Star had been flying for a little more than a day, but never once had he stopped to rest. He wasn’t tired, he wasn’t hungry, and he wasn’t thirsty --- he was determined. A normal pegasus wouldn’t have made it as far, but Star was already at the Cottonwood Forest. Star had decided to walk through the trees instead of over them, just to get a change of scenery. The cottonwoods towered over him, and a small breeze rustled the leaves. Star slowly cantered through the forest, letting the mild wind sweep through his mane. He dodged trees and leaped over fallen ones. He could feel the starfire surging through his veins, flowing in a perfect rhythm, as if it were cantering with him. Star seemed happy --- the air was fresh and he had the smell of sweet grass around him. But Star was sadder than he had ever been in his life. He was only here because he was leaving Morningleaf and all the pegasi who had risked their lives --- and many had died --- just for him. And this is how Star was to repay them? What were the five herds of Anok thinking of him now? Didn’t this count as betrayal? Star had been thinking about this for most of his flight.

“Star the Betrayer,” he whispered to himself, mouthing the title. Pegasi who betrayed their herd were the most hated pegasi in Anok, but in this case, Star was betraying all the herds, so he’d probably be hated even more. Star found it hard to imagine hate more intense than that a betrayer got.

At last, Star saw the sun showing through the trees just hoofbeats away from him. Beyond that point, waves crashed against tall rocks and a seashell-filled beach. And just like the Trap, the Cottonwood Forest burst to reveal lots of light. The sun beat down on Star’s hide as he slowed to a walk. The hot sand was annoying to walk into, so Star flew. He landed on one of the taller rocks, and peered where he was to travel to. It was now close to sunset, so the horizon was turned yellow-orange by the minute. Star stood on that rock for a while, just thinking. The Sea of Sunrise looked long, blue, and boring, like the other oceans. But somewhere beyond that point was a continent--- the one he would stay on for a hundred years or more. There weren't any legends about this continent, but it was real. Just because it was on the other side of the planet didn’t make it imaginary. The cold beach wind blew past him, ruffling his feathers. He spread his wings, and lifted off the ground. Then, he sped forward, and flew as fast as he could. Just minutes later, the rock he had been standing on, and the Cottonwood Forest, was nowhere in sight. It would be the last time he saw anything on that coast, or anything in Anok, since the scenery would no doubt change as time went on. Star flew high, coasting on the strongest winds that were going the same way he was. He didn’t do a lot of thinking. He only focused on the water below him to make sure there weren’t any sharks while also keeping one eye looking in front of him.

Two days later. . .

It had been two days and two nights since he’d left the beach. He had had three encounters with giant sharks, and saw several pods of dolphins. His wings flapped almost effortlessly, with his enhanced abilities helping him. He wasn’t tired, not even a little bit. Star wondered how long it would take for him to even get a hint of wanting a break. He lifted his head towards the sunrise. It was early morning. After a couple more hours of flying, Star thought he saw something in the distance. Star squinted, wanting to see what it was. As he realized what it was, he sucked in his breath. It was land! As Star flew closer, he could see an opposite beach, treetops, and long, untamed wildgrass. Star didn’t need to eat, but even he had to admit, it would be nice to graze, to feel the ground beneath his feet once again.

At last, he was directly over the newfound continent. Lowering himself, his hooves hung down, then landed gently on the grass. He took a look around for a while, just inspecting what was around him. There was a white sand beach just a few wingbeats away, with some fairly tall mountains on the opposite side. Star was in the middle of a grassland with quite a few pine trees. Like a very sparse forest, with several visible clearings. Star could comfortably spread his wings to their full size, and he was pleased, contrary to the Trap. As the sun rose higher into the Sky, the day aged, and Star fed on a lush patch of grass and tried his best to not think about Morningleaf. Suddenly, Star heard a slight flap of wingbeats. He looked in the direction the sound was coming from, but nothing was there. Star went back to grazing. But he heard the noise again, and he soon grew uneasy. Then, out of nowhere, a bright flash of silver light blasted at him like lightning. Startled and disturbed, Star took off into the air as fast as he could. He hovered directly over a pine tree, and anxiously looked around. What had that silver flash been? It looked like silver starfire. Did the Destroyer somehow follow me here? How come I can’t see him? He thought. Then he heard the wingbeats again for a split second, and then the silver starfire appeared out of nowhere again and struck him. He fell from the tree, screaming, and hit the ground. All his senses faded, and he was knocked out. At the last moment, he thought he saw the blurry figure of something solid black flying over him. His last thought was, Not again!