out. I'm still in a haze seeing my sunglasses are off lying next to me, feeling the heat off the nearby geyser that knocked me out.

I grab my sunglasses and putting them back on before noticing that my hat is missing. Looking around seeing it behind me grabbing it before getting myself on my feet seeing the young pup coming towards me with Pinky following close behind.

She comes running hugging me with tears in her eyes fearing the worst before seeing the others that followed. Rarity asks me something that couldn’t hear the first time.

“I’m sorry, come again?” I ask her to quickly respond with the question that she asked me the first time. “I said daring; What happened to you?” She asks me hearing the question this time.

It takes me a moment before answering with only one answer. “I don’t know what happened.” I answer her question still a little hazy making feel the back of my head feeling a wet spot making me to see what I felt. Seeing that there is blood on my hand.

Quickly wiping the blood on my jeans and quickly putting my hat back on. Pinky finally lets go of me feeling joy in her life again fearing the worst.

The young pup knows something is wrong with me trying to let others know. But they didn’t notice at first. But Rainbow notices something red on my pants and notices that I’m still off-balance after finding me.

I’m start to feel hazy again before falling to the ground, Rainbow quick response trying to catch me before feeling the weight going down on her all at once taking her down with me.

“Sweet Celestia!” She shot trying to hold me up before hitting on ground with me. I begin to blackout from the head injury.

Meanwhile, Rainbow feeling the weight of my body on her.

“He’s not light.” She tells her friends to get around my body from trying to crush her in the process. “I’m surprised he didn’t crush you?” Pinky tells her to help her get back on her feet. “I should say the same thing to you, while you were getting down on him.” She quickly responded standing herself. “Just to let you know I was on top of him.” Pinky tells her while Rarity tries to remove my hat to get a better look at the injury, but she is having trouble with the weight coming from my body.

“Girls can you help me.” She asks them to make them wonder what she is doing. “Rare, what are you doing?” Rainbow asks her getting on the other side of me. “I’m trying to find injury on the back is head and his hat is in the way.” She answers her trying to lift me off the ground. Rainbow and Pinky start to help to try to lift my body off the ground.

They manage to lift me off the ground and put me next to a side of a ridgeline Rarity removes my seeing the blood on the back of the hat turns my head sees a trail of blood, moving some of my hair seeing that there’s a two to three-inch gash with blood coming out every few seconds.

Rarity opens her jacket and quickly removes her scarf beginning to wrap it around my head trying to stop the bleeding.

Once it done, she graded one of my arms while Rainbow on the other side before saying something. “You know that never going to come clean again.” Making her quickly respond. “I know.” Before lifting me off the ground.

Pinky grabs my hat and begins to follow with the young pup not too far behind.

Here is the 52^nd chapter in the story.

Sorry about the long wait this time because of things going on in the real world that I'm not going to go into right now.

Not only that the editing this chapter had some problems with the software I use to edit. Wanted to make it think that writing a boring paper not a story.

The next one may take some time to be ready

That's all for now.

This is James Cribb
Signing Out