Chapter 1: Beneath the Everfree
Twilight fidgeted nervously. She saw her husband pursuing the roc that took the Crusaders and immediately went to tell Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow Dash what happened. They were gathered in Twilight's living room awaiting the return of their loved ones.
“Oh! I can't take it!” Rainbow Dash stomped in frustration, “I'm going out there!”
“And do what?” Twilight asked, “Search the entire Everfree Forest? You have no idea where they could be. They have Midnight with them. His golem probably couldn't carry all three of them, so they're probably walking.”
“Walking through the Everfree, Twilight!” Rainbow pressed, “You know what kind of things are out there.”
“And you've seen the kinds of critters Midnight's dealt with,” Applejack pointed out.
“I'm worried about Scootaloo, too,” Blue Streak said. He and the orange filly had hit it off almost immediately after learning they both had the same disorder that left them flightless. When he heard what happened, he quickly followed Rainbow to the library, worried about his little buddy.
“Oh, my poor Sweetie,” Rarity cried. Virgil was holding her close, having just moved to Ponyville a month prior to be closer to his fillyfriend and to act as a liaison between his father's gem dealing business and local buyers.
“We are all worried, Rarity,” the high-class canine put a comforting paw on his love's withers, “But you know as well as I that so long as Midnight is there, nothing bad shall befall those fillies.”
“That's right,” Applejack nodded sagely, “Midnight 'll keep 'em safe. Heck, Ah bet their sittin' 'round a fire swapin' ghost stories and havin' a good ol' time.”
“I suppose,” the fashionista relented, “As long as they aren't alone in some dank, dark hole somewhere.”
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A trio of groans sounded in the dark.
“Y'all two okay?” echoed a country accented voice.
“I am,” said a gruff voice.
“So am I,” said the final. Lime colored light filled the air as Sweetie lit up her horn.
“Thanks, Sweetie,” Applebloom said as she got to her hooves, “What happened?”
“We fell,” Scootaloo said sarcastically.
“Oh, is that what?” Applebloom returned the snark, “And here Ah just thought we glided.”
“Well, you asked,” the blind filly chuckled before getting serious, “Are we underground? All the sounds echo funny.”
“Yeah,” Sweetie answered, “We broke through a weak spot, but by the looks of it, it sealed back up.”
“So... we just sit here and wait for rescue, right?” the earth pony asked, “That's what Applejack said Ah should do if Ah got lost in the woods.”
“But this isn't the woods,” Sweetie Belle narrowed the light to a beam and scanned the ceiling, “The ceiling doesn't look stable. I think we should move in case of another collapse.”
She swept the light across the room, searching.
“There,” she pointed out a passage big enough to move through, “That should be safe. Let's go.”
Sweetie started for the tunnel followed closely by Applebloom, but were stopped by their third member.
“Uh, you guys!” Scootaloo called as she very nervously took one step at a time, feeling out each one, “My cane was still in the car.”
Sweetie swept her light back around, spotting a few pieces of their car, but not the whole thing. She searched around what debris there was.
“I don't see it,” she said, “The car landed outside the crevice we fell through. I guess we're going to have to guide you.”
“Great,” groaned the pegasus.
“C'mon,” Applebloom walked up beside her blind friend, “Lean on me.”
Scootaloo pressed against her earth pony friend and the two of them walked toward the waiting unicorn. The going was slow, but steady as the three crusaders made their way down the tunnel. They had walked for about five minutes when a rumbling came from behind them. The three stopped and looked back.
“Wow,” Applebloom said, “Good call Sweets.”
“Yeah, tell-”
Sweetie's reply was cut short by another rumbling echoing through the tunnel. Sweetie's and Applebloom's eyes widened as they saw the fissure racing toward them. Scootaloo was about to inquire as to what was happening, but found her answer as they once again found themselves plummeting. This time, however, they didn't fall far.
The trio landed with a light splash on a sharply inclined passage. An underground water source turned the slope into a natural water slide. The three clung to each other as they raced down the tunnel, Sweetie's light being the only warning they had of incoming obstructions. With a quick command, however, the three dodged and weaved around stalagmites and outcroppings.
Suddenly the slide was gone, replaced by open air and screaming. Thankfully, the fall was only about ten feet. The landing hurt, but nothing too bad. The three once again found their hooves and stood up again.
“That was kinda fun, but I'm tired of falling,” Scootaloo said and shook herself like a dog.
“You can say that again,” Applebloom agreed.
Sweetie had already lit her horn back up and was staring quizzically at the side of the tunnel they found themselves in. Applebloom saw her confused look and approached her friend. She was about to speak, but the unicorn beat her to it.
“Does anything about this tunnel seem... odd?”
Applebloom looked at the cave wall, trying to see what her friend saw, “Ah don't see it.”
“It's smooth,” Sweetie Belle pointed out, “I could be mistaken, but I think this tunnel was carved. See these grooves? They're way too straight to be natural.”
“So you're saying ponies dug this out?” Scootaloo asked, still sitting where she landed.
“Maybe, but at the same time it looks old,” Sweetie continued, “Like... thousands of years old. This was probably a mine at one time.”
“Darn. Ah was hopin' for some rescue.”
“Well, if there were ponies down here, they had a way out,” Sweetie cheered, “Let's go!”
“Alright. Scoots, hold on,” Applebloom slid under her pegasus friend, putting her across her back, “This'll be faster.”
“You drop me, the first thing I do when I get my cane back is whack you,” said the orange coated filly.
“Gotcha, let's go,” replied the farmer.
“Are going to be able to carry her the whole way?” Sweetie asked.
“Yeah. All the applebuckin' AJ has me doin' makes ya strong quick, fast, and in a hurry.”
As Applebloom predicted, their pace more than doubled. Scootaloo didn't like being a burden on her friends, but knew it was better this way.
After a good ten minutes, Applebloom spoke up, “Hey, Sweetie, kill the light.”
Sweetie gave her friend a questioning look, but complied anyway. The unicorn and earth pony gasped.
“What is it?” Scootaloo asked impatiently.
“It's a light!” Sweetie cheered and took off at a gallop.
“We're finally outta here!” Applebloom cantered behind at a more subdued pace, “Ah can't wait to see the...” The yellow filly trailed off as she came to a stop beside Sweetie who was already gawking at the spectacle before them, “sky...”
“Uh... girls... I don't smell fresh air,” Scootaloo's voice was one of worry, “What is it?”
Sweetie finally managed to remember how to speak three little words, “It's a door...”
The metal door sat at the end of the passage, a faint light coming from some kind of luminescent panel above. The sliding double door was slightly ajar but the fillies couldn't see any more lights inside.
“It doesn't look like anyone lives here anymore,” Sweetie observed, “The light must use some kind of self-sustaining enchantment.”
“Alright Scoots, this is your stop,” Applebloom said as she slip the pegasus off her back, “Stand back, Sweets. I'll get this open faster 'n you can spit.”
Applebloom hooked her forehooves through the crack and yanked. Once it opened a bit further, she slid her body in and braced her back against one side and one of her back hooves against the other and pushed.
“Why are we going inside?” Scootaloo asked.
“Because whoever built this had to have a way out,” Sweetie explained, “We just have to find it. Come on.”
Sweetie Belle grabbed Scootaloo's hoof and lead her inside. She was relieved to be in a pony-made structure again where there were straight halls and smooth floors.
“Keep an eye out for something I can use for a cane,” Scootaloo requested.
The other two nodded as they took in their surroundings. It was a very utilitarian building. The walls were unadorned save for faded colored lines with arrows along their length and directory signs. The walls themselves were cracked and broken. One of the hallways to the side had collapsed over time, blocking the way. Sweetie looked at the board on the wall beside the door. It listed several facilities and which color line to follow to get there. Sweetie scanned the list; cafeteria, lounge, dorms, lab, medical, and security.
The unicorn addressed the others, “Security or the labs would be the best bet for figuring out where we are, but medical or the dorms would have something for Scootaloo. Not to mention it's probably late. The rest of this place is in pretty good shape, so maybe the beds will be too.”
“Let's find a bed first,” Sweetie said, “That way we'll already know where we can spend the night when we take a look at the other places.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Scootaloo agreed, “Bloom, let me lean on you. That way Sweetie can do her smart girl thing.”
“I'm not that smart,” Sweetie mumbled with a blush as she headed down the hall, her friends close behind.
“Yeah right,” Scootaloo laughed, “The only pony smarter than you in Ponyville is Twilight.”
“Gotta agree with Scoots on this, Sweetie,” Applebloom threw in, “You got more brains in one hoof then both of us got in our whole body, and Ah ain't ashamed to say it.”
“Still can't figure out how to cook or sew,” Sweetie complained.
“So,” Scootaloo said, “Twilight still can't figure out how to dance. I'll tell you, the one good thing about being blind is I never have to see that again.”
The three shared a little laugh before getting quiet, each one thinking to themselves, mostly about their current predicament. It wasn't too long before they arrived at the dorms. Applebloom took a look at the door, spun around, and gave it a good strong buck. The door crashed down under the power of the filly.
“After you,” she said to Sweetie Belle with a smug grin.
“Alright,” Sweetie smiled at her friend's playfulness, “Let's see what we... oh goddess...”
Applebloom looked at her friend with concern and walked in to see what had her stunned. It didn't take long to see the dozens of long decomposed pony remains in the corners. Their flesh was long since dust, but the image of so many bones was still disturbing.
“What is it?” Scootaloo asked.
“The ponies that used to live here,” answered Sweetie, “It looks like they were huddling around each other for some reason. Hey Applebloom, help me turn this door around.”
The apple farmer flipped the object easily and Sweetie examined it.
“They welded the door shut from the inside,” deduced the unicorn.
“Wait, what?” Scootaloo asked, “You mean they locked themselves in here to die of hunger or thirst? Why would they do that?”
Sweetie Belle looked back to the hall outside, “Because it was better than whatever they were hiding from.”