friendship is magic part 2

[allcomplete]

The forest is dark (Clarity and Guiding Star light their horns to see by, but it's almost worse than nothing, making the distant shadowed spaces darker by comparison; they soon give up). The plants that make it up are closely spaced, not all of them have friendly textures, and it is full of scary noises, only some of them the harmless snapped twigs and disturbed leaves of their own passage.

Before they've fully adjusted to the darkness, and are aware via anything but the feel of earth under their hooves that the path has sloped downward a little, it has given way under them, some of the flora and some distressingly large rocks along with it. Clarity can't even teleport. It's too dark to see where she might be going.

Comments

[allcomplete]

"I can stick it on, but will your boot still work?"

[on_what_wings]

"Technically it still works, I just can't wear it anymore; it won't stay on without the front plate. But hey, I've got three more."

[allcomplete]

"...If you're sure. Everypony squint if you don't wanna have to readjust to the dark..."

Clarity floats up the boot-part to the serpent's open mouth, and sticks it on. The serpent grins toothily at his reflection in the water, then beams. "Fabulous!" he proclaims. "Thank you ever so!"

The river is calming down as he stops heaving his coils around in dissipating distress.

[on_what_wings]

"You're welcome!" says Blaze. She tucks all her tools back into her mane, and is then at a loss for how to carry the rest of the boot.

"...Um, Clarity, I don't suppose you have room in your saddlebags...?"

[allcomplete]

"Yeah, sure," agrees Clarity, tucking the boot away into a bag. "Okay, this doesn't look so impassable with the calmer water -"

"Oh, do you need to cross?" inquires the serpent. "Allow me." And he forms a tidy bridge.

[on_what_wings]

"Aww, thanks!" says Blaze. She ventures to be the first to cross.

[joyfulnoise]

"Yeah, that's really sweet of you," says Joy, following carefully.

[allcomplete]

"Thank you so much," agrees Clarity.

"It's no trouble at all," says the serpent magnanimously.

Across go ponies!

[joyfulnoise]

And on the other side, after only a few more bends in the path...

"I thiiink that's the castle up ahead," says Joy.

[allcomplete]

"It looks like it! We made it - except for the obvious chasm all around the place, anyway. Is there a bridge? Or, it looks like there's room to fly, if the fliers want to make a few trips..."

[joyfulnoise]

Joy peers at the chasm.

[clearthestorm]

So does Streak. She spots it first.

"There was a bridge," she says, pointing a hoof at the bridgeposts. "It may be possible to repair it."

[follow_polaris]

"That'd probably be less nerve-wracking than getting flown, I vote bridge."

[clearthestorm]

Streak glances at her sister.

[on_what_wings]

"Yeah, I'm on it," says Blaze, trotting over to the bridge and beginning an inspection. First of the posts on this side, then the bridge slats and rope dangling into the chasm, then the posts on the other side.

She comes back to the non-castle side to deliver her final assessment. "Looks pretty solid, just a matter of hauling up the part that fell down and tying it nice and tight around those posts on the other side. Joy, wanna help?"

[joyfulnoise]

"Sure thing!" he says agreeably. Together they fly down to pick up the dropped bridge, then carry the far end across the chasm and secure it appropriately.

[on_what_wings]

Blaze trots back across the bridge, wings folded, to demonstrate its sturdiness.

[follow_polaris]

Across the bridge they go!

The castle is dark and in very poor repair and pretty spooky. But the door opens easily.

[joyfulnoise]

Joy looks around curiously once they're all inside.

"Cozy," he comments, probably ironically although with Joy it can be a little hard to tell.

[allcomplete]

Clarity snorts a little, and then peers up at the pedestal on which there appear to be several symbol-stamped rocks.

"Thoooose might be them," she says.

[joyfulnoise]

"Ooh."

[clearthestorm]

Streak and Blaze join Joy in crowding up to peer at the rocks.

[ipso_amore]

Cordy follows more sedately.

[allcomplete]

Clarity trots around the pedestal on which they're sitting. "There's only five, which - still means these are probably them, because the sixth one is supposed to be 'revealed' via a 'spark' when the five ones with known names are present. Can somepony bring them down for me? I should probably start trying things that might complete the set."

[joyfulnoise]

Joy, being conveniently bipedal, scoops all the round stones into his arms and carries them down to set the whole pile in front of Clarity.