Nine Realms

If there was one thing Twilight was getting absolutely sick of when she and her friends travelled from one realm to the next, it was having to wake up with a splitting headache. Sadly, that appeared to be what she had to now contend with, as her eyes snapped open after having been unconscious for who knows how long. But, to her horror, it appeared as though having pain in her head was the least of her worries, for right now, she and her friends were suspended aimlessly in what appeared to be some underwater environment. With an ache in her chest from being unable to breathe, she glanced around, seeing that all of her friends appeared to be in the same predicament, all struggling for air, with many looking fearful that this might be their end. And given that they'd been under similar circumstances in the past, like their first journey to Seaquestria, this was one close call Twilight was not willing to go through a second time.

So, with quick reflexes, the Princess looked around, and soon, to her relief, she could see some kind of light far above. With her horn igniting, she used what little strength she had to engulf her friends in her magical aura. Though they were all still afraid of what was going to happen, they watched as their leader used her power to not only levitate herself upwards, but also them as well. Up and up they went, getting ever closer to that light up there. But ever, there was that pain of being without air, and within a minute, Twilight's chest felt like it was going to burst from the feeling. However, to the eternal gratitude of all of them, their heads broke the surface of the water, and they all took massive gulps of air, panting furiously after what they'd just been through. With her magic now releasing, Twilight too felt exhaustion wash over her, and, much like her friends, she gently paddled over to the side of where they'd found themselves.

And speaking of which, it was in this hectic moment that Twilight truly took stock of what kind of place they were in. It appeared to be some kind of pool, with a cold and rocky edge, and behind them, a waterfall, not unlike the one they'd fallen off to get here. Though, if she remembered right, this place looked nothing like the environment that previous waterfall had around it. So, that had to mean that they were indeed in another realm. Sheer cliffs surrounded the tiny and stone "beach" that engulfed the pool, and it was to that beach that the group now dragged themselves, feeling a great chill in the air as they did so. Not as cold as Niflheim, granted, but still, cold enough to cause them all to shiver a great deal. Instinctively, they huddled together for warmth, and Spike especially clung to Twilight, still terrified over what they'd just been through.

"So...here we are," the alicorn commented.

Her friends all shared a laugh to that, but it was dry and devoid of humour. Still, they were out of immediate danger in this place, and given their travels so far, that was about as good as they knew things were going to get for them. So, again, Twilight turned her attention to what was around them. There didn't appear to be any path out of this place, which meant that they had to climb or fly out, and so she craned her neck upwards, seeing the top rim that was there above them. And as she did so, she noted, for the first time, the sky. It looked like a night sky, but all the way across it, there was an array of colours. It was like an aurora, with bright purples and blues colouring the vast darkness beyond. A beautiful sight, no doubt about it, but it made this place, just for a moment, seemed just that touch more otherworldly . Shaking herself out of that feeling, Twilight again turned to her friends.

"Guys...we need to get moving."

There was no argument there, and after all nodding to her, the group all separated from one another, in this moment of silence, they took the opportunity to shake themselves off from whatever water still clung to their fur, or to Spike's scales. Once dry, they got to work, with Rainbow and Fluttershy spreading out their wings and starting to flap. Once they'd raised themselves from the ground, they took hold of the forelegs of the first pony, Rarity, and lifted her up. Higher and higher she went, until finally, she was up and out of this little hole they'd all found themselves in. Next came Applejack, and she too was soon lifted out. Pinkie went last, and here, seeing the excitable earth pony raised up, Twilight spread out her own wings, waiting for Spike to climb on top of her back, after which, she gave a warm smile to him.

"You ready?"

Though the youth was still quite nervous about being here to being with, he nevertheless gave a nod, granting his consent. Smiling back, Twilight gave a massive flap of her outstretched wings, and lifted the both of them up into the air. Up they went, until finally, they too reached the upper edge. Landing back down, Twilight took a moment to let her young ward hop off her back again, and took this time to take stock of all of her other friends. All were accounted for, and from the looks on their faces, it was as if they were transfixed by something. Though at first confused by this, Twilight soon noted what kind of realm they'd apparently entered. It was a forest, ancient by all accounts. With trees that looked hundreds, if not thousands of years old. An eerie mist spread all through the place, and yet, it did not appear in any way dark or foreboding.

"Where...where are we?" Spike asked.

Twilight shook her head, unable to answer, and so continued to stare out at this new place. It had an air of wildness about it, of a realm that had been untouched or untamed despite many ages passing. In the distance, she could see a deer and its child wandering by, turning to look at them briefly before simply going on their way. Whatever kind of place this was, it was apparently a place where the local animals had no reason to fear strangers such as them. And when Twilight continued to look out, she could see something like a shimmer to the mist she'd noticed earlier. It looked like magic, and for a moment, it even felt like magic, but unlike any such power she'd encountered before in her life. Sure enough, this place was strange to her, even in the face of all the bizarre and extreme worlds they already seen. And yet, despite this, she did not feel as though there was danger here, though she could not really say why.

"So...where do we go?" Applejack muttered.

Twilight knew her friend was right. They couldn't just stay here and stare, they had to get moving. So, after taking a few deep breaths, Twilight raised her hoof and pointed.

"...That way."