"I don't like this," Bellesmith stammered, squatting on her haunches before the edge of the cave. She peered forlornly down into the depths of the cylindrical descent, her chestnut eyes squinting in desperation for any sign of Rainbow Dash. She was unsuccessful. "We should have contrived some way for us to message each other if something went bad..."
"Belle..."
"We should have given her a rope!"
Pilate actually blinked his cloudy eyes at that. "A rope?"
"Yes! Any pony with a lick of sense would bring rope while navigating a sharp descent!"
"Uhm... Beloved?" The zebra marched over, smiling, and rested a hoof on her shoulder. "Have you noticed that our beloved friend possesses wings?"
"But still?! It's so dark and jagged down there!"
"Considering the enormous amount of things Rainbow Dash has encountered prior to when we woke her up, I'm quite certain she can handle whatever that cave has to toss at her."
"But.. But..."
"And I seriously doubt that a giant, razor-toothed, dragon goddess could even fit in there."
Belle sighed, her mane sliding over her golden face in the afternoon light. "She's not invincible, y'know."
"Sometimes I wonder. I mean, she survived death itself, yes?"
"She was only mostly dead, Pilate. And she came out of that mess because we dragged herself."
"Not my point." Pilate squatted beside her. "Has it ever occurred to you that perhaps Austraeoh is bound to make it to the edge of the world, regardless of who or what helps her?"
"Huh?"
"What if other ponies were Eljunbyro, and not us?" Pilate shrugged. "What if some other event had caused her to recover from her excessive injuries?"
"But something else didn't happen, Pilate. It was us..."
"What I'm getting at, beloved, is that maybe Rainbow Dash is destined to make this journey to its fullest, against all odds, regardless of what form of help she gets or doesn't get?"
Belle bit her lip. She gazed off towards the distant, green line of Foxtaur. "It could be possible. I mean, it seems as if a great deal of what's been happening was... was prophesied—I don't know."
"I don't know everything either, darling, but I think there's something bigger than us helping Rainbow Dash make this trip." Pilate took a breath, then added. "And bigger than her as well, though she would rather die again than admit that such a divine thing bigger than her exists."
Belle squinted at him. "I thought I married a scientist."
"Did you now?"
She chuckled. "Since when were you an avid believer in fate?"
He leaned over and nuzzled her. "Because long ago, more than anything else in this crazy, confusing, cluttered world, I chose you and you alone to put my trust in." He kissed her ear and added, "And my life has yet to turn to shambles. I doubt that it ever will."
"Mmmm... You have way too much faith in me, Pilate."
"And you have too little in Rainbow Dash." He said with a wicked smirk. He motioned towards the cave. "Give her some more time. She's more patient than the both of us think. If worse comes to worse, I have enough juice in O.A.S.I.S. to fetch her. In meantime... just have faith..."
Belle leaned against him, shuddering slightly. "It's just so hard to at times..."
He nuzzled her. "It only rewards in the end."
High above the two, several hundreds of meters away, descending at a rapid rate, were three glinting shapes. Six ponies clung to the metal spines of three gliders—two pilots apiece. When they saw the two figures down below, the copilots signaled to one another.
After a mutual nod, the airborne Enforcers fired bright orange flares into the skies, banked their gliders to the southeast, and dove towards the cave... and the unsuspecting couple seated in front of it.