The droplets falling from the ceiling made for a peculiar melody. If the prisoner stretched her hoof forward, drops of water would wet her fur and the sound would change. She opened and closed her eye, but was met by darkness either way.
Your name is Rainbow Dash, the filly's voice kept repeating. The prisoner held her head, wincing as she accidentally touched a cut left on her scalp by one of the interrogators.
Perhaps it was all another trick. This creature, this centaur, had taken her cutie mark. She had taken everything. She could probably enter her dreams, too. Yes, it had to be a trick. Somehow, she wanted the secrets buried deep inside her head.
Your name is Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo's voice said again. Could it really be her? Luna could enter dreams. Maybe it was all real? If so, then why were her dreams silent again?
They can't trick me, I'm awesome. She bit her own hoof, her broken teeth hurting more than her flesh. Hope was not for this prisoner. It would only weaken her, let them break her. She bit herself again. Stupid, stupid pony. Don't let them trick you.
The door opened with a loud creak. "You're biting yourself now? I can arrange a nice pony leg for your next meal if you play nice," Crackbeak's voice mocked with a loud guffaw.
The prisoner stood motionless, her head down. Defiance would only be punished.
"You're getting another audience today," Crackbeak said. "Hurry it up." He slapped her on the flank as an added gesture, forcing her to limp out of the cell.
"I guess we can always chop off that leg and make you eat it," Crackbeak continued as he led her through the dark corridors. "It's not like you're getting much use of it. We should make it a game. Wanna lose a leg or a wing? We'll feed either to you as your first taste of pony meat."
"P... please," she said.
"Keep your whimpering for the duchess. Now hurry up before I really do rip off one of your wings."
She was taken down an eerily familiar path, toward the end of the hallway. Once she arrived at the staircase, she knew what it meant; the creature would experiment on her again. The first time, her cutie mark had been taken. The second, she had been cut, examined, and tortured, all of it without a single question being asked. She gulped as Crackbeak pushed her toward the steps.
"Get up there, you good for nothing idiot."
She winced as she climbed the steps. This was always hard on her bad leg. She unfolded her wings slightly, but was quickly hit behind the head by the end of Crackbeak's spear. "I see you try to use those wings again, and I pull off your feathers one by one." The prisoner folded her wings back, remembering the last time her tormentors had plucked her feathers.
She was brought to the room at the top of the stairs. The centaur was staring at her with a malicious grin. "Good, we can begin."
A new griffon stood with the liar next to a closed door the prisoner had never seen opened. Her pristine, well-groomed white feathers and haughty demeanor stood in contrast with the grim torture chamber as she stepped forward. "You took her mark," the haughty griffon said. "Have you at least gotten anything out of it?"
"Not yet," the centaur said. "It doesn't seem different from any of the other ones. I don't think this one has the magic we're looking for."
"A pity," the haughty griffon said. She turned back toward the prisoner. "I want you to answer, and I want you to answer truthfully."
"Of... of course," the prisoner said, keeping her head low.
"Twilight Sparkle," the griffon said. "Do you know how to get her out of her crystalline prison?"
"I don't know," the prisoner said, failing to keep her voice from shaking.
"You're strong-willed," the griffon said as she walked around her. "Or incredibly stupid. My reports suggest both, actually. They also suggest you have a strong sense of self-sacrifice."
The prisoner gulped. She closed her eye. She's trying to trick you. Just like the filly in your dreams.
"Unfortunately for you, we no longer have the luxury of patience. Either you know how to give us access to Princess Twilight, or you're useless to us."
You are Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo's voice resonated in her head. You can get out of this.
"Silent eh?" the haughty griffon continued as she walked back in front of her. "No matter. Valerak here has shown some interest in dissecting you. I suppose we'll have to find another test subject. There is another potential target causing ruckus for our troops back in Equestria. Her name is Pinkie Pie, I believe? If not, I happen to know our allies in Canterlot are holding a certain Fluttershy for treason. I'm sure we could offer them something of value in exchange for her."
Rainbow held her head with her hooves. "You lie," she said as she fell to the floor.
She heard the griffon step away. Voices were speaking, but she couldn't make them out. She was dragged along the cold floor by Crackbeak. "Strap her to this table," the centaur ordered.
Her remaining eye opened and she saw the liar standing next to the haughty griffon. Two other guards stood behind, one staring at her with bright blue eyes. What was it about those eyes? The guard's features loosened, and the prisoner lost track of her as the centaur's large red body blocked the path. "It should be easier for me to get the truth out of you when I don't have to make sure you stay alive," the monster said with a calculated grin.
The prisoner failed to hold in her tears. Twilight, Scootaloo, I'm so sorry. She expected cold steel on her flesh, but instead, the centaur let out a feral scream. The prisoner looked up and found two claws holding onto the creature's neck from behind.
"Hold on, Dashie. We're getting you out of this!"
That voice... It's impossible!
The prisoner was pulled down to the ground and Crackbeak struck her face. "You try anything and I'll break every bone in your body." He turned and faced the liar, who was flying and stabbing at the centaur with her spear. A second guard was holding onto the monster tightly, her feathers taking on a strange pink tone as she attempted to hinder the creature's movement.
Another guard in the back was holding a blade to the haughty griffon's throat. "Commander Rainbow Dash," the guard yelled in her direction. "Snap out of it!"
Your name is Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo's voice resonated again.
"Decurion Gilda, stand down!" Crackbeak yelled as he flew up and grabbed hold of the soldier on the centaur's back. He pulled her aside and threw her to the ground.
The liar was locked in combat with the monster while the second soldier gave her wings a few flaps and shoved Crackbeak to the ground next to the prisoner. The soldier turned toward her, gazing with hopeful blue eyes. "It's me! It's Pinkie! Snap out of it!"
"You move a muscle and I make you eat your remaining eyeball," Crackbeak spat as he rose to his legs.
Rainbow breathed in and out. Her heartbeat raced as she looked down at the fallen form of her tormentor. My name is Rainbow Dash. She jumped on Crackbeak and bashed his face with her hoof. "My name is Rainbow Dash!" She cried as she punched him again, and again, and again. "Die! Die! Die! Die! Die!"
She kept beating her tormentor's face until her hoof bled. The crack on his beak opened, and a large piece of it broke off. Rainbow grabbed the broken piece and shoved it inside one of Crackbeak's eyes, prompting a satisfying cry of terror from the griffon. "How about that?" Rainbow yelled. "Do you want me to feed you your own eyeball?"
"Dashie, stop!" a voice yelled as Rainbow was pushed away.
"No! I won't go back!" Rainbow screamed as her entire body was shaken.
"It's me! It's Pinkie!" Rainbow opened her eye and found a pink face staring at her with tearful blue eyes. "Please tell me you recognize me." Pinkie hugged Rainbow tightly.
Rainbow remained motionless. The liar had impaled the centaur with her spear while the other guard was still holding the haughty griffon hostage. His features were slowly transforming. His beak was becoming shorter and a horn was growing on his head. "Is this a dream?" Rainbow asked.
"No," Pinkie said. "It's real. We're taking you out of here."
Rainbow stared blankly at the wall as she was tightly hugged. She spied Crackbeak from the corner of her eye, lying motionless in a pool of his own blood. The liar was staring at her, a strange smile forming on her face. Behind her, the guard holding the haughty griffon hostage had transformed into a white unicorn stallion. Shining Armor, Twilight's brother.
After a moment of silence, Pinkie broke the embrace. "I don't understand," Rainbow managed to say.
"It was Discord," Pinkie said. "He transformed us into griffons so we could get in here, and Gilda helped us."
"She's a liar," Rainbow said as she glared at the griffon. "Everything that happened to me is her fault." She walked to the liar, to Gilda. "I should kill you like I killed Crackbeak."
"Rainbow, no!" Pinkie pleaded as she rushed between Rainbow and the liar. "I don't know what happened to you in here, but you're not a murderer."
"No one's killing anyone," Shining said as he stepped forward, right after he finished tying up his hostage. "And you didn't have to kill the centaur, Gilda."
The liar scoffed. "Trust me. If you knew half of what she's done, you'd thank me for ridding the world of her. Now, can we free your princess and get out? There's still plenty of guards in this tower, and we can't take them all on."
Rainbow turned around and spat on Crackbeak's body. "This one deserved it, too."
Pinkie's ears drooped as she sighed. "Let's get out of here and get you better."
The liar made her way to a thick wooden door in a corner of the laboratory, between a library filled with occult tomes and a table with a half-dissected pony rotting on it. "Your princess is in there."
Shining walked forward and opened the door, Pinkie and Rainbow following him inside. This wasn't the first time Dash had been brought inside such a room, forced to stare at the frozen form of Twilight Sparkle. The voices of multiple interrogators resonated in her head at once. How can Twilight Sparkle's shield be broken?
The liar turned to Pinkie. "I hope you know how to crack open this thing. Dash obviously doesn't know. She would have talked by now if she did."
"She does," Pinkie said.
Rainbow averted her eye. "What are you talking about? I've never seen this before."
Yes you have, Scootaloo's voice said in Rainbow's head.
"Remember," Pinkie said, placing a hoof on Rainbow's back. "Twilight told all of us after she got her wings."
Rainbow gulped and nodded. All along, it was that simple, hidden in a part of her mind that refused to surface. A voice screamed in her head, but she ignored it. She limped to the crystalline shield and tears fell down her cheeks as she touched the surface with her hoof. "It's safe, Twilight. You can come out." Her voice was barely a whisper.
"That's it?" Gilda said incredulously as Rainbow watched the purple crystal slowly dissolve.
"It's a friendship shield," Pinkie said. "Any one of Twilight's friends can free her from it."
"So all this time, you were protecting her?" The liar said.
Rainbow didn't grace the liar with an answer as Twilight gently fell from the melting crystal. She opened her eyes. "Chrysalis... No..." she whispered as she came back to her senses.
Pinkie rushed to their friend's side. "Easy Twilight. You're with friends."
"P... Pinkie," Twilight said as Pinkie held her. Her eyes frantically looked around the room. "Where am I? Where's Chrysalis?"
"The battle is over. You're in High Roost," Pinkie said. "You were held by the griffons, but we're rescuing you."
"Wait, what?" Twilight groggily replied as she slowly rose. Her eyes opened wide with shock as they met Rainbow's. "Rainbow? What happened to you?" Twilight rushed to Rainbow's side, her violet eyes filled with concern.
Rainbow took a step backward and averted her eye. She remembered how she looked. She was missing an eye, one of her legs barely worked, her mane was gone, and she was little more than skin tightly rotting on her aching bones. Her cutie mark was also gone, maybe for good. "D... don't look at me," she whispered.
"What did they do to my friend?" Twilight said, barely containing the rage in her voice.
"Easy now, Twily," Shining said as he stepped forward. "I'm not going to lie. A lot of horrible things have happened. Equestria is at war. For now, we need to get you out of here."
Twilight gasped. "Equestria at war? Against the griffons?" She breathed heavily, staring at the wall a moment before she walked to Rainbow and grabbed hold of her head. "Did you let them torture you to protect me?"
"The griffons manipulated everything," Shining said. "Blueblood and Luna have been at war for months. I'll give you all the details, but we need to escape this prison first." He looked down. "They even murdered Princess Celestia".
Twilight stared at her brother as her chest heaved up and down. She ground her teeth, her eyes darting between Shining and Rainbow.
"They're monsters, Twilight," Rainbow said.
Twilight gazed at Rainbow a moment before nodding. She placed her hoof over her heart and took in a deep breath, slowly letting it out. "Okay. I assume you have a plan?"
"We could take the carriage and make a run for it," Shining suggested.
"Not gonna happen," Gilda said, shaking her head. "I don't know if you noticed, but there are patrols outside. We won't outfly them, not while pulling a carriage and with a wounded prisoner."
"My magic isn't working," Twilight said, a hint of panic in her voice.
"Most forms of magic are blocked in this place," Shining said. "I think they built this prison specifically for alicorns."
"Well, let's get out of this room then," Twilight said. "Maybe we can figure something out."
"That's the Twilight I know!" Pinkie cheered. "It'll be just like old times, right Dashie?" Rainbow jumped as she felt Pinkie's leg around her neck. She started to recoil, before she remembered this was her friend, and not Crackbeak looking to torment her.
The group returned to the laboratory, and Twilight gasped in shock at its content. "What happened here? Did they experiment on ponies?"
"They experimented on ponies, obviously," the liar said. "As to why, I have no idea. I know this big machine in the middle was used to suck off Rainbow's cutie mark. They used it on other prisoners, too."
Twilight carefully studied the machine, from the electrified rods at the end to the giant glass receptacle containing a glowing, orange substance, to the various pipes linking everything together. "Well, at least giving everypony their cutie marks back will be simple enough."
"It will?" Shining asked.
Twilight smiled at Rainbow. "A cutie mark is an essential part of a pony. While it can be separated from said pony, it'll always be a part of them. All we have to do is break this jar, and everypony will get their marks back."
A solid buck from Twilight broke the glass. The contents of the vial oozed out and evaporated into small balls of energy that flew in different directions. One went immediately to Rainbow, who found herself enveloped in a light blueish hue as she felt her strength return. Her coat even regained some of its coloration. "Thank you, Twilight," she said as she looked down at the lightning bolt that was now back on her flank. She smiled, the expression on her face strange and unfamiliar.
"Do you feel better?" Twilight asked as she flew to Rainbow's side. "I'm not sure how to handle this."
"I'll be fine," Rainbow lied.
Twilight walked to a desk. She frowned as she passed the centaur's dead body. "Research notes," she said as she picked up a notebook from the desk. "It should give us more information about what was going on here."
"Great," Gilda said as she kept glancing at the room's two main exits. "Now, how do we get out? All the prisoners getting their cutie marks back will alert the guards."
"Before we do that," Twilight said with a frown. "What about the other prisoners? I won't let anypony else rot in this place."
"I... I never saw any," Rainbow said.
Gilda shook her head "Forget it. The way to the cells is too heavily guarded. We have to pass the barracks to get there."
As if on cue, Rainbow heard noises from outside the door leading back toward her cell. Shining rushed toward it and locked it with a heavy wooden bar. "This won't hold them for long," he said.
"We can't leave innocent ponies in this place," Pinkie argued.
Shining Armor raised his hoof. "We have to. I hate it as much as all of you, but the only way we'll help anypony is if we escape, get back to Equestria, and restore Twilight to the throne." He sighed and turned to his sister. "Twily, once you rule in Canterlot, you can insist every prisoner be freed. You'll be able to pressure Griffingard, even ask for reparations."
Twilight sighed. "You're right, Shining. So how do we get out?"
The guards started banging on the door, making it buckle. Rainbow held her head with her hooves.
"The only entrance I saw is on the roof," Shining said.
"It's the only one that I know of," the liar confirmed.
Rainbow took a deep breath and turned to the bound and gagged form of the haughty griffon. Even in this state, she looked like she could reduce Rainbow back to a whimpering mess with nothing but a look. Rainbow tried to ignore the sounds of the guards on the other side of the door and willed her voice to sound firm. "Would she know?"
"Alicia?" Shining said. "Actually, she might."
"Who is she anyway?" Twilight asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Duchess Alicia Bouvier," Shining said as his brow furrowed. "She's one of the architects of your kidnapping, and of the civil war in Equestria."
Twilight moved to the captured griffon and removed her gag. "Because we're in a hurry to escape, I won't ask you why you plunged Equestria into war, but mark my words: you do not hurt my friend or my nation without answering to me." She stared at Alicia, who still managed to appear defiant. "For now, answer me just one question: how do we get out of here?"
The haughty griffon chuckled. "You can't. The guards will break the door any moment, and all your efforts will have been for nothing."
Rainbow gulped and shook her head. Her eye found its way toward Pinkie, who offered a weak smile. Trust in Twilight. Trust in Pinkie. They're not broken like you are. They'll figure something out.
"Ooh, what about this?" Pinkie asked, prompting every head to turn in her direction. She pushed a metal trapdoor just large enough for a pony or griffon to fit through.
The liar rolled her eyes. "That's where Valerak dropped the dead bodies. I don't know what's down there, but I wouldn't want to find out. Maybe I can try to talk the guards out of bursting in? Tell them a sensitive experiment is under way?"
"There's no heat, so no fire," Pinkie said as she stuck her leg in the hole. "A bit of a breeze though."
"Wait, does it lead outside?" Rainbow asked.
"Don't be an idiot," Alicia said as she rolled her eyes. "Do you really think we'd dump dead bodies outside? This is a disposal chute. It means what we throw down there is never seen again."
"But how?" Pinkie asked.
"That's actually a good question," Gilda said as she tapped her claw on her beak. "I always wondered."
The haughty griffon grinned. "Have fun finding out."
"One way to find out," Pinkie said with a smile. "I'll let you know if it's safe." With that, she jumped down the chute. "Weeeeeeeee!"
"Pinkie, no!" Twilight yelled just as everyone gathered around the chute.
"Well, so much for your friend," the haughty griffon said.
Rainbow lay down and held her head under her legs. It was all for nothing. Pinkie probably just died, and the guards would come any moment. They would torture Twilight, and get everything they wanted.
"Hey, it's cozy down here," Pinkie's voice called.
"Pinkie?" Rainbow asked. "Does it mean we can get out?"
Shining smiled. "I've trusted her instincts so far." He jumped into the chute.
Gilda picked up the still bound haughty griffon. "Don't you dare, Decurion. I'm giving you a direct order to release me at once."
"As you command," Gilda said with a smirk as she dropped Alicia down the chute. Twilight jumped shortly after.
Rainbow limped to the opening. Whatever was down there, nothing could be worse than remaining a prisoner. She turned to face Gilda, the liar. "I'm going to kill you," Dash said.
"Look Dash, I did a lot of bad things, and I probably deserve it. Can we just get out of here for now? You still need me."
"It's not over," Rainbow said as she positioned herself in front of the chute. "You're just as bad as the rest of them." With that, she jumped down. She slid down a metal chute, scraping her skin in the process. She tried to use her wings to orient her fall, which achieved little given the pitch blackness and the lack of space.
She fell into a large, dark cave. She unfolded her wings and hovered in the air, relieved that the reflexes from her old life hadn't completely left her. The only visible light came from Twilight and Shining's horns — at least they had their magic back. They stood on a cave floor, surrounded by piles of bones. It almost reminded her of her old cell, but it was so big. She couldn't even see the cave walls.
"Where are we?" Shining asked.
Twilight studied the bones. "I would imagine a monster's lair."
"What kind of monster?" Shining asked Alicia as he grabbed her.
"You'll find out soon enough," Alicia said, the shaking in her voice betraying her obvious nervousness.
Rainbow landed next to Pinkie. "We can beat this thing, right?"
"Of course, Dashie," Pinkie said with a wide, optimistic smile. "I'm pretty sure we're outside the range of the magic blocking changeling thingy they have in the tower, so we have Twilight's magic."
Twilight averted her eyes. "Well, my magic is pretty depleted right now. I just got out of a fight with the changeling queen, remember?"
Shining raised an eyebrow. "That was months ago, Twilight."
Twilight sighed. "The spell I used was a stasis bubble. It's as if time didn't pass for me. The best I can manage for now are magic lights."
A loud, guttural cry interrupted the conversation, "Meaaaaaaaat!" Rainbow gulped as she tried to pinpoint where it had come from. It resonated through every cave wall, as if they already were in the creature's belly. The image of the griffon butcher Rainbow had killed in Saddlefree woods flashed in her head. It had been so long, and yet she still clearly remembered her first kill.
Rainbow huddled next to Twilight and Pinkie. Shining's horn lit up as Gilda took a defensive posture. As for Alicia, her eyes opened wide with fear. "What was that?" Shining asked, his voice quiet.
"Sounds big and angry," Gilda whispered.
A large silhouette rushed out of the darkness. A claw stretched forward and grabbed hold of Gilda while another slammed the ground next to the group. A one-eyed goat face roared ferociously at them. Its breath stank of rotten meat and its sharpened fangs were stained with blood and guts.
"What the hay is that thing?" Shining asked as he attempted to push the creature away with a magical wall.
"An arimaspi!" Twilight said a bit too excitedly for Rainbow's taste. "I always wanted to see one up close."
Rainbow's vision blurred as she stared at the roaring monster. "It's gonna take me back." She shook her head and took a step backward. "I can't let it take me back." She flew up, finding the strength to will her wings to support her weight. She took a deep breath, and charged at the monstrosity.
"Rainbow, no!" Twilight yelled as the creature raised to its back legs and batted Rainbow aside with a swipe of its claw. She scraped her skin as she fell to the rocky cave floor.
Pinkie rushed to her side as Shining threw a magical ray at the arimaspi. It only seemed to bounce off its thick skin. Gilda, still being held in the creature's grip, attempted to strike the monster's claw with her spear, which only prompted the monster to slam her body on the ground.
"Are you okay Dashie?" Pinkie asked as she held Rainbow's head.
Twilight flew up and tried to distract the creature as Shining bucked one of its legs. Gilda was still trying to get back up and regain her senses.
"It's gonna take me back," Rainbow mumbled, her eye glued to the spectacle. "It's going to eat them all and take me back!"
Pinkie shook her. "We won't let that happen."
"There is no escape from this prison," Rainbow continued, ignoring her friend. "They'll break all of you like they broke me."
A smile formed on Pinkie's muzzle. "This is a prison," she quietly pondered as her attention turned to the arimaspi. "Wait here, Dashie. I have an idea."
Twilight ducked another blow from the creature as it tried to step on Gilda, Shining's magical shield her only defense. Pinkie rushed in front of the one-eyed monster. "Stop! We can help you get out of here."
The monster abandoned Gilda and turned on Pinkie. It picked her up as it roared, "Meaaaat," covering Pinkie in spittle.
"You've been stuck in here so long you don't even remember what outside is like, do you?" Pinkie said as she winced against the arimaspi's grip. "They just keep throwing you bodies to eat. How long have you been down here?"
The arimaspi stopped and blinked with its only eye a few times. "Out...side?" he mumbled, still holding Pinkie. Gilda flew up, but Twilight blocked the griffon's path and shook her head.
Rainbow limped toward the group. "What are you doing Pinkie? That thing will eat you!"
Pinkie shook her head. "He easily could have by now. Just like you, he's a prisoner."
"Outside?" The arimaspi asked as it sniffed Pinkie. "Prisoner?"
"Just like Dashie here," Pinkie said with a smile. She managed to free one of her legs and point at Rainbow, who winced as the monster stared at her. "I bet the griffons built their tower over your lair, or maybe they dragged you here. They blocked the way out, and have been dropping you food."
"Escape," the monster whispered. Its features seemed to relax.
"I promise, we'll help you escape," Pinkie said. "We want to escape too, don't we?"
Twilight flew up. "That's right. The griffons have been holding me, too. If we work together, we can get out."
The arimaspi placed Pinkie back on the cave floor. "Outside," it repeated.
"Yes, we're going outside," Pinkie said. She extended one of her hooves. "Friend?"
The arimaspi grunted as he turned around. Rainbow walked to Pinkie. "How did you do that?"
"I remembered that this tower was used to trap magical creatures," Pinkie said. "Also, no one would want to live in a cave like this by choice, silly."
"I think he wants us to follow him," Twilight said as the arimaspi walked toward the other side of the cave.
Gilda massaged her shoulder with a grunt. "Are we really going to trust this thing?"
Shining forced Alicia back up and brought her forward. "It's not like we really had a shot at beating it," he said.
"No, you'd rather unleash it onto the unsuspecting city," Alicia said. "Because that's what will happen if you free it. Hundreds will die."
"You should have thought about that before you trapped it down here," Rainbow said.
"I won't let any harm come to High Roost," Twilight said. "Regardless of how you treated my subjects, Duchess, I won't stoop down to punishing yours."
"You two can fight over it on the way," Gilda said as the group moved forward, following the arimaspi.
Pinkie walked next to Rainbow. "Here, you can lean on me."
Dash recoiled in shock. "Wha... what are you doing?"
"Your leg," Pinkie said. "It looks like it hurts, so I'm helping you walk."
"Oh," Rainbow said, averting her eye. As hard as she tried, she couldn't remember a time when she didn't have a limp, or when anyone stopped to help her. She still expected to wake up in her cell, with Crackbeak waiting to beat her.
They followed the arimaspi to a far corner of the cave leading into a passage. The creature had to duck its head when crawling through it, resulting in a slower pace that gave Rainbow a chance to rest her crooked leg. She thought about flying, but still felt too weak to keep her wings going for longer than a minute or so. Unfolding her wings also raised an alarm in the back of her mind. Prisoners don't fly.
The light coming from Twilight and Shining's horns was the only way they could see anything. Having lived in the darkness of her cell for so long though, Rainbow could have followed the arimaspi by sound alone. They kept going for a few minutes before arriving at a pile of rubble. Mushrooms grew all over large stones. "No outside," the arimaspi said.
"Hmm, a cave-in blocked the entrance," Twilight said as she studied the rocks. "It looks like it happened quite a while ago, too."
"So this was your plan?" Shining asked Alicia as he pushed her forward. "You created a cave-in just so you could have this monster get rid of evidence for you?"
"We also kept it from destroying the city," Alicia said. "Arimaspi are smart enough to play along with plans like yours. Mark my word, its escape can only end in disaster."
Pinkie hopped in front of the creature. "You won't hurt any griffons when you get out, will you? You'll just escape into the wild?"
"Free," the arimaspi said. "No kill, just free."
"See, he's just a big fuzzy boy," Pinkie said with a wide grin. Rainbow frowned. How could Pinkie act so carefree?
Shining Armor stroked his chin. "We still have to figure out how to get out. I imagine our friend here already tried to move these boulders, and he's way stronger than we are."
"You're right," Twilight said. "Even with my magic at full strength, I couldn't get us through this passage."
Rainbow sighed as she gave her wings a few flaps. Would she ever be able to fly as well as she used to? She felt a surge of nostalgia for the open air. She gasped as a realization came to her. "Air," she whispered.
"What do you mean, Dashie?" Pinkie asked.
"Air!" Rainbow repeated. "We're breathing fine in here, so is the arimaspi. It means air is coming in and out. There must be a passage close by."
Twilight flew up. "Oh my gosh! Rainbow, you're a genius! Of course, there would be an air vent somewhere. Probably a hole too small for an arimaspi to go through."
"Or out of its reach," Gilda said. "This thing doesn't have wings. If we can find it, we can escape through it. Me and the princess can carry the rest of you."
Pinkie shook her head. "We still need to help our friend escape." She motioned toward the arimaspi, who was scratching its head. In a way, this creature was closer to Rainbow than Pinkie or Twilight. None of them knew what true captivity felt like. None of them could understand. Rainbow probably looked just as monstrous to outsiders in her current state.
Gilda sighed. "Look, we have a chance to both escape and make sure this thing doesn't destroy half of High Roost. I say we find the exit and bolt."
"I made a promise," Pinkie insisted as she glared at Gilda.
Twilight raised a hoof. "Let's find the exit for now. We can figure out the details after." Rainbow noticed a knowing smile being shared between Twilight and Pinkie.
Pinkie hopped on the arimaspi's back, who surprisingly helped her up. "So, do you have any idea where the exit is? I promise you, we won't abandon you here."
The creature nodded as it made its way back down the passage. It led them back to the main room, where it pointed at the ceiling. "Outside," it grunted.
Just like Rainbow had gotten eerily familiar with her cell, the arimaspi knew his by heart. Rainbow could feel a slight breeze coming from the ceiling as she flew up. She shivered at the feeling of fresh air on her skin — another thing she had all but forgotten.
"I'll go see where it leads," Gilda said. "The rest of you wait here." Rainbow groaned as she landed. Gilda was still the liar. Rainbow was about to say something, but Pinkie placed a hoof on her shoulder and shook her head.
Shining Armor nodded. "Hold on, let me see your spear." His horn illuminated and the tip of the weapon took on the same blue glow. "Here, it'll help you see. Let us know if the path leads outside, and if we can use it to escape. We'll wait here."
"Eh, thanks," Gilda said as she studied the glowing weapon a moment before flying into the darkness.
"I didn't know you learned that spell," Twilight said to her brother.
"It was pretty useful when patrolling at night with pegasus and earth pony guards," Shining said.
Rainbow watched as Gilda ascended toward a crack in the rock. She slipped through it, having just enough space to crawl through. Part of Rainbow feared that this was the last they'd see of her. Another part worried she'd be back with more guards.
"Well, we have some time while she explores," Twilight said with a sigh. "So, I want to know: how long was I trapped in that crystal, and what exactly happened in Equestria?"
Rainbow gulped as she shared concerned looks with Pinkie and Shining. "Better get comfortable," Shining said. "This is a long story."
Rainbow remained silent as Shining and Pinkie retold the tale of what happened after Twilight's abduction. Rainbow learned about Lightning's vicious raids, about the forced conscriptions, and about the countless deaths caused by both sides. She averted her eye when Pinkie talked about the eternal night. To think I had a part in all of this. Rainbow barely recognized herself when Pinkie told Twilight of her time in the Cloudsdale army.
Twilight interrupted on a few occasions to ask for clarifications. She kept a straight, serious expression through it all, asking about the different factions and the individuals involved. She gulped or ground her teeth on a few occasions, but pushed Pinkie away whenever she approached her for a hug or some other form of comfort.
Eventually, Twilight nodded. "Thank you for letting me know. I'll need some time to figure out what I want to do."
Rainbow dared not move a muscle. All of it was supposed to have ended quickly. Go to Canterlot, then force Blueblood to give up the throne. Now, Equestria was stuck in a civil war, and Luna was refusing to raise the sun. The alternative, Princess Luna being dead, was too horrific for Rainbow to contemplate.
"Are you okay, Twilight?" Pinkie asked.
"No Pinkie, I am not okay," Twilight said with a level of intensity that made Rainbow recoil. She hovered over the group and yelled. "My failed attempt to raise the sun caused me to trap myself with the changeling queen. Now, I learn that countless ponies have died over a stupid fight over the throne. I'm as far away from okay as you can imagine!"
Rainbow limped toward Twilight. "I'm just as much to blame. I should have listened to you, Pinkie. I should have taken you to Cloudsdale like you asked back when we met in Saddlefree woods."
The arimaspi, who was sitting quietly in a corner, scratched its head. "Pony sad?"
"It's too late to blame ourselves," Shining said. "If anything, we know that the griffons are to blame. Twilight, the research notes you grabbed will probably shed some light on a lot of things. What we know is that the griffons conspired to murder Princess Celestia and kidnap you. They probably convinced Blueblood to deny Princess Luna the throne as well."
Twilight landed and pushed her brother aside so she could face Alicia, who was still bound beside the unicorn stallion. Rainbow walked next to her friend. "What you did to Equestria," Twilight said, "is unspeakable. What have we ever done to you?"
"You personally?" Alicia replied, her tone as haughty and pretentious as it had been before she was captured. "Absolutely nothing. If anything, I pity you. You're the perfect product of pony society — so certain that values like friendship and honesty somehow grant you dominion over the world. I abhor you no ill will, Twilight Sparkle. I only wish for my people to return to glory. Your nation's control of nearly everything in this world is an obstacle to that."
"Griffon greed," Rainbow spat. "I should have known."
"I don't get what's so great about the glory days of Griffingard," Pinkie said. "It's like the time King Grover tried to unite Griffingard with some stupid idol after one of his pointless wars with Zebrica, only for that same silly idol to get stolen."
Twilight blinked a few times. "That's surprisingly accurate, Pinkie." She returned her attention to Alicia and frowned. "If you had grievances, I would have been more than happy to listen to them. Princess Celestia would have been willing to do just as much."
Rainbow gasped at Twilight. "You're not going to forgive her, are you? Look at what she did to me!"
"We're taking her back to Equestria," Twilight said. "I still have to decide what I want to do. This cave isn't the place for that."
"It'll be okay, Dashie," Pinkie said. "We got Twilight back. Things can return to what they used to be."
No they can't, Rainbow thought, although she didn't have it in her to argue with Pinkie.
"Awww, how touching." Every head turned toward the sound of the sarcastic voice. Rainbow felt a prickle on the back of her neck as she heard the liar's voice; Gilda was hovering over the group, still holding the shining spear.
"I take it by your satisfied expression that you found a way out," Shining said.
Gilda nodded. "It's a long crawl, but there's a crack large enough for a pony or griffon to fit in, and it leads to a ledge. All of us should be able to get out."
"All of us?" Pinkie asked raising an eyebrow.
Gilda scoffed. "If you're talking about your monster, you can forget about it. Even if he could fit, which he can't, we wouldn't be able to fly him up there."
"Then we find another way out," Pinkie said, glaring at Gilda. Her voice was firm. "I made a promise, and I'm not breaking it!"
"Don't be ridiculous," Gilda said as she landed. "This is the only way out. We won't find another one."
Shining sighed. "Gilda may be right, Pinkie. If anything, we can see about returning later."
"No outside?" the arimaspi said.
"We'll find a way," Pinkie said with a hopeful smile.
"Maybe if we wait for my magic to return," Twilight suggested. "I might be able to break some of these rocks and dig our way out."
"Even you aren't that powerful a magic user, Twily," Shining said. "Celestia might have been able to pull it off, given a few days. That's not even counting the danger of a cave-in. As things stand, we need to hurry and get you back on the throne. We have a war to stop. Then we'll be able to worry about this prison."
Rainbow turned to Shining. "Being left alone in a place like this," she said. "It's not right. It breaks you." The arimaspi suddenly looked more real than any of the ponies present. None of them could even begin to understand.
"We'll have to come back for him," Twilight said. She took a deep breath and flew up in front of the creature. "Listen. This crack is too small for us to take you out, but if we do leave, we can find some way of sending help."
"No outside?" the arimaspi said again.
Twilight shook her head. "Not yet, but as soon as we can."
The arimaspi picked up Pinkie and held her in front of its singular eye. "Pony promised."
Pinkie nodded. "And I'll keep my promise. We'll get you out of this. It might be hard for you to believe me, but we have friends outside. One of them in particular might be able to get you out."
"Oh, right," Shining said. "I suppose Discord could handle this."
"Great," Alicia mumbled. "Now we'll have two dangerous creatures roaming around High Roost."
"We could feed him the duchess," Rainbow said. "It might make the wait less painful, and she deserves it."
"Meat?"
"Absolutely not," Twilight said, her brow locked in a frown. "She'll be given a fair trial in Equestria."
"Fine," Rainbow said with a sigh.
"Alright, we've wasted enough time," Gilda said as she picked up Shining Armor. "I'll lift you all up to the crack. From there, we'll have to crawl up to the surface. It shouldn't be too bad."
It took a few minutes for the entire group to reach the crack. As Gilda said, it was just large enough so they could crawl in single file. Between Twilight and Gilda, they had been able to carry everyone up to the passage. Rainbow wanted to help, but her beaten body was still too weak. Simply flying up by herself proved demanding. At least she didn't have to rely on her crooked leg to support her while she was in the air.
Crawling up the crack took the longest. Rainbow was second in line, behind Shining Armor. She could see the night sky opening up at the other end. Tears welled up in her remaining eye as the stars got closer. It's the sky. I barely remembered what the sky looked like. She smiled as the first hints of fresh air brushed her face.
The upward crawl proved more demanding as time went on. The rocky surface kept chafing her skin, and she winced whenever she accidentally put weight on her crooked leg. She almost lost her footing on a few occasions, but kept on going through willpower alone, knowing she was closer to freedom than she would ever have imagined possible.
Once she reached the end, she hoisted herself against a moss-covered rocky formation with Shining's help and saw the starry sky meeting tall peaks. She was high above the land, with only a small stretch of mossy rocks onto which to stand before a long drop. Mountains spanned the scenery as far as the eye could see, with an endless expense of water stretching out to the right. A few lights near the ocean marked villages. No doubt High Roost itself was behind her, on the other side of the mountain.
Rainbow closed her eye and took in the fresh night air. Tears rolled down her cheeks as she extended her wings. If only she had the strength to fly. She felt a hoof on her shoulder and opened her eye. Twilight was smiling at her.
"I never thought I'd see the sky again, Twilight."
Twilight huddled close to Rainbow, the two friends sharing a smile as they stared at the night sky.