The Rainbow Concealed In The Dark.

by RainbowdashXSkywind

Chapter 5

A loud sigh expelled itself from Rainbow's mouth as she trotted through the Everfree Forest. The normal cock in her step was gone now. She stared at the ground dejectedly. Soarin chattered away loudly, obviously not realizing that not a single word of what he was saying was registering in her brain. Shining armor tapped Soarin on the shoulder and pointed towards the horizon. Rainbow seemed to be in her own world. There was pain glimmering in her beautiful rose eyes as she looked up. After focusing those rose orbs on the horizon for a few seconds, she cast her eyes downward again. Soarin patted her shoulder with a sympathetic white hoof.
"I promise, everything will turn out okay," he promised. Rainbow looked at him with pained, angry eyes. Her beautiful cerulean face glittered with tears, and her mouth was twisted into an angry expression.
"How is it going to be okay? As far as I know, my friends are DEAD. And I can't believe that I couldn't save them..." Rainbow's voice trailed off sadly.
"Rainbow, how could you have saved them? You were at the Wonderbolts performance!" exclaimed Soarin.
"That's just it! If I hadn't gone to that stupid Wonderbolts air show, I might have been able to save my friends, and all of Ponyville!" she lamented.
"But if you hadn't come to see the Wonderbolts-I mean, us, -- you'd never had really met me! Is that what you wanted?" he beguiled
She rolled her eyes at him, having none of it.
Shining Armor intervened.
"I hate to interrupt you guys when you're getting all hot and heavy," he said sarcastically, "But we're at Zecora's."
Rainbow looked up. She spotted a tree lying ahead. Like Twilight, Zecora lived in a tree. Although hers was decorated with native treasures and potion brews while Twilight had the classical "books all over the place" decor, they lived in the same type of house...could Zecora have...She shook her head to distract herself from such silly thoughts. She needed to find Zecora, that was all that mattered.
She flapped her wings out, rising into the air. Pumping her wings almost as hard as she could, she zoomed forward. She crashed through the door of Zecora's tree hut.
She skidded a few feet, creating a nasty rugburn on her stomach, but her pain was forgotten when she saw one of er best friends lying on the floor near her. Parts of her beautiful white and grey striped coat were torn up, and a few hours ago blood would have been rushing from them. Now the blood was hardened, staining parts of her coat a deep red. Her right ear was partially brunt, and a small trickle of blood leaked from the other, broken ear. Her eyes were closed and unconscious, but worst of all her gold jewelry was gone. Zecora loved her jewelry...they were her favorite things from the native lands where she had come from, and they were the only things that she ever wore. Rainbow went over to her friend, and a loud sob escaped her throat. Tears percolated madly from her tear ducts, streaming down her face. She wailed in sorrow.
"Zecora! You have to wake up! Pleas-" she sobbed, a hiccup cutting off her last word. She curled up into a tiny ball on the floor, sobbing.
Soarin and Shining Armor exchanged glances and ran to Rainbow's side.
When they entered the hut they noticed something horrible that Rainbow, in her sorrow, had missed. The cottage was ruined. Steaming piles of ash had replaced Zecora's work, the potions that she had been so proud of. Her beautiful tribal masks had been cracked and broken, and the small area that had hosted her bedroom was worse. Her bed was covered in some sort of strange thick, violet purple substance, and it was broken beyond repair. The few potions that she had stored there were poured upon the floor, polychromatic liquids bubbling and hissing as they merged. Her recipe books, some of which she had made herself, almost three years' worth of work, were ripped, torn and burnt.
Rainbow's tears finally dried up, but when she got up, the flood started again. She couldn't believe that her friends...were gone?
Shining Armor grabbed a wooden basket that had somehow survived and filled it with cold, clean water from the stream outside. He placed it next to Zecora's head, in hopes that it might help Rainbow. If Zecora woke up with a dry throat, the water might help her...her ear could use some water...and maybe the thought of water might just be calming to her.
Rainbow looked up at him with gratitude crossing her tear-stained face.
They all knew that it was an empty sentiment, but a little bit of kindness never hurt...and Shining Armor needed to do something nice to soothe his nerves about betraying them.
A tear leaked from Soarin's eye as he worried about the mare he loved. He wished that he could do something about Rainbow's grief...he so badly wanted to help her.
All of a sudden, he got an idea. He grabbed a broom that had survived the ransacking. He fluttered up into the air, using the full height of the long object. He, using long, graceful strokes, swept the ashes up.
Shining's horn lit up with a gentle purple glow. He grabbed a piece of cloth and wiped up the liquid from the spilled potions.
Rainbow looked up at the stallions with a somewhat hopeful expression on her face.
"Thank you..." Now Rainbow only sat with all the hope she could muster up .... Just maybe Zecora would be ok.

Comments

[RainbowdashXSkywind]

Beat you to what exactly?????? This story? I've had this idea for a long time and thought this would be the perfect place to post it I'm sorry .... I'll try not to do it again????

[starrynights]

I love this story!
but its really really sad.

[MidnightAngel]

Wait a second... Rainbows friends are dead? Or are they just missing?