//------------------------------//
// 4 Gentle Greeting 
// Story: The Power of Randomite 
// by Archie Ratsworth 
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There was a noise, the sound of wings. Her eyes snapped open to the sight of a...horse, slender, shining white with great wings stretching outwards as it dipped and landed. It's mane and tail streamed out, blue striped with green and pink. On it's head was golden crown set behind a grand long horn, like a spire of majesty, and a matching gold collar, both with a huge oval shaped stone, like dark amethysts, set in them. Each hoof was sheathed in fanciful golden shoes that extended up like little crowns.
Two lilac eyes opened to gaze down at at the little grey pony
"Oh." It said, surprised to see the little pony prostrate, so awed by the radiance she was squeezing her eyes shut. 
It considered her with puzzlement, head darting down so it could whisper;
"Do not be afraid, little one."
Blue eyes creaked open and locked with the majestic gaze of lilac, and went watery.
"Oh glory!" She murmured, shrinking away. "Who are you?"
"I am Princess Celestia." It told her, grandly. "I have reign of the Sun, and all of Equestria."
"Oh glory." The pony muttered again, shivering.
"I'd appreciate if you stood up and faced me, little one." She prompted, the edge of her eye crinkling gently.
The grey pony cringed, her eyes closing as she took a moment and gathered herself before  clumsily got to her feet, shamefully aware of how graceless she was.
After a long reprehensible moment, the pony lifted her head and made herself look Celestia in the face. A tender smile softened the regal features, impressing upon the pony the benevolence she represented.
The fear faded from the little pony's posture, and she stopped shrinking away, allowing herself to return the smile.
"Thank you." the Princess seemed relieved.
It occurred to the grey pony that having to bend that long neck all the way down to speak with someone would have been a discomfort. 
She nodded, snorting. Shame made her take a step back, suddenly nervous; would Celestia be offended?
"Please, speak with me." Celestia urged, taking a step forward. "There is much I would know about you."
"Ask." The pony smiled nervously. Celestia blinked, struck by the odd behaviour of the pony.
"How did you get down here?"
"I-down?" Her jaw dropped open and her eyes flicked to the glint of light beyond Celestia's head, and then closed. "But I was leaving, wasn't I?  I was finding a way out!"
Celestia blinked, stepping forward.
"I meant; how did you end up in the caves?"
"I don't know." Whined the pony, shame-faced. "I just woke up here."
"Is that really all there is to it?"
The pony's eyes snapped open and she lurched back, suddenly skittish. Celestia held her gaze, not letting her break away.
"I...messed up! It was an experiment and it messed up!" The pony cried.
"And what kind of experiment was it?" Celestia probed, her voice calm and even.
"I don't remember!" The pony froze, and ducked her head. "I don't remember anything."
Celestia was silent, considering how swiftly the pony's demeanour had shifted, and then realised that from awe-stuck to distressed was merely a shift in fear.
The pony danced from one hoof to another, clearly from frazzled nervous energy.  Celestia examined the grey pony who had frozen again and was regarding her out of the corner of one eye with alarm. The pony was about as big as a foal, except the proportions were somewhat off;  subtly adult  and noticeably thinner. Colourless, a plain dull grey from hoof to horn.

"Surely there is something you remember." Celestia inquired. "Who you are, where you are from? Your cute-"
There was a rattling noise, and Celestia glanced at the track, a little surprised to see the cart swooping along the tracks towards them. It bumped to a halt, and from the shadows she had fled into the grey pony watched Celestia trot over and peek in, frowning gently.
Her lilac eyes turned, picking her out of the darkness swiftly, and when they settled on her the concern melted into kindness.
"It's alright. It's just a minecart. There's nothing in it." Celestia coaxed, her head dipping down on that slender neck again. "Come out of the shadows, little one."
The little grey pony stepped forward nervously. Celestia had trouble picking her out, as the dull grey coat faded into the stone floor especially well in the darkness. Only her eyes, a bright sky blue, stood out in the darkness, which is how Celestia managed to locate her in the gloom.  The reservation she saw as the pony reluctantly approached her caused her to wonder what might have happened in the small pony's past.
"Can you at least tell me your name, little one?" She asked, keeping her voice gentle. Even so, the pony cringed, her mouth dropping open as she strained to find an answer. She saw something about the pony's eyes flash, as she glanced away.
"No?" The grey pony said at last, ducking her head away.
Celestia sighed, shaking her head. The way the pony was acting suggested that she was trying to run away from her home, which raised so many questions about where she was from. What kind of experiment was she expected to think would land a pony here? Some kind of teleportation?
"Can I go now?" The pony asked, her eyes going to the side as if she were a nervous puppy.
"Where will you go?" Celestia asked, frowning.
"I was going to follow these tracks to that light." She admitted, somehow realising she'd be unable to avoid clarity much longer.
"These tracks lead to the exit, but they don't reach it." Celestia told her, her head sweeping to face the glint. "Perhaps it wold be best if you allowed me to bring you out. Maybe then we work on solving the mystery of your origin."
Celestia watched the grey pony sag, the despair flashing across the face being masked behind a stony determination. 
"I would appreciate your help, Princess Celestia of Equestria." The pony told her, forcing a shaky smile.
The great white wings unfolded from her back, encircling the smaller mare in pale feathers. A beautiful smile spread across her muzzle as she lowered her head, a golden sparkling glow spreading across her horn.  When the horn touched the young pony's head, there was a flash of brilliant light that refracted through every crystal. And then it was dark again, and the two were gone.