The morning was serene. Most of the clouds had dispersed during the night, and thus the sun was again visible. We barely managed to make a fire for cooking breakfast with the help of Rarity’s magic and lamp oil – even when my friend at last succeeded in lighting the wet branches up, we had to carefully tend the fire to keep it alive. When we were in the middle of eating the morning’s rations, a grey, brown-maned pegasus emerged from the forest, approaching us. His cutie mark was a black thunderbolt, and he was carrying two rather large saddle bags.
I rose up and was about to dart away, but Rarity’s scowl kept me in place.
“Hello?” said Rarity to the stallion.
“Greetings, Miss Twilight and Miss Rarity,” he responded with a polite voice, still staring at us. “I’m sorry for leaving you behind, and looking back, it was a stupid decision. Should’ve known better than to expect two Elements to give up and go home.”
My eyes opened wide. “So, you’re Grey Thunder? Our Guide?”
“That’s me.”
“Then you have a lot to explain,” I said. “And don’t even think about keeping your mouth shut. We need to know why you have failed to comply Princess Celestia’s orders.”
Grey shrugged. “It’s a long story, but I suppose there’s no point in keeping secrets from you now that things turned this way,” he told, looking somewhat nervous. “I simply didn’t want to risk you two. Though I’m not sure what exactly is going on at the excavation site, I have a theory. But in any case, going there will be-“
“You have a theory?” I interrupted him. “Tell us.”
“Ah. A few years back, a group of ponies stole an old relic from Lily Valley,” started Grey. “It was a plate or something like that – just a mundane item with historical value. Was used by some old tribal leader in the times before Equestria, I think. They managed to evade a Royal Guard squad sent to retrieve the artifact. Their tracks ended somewhere close to the mountains, and nopony has seen any of the group since. Wouldn’t be surprised if they were behind this, too.”
I raised my eyebrow, and was about to speak, when Rarity opened her mouth. “Splendid, Mister Thunder. But if that’s the case, why are you here now, talking to us? Shouldn’t you be a day or more ahead?”
“Well… uh…” Grey paved the ground. “There was an obstacle I didn’t expect. You know Whiteleaf River?”
I remembered it was marked clearly on the map. The river was between us and the excavation site, not far from here. “Yes,” I answered.
“That’s the problem. There has been a lot of rain lately, and the river is overflowing at the moment. I couldn’t get over by myself, so I was forced to come back. It was just by chance that I saw light here during the night.”
Rarity and I gave Grey odd looks for a moment, until my friend broke the ice. “I don’t mean to offend you, mister… but…” Rarity coughed. “You’re a pegasus.”
The stallion stared at us, his mouth agape. When he finally comprehended what Rarity had said, he rolled onto the ground and bursted out laughing. We could but watch him and wonder what was going on. Has he gone mad? Is this connected to the light on the mountainside? Or the burnt book?
“Oh. Oh wow.” Grey said, wiping the water out of his eyes. “Celestia didn’t tell you?”
“Apparently not,” replied Rarity, still stunned by the stallion’s reaction.
Grey unfurled his wings. They looked brittle and had lost a lot of feathers. “I can’t fly. Haven’t been able to do that for years. A crippled pegasus. Ain’t it tragic?”
I cringed. “Oh my. That must be bad. What happened?”
“It’s a long story, and now isn’t the time. Zebra magic was involved. But it’s all in the past now – we have more important things to do. The river isn’t far away, and if we pull together, we’ll get over it today. Heck, you’re the element of magic! You could just teleport us to the other side.”
Celestia didn’t tell you, did she? …That’s not even remotely funny, Twilight.
Pain shot through my horn as I tried to cast a simple light spell, staggering me a bit. “I’m afraid I can’t use my magic at the moment, Grey.”
Grey frowned. “That’s certainly a huge problem, but not one we can’t overcome. We’ll think of something.”
Rarity and I finished our rations under Grey’s watchful eyes. I could see from my friend’s face that she was just as surprised as I of our guide’s sudden appearance. After the breakfast, Grey took the lead, and our journey was progressing again. The stallion needed no maps; he seemed to have memorized the terrain perfectly. Even though Grey joined my and Rarity’s conversations at times, he didn’t seem to take much interest in us, keeping his pace without opening his mouth often.
“Do you think he’s hiding something?” I whispered to Rarity as we walked.
Rarity took her time to respond. “I don’t know. He seems honest, but you never know of these ruffian types.”
I nodded. “Right. I suppose we can trust him. One would think that a former royal guard knows better than to lie to two Elements.”
It didn’t take long for us to reach the river. Even from afar the sound of water rushing down could be heard – though I’d never seen Whiteleaf River first-hoof, I had read about it before our trip here. Because of its remote location, few bridges crossed it, and those were all a long way downstream. The river was surprisingly wide, and the powerful stream had carved somewhat deep ravines into the ground.
As we reached the bank of the river, it became clear that the task ahead of us was daunting. The banks cut off into sharp cliffs about a dozen yards tall. Just as wide as it was deep, the ravine would be very difficult to cross. In the bottom, the river roared fiercely. I already had goose bumps. Rarity was standing some distance behind me.
“Any ideas?” asked Grey, rubbing his chin.
I took a measuring look around. “We could cut a tree off and try to use it as a makeshift bridge. That might be a bit dangerous, though.”
Grey shook his head, pointing down at a trunk lodged between some large rocks, partly underwater. “Nope. Already tried. The trees ain’t even nearly tall enough.”
“Rarity, what do you think?”
“Oh… well-“ said Rarity with a shaky voice, taking glances at the canyon in front of us. “I don’t really know.”
Think, Twilight, think. Limited magic. Limited resources. A physical obstacle in your way. How do you get over it?
The easy way would be to tie up enough trees to make a long-enough bridge. But however we’d do that, it would be risky. On the other hoof, if nothing else comes up, we must do that.
Then a realization struck me. “Rarity, do you think you could levitate a rope across the ravine and tie it around a large rock?
“I suppose so,” answered Rarity, looking visibly nervous. “But what good would that be for?”
“You’re good with delicate levitation, so your knots would almost certainly hold. Our rope is sturdy, too. If Grey also has some length of it, we could make a rope bridge across the river.”
Rarity frowned. “That sounds dangerous, to say the least.”
“By using both trees and rope we could make a somewhat secure bridge,” commented Grey. “With mere ropes we’d have to walk on two hooves to make it across, and that isn’t something I’d like to do.”
We proceeded to talk about how the bridge should actually be made. It was quickly decided that a suspension bridge was the best way to go. The construction would take a lot of time, but Rarity’s magic would help immensely in making planks, which were necessary for it.
In no time, we cut the tallest tree we could find using a saw of Grey’s. I tried to help him with the two-pony saw only to get scornful looks; I was just hindering the stallion. My entire body was nevertheless sweating from the effort, making me feel powerless as Grey finished cutting the tree all by himself. Next, with the help of Rarity’s magic, he spliced the wood into planks. It took barely two hours for them to finish knotting up the bridge, while I just watched and awkwardly pawed the ground.
But setting the bridge up was a wholly different task. As I saw Rarity’s hooves shaking, I approached her.
“You can do this, Rarity,” I said, putting a hoof on her shoulder. “It’s just simple levitation applied across a distance. You have the eye for this. And if you need any advice, just ask me.”
Rarity’s hug caught me by surprise. It was short, but for a second, I could feel her breath on my face and her warm coat brushing against mine. “Thanks, Twi. I promise to ask you if I need any advice,” she assured, taking a look in my eyes before getting to work.
I stood by Rarity as she levitated the other end of the bridge across the canyon and carefully tied the ropes around rocks. She didn’t say anything during the process – it was evident from her determined look that she was very focused, despite her initial tenseness.
“Done,” Rarity let out, swiping sweat off her forehead. “Now, who goes first?”
“I think it’s for the best that I do,” stated Grey. “We pegasi are lighter than you unicorns. In case I have trouble making it across, you two have to think of something else.”
Grey has a point. However, once he’s over, he’ll leave us hanging here, no doubt. He’s just using Rarity and me for this. When he doesn’t need us anymore-
“And before you object-“ spoke Grey, raising his voice a bit “-I’m not going to leave you behind, now that you are here. It was a stupid idea to come here just by myself. You can count on me not repeating my mistakes.”
“Alright, Grey,” I agreed, trading a glance with Rarity. She didn’t look very convinced, but said nothing.
The stallion nodded, walking onto the bridge. He hesitated for a bit as the bridge dangerously wobbled, but proceeded to carefully move across. Even though the makeshift bridge seemingly wasn’t very stable, Grey made it to the other side without major troubles. He waved us to follow him, shouting something that was lost in the roar of the river.
“I’ll go second,” I said, trying to step forward, only for Rarity to hold me in place by biting my tail.
“Twilight,” coughed Rarity, releasing my tail. “There’s something you need to know before you cross that bridge.”
I turned to face Rarity; she was looking very tense again. “Huh?”
“Listen, darling. I know full-well that this river later merges with Golden River in the valley. Now, I need to tell you what I earlier declined to reveal,” explained my friend with a serious voice. “Something happened when I was little – I don’t remember much from it. I used to live in a small village near Hoofington, by the river. One spring, it flooded really badly. The details are fuzzy after all the years, but I swear by Celestia’s name, that it really happened.”
“Gaaaaals!” I could faintly hear Grey shouting from the other side.
“To put it shortly, I was all alone,” continued Rarity, her voice betraying no emotion. “My parents were in town with Sweetie, who was only a few months old at the time. For one full day and one full night, I sat on the roof, too scared to move or even sleep.”
“Oh. That must’ve been horrible,” I managed to mutter out, caught off-guard by the story. “But why do I need to know this right now? Can’t it wait until we’re on the other side?”
Rarity sniffed. “You bet it was horrible. But the reason I’m telling you this now – in the middle of the night, I finally got the courage to stretch my legs by walking around the roof. Past that, I only recall staring at my own reflection in the water for a moment. There was something in there, under the reflection. Something that, just in the blink of an eye, showed me things... what the things I saw were, I don’t remember anymore, not that I even wanted to.”
“Um... Rarity, that’s a lot to take in,” I commented awkwardly. “I’m a bit confused.”
“So am I, Twilight. Just let me finish my story.
“The reason this is important – I was found half-drowned by a pegasi emergency squad in the early hours of the morning. My saving grace was that I had fallen onto the terrace and didn’t fully submerge into the water, giving them a chance them to see me.” Rarity looked exhausted after finishing.
Now I wasn’t sure what to think. “How did ‘looking into water’ change into drowning? Rarity, are you alright?”
“Yes, I am, darling,” replied Rarity patiently. “Like I said, my memory is fragmented and hazy. I don’t remember anything past looking at the water and seeing something. What happened between that and me almost drowning? I have no idea.”
I raised an eyebrow. “So your next memory is waking up elsewhere?”
“Yes. In the hospital of Hoofington, to be exact.”
“Well...” I shrugged. “I’m not going to pretend I really understood what you were trying to say. Do you think I’m in danger?”
Rarity nodded. “I later read several old books about the Golden River. Mysterious disappearances used to happen by it all the time, even in broad daylight. It seems that when a pony is in some kind of trouble, or all alone, something’s almost bound to happen,” she revealed. “Or then they’re really just tales, and my memory has been corrupted by time.”
“Do you think that’s the case?” It probably is, Twilight. What she’s telling is simply outlandish.
“No, I don’t,” answered Rarity, shaking her head. “Just be careful. And if something happens – don’t look down.”
Smiling reassuringly at Rarity, I finally walked onto the edge. “I give you my word.”
Grey was visibly growing impatient on the other side, making upset gestures. I noticed that the bridge was somewhat wet from the vapor the river was throwing in the air, but it still seemed safe enough to walk. I’d just have to take more care in order to avoid slipping. A feeling of uncertainty struck me, making me hold my hoof over the first plank for a second before stepping on it. The plank held my weight.
One step after another, I went forward. My heart was racing; it’d be a long drop if the bridge gave out.
The bridge will hold your weight with ease. You know the math, Twilight. Those ropes are sturdy enough. Calm down, there’s no need to worry.
I was almost in the middle now. My weight was pulling the bridge down, and it was shaking even more than my hooves. A gust of wind flailed my mane, but I managed to keep myself in place. This was just another test.
Relax. Relax. Don’t panic. Focus on the task.
From side to side, the bridge swung. Trying to keep my eyes on the trees rising from opposite edge of the ravine, I started moving again. My hoofsteps were muffled, but I could hear them.
Wait, my hoofsteps?
My brain took its time to process what was happening. All sound had phased away. Vapor was still in the air, but dense fog prevented me from seeing the other side.
“Twilight Sparkle. You are needed,” called an unrecognizable voice from under me. I pinched my eyes shut.
You just have to make it across. This will surely be over then. You don’t want to fail this. You don’t want to fail Celestia. You don’t want to fail Rarity.
I opened my eyes, bit my lip and took a step. And another. Before I realized, I was trotting.
“Twilight!” shouted the voice. Blood was rushing into my head. I was in a state of terror, just barely avoiding dropping off the bridge as I ran. Fog was now clouding the entirety of my vision; the furiously shaking planks under my hooves were the only thing that reminded me of the world that existed around me.
Suddenly, it was all over. Rocks and ground materialized out of nowhere, color making a return. Sound rephased into the world. I stopped to catch my breath; my lungs were on fire from the extortion. Relief washed over me as I realized that the worst was now over.
“You okay?” asked Grey’s concerned voice, slightly distorted by the sound of the river’s rage. He trod towards me.
“I think so…”
“Didn’t expect you to panic like that,” Grey shrugged. “Guess it can happen even to the best of us.”
I didn’t say a word. My interest was not in talking, but in Rarity, who was now crossing the bridge. She looked nervous, but was making progress.
Grey bumped me, and I turned around. “Huh?”
He wasn’t there any longer. I glanced in every direction, but the stallion was gone. Then I looked back at Rarity – she was still standing on the bridge, her mouth agape and stare empty. A bizarre grey form, slightly resembling a large pony, was floating behind her. My mind couldn’t comprehend what I was seeing. Something was there, but what, I simply couldn’t understand.
“Rarity!” I shouted, trying to warn my friend. She didn’t look like she had heard.
I could but watch helplessly as Rarity’s legs gave out. She dropped down, and began to slide down the now-tilted planks. Before I was able to do anything, she fell. I raised my hoof in vain, trying to understand what just happened. But as fear fiercely wrenched my gut, my vision blurred. A freezing cold struck me, making me stun and shiver. My mind was getting clogged with mist.
My body being no longer under my control, I powerlessly fell to the ground, a quiet voice whispered unintelligible words into my ear.
--
Two mountains fell into a huge lake in between them, causing a majestic sight. I sat on the rocky shore, my back hooves halfway in the cold water. The skies were clear, and hummingbirds sang in nearby oaks – I felt relaxation melting my body in the sunlight.
Not for long was I able to enjoy the peaceful setting. Thunderous crackles started to echo in the valley, the surface of the water in the middle of the lake rippling and bubbling.
--
Just like nothing had happened, I awoke, lying on the ground. Short pines and spruces were there to greet me as I rose up, still staggered. It felt like I had slept for days. The river was barely audible now. Somehow, the mountains now seemed to loom a lot closer, and even the sun was much lower in the sky than it should’ve been.
Rarity! Where is she?
She had fallen into the river. The chances of surviving both the fall and the terrible stream without drowning were negligible. I looked around in panic, noticing a white, pony-sized lump under a tree, against all the expectations.
“Rarity!” I called, running towards her.
My friend flinched, her eyes opening instantly. “Huh? What happened? Whe-”
Rarity’s sentence was cut off as I squeezed her with all my strength. “Thank Celestia you’re okay! I thought I had lost you!”
Though she didn’t fight back my embrace, Rarity still wrestled herself some breathing room. “Lost me? I… I…” Rarity furrowed. “-just stepped onto the bridge. And now, I’m here. With you.”
“Oh.” Though I was trying my best to remember the sequence of events, everything in my mind was fuzzy. Rarity had been on the bridge. Something – or someone – had been behind her. Then, she fell. After that, I couldn’t recall anything. “You… fell. Off the bridge.”
Shock was very evident from Rarity’s face. “Fell? But… what happened next? How was I rescued?”
“To be honest, I have no idea,” I said. “When you slipped off, a hazy form of some kind was standing behind you. That’s all I can remember. I just woke up in here.”
“Where is ‘here’?” asked Rarity, turning her head to see the surroundings.
“Because the river can still be heard, we’re surely still close to it. Speaking of which, I haven’t found Grey yet.” I released Rarity from the hug, only now realizing what I’d just done and blushing. Rarity didn’t seem to take notice.
We swiftly agreed to travel back into the direction of the river by following its sound. For our relief, it was still close-by, but on the other hoof, it didn’t really resemble the part where we had crossed it. Here the banks were much gentler and the river wider. Rarity kept calling for Grey while I studied one of the books I’d taken with me: Crystal Mountains: A Geographical Study.
Even after hours, no trace of Grey had been found. It turned out that we were no longer by Whiteleaf River, but instead a smaller one that joined it downstream. The place of our crossing was several days’ walk away, but we were now closer to the destination of our mission. On top of all of our other problems, the sun was going to lower behind the mountains at any moment.
“So, do you think we should go back?” asked Rarity as I finished determining our exact position on the map.
I shook my head. “No. There’s no point. Grey can take care of himself, and the detour would take from four to five days. In respect to that, we’re now only two days from the excavation site.”
Rarity sighed. “Twilight, forgive me for saying this, but I think we should just go home and leave this place to be. It’s utterly ridiculous how much has happened to us in only a few days. This is getting very dangerous, and we don’t even know what we’re risking our lives for!”
She’s right. Continuing is nothing short of idiocy. Celestia would forgive you for abandoning this one, you have learned as much. …No, no, no. Failure is not an option. What if I had failed saving the Crystal Empire? We can’t give up!
“Listen, Rares. We can’t go back now,” I said, fighting back my urges to agree with her. “I’m completely certain that there was a very good reason for putting us on this task. Celestia’s judgement is sound. If she chose not to tell us about the dangers, it was for a good reason.”
“And what would that reason be?”
I gave my friend a stressed smile, shaking my head. “I have no idea. You just have to trust me with this.”
“Darling, I concur,” stated Rarity with a tired voice. “We are, indeed, quite far on this horrible journey. However, it’s never too late to back off.”
“Look, I understand your concerns,” I replied with a soft voice. “But my instincts tell me that we should go on – and after what happened at my brother’s wedding, I have learned to respect them.”
“Alright then, Twi, if that’s what you want. You’re probably right.” Rarity sounded defeated.
With the dispute settled, we made a fire to deter the cold night that was surely ahead. When we were eating another batch of rations, this time ones that actually tasted like something, I felt my horn pulsing. My bowl was almost sent flying as a wave of energy hit my head – colorful lights emitted by my horn flickered in my vision, and a loud buzz could be heard. Then the episode was over, almost as soon as it had started. Rarity just stared at me, her eyes wide open from astonishment.
I smiled, levitating the bowl from my hooves. “Good news, Rarity.”
“You can cast spells again? Splendid! It was about time.”
Testing my magic, I tried out several spells. Minor ones like light and levitation worked perfectly, but several attempts at more advanced ones caused my head to ache. It came as a pleasant surprise that I was able to cast the alarm spell already; despite its continuous nature, it was actually quite easy to set up and required minimal effort to maintain for its duration. In the night ahead, both of us could finally sleep.
The darkness fell quickly. Even though we’d been out for Celestia-knows how many hours after the bridge incident, my eyelids kept sliding closed every now and then. Too tired to talk much, we just sat idly for some time in the warmth of the fire, both of us soon curling inside our respective bedrolls. The stars twinkling in the sky felt like a good omen, as my mind wandered away into the realms of sleep.