James : A Technicolour Story

Chapter 2 : New Horizons

I watched the rainbow and it seemed to be moving. "This is odd. Rainbows don't mo--". I was interrupted by my thinking by a terribly loud explosion, coming from the same direction the rainbow was coming from. I had to check to make sure I wasn't deafened by it, and, luckily, I wasn't. I picked up my guitar case within my mouth and galloped off to where the rainbow ended.

I never was one to believe in the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but I figured there had to be something special about this one, considering it created that deafening boom. I galloped straight through bushes and tree branches, earning myself all kinds of cuts and scrapes. That's when I saw it.

I'd only covered maybe two-hundred feet before I saw it. "Well, crap. A lion. Er, no wait, this is some sort of winged lion scorpion.. thing." It turned around, realizing my presence. "Crap. Did I say that out loud?" It pounced towards me, but fell short a few metres. That answered my question, and I galloped off in a serpentine pattern, hoping to lose it eventually. I found I was still headed in the direction the rainbow had ended at. I ran faster, and began screaming. "Help! Help! A thing is going to kill me!" I ran.

I'd covered another two-hundred feet before I got tired enough for it to begin gaining on me. "Crap-crap-crap-crap! Somebody help!" I kept screaming for help. This was my second chance at life and I'm already going to find myself dead. Great.

Just as I'd began to approach the rainbow's landing, I saw a cyan pegasus, out cold on the ground. I didn't think and picked her up onto my back, knowing the lion thing to be on it's way here, I had to run and keep this mare safe. If I hadn't, she'd be someone's lunch. I ran.

I ran, and ran, and as the monster got closer I ran harder. My lungs were on fire, and so were my emotions. 'I've already died once, why am I willing to die again for some unconscious mare I ran into purely by coincidence?' I managed a quick scoff, ignoring how out of breath I was. 'I really shouldn't care.' I thought.

Just then, I bucked her off of me. It didn't take much thought to know that I'd be caught with her on my back. I noticed her stir. I started, not caring if she could actually hear me. "If you're awake, listen. There's a lion thing out there and it's after both of us. I'm going to distract it. If you're conscious, run the other direction." I ran back in the direction of the lion thing.

Rainbow's Point Of View

"Ow.. my head.." I looked up, to see some greyish blue stallion with a burgundy mane run off, deeper into the Everfree. "What..? Who? Why isn't he flying?" I heard a roar. Most likely that of a manticore. I sat up. "Ugh. What is he thinking? Running towards the roar of an angry manticore? Is he insane?" So many thoughts were crossing my mind. I had to get up and get him to run away.

I sat there a moment, trying to work up the courage to stagger to my feet without worrying about broken bones. I did just botch a landing of my sonic rainboom. I forced myself up, and, to my surprise, no broken bones! I grinned, and flew after that idiot pegasus. "Rainbow Dash coming to save the day!" It wasn't long before he came back into view. Between a tree and a manticore, that is.

James' Point Of View

Leaving the cyan rainbow maned pegasus behind, I galloped off back towards the direction the lion-thing was coming from. It wasn't very far, and I had no plan, so when I reached it I hadn't thought of how I'd catch it's attention without getting myself killed. "Oi! You! Don't I look tasty? Don't you want to eat me?! I bet you do!" I shouted, and immediately ran away from both the mystery-pegasus and the monster.

I came to a humongous tree, and looked around frantically for the quickest escape. All were blocked by the thick brush. I had no where to go but up. Too bad I can't fly. "I guess this is it.." I murmured, eyes shut tight.

Just then, as I expected my death to come, yet again, a cyan blur came flying towards me, and before I knew it we were both flying directly up in a ninety degree angle. "Am I dead yet?" I asked. I heard a raspy, feminine laugh. "Ha, no. You're alive, buddy. Why'd you run towards an angry manticore, anyway?" she asked, looking back to make sure we weren't being followed.

"I uh, I made it mad when I was lost in the forest. While I was running I ran into you unconcious so I took the liberty of saving your life." I managed to squeak out, realizing I'd almost been the cause of this mare's death.

"Oh, well, I figured you were just an idiot looking for death. You're a bit cooler, in my books. I'd say 20%." She eyed me up and down. "Er, yeah, thanks." I stuttered, not used to praise, let alone being called 'cool'. "So, er, can you let me down? I'm feeling a little, er, sick." I turned pale. The fact that I had been running for almost an hour straight was only now catching up to me.

"Uh, yeah. Can you fly?" She asked, loosening her grip. I scrambled to get a firmer grip on her hooves, as I couldn't fly and we were about four-hundred feet up. "LETMEDOWNLETMEDOWNLETMEDOWN!!" I screamed, trying not to fall. The cyan mare complied.

After a terribly long flight down, we landed in a valley outside the forest. My guts immediately painted the grass.. green. Er, greener, that is to say. A different kind of green. Aaaaanyway...

"So, er.. Never heard of a pegasus with motion sickness. I think I'm going to have to take back that comment about you being 20% cooler. Yeah." The cyan mare eyed me up and down, curiously.

"So er," I managed to recover, and rubbed the remnants of my.. mess off of my face with my forehoof, "may I ask the name of the enchanting mare that has saved my life?" She frowned. "Hold on a minute, kiddo. No compliments. You're not my type. I prefer my men... in the sky. That's something you can't do, isn't it?" She frowned.

"No," I was a little taken aback with her reaction to the compliment I tossed out there, "no, I can't fly. Least, not now." She actually looked a little disappointed by my unwillingness to persevere with the compliment. I went on. "Well, I'll at least give you my name," I paused, taking a moment to be sure I remembered the name Celestia had given me correctly. "Soft Maple."

It seemed I'd put her into an awkward situation. I had asked her name and she had refused to give me it, so I went on to give my own. She seemed uncomfortable, and muttered audibly, "Rainbow Dash...".

"What was that? Sorry, I've had a," I paused, yet again, not knowing the name of the monster, "monster roaring in my ears for the past hour." She blushed, and yelled "RAINBOW DASH!" I flinched, closing my eyes.

Opening my eyes again, I noticed I was alone in the valley, and looked up to see a rainbow blur speeding off towards what I had to think was north or south, judging from where the sun had risen.

My mouth gaped, realizing something terrible. "Crap... I forgot to ask where the closest town is." I decided to walk the direction I saw Rainbow Dash fly off in, figuring I'd see something eventually.

It took about an hour of walking for me to notice a path that lead off towards the Everfree. "Oh good. A sigh of society." I smiled, took out my guitar, put on the strap, lifted the case onto my back, and began to play, celebrating my progress.

We were strangers

Starting out on a journey

Never dreaming

What we'd have to go through

Now here I am

And I'm suddenly standing

At the beginning alone

No one told me

I was going to find you

Unexpected

What it did to my heart

When I lost hope

You weren't there to remind me

This is the start

And...

Life is a road

And I want to keep going

Love is a river

I wanna keep flowing

Life is a road

Now and forever

Wonderful journey

I'll be there

When the world stops turning

I'll be there

When the storm is through

In the end I wanna be standing

At the beginning with you

We were strangers

On a crazy adventure

Never dreaming

How our dreams would come true

Now here I stand

afraid of the future

At the beginning with you

And...

Life is a road

And I want to keep going

Love is a river

I wanna keep flowing

Life is a road

Now and forever

Wonderful journey

I'll be there

When the world stops turning

I'll be there

When the storm is through

In the end I wanna be standing

At the beginning with you

I knew there was somebody somewhere

Like me alone in the dark

Now I know my dream will live on

I've been waiting so long

Nothing's gonna tear us apart

And...

Life is a road

And I want to keep going

Love is a river

I wanna keep flowing

Life is a road

Now and forever

Wonderful journey

I'll be there

When the world stops turning

I'll be there

When the storm is through

In the end I wanna be standing

At the beginning with you

Life is a road and I wanna keep going

Love is a river I wanna keep going on....

Starting out on a journey

Life is a road

And I wanna keep going

Love is river

I wanna keep flowing

In the end I wanna be standing

At the beginning with you.

I stopped. Thoughts of my family had been haunting me since I came to this world. I couldn't help but want to go back, even though I knew I couldn't. A tear ran down my cheek, and I grinned. Through my teeth, I muttered "I'll find love just as strong here, then. That way, I won't hurt as much."

I knew that idea was wrong, but hope was nice to have.

Third Person Point Of View

Rainbow Dash had been laying in a tree, trying to sleep when she heard the strumming of a guitar and a masculine treble singing voice coming from down the path. She started humming along with the singing voice, not knowing it was Soft Maple.

"..that's a nice voice.." she mumbled, her imagination going wild imagining a stallion with a voice like that. She grimaced, realizing what she'd been imagining. "Stupid Rainbow, stupid! You can't trust stallions!" she scolded herself.

The voice had paused, and the strumming had ceased. All that was to be heard was a ringing C chord being carried by the wind. She frowned. "Aw.. it's over.." she muttered.

She heard a muffled, hurt voice coming, almost inaudibly, but she caught it. "I'll find love," She frowned, a bird had began chirping and she missed some of Soft Maple's self-conversation. The bird had ceased chirping just in time for Soft Maple to mutter "That way, I won't hurt as much."

Rainbow peeked over from behind the tree to see who it was.

Author's Note :

Thanks for reading, guys. I'm surprised I was able to pump out this chapter in such a short time. I hadn't an idea of what to do within the short-term, but I figured something out, and know where I'm taking this bit.

Song :

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