The Pony who Cried Wolf
“SWEETIE BELLE!!!”
A shout of vehement rage broke the cool misty air of the mid-autumn day in Ponyville. Its origin: Carousel Boutique. Inside the circular house turned fashion parlor, sparks flared as the elder sister had begun scolding the younger. Sweetie Belle was sitting, ashamed eyes fixed upon the floor. Rarity was looking down at her, an indignant scowl adorning her face.
“I…I…I can’t believe this! What made you think using my only obsidian to decorate your clubhouse was a good idea?”
Obsidian was a beautiful black stone, and was quite common. However, it was expensive because of the time and danger it took in mining it, being extremely durable and hard to separate from stone. As a result, Rarity almost never used it in her dressmaking, even when she had it. The dress would be too expensive for the average pony, even for some of the higher-ups in Canterlot. She didn’t usually use the color black in her dressmaking anyway, so Sweetie Belle thought she’d put it to use to decorate their club house in a black fashion, adding some ‘pizzazz’ as she called it.
What she had not known was that Rarity had been tirelessly designing a new line of dresses that would use a cheap fabric to counterbalance the cost of the obsidian. But now, the idea had been ruined.
“W-Well, you never use it anyway! At least I put it to good use.”
“Good use?” She was just about ready to wrap her arms around her little sister’s head, and not to give her a hug. “GOOD USE?! Sweetie Belle, do you have any idea how expensive obsidian even is?! I won’t be able to get any more now until my fashion debut in Canterlot in a few days! Even then, for the amount I’ll need, it’ll probably cost more than what I’ll make. I can’t believe you used it on your clubhouse!”
“But at least the clubhouse looks better doesn’t it?”
“Do not try to change the subject on me little missie.” She paused, realizing she couldn’t hold back criticism when it was due. ”And by the way, black does NOT go with your clubhouse’s shade of pink!” This trifle seemed to upset her just as much as the fact that she had no more of her precious gem. She sighed. “Oh, and I finally thought of a way to use it. I had even thought of a name.” She waved her hoof in front of her as if to spell out an invisible name. “Riviere Noire. Oh, I can just imagine what it would’ve looked like.”
“Why don’t you just find some more, you know, using your magic?”
She was quick to correct her sister. “Even if I did find some, actually getting it is something that I am not capable of. I guess I’ll have to go look for some onyx.”
“Onyx?” Her sister was quite intrigued, in part because of her artistic impulses.
“Yes, onyx.” She was agitated that she had to explain this to her gem-stealing sister. “Onyx can be found just like other gemstones, underground mostly. It’s black, just like obsidian, but its color isn’t nearly as refined. It’ll have to do though, if I’m going to use it at my debut.”
Sweetie Belle was genuinely upset. She had no idea that the gem she foolishly used was so important to her sister. “I-I’m sorry sis, I really didn’t know. I’ll help you wi-”
Rarity brought her hoof to meet her sister’s mouth. “Please, don’t say anymore. Just…just go to your room, or crusade with your friends, or whatever. I really don’t need any help.”
“Oh… ok then.” With that, Sweetie Belle slowly trudged out of the boutique, never letting her gaze leave the floor. Unlike last time, she had really screwed up this time.
Rarity began to pace around the circumference of the boutique. “Ok now Rarity, you’ll just have to get some onyx, no big deal. Oh, but I can’t dig for it myself. I wonder if Spike will….” The thought entertained her for a moment, but she soon realized that it was a no-go. Spike had gone back to Canterlot for a routine checkup. The only doctor in all of Equestria that had any knowledge of draconic medicine was stationed there. It would be at least five days until he returned. Her little helper was gone, and she had to have the dress finished in three days.
There was only one option. She’d have to get her hooves dirty, and dig for the onyx herself. She sighed, apprehensive of the chore she had conscripted herself to. She walked over to her coat rack and delicately pulled a shawl off from an upper knob and thrust it over her back. She turned her gaze downwards towards her selection of boots. Whichever ones she chose, she wouldn’t be using them again, at least not in public. After a few moments of glancing, she chose the obvious; a pair of yellow galoshes, given to her by Applejack the previous Hearth’s Warming Day. Back then, Rarity had secretly scoffed at Applejack’s choice for her dainty friend. Now, Rarity inaudibly thanked her. She inserted each hoof leg into its respective boot. At last she was ready to depart. She turned about and exited the boutique out the front door.
A winter breeze blew past, causing the fashionista filly to shiver where she stood. She wasn’t even two steps out of the boutique and she was already loathing her situation. Nevertheless, she continued onward, undeterred by the cold. Before she made the trek to her usual gem-mining area, she went around back to their shed. As much as she hated gardening, her parents kept gardening equipment just in case she’d ever ‘have that itch to show off your green hoof’. Even though she’d never even think about using those tools, the wagon they kept there proved to be very useful in the transportation of gemstones. Now standing in front of the shed, she cautiously opened the rusty old door of the shed, careful not to get any loose chips of rust on either her coat or mane. It slowly creaked open revealing the mass of unused gardening tools within. She couldn’t even remember the last time anypony had cleaned it; she certainly wasn’t going to dirty her hooves with such an arduous task. The wagon was at forefront of the tools, relatively better looking than the rest. She took its harness in her mouth and tugged at it, using only as many neck muscles as necessary to move it. It stood steadfast, much to her chagrin.
A little more strength put into the pulling end managed to jerk it out of its holding chamber, causing the mare to fall back on her hind legs. Hitting the ground shot a quick pain through her flank. The soil had been frozen solid from the bite of that cold autumn day, making the impact just that more annoying. She rubbed her head in agitation.
“This is not going as swimmingly as I’d hoped,” she mumbled quietly to herself. Putting this little stumble behind her, she got up and brushed herself off. As she reached for the handle again, a transient monotonous purring sound made its way to her ear.
She turned around to see Opal resting on the railing leading into the backdoor of the boutique. Her bright yellow eyes were concealed, tail wrapped around her like a natural shawl.
“Awww,” Rarity cooed. “She must be having a nice little dream. If only I could relax like that once in a while.” This triggered a reminder in her brain. Her weekly get-together with Fluttershy was tomorrow. What a relief. Finally, a break from all the work that pressed down on her. However, her first priority now was to get the onyx needed for the dress. Only after that could she relax. She mustered up her wits and set off, wagon in tow.
At long last, she had arrived at her usual gem-mining ridge. Despite the large number of gems that rested beneath the sullen terrain, she wasn’t quite sure that she’d find any onyx. It was common enough sure, but only in certain areas. Only a few times before had she found any in this particular spot. Despite this hardship, it would be the perfect opportunity to try out the new spell she’d been working on.
She began to envision her earlier training sessions with Twilight. This new spell was an extension of her previous gem-finding one, with one major difference. This one was used for finding only a single type of gem at one time. When put into practice, it would be useful for finding the materials to make dresses like the one she was currently creating.
The magic swirled around her horn, receiving the signal from the image she’d conjured. The faint, black-banded stone; ‘that is what I’m looking for’. Her horn sent out a signal, spreading itself over a wide area. Only a few moments passed, and the signal returned to her with information on the whereabouts of hidden onyx. To her displeasure, there was none in her general vicinity. However, she detected a faint glow far off, in the direction facing opposite of where she was originally heading. She turned to look; what awaited her gaze was exactly what she was afraid of finding.
“Th-the Everfree Forest.” Her voice was pseudo-calm, not wanting to admit to herself that she was genuinely scared. She had never before even considered searching for gems in this mystical forest, partially because of the dangers that came along with such a risky venture, but also because of her lack of motivation to look any farther than her usual area. She’d often dreamed of some of the new and wondrous stones that the ancient grove might hold. If she wanted to finish this, then she’d have to brave the forest with all of its risks and hazards. Who knew? Maybe she’d even find some new gemstones for her to bedazzle her ensembles with. This attempt at reassurance failed miserably. Self-motivation was not Rarity’s strong suit. She was just as scared as before, especially with no aid by her side to alert anypony should the worst happen.
“Maybe I should go back…”
As she turned to head back to her hometown, a sudden nagging feeling crept into her psyche. The forest now seemed to beckon to her, as if to say that if she didn’t go right now, she’d be missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime. Her sense of reasoning kicked into high gear. She began to sweat in indecision as she weighed the pros and cons of her options. Her internal conflict heightened with every moment she considered turning away. With a single spark of decision, she straightened up both her body and mind, intent on her new venture.
“I’m going in!” she yelled, as if she was in a war and she had to infiltrate the enemy base. She marched in stride to the forest.
“Oh Rarity, you foal, whatever were you thinking?!”
She had instantly regretted her decision the moment she entered. It was one thing going in with your closest and most faithful friends by your side, but this was something else entirely.
“Calm down Rarity. You’ll be fine, so long as you do NOT panic.” She repeated the last three words over and over as a sort of mantra in an attempt to console herself. “Everything will be fine…”
Her confidence was shattered in an instant. Not a single sound resonated throughout the grove. Icy beads of water rolled down her face, tickling her pale cheeks as they did. Her legs shook her whole body, yet she still felt frozen in place. She remembered the old saying about the tree falling in the forest and there being nopony around to hear it. How ironic, with her being in that exact situation. For the first time in her entire life, she felt the true meaning of the word ‘alone’. No friends, no family, nothing to keep her company or out of harm’s way. Just herself with her little red wagon and guts. The latter had been lost the moment she’d entered, and the wagon wasn’t much company.
“So I’m basically alone. All alone. With nopony to turn to in case I would be, oh I don’t know, viciously attacked by some manner of terrifying monster.” As if she expected a response from the looming tree line, she looked around her like there was a crowd of ponies who could comfort her in her time of need. She was really out of her league.
After about a minute of standing completely still, she managed to force her legs to begin moving ever so slowly towards the signal her horn had conveyed. They would occasionally lock up whenever she heard a noise, even the clatter of her own hooves on occasion. She had gone in with vigor, but now she felt like passing out. All traces of stamina had up and gone, and her breaths extended her chest past its usual capacity. The little puffs of gas floated back at her while she walked, and she could feel their warmth upon her ice-cold face. The frigid sweat had refused to cease as she became more and more skeptical regarding her decision. And yet, something was moving her forward. Nothing physical, but rather a certain mindset that had been forced upon her. Somewhere along the way she’d lost control of her mind, and her body followed in turn. An invisible puppeteer called curiosity pulled her ever so slowly towards the onyx.
After a long while of entranced marching, she arrived at the source of the signal. An enormous, mouth-like arch loomed in front of the terror-struck pony. Caves were excellent sources of the finest gems, yet Rarity detested them even more than she detested the idea of the Everfree Forest. Now that the two had been assimilated into one, every ounce of her being told her to do a complete about-face and run the other way. Yet, her mental puppet master’s sadistic fun compelled her forward.
The thick canopy of the forest didn’t allow too much sunlight through. Even so, a decent amount, suitable for daytime travel, did penetrate. The same could not be said about the dark abyss that lay ahead. The blackness in the cave was extremely thick; Rarity could barely see her own front legs, despite that she hadn’t even entered yet.
“H-Hello? Is anyone there?” She received a single response: her own voice. So much for that.
The signal was very strong now. Gently pulling the wagon, she made her way into the grand maze. Only a few hooves in, and she could no longer see anything in front of her. There was no way she could continue on like this, even with her sonar spell.
Only one thing to do.
With a shaking psyche, she wrapped her inner magic around her horn yet again, and with an effort that seemed more than necessary, filled the cave with light. The illumination seemed to expand forever outward, revealing all the secrets that lay inside. The internal workings were much more grandiose than she’d imagined. Huge stalactites and stalagmites, rushing waterfalls, and a ceiling that made Applejack’s barn seem like a doghouse. Directly ahead lay two paths; one to the left, the other bearing off to the right. Straight ahead the path careened off the edge of the earth into a giant pool, filled by numerous waterfalls. The dark trails circled round the abysmal lake, but all this was just what she saw with her provincial vision.
Her artificial torch didn’t even cover the entire interior; there was much more beyond what she could see, proven by many more waves coming from beyond her physical sight. She thought about all the different jewels she wasn’t seeing, slightly tempted to use her regular gem-finding spell. She instantly shook the thought out of her head. She only came in for the onyx, and wanted nothing more to do with this place. With much caution, she wandered down the right-hoof path.
It wasn’t too long before she walked over the first source of magical sonar. Concentrating on using magic instead of physical ability for mining, she gathered her magic around the buried stone, wrapping it in a glove of flowing energy. With a single burst of effort, she tore the black stone out of its earthen prison high into the air in front of her. Using a telekinesis spell, illumination spell, and tracking spell all at the same time was very tiring for a pony such as Rarity. She wouldn’t be able to do this for long before passing out, which was the last thing she wanted to happen.
Turn after turn, new pathways were revealed, leading the white pony deeper and deeper into the rocky abyss. Every time her sonar revealed a new patch of onyx, she would stop and use her magic to collect it, careful not to miss any. The last thing she wanted to have to do was to go further into the cave than necessary.
“Wouldn’t want to get lost now,” she repeatedly thought to herself.
It was only after about ten minutes in that she began to feel exhausted. She was not as proficient in the long-term use of magic as Twilight was; using it continuously like this expended a lot of energy. This coupled with the increasing weight of the wagon took a huge toll on her body and mind. The increasing fatigue was like a telegram running throughout the electrical lines that was her body, with one message: she needed to either rest or leave with her current haul. She slowly turned her head to check on the amount of onyx she had collected. The pile protruding from the wagon she guessed would be enough for the ensemble she wanted to make, though this might have just been her common sense telling her to get out.
With much effort, she managed to turn both herself and the wagon around. Its wheels made a sound that to anypony else would imply it was immovable. This wasn’t the case, which Rarity with her aching joints was ever so thankful for. Trudging along on her previous path of holes and hoofmarks, she retraced her steps like in the old ponytale. It was much easier than she imagined it would be, the path was mostly straightforward and easy to remember.
The creepy silence from before had only crescendoed, if that was even possible. She couldn’t remember exactly how far in she’d gone, and there was no sun for her to rely on as a watch. In spite of that, she had a good guess about when she’d be out. The sound of rushing water was her first and only clue, and a huge relief at that. The three-way intersection was just up ahead, with its glorious exit. The ground was more saturated the closer she got, a natural result of the in-cave lake that lay near the path. Finally arriving at the real intersection, she could once again see the sun radiating from the exit. Oh the sun! She’d never before in her entire life been so happy to see the large lifeless ball of fire. All she had to do know was just turn and start wal-
White. White. Why did she suddenly see white? Everything had been black until now; even the gems she was collecting were black. So why in Celestia’s green earth did Rarity start seeing white? It wasn’t the sun, which had a golden light. And it wasn’t even coming from that direction. It was coming from… her right, down the other path she’d refused to follow.
Curiosity was one of Rarity’s major weaknesses; even she was willing to admit that. If there were rumor of a new gemstone that needed be discovered, a new fashion that was supposedly on the up-and-coming, or new gossip of stars and celebrities, she always wanted… no, she NEEDED to know, by whatever means necessary. There was nothing she wouldn’t pursue should the opportunity arise. Others called it obsession; she called it necessity. And now she had a new ‘necessity’ on her list; find out what was radiating this beautiful glow of white.
She had ceased the use of her illumination spell when she had rounded the corner to the intersection, and yet she could still see this white mass far down the rock-laden pathway. How interesting, when before she couldn’t even see her own front legs. What on earth could be causing this? Was this the thing that beckoned to her before? She began trotting along with a new vigor, reactivating her illumination spell. Her curiosity seemed to fuel her tired body, as she appeared now to have no fetters keeping her. She walked for what felt like miles, despite the actual length of time being a mere five minutes.
Rarity noticed something about this new corridor, a discovery that she never would have noticed if she hadn’t walked down its path. A glossy sheen shone throughout. Reflecting the light of her horn, many of the aspects that she’d assumed to be customary to a cave had been wiped away. There was no dirt; instead it was replaced by an extremely smooth crust of granite and slate. It felt more like a river than a dirty old cave. A river whose current was heading in the direction of the mysterious white object, pulling her along with its subtle charm. The radiant shade of ivory was coming up. From just its shape, she began to formulate some ideas as to what it could be. It was curved, not quite circular, fanning out towards its lower end. No motion could be detected, though she was still a good distance away to notice any real movement.
A pile of snow? Not likely. Sure, the weather for the Everfree forest was uncontrolled, but this was just ridiculous. And what kind of pegasus would pull a prank like this where nopony would ever see it?
A shell of some sort? Even more unlikely. Nothing in the Everfree forest used a shell, at least that which she knew of.
A gem?! Oh she hoped so. Something that large would be able to provide material for her dresses for months! She couldn’t help but think about Tom.
These thoughts shoved one more into their rank. Was she hallucinating? Was this all just being caused by her lack of any real energy?
“No no no no no, it IS real, I am PERFECTLY sane,” she whispered, a continuation of her earlier chant.
After a few more minutes, which to Rarity seemed like an eternity, she arrived at her destination. The new expanse that her eyes beheld was like nothing she’d ever seen. The vorpal tunnel branched out like a lotus opening its petals for the first time. Auroras of dazzling azure light dancing on the both the ceiling and floor gave heed to the eight glorious pillars of limestone lining the edges of the almost spherical chamber. The light did not come from her horn; it came from the mysterious writing upon the pillars, carved with the utmost precision. Yet, all of this paled in comparison to what she was focused on. In the epicenter of the stone alcove, lay the mystery item that had called out to her.
A brilliant, shining mass, seemingly set in place so that the pillars would surround it in a perfect octagon. It wasn’t perfectly circular; it fanned out at the middle and then proceeded to draw back in towards the bottom. Not all of its edges were perfectly round either, with an equal number of obtuse angles supplementing the parts that were rounded. With the combined illumination from her horn and the pillars, the light it reflected was almost blinding. She brought a hoof to her eyes, yet couldn’t tear them away from its charm.
It was uncanny how brilliant it was; Rarity had never thought anything in all of Equestria could be this magnificent. Despite the blinding light, she felt the perpetual need to get even closer.
“What in all of Equestria is this?” Keeping her leg curved to shield her eyes, she tilted her head at different angles to get a better grasp of her discovery. She studied every inch of this wonder. She needed to ascertain its validity, still in doubt that she this might just be figment of her imagination.
But only a few seconds were suffice; it needed no preface, for its sheer luster was enough for her to know.
“MOONSTONE!!!” she exclaimed, her voice reverberating throughout the hollow cavern. The consequences of her sudden outburst hit her instantly, the sound amplifying itself using the cave walls and returning to her eardrums much louder than she’d first expected. She covered her right ear with her corresponding hoof in a fruitless attempt to block the noise. Quickly recovering, she silently began to ponder the opportunities this new discovery presented. She’d never seen any before in her lifetime, yet she knew what it was, caused by her innate proclivity towards jewels. She had heard legends of a mythical white rock that was said to come from the moon, and was supposed to be just as beautiful as the brightest full moons. What she’d just found was the crème de la crème of all precious gems, the holy grail of gem-hunters the world-over! She felt like a little school-filly who had just gotten what she’d always wanted for Hearth’s Warming Day. Oh the possibilities! She started to giggle, her eyelids shut to preserve the moment.
She was so lost in jubilee that she failed to notice that her precious ‘holy grail’ seemed to have a mind of its own. What started out as a few small twitches turned into longer movements, extending limbs that had been concealed by its sheer size. From behind the large mass, a down of equally white caliber raised itself from its slumber. Twisting and turning, a new appendage sprang from beneath the large unit’s body opposite the other, and just as covered in flowing white fur. Two pairs of long legs finally pushed the main body up off the ground.
At last Rarity finally opened her glee-clouded eyes. She had expected to return her gaze to the magnificent gem that had lay there before. Instead, she found herself face to face with a living, breathing creature. Standing directly in front of her, azure blue eyes staring directly into her own, was the largest wolf she’d ever laid eyes on. With a height at least six hooves over the frightened filly, and a physique bigger than that of even the largest stallions, it completely overwhelmed her with its presence. She began to slowly back away, unsure if standing her ground or hightailing it was the better option. As if to celebrate its rising, the carvings of the eight pillars began to excrete a much more intense light, now turning into viable light sources instead of just dimly lit lanterns.
The pseudo-standoff between this monster and the scared-out-of-her-wits pony seemed to last forever. Neither broke their gaze, not even taking the time to blink. All Rarity could do was think about her decisions leading up to that moment. Why had she been so foolish to think that she should go in by herself? What was happening was exactly what her mind had forewarned. She was going to die, and nopony would ever know what happened.
The wolf slowly raised its head high. The musty air entered its nostrils in a long deep breath, readying its lungs for an oration. With a sound that shook the very foundation of Equestria itself, it roared within mere inches of Rarity’s face, exposing its seemingly endless rows of massive teeth and nearly shattering the petit pony’s eardrums. The sheer noise was enough to break Rarity out of her trance of fear.
Without any further invitation, she quickly turned herself around and began running the other direction, screaming hysterically. Only a few yards away, however, she stumbled and fell. Writhing in pain, she looked back at her right hind leg. Nothing damaging existed on its surface, yet it cried out in pain to the rest of her being. Trying to ignore this, she immediately used all of the strength in her remaining three legs to get herself back on her feet and back into a desperate sprint. She had abandoned her wagon back at the wolf’s den; her life was more important than any jewel. In an effort to maintain her speed and ward off any hesitation, she refused to look back to check on the wolf’s location. Instead, she kept running and running, suppressing any pain she felt from her injured leg.
The opening was coming up, signaled by a small ray of light coming from the edge of the oval that was the tunnel gate. She could feel it; she was going to make it! She burst out of the entrance with a seemingly weightless jump, an expression of her gratitude to Celestia that she was almost out.
And then, with a simple turn of her head, all hope was splintered into tiny pieces.
“Impossible…”
Standing with legs shoulder width apart and ears on end, was the wolf. With the sunlight at its back, it cast a demonic silhouette upon the earthen floor. Her jump had landed her directly between it and the cavern lake. Keeping its eyes locked on hers, it slowly walked toward her, cementing her doom. In an attempt to prolong her fate, she started to do the same, only in reverse. She was trapped. She could try to run down the other hallway, but it would just corner her again deeper into the cave. The same applied for running down the hallway she had just come from. Her mind raced in a desperate attempt to find a way out of this. Frantically thinking, she failed to notice the cliff coming up behind her. One hoof over the edge was enough to snap her out of it, and at the same time give her a new idea.
She remembered now. Water. There was a giant pool of water right behind her. This was perfect! She’d just jump into the water, and with any luck the damned wolf wouldn’t follow! It was a plan, but as she looked behind her, she realized just how not well thought out it had been. She had just assumed that the pool was closer to her level from the noise of the waterfall, while in reality the expanse of water she thought was there had turned out to be much farther down than she expected. A giant tunnel of darkness and waterfalls separated her from the pool. Her hooves scrambled to get a proper footing again, despite the danger that was in front of her. If she tried to jump, she’d fare no better than if she tried to go up against the wolf. Out of options, the white pony remained frozen in the crossroad of condemned escape routes. She knew that she wasn’t going to make it out alive.
When a living entity is confronted with death, it sometimes causes the mind to excrete adrenaline, causing a flight-or-fight response. These responses usually give one the ability to get away from the aggressor as quickly as possible. However, in rarer cases, it instead gives the assaulted an uncanny strength of either body or mind. The adrenaline had been known to allow ponies of even Twilight’s stature to combat buffalo and other large creatures on equal ground. But the astonishing part isn’t even the superpony increase in physical strength, but the sudden reinforcement of one’s psyche. One can go from a state of total panic to complete calmness and assertiveness. That is what has saved numerous equines from certain death.
And right now, that is what Rarity received. The adrenaline in her body kicked into overdrive, knowing that she would die otherwise. Like a gust of wind sweeping leaves off the ground, so was all her doubt instantly erased. Her shivering legs swiftly straightened up, her fear filled eyes relinquishing its hold to a surge of confidence. She swiftly formulated a plan, a simple and extremely dangerous one but a plan nonetheless. If she succeeded, the first thing she would do once she got out was forgive her younger sister and give her the biggest hug. There was one shot at this. If she didn’t make it, she was done for. She channeled her new mindset into every ounce of her body, fending off any fatigue that tried to enter.
The wolf had noticed the change within its opponent. It stopped advancing, but did not release its wide stance, ready for anything she might do. What it did not expect, however, was exactly what Rarity had in mind.
She dug her front hoof into the ground, as if to give the beast one more chance to back down. Right now, she saw the giant wolf as nothing more than a dumb beast that needed to be taught a lesson.
At last it was time to execute the plan. In her mind, she silently said a few final goodbyes. She knew they couldn’t hear her; she did it for her own peace of mind. Ready to go, she channeled her newfound strength into her legs and with a movement almost untraceable to the naked eye, charged off to certain doom.
“HYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!” Her speed was of the caliber that even Rainbow Dash would find hard to beat. In less than an instant, she had closed half the distance between herself and the wolf. The wolf was taken back. It had never seen anything even dare to stand up to it, let alone charge at it full speed. It had not, however, lost its sense of danger. It put even more weight into its stance, ready to take the hit full on despite the pointed spear that led the pony’s crusade. A threat was still a threat, no matter how small.
All Rarity could do was tell herself to keep running. She kept her eyes closed, not wanting her judgment to be swayed by the intimidating appearance of the wolf. She didn’t care what was in her way. She was going to pierce through it, no matter what it was.
And then she stopped.
It wasn’t voluntary; something had forced her to stop. She tried to push herself with her legs, but to no avail. The adrenaline had taken its course; it left her with absolutely no energy left. Less than a minute of pointless struggle told Rarity that she was not going to win this time.
Yet, her inability to lift her head troubled her even more so. She tried to lift it, but her attempt was as successful as her charge.
Then she realized. She wasn’t torn to pieces, as far as she knew at least. Wasn’t there a giant pony-eating wolf in front of her a moment ago? Instead of continuing her fruitless attempt at raising her head, she opened her eyes to an odd sight.
A pool of a silvery liquid was set directly in her field of vision, its edges round and slowly fading outwards. A putrid smell emanated from it, but its source is what puzzled her. A drip of it would fall from beyond her field of vision every second or so. Her horn felt warm, very warm. Almost as if…
She frantically backed up; concluding that going forward was not the answer. A few test twitches were in order to make sure she could raise her head now; she was no longer met with resistance, and the warm feeling had disappeared from her horn. Fully raising her head, she now saw the complete scene of horror and beauty.
What had stopped her was in fact the wolf itself. It had stood its ground, unfazed by the marshmallowy object barreling into it. A wall of white fur stood throbbing within inches of her eyes, no different than when she’d seen it for the first time, still blindingly brilliant. Something wasn’t right though. A something out of place existed in the center of this fur, something that had not been there before.
A hole.
Reaching deep into the crevices of its body and dripping with silver blood, the hole was perfectly circular. She’d stabbed the beast with utmost precision, though she hadn’t meant for that. Her eyes were filled with horror. Even though this thing had just tried to kill her, the idea of harming anything larger than a rat was beyond her. She couldn’t handle blood, no matter what its color. As if responding to the thought, a single drop of silver fell between her eyes. The blood had clung to her horn, trickling down the rounded sides, hanging on until the gravity was at its strongest. The droplet seemed to hang motionless in the air, lining perfectly with the hole at the apex of the fall.
The wolf finally ceased its stoic façade, stumbling back with its front leg bending from the agony. A huge wave of silver blood rushed out of the wound, the expression on its face showing its great pain as it did. It did not cry out once, not willing to admit weakness. Its eyelids simply drooped, its breathing becoming heavier and heavier.
Rarity had never seen anything like this, certainly not something of this caliber being brought to its knees before her eyes. She had to hold herself back from going over to help it, afraid it might try to attack her again in self-defense. Fluttershy would know what to do right now. She lamented the fact she hadn’t brought anypony with her, now for another reason. She realized now that it had no malice towards her, that it was simply protecting its den.
“Hold on, I’ll get help!” She tried to run past it, but an extended front leg cut her off. More blood gushed out of the hole when it did, a small amount now coming out of its mouth as well.
“Please, I know somepony who can help you!” It simply shook its head. It understood that now was its time.
Nothing could have prepared her for what happened next.
It smiled at her before shutting its eyes to the world for the last time. The brilliance of its coat aggrandized gradually as the cavern became more and more filled with light. This alien act made Rarity retreat in her footing, but she didn’t let her eyes leave the ailing wolf. It shone with the most beautiful aurora she’d ever seen.
And with no warning, disintegrated before her wonderstruck eyes.