It was impossible to tell whether it was night or day from where she was. The room had no windows, and since Eden's disappearance the unnatural light that seemed to permeate the place had gone as well. She could only just make out her hoof in front of her nose, and that of the changeling currently holding her. She wouldn't be able to move, not without having to push him off of her …
She closed her eyes and tried to fall asleep again.
Just as she was about to doze off, a light tapping of hooves outside the door woke her up. Rainbow ignored the sound and tugged herself a little bit further into her lover's embrace.
A light knock on the door followed a moment later.
When Rainbow offered no response, the door inched open, casting a flickering light across the room. After a few more seconds, Flix poked her head in and looked at them. “Rainbow Dash?”
“I'm sleeping,” Rainbow muttered.
Flix paused, then stepped inside. “Yes, I can see that.”
“Unlike you, I notice,” Rainbow commented.
“It's just as well. I wouldn't like to walk in on you two doing anything else. It's almost morning,” Flix said, refusing to take the hint. She stuck her head back out to check the corridor, then closed the door behind her. “I don't trust those Shadowbolts. I dozed off earlier while watching them and woke up to find one of them had gone off to snoop around. I can only imagine what she was up to.”
Rainbow sighed. At least Doodlebug was proving a sound sleeper and was still blissfully holding Rainbow in his sleep. “Look, I may need them, and we couldn't have just left them in the prison in case … you know, in case we never come back, okay? I don't know if we can trust them, but we'll keep them close the whole time.”
Flix didn't look convinced. “What do you need them for? They'll only be trouble.”
Rainbow hadn't really thought out a plan yet. She bit her lip as she thought. “Well … okay, look, I just think it's better to have them where we can keep an eye on them, and we can't leave them here. I don't believe they would hurt us, and with Kin watching the entrance there's not a whole lot they could do.”
“I don't know,” Flix said and shook her head. “I have a bad feeling about them. They're hiding something, I can tell. They have that scheming look in their eyes.”
Doodlebug stirred and woke with a yawn.
Rainbow sighed. “We'll see. Just … um, give us half an hour?”
Flix rolled her eyes and opened the door. “Just don't give my brother too many ideas. I don't want to see him turned into a love slave.”
Doodlebug stuck his tongue out at her.
“Oh, don't worry, that won't happen.” Rainbow smirked and watched as Flix left the room and closed the door behind her. “I'd much rather be his love slave,” she added and turned to smile at him.
***
Rainbow flew back and forth across the hall, surveying her troops. All five of them. Plus herself, that made six, which was a lucky number in her book. She was quietly contemplating giving them pet names. Flix would be Fluttershy, then, with her nervous twitching and worried nature. And she had Blaze figured as kinda like Applejack. “Hmm …” she hummed and turned back around for another lap.
Sadly, the comparison kinda stopped working there, and even those two were sketchy. “Okay, listen up … first of all, do we know where they'd keep the Elements in Gloaming?”
“I'd say the treasury,” Blaze offered. “That's the most logical place.”
Rainbow nodded. Sounded reasonable. “And where is that?”
“Behind the throne, there's a secret door.”
Flix raised a hoof, looking smug.
“Yes, Flix?”
“I bet they would love to lead us to the treasury, full of guards and traps.” She gave the two Shadowbolts a nasty look which said she knew everything about their little schemes. “But I happen to know that the princess keeps them in her private chambers.”
“Oh aye?” Frostfell returned the look just as nastily. “An' how ye be so sure she would nae have moved 'em noo she ken aboot the two o' ya?”
Rainbow brought a hoof to her face. “Great. So we might have to check both places. Okay, moving on, how would we get in anyway?”
“The princess always sleeps with her window open,” Doodlebug offered.
Flix shook her head. “Yeah, but all windows and balconies are guarded. We wouldn't get within a mile of the castle without being spotted. We could try to climb up from below rather than flying, though.”
“One of the lower towers is still unused off because it's falling apart,” Blaze interjected thoughtfully. “We could approach through the gorge and climb up from below, without being spotted by the guards at the bridge. That's what I would do.”
“Getting into that tower would be easy, but getting anywhere from there is still a problem,” Doodlebug said. “Still, it's one problem down.”
Rainbow drifted back and forth in her own little world of daring and ingenious plans. “Approach through gorge, enter through low tower, then find princess' chambers in the high tower … that's a lot of guards to pass and narrow stairs with nowhere to hide, I bet. What of the treasury? That's through the throne room, which is on the ground floor, right?”
“Yes.”
“But that'd be guarded too, right? Lots of guards in the throne room, I bet.”
“A few, certainly.”
“Just perfect. Okay, let's take the treasury first, if we can, and hope like hay the Elements are there.” Rainbow shook her head and turned to the hunched figure of Kin, who had been watching quietly behind the others. “Kin, tell me you can even fly with those wings of yours.”
“Hrm, never tried in my life, ma'am,” he rumbled.
Rainbow watched the gargoyle for a time. Sometimes she wondered just how many tricks Eden was playing on her, and whether any of them would be to Rainbow's advantage. “Okay. Would you care to try now, before our lives might depend upon it?”
Kin looked at his wings, then nodded and took a few tentative flaps. “Hrm, should be easy enough,” he said and slowly lifted off the ground, wobbling a bit uncertainly.
Rainbow watched the creature fly unsteadily across the room. Rocks really weren't meant to fly, she thought. “Uh, yeah, … that'll do, I'm sure.” She sighed and glanced at each of them. “We have a kind of plan, so I guess … we wing it from here. Move out.”
***
The forest was full of life as they made their way towards Gloaming, staying off paths and open glades where they might be seen from above or run into other travelers. It was slow work, not only because the forest was dense and difficult to travel through, but because Kin spent the entire time watching every tree and bush in wonder. The gargoyle had to be constantly prodded and reminded to move on, a task which Flix had happily delegated to Blaze and Frostfell.
The changeling caught up with Rainbow and looked back at the two Shadowbolts trudging along behind them. “Look—”
“I know, you don't trust them,” Rainbow said and pushed aside a thorny branch. “You told me already.”
Flix shot her an angry look. “You're not listening to me, are you? You think I'm just being paranoid or something?” The anger turned to hurt. “Please trust me, Rainbow. Just … trust me, okay?” She glanced back again to make sure the others were still a way behind them. “I think they hope we'll go for the treasury. They probably know more about the castle and its defenses than I do. I can't help but feel they hope to walk us into a trap.”
Rainbow looked around at them too. “Alright, what do you suggest?”
“Don't go to the treasury. Pretend you will, but then go to the princess' room instead. I'll bet you the Elements are there, and she'll be asleep with the door to her balcony open. There'll only be two guards on the balcony, and if they don't see us coming we could knock them out and simply leave that way. If we're lucky, then no pony would pay attention to who leaves, and the princess would wake up a few hours later when we're long gone.”
Rainbow paused and gnawed her lip thoughtfully. There were so many potential holes in that plan, but the alternative wasn't any more solid. Finally she nodded. “Okay, Flix. I trust you.”
Flix smiled and bumped her hoof. “Thank you, Rainbow.”
***
The ravine around the castle was narrow and deep, and it wasn't as easy to travel through as Rainbow had hoped. It was absolutely overgrown with thorns, and the bottom was flooded by stale, unpleasant looking water. A dense fog made it impossible to see very far, and Rainbow couldn't help glancing around at every little drip or snap of a branch, wondering what horrible monsters might be living down here in the misty gloom.
The last thing they needed was something ugly with teeth jumping out at them and making a lot of noise to alert the whole castle.
“How far?” she whispered.
“It can't be far,” Doodlebug replied somewhere in the fog ahead of her. “I think I can see the pillars of the bridge up ahead now. Yes, that must be the bridge.”
Rainbow gazed up at the small strip of sky visible above them. “Alright, we're going up, then. Follow my lead.” She began to climb towards the sky and the castle with the others close behind. She peeked over the edge of the ravine and spotted the bridge not far ahead. Several guards were stationed outside and on the bridge, and possibly others were watching from towers.
Everything looked normal.
“That thar's the tower we be wantin'.” Frostfell pointed at a small tower low to the ground. It looked abandoned and ready to crumble. It would be no problem at all breaking a window or a door open and getting inside. Of course, an abandoned tower held nothing of worth, so the next problem would then be to get into the part of the castle that did. Rainbow was still working on several plans for that.
“And that up there is the princess' tower,” Flix noted, pointing a hoof.
Rainbow craned her neck to look up at the tower where a curtain billowed in an open door on a balcony. From here she couldn't see the guards on the balcony. “Good to know. Let's move quickly.” She waited until she was certain the two guards by the bridge was not looking in their direction, then hurried the last few feet out of the ravine and raced towards the castle wall.
Her heart was beating with the thrill. She was about to break into the castle of Princess Luna, to steal the most valuable and powerful magical artifacts in the world. And she had made it this far. The others quickly joined her and gathered close to the wall, waiting tensely for any shouts of alarm. After a minute of nothing happening, Rainbow began edging along the wall towards the rickety old tower.
They reached it and found where the door—which had likely been a servant entrance in ages long past—had been blocked by a collapsed ceiling. Rainbow glanced up along the wall towards the windows higher up. “Okay, we'll climb in through one of those windows,” she said and pointed. “Kin, I have a different plan in mind for you, however.”
“Hrm?” The gargoyle looked away from all the things distracting him to look at her.
“You saw the princess' tower, right? I want you to climb up there,” Rainbow explained. “And I want you to wait there, in case the treasury fails and we have to try that way. Nopony will notice a gargoyle on the walls of an old castle, but they definitely would notice one waltzing around inside.”
“Well put, hrm.” Kin looked around to get an idea of the castle's layout. “Shouldn't be a problem.”
“Good. The rest of you—” Rainbow spread her wings and began rising towards the nearest window. “Follow me.”
***
Rainbow glanced around the corner of the stairs at the guards stationed in the hallway, guarding the entrance to the old tower. If they could only get past those, things should be easier. “Was there anything in any of the rooms?” she asked as she quietly slipped back down to the others in the ruined tower.
“Some tools, but most of it is pretty old or broken. I found a decent enough hammer,” Doodlebug said and offered up the slightly worn piece of equipment. “And Flix got a pair of screwdrivers.”
“We did find a pair of helmets too,” Blaze said. “They are a little dented, but they could still serve. Probably belonged to the last ponies who inspected the tower.”
“But no clothes,” Flix said.
Rainbow considered the meager selection. Could have wished for better, but when you were winging it you couldn't expect even this much. “Okay, good enough, here's the plan,” she began. She hoped like hay all the assumptions she had made for said plan were even half true. “Flix and Doodle, I trust you can look like a pair of repair ponies?”
There was a green glow around both changelings. Rainbow had to assume they were looking like a pair of work ponies, because nothing had changed in her eyes. It was a little unnerving. “Done and done,” Doodlebug nodded and took a helmet from Blaze. Flix did the same.
“Good, here's what you do. You tell the guards the corridor is unsafe and needs to be vacated,” Rainbow explained. “Tell them to go around and guard the tower from the outside while you make sure the place is safe. When they leave, we all just walk right in. Easy peasy, right?”
“Right,” Flix said. “If you say it.”
“Come on, you gotta believe it!” Rainbow tried to look optimistic herself. “Now get up there and work your magic. The rest of us will hold back and wait.”
Flix looked a bit uncertain at the two Shadowbolts behind Rainbow. “Yeah, okay,” she said and flashed the two a glare.
***
“Hold! Who goes?”
Rainbow's heart skipped several beats and changed gear as she hid in the stairwell, listening to what was going on. Everything now hinged on a whole slew of assumptions and vague hopes. It was going to fail spectacularly, by all rights, but she had to keep that hope …
Where was Eden when you needed a little pull at a string or two?
“Here to ward off this section, sir,” Flix said quickly, taking the lead with confidence. “A defect in the masonry, sir, the whole tower could collapse if hit by a wind, and we fear it would take this corridor with it. Better safe than sorry, sir.”
The guards looked at each other. “Where are the rest of your workers?” one of them asked suspiciously. The other looked ready to sound the alarm, his horn already glowing a faint blue. Things were already going wrong, Rainbow thought and bit down on her hoof.
“We are only here to ward off the place,” Doodlebug said.
“That's right, sir,” Flix nodded at her brother. “The rest of the team will arrive later to begin actual repair, but the princess wanted the place warded off as quickly as possible.”
“We would have been informed if anything was planned for the tower,” the first guard said, clearly not buying a word of it. “And you would know a pass phrase, Missy.”
Flix's wing was twitching, making Rainbow wonder what she was looking like, if it was an earth pony or a pegasus. “Pass phrase, of course, of course,” she said, desperately searching for an idea. Rainbow couldn't listen, but she couldn't turn away either. Her heart was racing ahead of her and her entire body getting read to make a run for it.
“What is going on here?”
Rainbow pressed herself further into the shadows of the stair as a dusk pony stallion in royal armor, with the markings of an officer, trotted past. He passed by the stairs without spotting her and stopped, giving everyone a closer look. Rainbow stared at the back of his head from her position in the shadows.
“Sir—” one of the first guards began, but was cut off.
“Ah, excellent! I see the repair has begun,” the officer said. “A sad state of affairs indeed. I for one shall be quite happy to see the tower returned to its old glory.”
Flix hastily seized the opportunity. “Aye, sir. Place must be closed off, for everypony's safety, until it can be repaired. A stiff wind and the whole tower could collapse, taking the hall here with it.”
“Sir, these ponies—”
“At ease, soldier. Everything here looks in order,” the officer cut off the guard again. “I shall inform the captain that work has begun as scheduled. Good job.”
“Sir—” the guard tried again.
“I suggest you two get out there. I want that tower guarded until the repair can begin. Do I make myself clear, soldier?”
“Yes, sir.” The two guards snapped to attention somewhat reluctantly and trotted off.
“Very good,” the officer said and watched them leave. “Good work, you two,” he said and turned around. “Oh, and miss Dash, the phrase for today is 'under the nightshade'. Try not to forget again,” he said and winked as he passed the stairs. “Give my regards to miss Sparkle.”
They all watched him leave. It was several seconds of stunned silence before Doodlebug broke it. “What was that about?”
“I guess every army has its gullible fools,” Flix shrugged.
“And apparently your double has a history of forgetting the pass phrase,” Blaze grinned and slapped Rainbow on the back as he emerged from the stairs.
Rainbow was still staring at where the officer had turned a corner and disappeared. “Something was wrong about him,” she muttered, paying no attention to Blaze's comment. “Did any of you notice anything?” She looked around at the others. “Doodle? Flix?”
“Seemed fine to me, but I'll trust your eyes if you say something is up. I think his name is Lieutenant Shine, though,” Flix said.
“Aye,” Frostfell nodded. “An' I dinnae ken him tae be a gullible pony.”
“Maybe Eden had a little finger in this,” Doodlebug suggested.
Rainbow looked at the empty hallway. “It … could be,” she muttered. Maybe she had just imagined that something looked odd about him, too. “Alright, let's move on before our luck runs out. Flix, I want you to look like Twilight.”
“Yes ma'am.” Flix glowed green for a second and did a little pose.
“Doodle? Can you look like one of the guards?”
“Easy, but it won't work very well without the armor.”
Rainbow considered for a moment. “Even the guards take off their armor when they're off duty. We'll pretend we found these two,” she pointed at Blaze and Frostfell, “out in the forest and are here to bring them to the princess. You're just a random off-duty guard who happened to be around and decided to help. Now that we know the pass phrase, it should be a smooth ride with the other guards.”
Doodlebug gave a nod and flickered with green light for a second. “Right. But let's hope the rota of the royal guard hasn't changed, or I might run into myself here.”
“Oh right,” Rainbow muttered. “We'll try to avoid the guards. It'll probably be fine.” She paused, then added, “Gotta believe it.”
***
“The throne room is down those stairs,” Blaze said and pointed behind them.
Rainbow paused and looked around. “We're not going to the treasury.” The castle was surprisingly empty. Most of the guard was stationed at the various entrances, and only a few servants were around during the day. None of this eased Rainbow's desire to get the hay out of there.
“Oh,” Blaze nodded. Rainbow could see Flix watching them carefully, but neither looked very concerned about the change of plans. “The princess' tower would be this way, then.”
“Good,” Rainbow said and hurried in that direction. They passed through several corridors and then up through the winding, seemingly endless stairs leading up through the high towers. The few guards they met made no fuss once they heard the pass phrase.
She slowed down near the top of the stairs and approached cautiously. The tower was silent. Rainbow held a hoof up to her lips and looked around at the others, then she slowly advanced the last few steps. A door appeared at the end of the stairs, unguarded. Rainbow stopped. “This is the door to the princess' bed chamber? Shouldn't it be guarded?”
“I couldn't say,” Flix admitted with an apologetic look. “Sorry, but I was never in on that.”
“They dinnae tell us aboot the princess' pers'nal protection,” Frostfell added. “We never needed tae ken such things.”
Rainbow sank a lump in her throat and approached the heavy door. Anything could be waiting to meet her on the other side. She frowned at herself. If it could be anything, it could also just be a sleeping princess and a chest containing the Elements. Maybe the princess felt safe enough in her own castle to not have guards outside every door.
She reached out and pushed at the door. It opened without a sound. The large suite beyond was dark, and empty of any princesses. The bed was neatly made, and all the windows and doors were closed, covered by heavy curtains. It was clearly the princess' room, however. The paintings and exotic decorative flowers, the bookshelves with heavy tomes, and a grand piano in the corner all seemed to fit Rainbow's mental picture of the princess of the night. A large mirror in the other corner reflected Rainbow's blank face, and at the other side of the room was an open doorway to a luxurious bath. It too was dark.
“She's not here,” Rainbow muttered and carefully stepped inside. No alarms or fireworks went off. The floor was covered in a soft carpet which silenced her steps and absorbed her voice.
Flix stepped in behind her. “Let's find the Elements and get the hay out of here, then!”
Rainbow gave a short nod and tried to think. Where would the princess hide the Elements? It pained her to search through the princess' private things, but she had to do this to save her friends. And the Elements could be anywhere, but probably not anywhere obvious. “Help me out here,” she said as Blaze and Frostfell stepped in, followed by Doodlebug. They looked around uncertainly.
Who knew how long they had. The princess could return any moment.
“I found something.”
Rainbow spun around and looked on as Doodlebug pulled out an elaborate chest and set it down on the bed. If she had had a breath, the moment would have left her breathless. “Open it,” she whispered as they all watched. “No, wait, I'll open it!” she said hurriedly and pushed past Frostfell.
Doodlebug stepped aside for her, and Rainbow carefully reached out to open the lid. It didn't even have a lock. Why didn't it have a lock? She tensed and readied herself to leap out of the way.
The lid opened without a sound, and a warm glow lit her face from the six Elements within. “We got them,” she whispered, feeling ecstatic. It had been easy, maybe …
A gentle chime, as of somepony hitting their glass very gently to begin a speech, broke the silence and punctuated her thought. Rainbow spun around and choked a scream as the light died around her and a dark phantom stepped silently out of the mirror in the corner.
“Captain, I do believe we have ourselves some thieves in my room,” the ghost said and the shadows seemed to slip away from her, leaving just a pony. Luna's calm blue eyes stole all warmth away from Rainbow as she clutched the chest with the Elements. Something else in those eyes made her heart freeze, but she couldn't tell what it was. “Caught red-hoofed, I dare say.”
Rainbow spun towards the door, and found it shut. Blaze stepped in front of it and turned the key. “I'm truly sorry,” he said and pulled out the key. “But this is for your own protection, Rainbow Dash.”
“I knew it!” Flix yelled and lunged at Frostfell. A sudden blue glow brought her to the floor before she could reach the other mare. “Let me go!” she cried and was silenced as her muzzle snapped shut.
“Easy now,” the princess said and turned back to Rainbow. “You didn't honestly think I wouldn't know, did you? After all, bars and hiding places are no hindrance when you can walk through dreams. My Shadowbolts have served me well and warned me of your plans. They knew little, but it was enough for me to prepare a welcome.”
Rainbow was speechless, unable to tear herself away from staring at the princess. It was Princess Luna standing before her, this she would swear, but there was a dark gleam deep in her eyes.
“We did it fer yer own good.” Frostfell stepped away from the prone Flix and gave Blaze a little rub. “The changelings have ye in some kind of a spell. We dinnae expect ye tae see reason in yer current state. Just ye ken that the princess will help ye.”
“That's lies!” Doodlebug burst out, but thought better of trying to attack the two with the princess around. “We never did anything to you, Rainbow. You know that!”
Rainbow backed away from the princess and the two Shadowbolts, edging slowly towards Doodlebug. “I love Doodle, and I love my friends. I am not the one who is wrong!”
“I am sure we could have a long and rewarding discussion about this,” said Luna, and once again something in her eyes sent a chill down Rainbow's spine. “But I am a busy pony, and we have much to do.” She turned and looked towards the door to the bath. “Captain, I leave these three in your capable hooves.”
Rainbow and Doodle looked around, and an icy claw gripped Rainbow's heart as she saw the face appearing in the door. Or perhaps it had been there this whole time and they simply hadn't seen it. “No …” she gasped and felt Doodlebug turn rigid next to her.
“As you command, my princess,” the captain smiled, sharp teeth flashing in the corner of her mouth and bright green eyes glowing with dark delight. “We must certainly … help such loose elements.”
Rainbow opened her mouth and struggled for a second to find her voice before almost screaming at Luna. “Princess, don't listen to her! That's Chrysalis! She's the changeling queen!” She looked pleadingly at the princess. “She's not your captain! Don't believe her lies!”
Luna raised an eyebrow. Something dark glinted in her eyes again, and Rainbow thought she caught a little hint of green buried within. “I am very sorry, Rainbow Dash, but it seems you are indeed insane. It is a fortune we got to you this soon,” she said and turned to Blaze and Frostfell. “You two have served your princess well. Go now, and take the rest you so rightly deserve. I shall reward you later.”
“You will help her, won't you?” Blaze said, giving Rainbow a concerned look as he opened the door for Frostfell. Rainbow caught a glimpse of guards waiting on the stairs outside.
“Worry not, she will receive the help she needs,” Luna said blankly and watched them leave and lock the door behind them. Rainbow felt the whole world crumbling around her as she listened to the click of the lock and looked into the eyes of Luna.
Chrysalis strolled past them and turned around, standing next to the princess. “What would you have me do with them … my love?” She purred and gave Luna a loving glance.
“Whatever … you desire, my dear,” Luna said, her eyes turning blank as a green flicker played in their depths.
“What have you done to the princess?!” Rainbow demanded, holding the Elements so tight against herself that it hurt.
“She is lovely, is she not?” Chrysalis beamed and caressed Luna's neck with a hoof. “And all it took was a lover's little kiss,” she said and pushed Luna's unresisting head to the side, revealing two dark marks on the back of her neck. “One bite, and now I control half the throne of Equestria.”
“Y-you won't get away with it!” Rainbow cried desperately. She knew she was wrong. She had seen the future, and right now she just wanted to cry.
“Oh, but I will!” Chrysalis laughed. “I must say, getting close to the lovely Luna was tricky, but in the end love conquers all. When she finally invited her 'Captain' to her bed tonight, she was mine with but a single kiss! Imagine my surprise and delight to learn from her about your little visit. Now all I have to do is kill you and your friends, then get rid of the princesses. No pony will even notice anything amiss as I replace you all! I shall rule this world, and all shall love me!”
She turned to Doodlebug, who was standing stiff as a board next to Rainbow, and Flix who was still pinned helplessly to the floor. “As for you two,” she said, her voice and features turning dark, “I know just what to do with worthless little lice like you!”
Four changelings in royal armor stepped out from the bathroom where Chrysalis herself had been waiting earlier. Chrysalis turned to them. “Take these two 'ponies' away and bury them in the forest! They like burying their kind? Let them get the same. Make it deep, and be sure to give them room enough to truly enjoy the experience.” She smirked. “I am not an unkind queen, after all.”
“NO!” Rainbow threw herself in front of the two changelings. “I won't let you hurt them!”
“How sweet,” Chrysalis yawned. “My dear princess, restrain this troublemaker for me. I wish to deal with her personally.”
Luna's horn flashed. Rainbow tensed and in a last desperate move she threw herself at the princess, intent upon fighting to the last. That is, she thought it, but her mind didn't follow up on the intention. Rainbow cried as she stood helpless in the middle of the room, her own mind betraying her as she watched the false guards chain and drag off her two struggling friends.