He almost dropped it back on the table out of reverence. Almost. …It's for the better. Calm down, Pennaprose… he admonished himself. He carefully peeled apart the pages, ending on the two most recent entries.
March 17th, Sunday
Tonight was big! I went to Sweetie Belle's birthday party, thinking I'd just hang with Bon Bon and Berry Punch and see if I could convince anyone (again) about how humans are totally real and stuff, but it's HOW the filly of the moment showed up! Rainbow Dash showed up at the front door with all three crusaders, then IMMEDIATELY after, the upstairs exploded! Apparently, they crashed a plane! Whatever a plane is! They weren't the only ones flying it, though. The pony that was watching them was left in the crash; how he didn't die is anypony's guess. Twilight explained it, but that sure as Tartarus it didn't convince anypony. Definitely not me!
I found the pony that crashed later and talked with him. He's a little mindless… but I think there's more! While I was talking with him, he definitely didn't talk like any pony I know! He was talking about dollars! I eavesdropped on him the rest of the night, and the evidence pilled up! There was talk of cheeseburgers and 'someone' he forgot about and most of all! Most! He knows what hands are, I heard him saying "Have to hand it to you, Twilight," to her when they left the party!
He's a human in disguise, I'm sure of it! Or somepony who shares my obsession at least!
I wanted to ask him right then and there, but Bon Bon convinced me that it was late enough. I'll let him sleep; after all, he crashed a flying thing! Hope he didn't break anything. Besides Rarity's house, of course.~Lyra~
He giggled a little in spite of himself. He thought he did a terrible job keeping that secret then, but reading how easily Lyra found out almost embarrassed him. He also thanked her for that modicum of thoughtfulness, then began to read the most recent entry.
March 18th, Monday
I... don't know what to do anymore. I got up early enough to dodge Bon Bon. And I met him again. He is a nice guy... he certainly put up with me far longer than I thought. I tried to get his attention by doing really impressive things like stop an out-of-control crane and gathering berries, like, really fast and stuff. (Berry still had a hay-over. I can't remember the last time she was sober.) But every time I had an opportunity, he paid attention to Twilight first. I don't hate her normally... but for most of the day I wondered what he saw in her.
We went ice-skating today. Well, we were supposed to helping Pinkie score a lake that was missed during Winter Wrap Up, but how could I pass up such a romantic opportunity? Nope! Some things happened and... well... Twilight and I ended up in the lake. I'm STILL freezing from that. Bon Bon pulled me out while Pennaprose got Twilight out. I love Bon Bon to death, but the fact is that even though it was kinda my fault the two of us ended up in the lake. And Twilight kinda... couldn't swim. I almost killed her...
But Penni gave me a blanket first that time. Pinkie was bouncing off Twilight, trying to wake her up. I thought about it... and I realized something when we got back to Twilight's. He isn't nice to Twilight because he likes her, necessarily. That's where he's staying while in this world, and he's just trying to be a courteous houseguest. I kinda felt bad for thinking Twilight was my rival for his affections. There was never anything between them, I think.
So I decided to find a way to make up to him. I didn't have any ideas for a while, but when I saw the leftover batter at Sugarcube corner, I knew what I wanted to do: I was gonna give him the biggest apology cupcake ever!
I baked the thing, with a little help from Spike. It took my last gem for this month to persuade him to help me, but I believed it was going to be worth it. I... just... didn't know about the jam...
I wish I didn't take it. According to Penni, the jam was poisoned. The worst part is that it's my fault the jam was poisoned. I didn't pay attention when Fluttershy said the green ones shouldn't be harvested. Now it's all my fault Twilight is paralyzed... Penni told me to leave and not show my face to him ever again. The worst part about the whole, damned thing... is that I agree with him. I've almost killed Twilight, not once, but twice. In the same day!
I've done too much damage. For now, diary, I'm going into complete hiding. I don't know when I'll come back, or even if I'll come back, but I need to go somewhere. I feel bad not telling Bonni about this, but I must cut all ties. You are the last and only one that knows me, diary. I secretly hope, though, that Penni will understand the note I've left him. It won't matter that the rest of the world will find out my love of poetry eventually… I don't think Penni will tell others, but even if he did... I'll be living in a cave, up the nearby mountain for now. The one that had the dragon in it once, remember? It's far enough away; most ponies won't think to look for me there. Even pegasai normally avoid it.
With time, I might be forgotten. Perhaps then, I'll be able to come back, restyle myself, get a new name, and pretend like I don't have this human obsession. Even... if it means I... must forget Bon Bon and the rest of my friends here in Ponyville. Oh...
Goodbye, perhaps forever,Lyra
He could almost hear her voice as he read the last few lines. He noted with mild shock that the bottom of the page was heavily stained with tears, warping the paper and ink almost to have become illegible. Another tear joined it; it was his own.
"Hey!" came Bon Bon's voice from the top of the pit. "We've got a rope! Grab on if your done down there!"
Sure enough, there was a rope dangling down the side of the shaft when he turned around. He began to approach it, then turned around to look at the diary one more time. It still lie open; he hastily grabbed a spare piece of paper from his bag and wrote a note, bookmarking the last page before closing it. Without another word, he grabbed the rope by his teeth, eyes dry and mind clear.
With some difficulty, Bon Bon and Blossomforth tugged, hauling Pennaprose onto the main floor once more. Bon Bon wasted no time, "Well? Did you find anything down there?"
He got up, brushing his coat off. "…Yes. In fact, I know where we should look next."
"What, where?"
He turned to her. "There's a really tall mountain near here where a dragon used to sleep, right?"
She raised an eyebrow. "…Yes? But why should we look there? What did you find?"
"You said whatever I see, whatever I find, you didn't show me. Et tu, Bon?" said Pennaprose as he took the key out of the sculpture, closing the passage and raising the blast shutters. "Take my word for it. There was a clear point towards that mountain down there. You need not know any more than that."
Bon Bon looked offended, then snorted derisively. "Oh sure, whatever. …But it's a lead, I guess. Come on, we need to make tracks."
They galloped towards the exit; Blossomforth quickly explained when asked that she squeezed out of a mailslot and found a rope nearby outside. Pennaprose only blinked at this, not bothering to ask how such a thing was even possible.
They emerged from the ground, hitting the chain again to close it. Bon Bon led the way out to the horizon; surely, the mountain scraped the sky from where they stood, a formidable presence. They did not speak, they only ran.
On the way, two pegasai descended and intercepted them; it was Rainbow Dash and Thunderlane. Dash flew in front of them.
"Hey! How's the search going on your end? Nopony else has had any luck so far."
"We have a lead! We think Lyra might be at that mountain!" Pennaprose said, looking ahead of the group.
She glanced at the mountain. "There, huh? That's gonna be awfully hard to scale without wings. Should I get some other pegasai together? We could airlift you up there."
"That would be useful, thanks!" said Bon Bon. "What about your team?"
"No leads, " said Dash. "But a second search on homes by some forensics experts said that there was a struggle at Vinyl's and Colgate's. Plus, Bulk's story of getting launched by Pinkie is unverifiable. He might have met an impostor…
"Needless to say, Mayor Mare's decision to upgrade this to a full-blown emergency seems more right every passing second. It's starting to look like a kidnapping, actually… Thunderlane! Go tell the mayor about the lead! I'll round up every pegasus I can find and meet you three at the base of the mountain. Break!"
Thunderlane veered off back towards town while Dash launched through the air in another direction. The three of them did not pause to look, eyes glued to the mountain alone.
They arrived at the base in a few short minutes. Pennaprose did not wait for Dash; he began climbing the almost vertical cliffside without pause for rest. Bon Bon sighed and followed, but Blossomforth hovered above the two of them, watching for falling rocks.
After they reached the first ledge, Bon Bon collapsed, breath heaving. Pennaprose was frantically pacing against the ledge, trying to find a place to start again.
"Calm down, Pennaprose!" Bon Bon said breathlessly. "We have time… and going ahead on your own is liable to get you killed! Let's wait for Dash's team…"
He snorted in frustration, but admitted that even he was feeling exhausted. If she was in danger, then being out of breath would only hinder him. Waiting for Dash's team would be faster, in the long run…
He kicked the rock face and paced in frustration. Every passing second he was forced to wait was another that visions of what could be scraped the sides of his mind. He tried pulling out his sudoku book and focusing on that, but not a single number came to him. He stowed it away and resumed pacing.
In a few minutes that felt like hours to Pennaprose, Dash showed up from over the tree line with several pegasai in tow. One, two, three… including Blossomforth, there were a total of 6 pegasai. "Sorry for the delay!" said Dash. "The teams managed to spread out quicker than I thought." She motioned to a pair of similarly pale lilac-colored pegasai. "Flitter, Cloudchaser, grab Pennaprose. Thunderlane, help me lift Bon Bon. Cloudkicker, Blossomforth, keep a vanguard for sudden weather and falling rocks! Let's move, ponies!"
The twins swooped over, putting a hoof each under his shoulder and lifting him skyward. To his left, Dash and Thunderlane did the same with Bon Bon. The group of 8 soared skyward at a decent clip, rising over the forest evermore, but Pennaprose did not bother taking in the view; his eyes were glued to the peak alone.
Eventually, they reached the highest plateau, as far as they could tell. A cave entrance yawned before them, large and dimly lit by what inferior light could penetrate it's depths. Dash stepped forward and addressed the group.
"All right. Last time I was here, it was to kick a dragon out from smoking Equestria into oblivion. We stay as a group while going deeper. We're looking for one pony, I don't want the search party getting separated and lost at the same time." She turned around, digging a hoof into the dirt. "…Let's go."
They walked in. Pennaprose kept to the front of the pack, on Dash's left. Cloudkicker was trailing a length of rope behind them. Surprisingly, despite there not being any noticeable source of light, the interior was better lit than what it suggested from the outside. There were numerous stalagmites piercing the ground and innumerable puddles only a few inches deep, but nothing to suggest how or why. Pennaprose felt curious in spite of himself.
Dash casually kicked one of the stalagmites. "…As I thought. That's why this place is so well lit…"
"Excuse me?" Pennaprose asked.
"These formations aren't made of rock. Poke one. Does it feel like rock to you?"
He brushed his front hoof against the nearest one. To his surprise, it sank right through without resistance. "…What?"
"Congealed clouds." Dash explained. "They got floated in, got trapped in here, then dropped all their moisture on the ground. The existing stone is holding it well, so these puddles may have been here for decades as far as I know."
Pennaprose frowned. "But why is it so well lit then?"
"Twilight could probably explain it better…" said Dash. "But the stone around here might contain trace elements of crushed gems. Whatever small amounts of light that gets in is magnified by both the water and the–oof!"
She tripped over something, hitting the stone face-first. She swore briefly, then swiveled on the spot trying to find what tripped her. "…Huh? Sea Swirl?"
Pennaprose's heart leapt into his throat. He looked behind a rock formation where Dash was looking; sure enough, a purplish unicorn with a mane of sapphire tones was half asleep against the rocks.
"…Hehghm… Yawn… Morning," she said. "…Huh? Where am I…? And why am I surrounded by a party? …Is it my birthday or something?"
Dash shook her head. "Uh, no. Do you know that everypony in Ponyville is out on a search for half a dozen missing ponies? …And that you're one of them?"
Sea Swirl blinked. "…I do now? What's going on…?" She got up and looked around, clearly confused.
Dash turned to the group. "This is odd enough as it is, but now's not the time for questioning. Cloudkicker, Blossomforth, you two airlift Sea Swirl back to Ponyville's hospital. Tell the mayor about what we found so far. With any luck, we might still find more of the missing."
Cloudkicker and Blossomforth both nodded, grabbing Sea Swirl and heading back in the direction of the rope. Thunderlane picked it up and started unraveling it as the group of 6 now forged their way deeper into the cave. Only the sounds of their hoofsteps echoed.
Left, right, right, left, center, left, center, right, right, left… It was quickly becoming a labyrinth, sloping down ever so slightly with each turn. Thunderlane was voicing concerns about the rope, which was beginning to run out; Dash said that she brought her own, the news of which made Thunderlane sigh with relief.
Eventually, they came upon the end of the hallways. The path sloped violently and led out into an enormous cavern. Pennaprose slid down the slope without caution, ahead of the rest, and saw before him something that caused his jaw to drop slightly.
Mounds upon mounds of gold and silver lie stacked to the ceiling in the center of the round room, a single ray of pure daylight filtering down through the top and casting a spotlight on the scene. Behind him, he could hear the others similarly gasp, but only Dash called out. "Look! On the left slope! Next to that ruby-hilted sword! Is that…?"
There was a single mass of pink fur half buried in the slope. It was Pinkie! They rushed over; Dash hovered up to her and grabbed Pinkie's tail, which was dangling over the pile and pulled.
She came tumbling out, dragging with her numerous adornments and a mass of white along with her. "Vinyl? You too?" said Dash.
The mass of white got up, revealing it to be a white unicorn mare with a mix of electric and sapphire blue mane and wearing countless bits of gold, including a gold-rimmed pair of glasses that were too opaque to see her eyes. She was tied by the hooves to Pinkie with a few sets of pearl strings.
"…The hell? What're... you all doin'… in my house? I didn't set up a party…" said Vinyl, taking off her glasses and rubbing her eyes in the process. "…Hey! Pinkie, wazzup! If you're here, there's gotta be a party… right?"
Vinyl swung the beads around, sending Pinkie flying everywhere. She did not wake up, however.
"Aw, c'mon… this ain't a slumber party, Pinkie…" yawned Vinyl. She stopped flailing Pinkie around. "…Meh, whatever…" She nodded off, collapsing on the ground fast asleep.
Dash exchanged glances with the rest of the group. "…This just keeps getting stranger and stranger. But that's three out of seven so far. Not bad…"
She reached into her saddle pouch and pulled out a length of rope. "Okay, here's what we're going to do. Thunderlane and I will carry Pinkie while Cloudchaser and Flitter carry Vinyl. We're heading back to Ponyville's hospital, maybe see if Sea Swirl is up for questioning while we're there. In the meantime, you two continue on." She handed the rope to Bon Bon. "Keep trailing this stuff. No matter what you two find, wait for us to return. It shouldn't take too long…"
They nodded without comment. The rest of the pegasai lined up, carrying Pinkie and Vinyl out. Neither woke up as they bounced around.
They waited until they couldn't hear them anymore. "…Come on," said Pennaprose. "We've still got ponies to find. …Over there, follow me."
He fixed his eyes to the sides of the mound; the left half of the chamber had an exit. They followed it.
Pennaprose led in silence, his heart beginning to worry. Three ponies found with a lead for one pony… he felt like the idea of a kidnapping was more and more likely. But what kidnapper would leave their hostages out in the open, even if they thought they weren't followed? It reeked of a trap.
An earth-shattering roar and plume of flame shook the silence and relative darkness loose. Bon Bon yelped in surprise; ahead was another cavern. His ears stood erect, his muscles tense and solid. He tread carefully forward—Bon Bon reluctantly followed—and peered around the corner into the chamber ahead.