Hello, fellow readers! And welcome back to Shadow of Harmony! Now, what do we have today:
JeaSonDash: That's good as he's more into traveling, unlike Shadow who isn't. Keeps things from getting repetitive.
Marilia Helena: *after reading translation and seeing the next one* Right now! But please, be patient. I always aim for quality, not quantity.
Guests: I'm glad you all are enjoying it! Here's more!
Thanks for the feedback! With that said, let's go!
Chapter 7: Nocturnal Rivals
Equestria (Sonic)
The sun came shining down upon the land, waking up Sonic from his sleep in between the train cars before looking at his surroundings. Realizing the possibility of missing his stop, he pokes his head out and looks up ahead where the wind is blowing past. Luckily, said stop was just ahead if the large waterfalls is any indicator.
"Just in time." He said out loud as he got ready for his jump.
Seeing an incline on the cliff below he can use as a ramp, he smirks as he leaps off and performs the spindash to hit the cliff with momentum to spare. Faster and faster he went until hitting the incline, launching him right off towards Neighagra Falls with great speed. In no time, he lands right out front of the entrance that surprises some ponies nearby, getting himself attention he didn't mind noticing as he looks around.
The main place was a neat dock next to the lakes below the falls, where he sees barrels fall from high above splash into the water past the large booth that's used for passes and such. Walking on over, he sees one of the customers use three gold coins before entering the resort.
"That must be the currency." He deduces before realizing something, "I don't have that."
Nevertheless, better to see what he can do before jumping to conclusions. Reaching the counter, the stallion sitting behind it was a bit taken back by his appearance.
"Hiya. I'm new around here and I don't have those coins. Maybe this will do?" Sonic spoke faster than usual to get his point across as he pulls out one of the many gold rings he has collected over time.
Placing it on the counter, the stallion takes a closer look at it out of curiosity. A thorough examination later, and a bite to make sure it's solid, he then speaks after a brief look around.
"All right, I'll allow it. Just be sure to have actual currency next time."
"Great! Thanks, man!" Sonic smiles at this before going off towards the dock.
The stallion pockets the ring before realizing what the blue hedgehog said, "Man?"
Back with said hedgehog, Sonic took in the sights as his eyes look up to see the various platforms and bridges that reach the top. First things first, the barrel ride. Running right on up while avoiding bumping into others, he reaches the very top in no time.
He then sees a goat next to one of many barrels before it delivers a headbutt to knock it off the edge. One of the many horses came up soon after as another barrel replaced the previous one, its lid opened with magic from a nearby unicorn before the horse gets inside with the lid closing it and gets pushed off like the last one.
"Interesting." Sonic comments from his observation, "Must be special barrels then."
There was a bit of a line, but it was going at a fast pace to be ignored as he got into it. Once he reaches the goat, he was a bit confused upon seeing the hedgehog before simply shrugging it off. Another barrel was placed next to him with the lid removed before Sonic hops right in, the lid placing securely before the goat knocks it off into the lake below.
Now Sonic knows that the barrels are specially made to have cushioning to prevent injuries and such. Despite being inside of it, he definitely feels the adrenaline as he cheers in excitement:
"WOOOOOHOOOOO!"
SPLASH!
His barrel hits the water, making a large splash upon doing so before it pops back up onto the surface. The lid then pops off as Sonic shoots out of it with a shout:
"That was awesome! Encore!"
Needless to say, he went on the ride again as he zooms off to go back in line.
Equestria (Ponyville)
The Golden Oaks Library was quite clean and organized as Shadow and Spike look at a job well done. The former notices the setting sunlight outside the window before hearing the latter speak:
"Thanks for the help, by the way."
"No problem. It was a nice way to pass the time." Shadow casually responds back.
"Speaking of time, Twilight's been gone for quite a bit." Spike is a bit concerned about this.
Soon after saying that, Twilight arrives by entering the library in a speedy fashion as she was a bit out of breath. She stops in front of the two before speaking:
"Sorry for the delay, Spike! Pinkie got me involved in a game of 'Cakes and Pies', which I eventually figured out."
"It's OK. Did you get what we need for the meteor shower tonight?" That got Shadow's attention, which he immediately made known:
"Meteor shower?"
"Yup. You weren't awake during this, but I was reading a book on famous cosmic events and found out that a meteor shower happens two days after the Summer Sun celebration every one hundred years!" Twilight gladly explains to catch him up to speed.
"That so?" He's now curious about this event as Spike chimes in, "A centennial celebration!"
"You know a word rarely used compared to precipice?" Shadow recalls from their time in Canterlot.
"He just learned it this morning, but that's not the point!" Twilight clears up before shifting the focus, "The meteor shower will happen as soon as the moon rises in full, so we better hurry."
Fun fact about the library, the main floor is the library itself while the upstairs can be best described as an average size apartment back in the human world. This is what Shadow summarizes it as the three head to the kitchen to cook. Unfortunately for him, he's not much of a cook.
Which makes him rather impressed at the fact on how skilled Spike was. Despite his age, he can make various foods that even fully grown adults have trouble doing.
"So, he just does this as a hobby?" Shadow wonders out loud.
"Yup. My mom and I showed him the basics. Soon after, he just picked up on it." Twilight answers, "Of course there were a few messes at first, but he got better."
"I can tell." Shadow comments as he's watching the dragon cook.
"You and I should cook together sometime, Shadow!" Spike was pretty excited at the idea.
"How about now, then?" Shadow points out as he walks over, "I can read, so that should count for basics."
Twilight joins in as well, knowing that they may get done faster if they kept their mess to a minimum. Good thing too as by the time they finished, Applejack has arrived with Apple Bloom in tow and looks around for the trio.
"Are ya'll ready yet!?" AJ calls out from down below.
"Give us just a moment!" Twilight calls back in response.
After a quick clean up of the kitchen, and themselves, the three exit the kitchen with the food in tow and down the stairs to meet with the others. After packing a small wagon with items such as a picnic blanket, fruit, cookies, and even a punch bowl with cups for use, there was one more thing Twilight needed:
"Do you mind getting me the Astronomer's Almanac real quick?"
"On it!" Spike was right on it as he zooms off to fetch it.
During this time, Apple Bloom talks with Shadow for a bit. "Howdy, Shadow! Aren't ya excited too?"
"As much as the others are." He casually answers, "I can tell you certainly are."
"But of course! A special event like this should be celebrated!" She has a good point, considering the rarity of such an event.
"Got it!" Spike calls out as he comes back, holding the almanac in his claw.
"Great! Let's go!" Twilight said as they left the library with what they needed in tow.
The sunlight has almost disappeared over the horizon entirely as they headed to the best spot for watching the meteor shower, which was the top of the tall hills at the north edge of town. The rest of the Mane Six were already there waiting with other citizens from the town as Pinkie notices them arriving:
"There they are!"
Applejack and Apple Bloom has reached the top by the time she said that as Shadow was pulling the wagon with Twilight and Spike ahead of him. Once the three reach the top, Spike didn't waste any time as he sets the picnic blanket down and the accompanying items along with it. Rainbow then takes an apple as she speaks:
"A picnic under a meteor shower. Yeah, I can dig it."
"Totally!" Pinkie agrees before noticing Spike's plate of cookies, "Ooo, what are these!?"
"I made them myself!" Spike is obviously proud of this, "Want one?"
"Of course!" Next thing he knew, she grabs one and tosses it into the air before eating it in one clean bite. "Mmm, delicious!"
"Be sure to share, I made enough for everypony." He mentions, which she gets the picture.
Rarity and Sweetie Belle joins them alongside Fluttershy, who goes to get some punch as Rarity talks with Twilight.
"A picnic? Who's idea was that?"
"Spike came up with it." Twilight answers, "He even made the cookies while I picked out the punch."
Curious, Rarity then levitates one of the cookies over to herself and takes a bite. To her surprise, she's quite impressed.
"Oh my! This is scrumptious!" She compliments the little dragon for his efforts, "What recipe is this?"
"That it also made himself." Now Rarity was just flabbergasted:
"My goodness! If he keeps this up, he'll be rivaling the top chefs in Canterlot! CANTERLOT, Twilight!"
While those two were currently chatting, Apple Bloom notices a small unicorn filly nearby looking at the sky and goes over to greet herself.
"Howdy." Her greeting seems to have surprised the filly a bit, "Oh uh, sorry. Just saying hi."
"H-Hi." The young unicorn simply said back before asking, "Wait, aren't you in my class?"
Apple Bloom took a moment to recall somepony like her in said class before answering, "Oh yeah. You're in the front row."
"Yup. You must be Apple Bloom." The filly recalls from the many roll calls, "I'm Sweetie Belle, Rarity's sister."
"You have a sister, too? Mine is Applejack." Apple Bloom shares.
Unbeknownst to the two, another filly of the pegasus species is watching the two from afar in curiosity. Though before she even attempts to approach, one of the other citizens calls out to get everypony's attention:
"Look, it's starting!"
Shadow watches as the citizens line up to get a good view of the meteor shower. Once the moon has risen in full, the stars start the show. Needless to say, it was breathtaking. He watches the stars fly across the clear night sky as a random thought pops in his head, imagining his fall from space kinda resembling a shooting star to someone on Mobius:
"This is what you wished for, right?"
His own words echo in his mind before he shakes his head, coming back to the present to continue watching the meteor shower.
The ponies are in awe at the sight, but Spike finds himself falling asleep for some odd reason. He does his best to stay awake, at least to see the meteor shower in its entirety.
Some time later, the group were the last ones to leave the hill as Pinkie finishes up the cookies left on the plate.
"Those are some tasty cookies!" She compliments before looking around, "Right, Spike? Spike?"
The others also noticed that Spike was now not there, at least until Fluttershy notices him asleep on the picnic spread with the punch bowl tipped over towards him. Thankfully, there wasn't much punch left to even touch his cheek.
"Aww, guess it's past his bedtime." She points out.
"And now, the punch has been spiked!" Pinkie giggles at her use of words, the others getting the pun except for the fillies who were confused.
Shadow then realizes the pun and lets out a brief chuckle before speaking, "All right, all right. Let's get going."
Upon arriving back at Golden Oaks, the baby dragon was tucked in by Twilight in his bed before she spoke:
"Sweet dreams, Spike."
She then leaves their bedroom, going downstairs to see Shadow is still up staring out the window.
"You're still awake?" She asks the obvious question.
"Yeah." Shadow simply answers, "Can't sleep."
She walks over to his side as she wonders, "Why's that?"
He was a bit hesitant before answering, "The meteor shower... it brought out a familiar memory."
Twilight was now listening intently as he continues:
"I was... falling from space, after a brutal battle. When I saw those meteors tonight, I briefly imagined myself as one of them. Or rather, more like a shooting star to anyone that saw me up there."
"Really?" She heard the entire thing, but was understandably focused more on the first part. "Um, if you don't mind me asking... what's this about a battle in space?"
Shadow should have figured her curious brain would ask that, but even then he still hesitates and doesn't know why.
Before their conversation could continue, a noise was heard near one of the other windows that goes out to a balcony. Shadow was now on full alert, ready to equip his shield that he still has on his back just in case. Twilight was also on alert as the hedgehog takes point, reaching the window and opens it to see-
Nothing.
Only a summer wind blew gently though the open window as Shadow looks around outside, seeing only the surrounding buildings and the night sky above. He then closes the window and locks it as he reports his findings, "Nothing. Probably just a-"
He stops mid-sentence as he sees Twilight was staring at something. Following her gaze, he sees what caught her eyes:
An owl, casually standing near the window door at the bottom where it must have slipped in from. Said owl then turns its head towards Shadow and stares for what felt like a solid minute before saying:
"Hoo."
Shadow blinks before responding, "Hoo."
"You speak owl?" Twilight was intrigued at the idea of Shadow knowing different languages.
"...Gotcha." Which was shot down immediately after as he shows a small smirk.
She wasn't amused in the slightest, if the blank stare didn't give it away. The two then hear the owl take flight, flapping its wings to gain altitude a bit before landing on an empty coat rack near the desk.
"Um, hi there." Twilight greets the feathery fellow, "Were you the one that made the noise outside?"
"Hoo." The owl simply said in response.
Shadow decides to follow it up with another question, "Did the wind bring you here?"
This time, the owl answers with a nod of its head.
"Maybe separated from its roost..." Shadow has read up on the animals that inhabits his world as he recalls facts about owls.
Twilight then decides to make an offer, "I got something." She then turns to the owl, "Would you like to stay here for the night?"
"Hoo?" The owl responds with a hint of surprise.
"Really?" Shadow was also surprised at Twilight's hospitality.
"Sure. I mean, I know that you have sleepless nights like tonight, but even you need your sleep." She makes a good point, "It'll be nice to have some company with me during those nights."
He had a gut feeling that isn't all as he looks at her, expecting to hear the rest.
"...And I may have wanted an owl as a pet since I was a filly." And there it is.
He didn't see a reason to deny this, he just lives here. "All right."
Twilight smiles as she welcomes the owl with open hooves, "Stay as long as you like!"
"Hoo!" The owl was glad to hear it.
Equestria (Sonic)
Upon the sunlight leaving over the mountains, Neighagra Falls went from open to close as Sonic left with the map in hand for his next location. The closest one from here... would be a place known as 'Hollow Shades'.
"Definitely sounds interesting..." He mutters to himself before putting his map in his 'hammerspace'.
He then runs off, reaching the train tracks in no time and hops on them to run on towards his destination. The indicator is the tracks separating to two paths with the right going to Hollow Shades, which he reaches and enters the forest that hides the town within seconds. While there is a clear path for the train to go through, the forest surrounding it looks rather thick with vines and branches almost blocking out the sunlight entirely.
Upon reaching the wooden barrier that tells him where the end of the tracks are, he hops off and stops to see his new sight. Though, it's kinda hard to do that when there's a fog rolling about. It wasn't too thick like the forest, but he couldn't see too far out from his position.
"Best take it slow. Don't wanna scare anyone." He summarizes from this as he starts walking into town.
It was rather quiet as there is about four trees spaced evenly inside the main district like corners of a square where the town hall and inn is. In fact, the town doesn't look that big in terms of scale as he saw at least two more districts where one is a marketplace with the other having houses to live in. The ponies don't seem to be bothered by the fog either, much less anything around them as they just mind their own business and went about their day.
Sonic already knows that rings won't fly as currency in this new world, so souvenirs and possibly food is out of the picture unless he can get a small job here and there to get these 'bits' that they use. The other option is less likely but-
"Excuse me."
A sudden voice gets Sonic out of his thoughts as he turns to who's taking to him. What he sees is a pony in a black hooded cloak where most of him was covered from view.
"You're not from around here, are you?"
That question is rather rhetorical as Sonic points out, "Is it that obvious?"
"This land contains many more surprises than I thought." The figure retorts as the hedgehog raises an eyebrow at him before he clarifies, "I'm also not from around here."
"No kidding." Sonic kinda got that feeling, but plays along anyways.
"Uh, if you don't mind me asking... what are you exactly?" The figure wonders, "I have guesses, but don't want to assume."
"Name's Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog." The blue blur introduces himself in response, "And you are?"
"Oh..." The figure was strangely hesitant with the return before leaning in a bit, "Real quick, would you mind if we move somewhere else?"
"Sure." Sonic finds it a bit of a strange request, but he has yet to raise a red flag in his head.
The two then went off into an unpopulated area just on the edge of town, stopping before reaching the foliage of the forest when the hooded figure asks a sudden question:
"Have you heard of shapeshifters, by chance?"
Sonic took a moment to process said question before answering, "I faced an ancient water god that changes forms when it gains more power."
"...Huh." The figure was honestly not expecting that, "That makes this easier, I think."
"How so?" Sonic was now curious where this is possibly going.
"Well..." The pony then holds out one of his front hooves for a moment before it changed into...
A paw?
With said paw, he then pulls off his hood as his entire form changes from a pony to a wolf. He has a long-haired violet fur coat with white highlights on the edges with royal blue eyes looking at the perplexed hedgehog as he asks the obvious:
"So, you're a pony that turns into a wolf?"
The wolf smirks right before a pair of blue spectral wings unfurls from under the cloak, practically angelic in their appearance if Sonic described it into words.
"Just a wolf that has many more tricks up his... cloak." He answers back before finally introducing himself, "Oh right, my name is Stylite Stream."
"Nice to meet you, Stylite." Sonic said, now fully knowing he's an ally. "So, this is what you meant when you said you're not from Equestria?"
"Correct, I'm from far beyond this land. As for me being here now, I'm currently searching for my brother who I was told was seen somewhere in Equestria." Stylite answers with an explanation, "Our kind are able to sense our own in disguise or not, but I've yet to find him anywhere."
"Impressive." Sonic then had a thought pop into his head, "Hey, does your land uses bits?"
"Yeah, why do you ask?" Stylite casually answers.
"I'm also from very far away. In fact, so far out that we don't use these 'bits' for currency." Sonic explains before putting out a ring to show what he means, "We use these instead."
Stylite walks a bit closer to examine it, even sniffing it just in case for authenticity. "Gold rings? Interesting, but I doubt these ponies would take them."
Sonic then got a great idea, "In fact, we should team up!"
"H-Huh?" Stylite was a bit put off by the sudden offer.
"Yeah. In fact, I'm looking for a friend of mine here too." Sonic clarifies before admitting, "And also seeing the sights, but that's just a bonus. What do you think?"
Stylite puts a paw on his chin as he thinks about it only for a moment before concluding that there isn't a reason not to. They're two species with a common goal in a foreign land, after all.
"All right, I appreciate the help." He accepts wholeheartedly.
"All right!" Sonic gives a thumb ups with his signature smirk.
Stylite smiles back before noticing how late it has gotten and sees something in the sky, "Whoa..."
Sonic follows his gaze and sees a breathtaking sight as a meteor shower was happening across the clear night sky. Whether it was coincidence or destiny, one thing's for sure between the two of them. Their adventure here has only begun.
And done! So, the first episode I'm taking on in the shuffle will be the Spike episode of this season. After watching it, I knew that it would be up there as it's... wow. Like, how do you write an episode that is aware of itself and STILL be bad?
Plus for some reason or another, Spike is a character I want to like, but I always forget about him even when he's supposed to be in a scene I'm writing. So to remedy that problem, I'm tackling Spike first in the main cast as I want to have him be more prominent since he has a lot of potential to be much more than what we got.
As for Sonic, I know that he's looking for Shadow here, but I can see him getting distracted by the new sights as he does travel a lot and wants to see as much as he can. However, I think Sonic traveling alone has lasted long enough.
That's where the new character comes in! I'm not lying when I said I wanted to expand this world, so I decided to include someone who's in a similar situation as Sonic and also to have someone bounce off of him in terms of interactions when they're not talking with the locals of the areas they visit.
With all that said, thanks for reading and I'll see you all next chapter!