Arrival

by ChemIisan

Dragons and Memories

Night was falling in Ponyville, and Rainbow Dash was moping in the corner of the Books and Branches Library. Fluttershy approached and Rainbow Dash gave her a dirty look. "You said that you had a story about dragons." she said with a scrunch in her face. She was obviously displeased, and her other friends were giving her space. Applejack was still asleep on the floor next to Twilight.
"I- I have a story about dragons! I... I was getting to it! It... it required you to know this one first." Fluttershy was trying her hardest to apologize to Rainbow Dash, and telling another story seemed like a good start.
"R-really?" Rainbow Dash was more confused than anything. First Fluttershy had a story about dragons, and then she didn't, but now she did; Rainbow Dash was unsure whether or not Fluttershy was making it up.
"Yes, really. It was only a few months after that." Rainbow Dash leaned in to listen, but Fluttershy moved back to her nest of scarves.
"Hey!" shouted Rainbow Dash from her corner. "Aren't you going to tell the story?"
"Yes, but from over here. Come back and join us before I continue." Fluttershy was very conscientious of the other friends that were present. She waited for Rainbow Dash to sheepishly fly towards the group before she continued. Spike was slipping off into sleep on his warm bed as Rarity yawned, eager to sleep.
"While I was in the hospital, Pinkie Pie was near my bedside the whole time. While I was recovering, she told me all sorts of tales of magical beasts."
"Were they dragons?" interrupted Rainbow Dash.
"They were dragons." cooed Fluttershy.
Eee! squealed Rainbow Dash as she scooted closer.
"She told me a story about a pegasi who defeated a dragon. Her name was... er... Glitter Sky. Glitter Sky was on a journey... to defeat a dragon! She was off to defeat a dragon"

Glitter Sky looked carefully at the smoky mountain. She had been tasked by Princess Celestia with the job of removing the dragon from the cave overlooking the Everfree Forest, and she wasn't about to back out now. Behind her, an earth pony town was depending on her bravery and quick wit to save them. She swallowed her spit and attempted to trek up the purple cliff. As she took the first step, her wings locked and she hid behind a bush. She was afraid. She knew that, and yet she accepted. She could never live with herself if she allowed the dragon to roam free now. Just as she was having second thoughts, she heard a cry in the distance.
"Help! Help me!"
The voice dragged Glitter Sky away from her comfort zone. Some pony needed help, and sitting around in a bush was not going to solve anything. She found herself staring at an old friend on the path who was sliding down a cliff. In an effort of quick thinking, one grabbed the other and pulled them up onto the plateau.
"Mighty kind've you to save me there, Glitter Sky. Is there any way I could make it up to you?" Apple Core was an earth pony who owned an apple orchard not too far from Canterlot.

"Apple Core? Like, one of the Apple family?" asked Rainbow Dash.
"If I said yes, could we get back to the story?" responded Fluttershy.
"Ehe... go on."

"Here," said Apple Core. "I'll take you up. Rest yer wings an' I'll let you ride." Apple Core tied Glitter Sky to her back and set off up the mountain.

"Heheheh, Glitter Sky is riding Apple Core." Rainbow Dash giggled until Fluttershy gave her a cold stare.
"May I continue?"
"Oh, yeah. Sorry." Rainbow dash was blushing with embarrassment.

"Me an' my group were separated. We should find 'em 'fore we do anythin'. Why are you trekkin' up this mountain, by th' way? Did Celestia send you after th' dragon too?" Apple Core slowed down and nearly skidded off a cliff. "Phew, that there was a close one. So, tell yer story."
"I was sent to talk the dragon out of living here." Glitter Sky was still a bit shaken.
"Well that works out just perfect!" Apple Core stopped and looked far into the distance. "Look! That's them there!"
As Apple Core approached, Midnight Moon came to meet them.

"Is Midnight Moon the daughter of Luna?" asked Rainbow Dash.
"Err... not really..."
"Is she a powerful unicorn?" asked Twilight eagerly.
"You could say her talent is magic, I guess..."
"Ooh! Just like me!" squealed Twilight.
"Is there a Wonderbolt there? That would be so awesome!" Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle were inches away from Fluttershy's face now. She backed off a bit.
"How about we get back to the story and find out?"
Both friends nodded in unison and Fluttershy continued.

Midnight Moon recognized Glitter Sky from her studies. "Glad to see a friendly face! Were you invited by her Majesty too?" Midnight got to work untying the ropes while Apple Core settled Glitter Sky down on the ground.
"Yes, the Princess has sent me here to aid you." Glitter Sky shook the ropes off.
"Excellent. We may need your animal skills. Come and meet the rest of the gang. You may know of them." Midnight and Apple Core reached the clearing where the others were planning the removal of the great dragon. One of the unicorns looked up, saw Glitter Sky and practically beamed.
"Glitter Sky!" she yelled.
"Fashionista!" Glitter Sky was glad to see an old friend. Fashionista often sent her new designs even before they were released.
"I thought I was going to be stuck with Rosy Cake all day. Thank Celestia you're here." Fashionista primped her mane with a dainty hoof.
"Hey! I'm good company too!" Rosy Cake was irritated by the way she was rudely brushed off. "Oh, Glitter Sky! Do you want a snack? I !" Rosy Cake was a famous baker, but she could be ditzy at times.

"I take offense to that!" shouted Pinkie Pie from the back.
"What are you talking about, Pinkie Pie?" asked a confused Twilight Sparkle.
"Shh! Is there a Wonderbolt?" Fluttershy took this as a signal to continue.

There was also a Wonderbolt by the name of Wind Speed.

"I knew it! Eeeee~" Rainbow Dash paused as Twilight gave her a stare in unison with Fluttershy.

The six of them soon faced their first challenge, a large gap in the path. One slip and they could be falling for a very long time. Wind Speed went first and flew over he gap.
"Come on! The water's fine!" Wind Speed giggled at her own joke.
"Catch me if I fall." mumbled Apple Core to Midnight Moon. Apple Core made a quick gallop and she jumped over. She landed on the other side with no issue, and turned to face the others. "It's easy crossings here, gals."
"One after the other, the ponies jumped to the other side. Fashionista nearly slipped, but Wind Speed caught her. As Glitter Sky opened her wings to fly, they stuck.
"My wings! They must have frozen at this height..." Glitter Sky was briefly discouraged, before Rosy Cake jumped over to help.
"I know what can de-frostiferate those wings! A song!"
"A-a song?" Glitter Sky was startled as music started to fill the air. "Is this natural?" she screamed incredulously.

"Ooh! Ooh! Can I do the song, Fluttershy?" Pinkie Pie asked.
"I was kinda counting on it..." mumbled Fluttershy.
"Wait... just a second... alright! I got a perfect song!" Music blared for real this time, and the whole room lit up, awakening Applejack and Rarity. Spike kept sleeping. A tea kettle screamed from the kitchen, then proceeded to pipe with a regular rhythm. The fire crackled in tune, and the occasional *POP* could be heard from the embers. Even the wind seemed to join in the cacophony, working with the branches to form long tweets and loud toots. Before anypony could speak up, Pinkie was already trotting and rolling, her hoofsteps completing the serenade of Winter at work.

As soon as the music started, it also faded away. Fluttershy was impressed at how quickly Pinkie Pie made up that song.
"By the way, Twilight, your cocoa is burning." Pinkie Pie dropped offhandedly as the scream of the tea kettle persisted.
"What? Oh, right!" Twilight dashed over to turn the oven off.
"So you sang the song and..." Fluttershy picked up from there.

Rosy Cake sang the song and sure enough, Glitter Sky's wings opened and allowed her to fly over to the other side.
"What I don't understand is why Midnight didn't just levitate her over." complained Fashionista. Midnight blushed lightly before she responded.
"Err, I just... wanted to build character! That's it!" Midnight smiled widely, as if that would disguise the lie.

"Hey... wait a second... I take offense to that too!" chided Twilight Sparkle.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Fluttershy lifted her head up and pointed it away from Twilight. Twilight considered dignifying this by giving a response, but she took notice of how closely Rainbow Dash was following the story. She would withhold complaints... for now.

The group continued to wander towards their destination. Midnight halted the crew to examine something on the sidelines.
"Stop, everypony." Midnight was reading a sign now, written with large crayon on wood.
"Well? What does it say?" asked Wind Speed, who was very illiterate (Twilight snickered at this).
"Golems Ahead - Stay Quiet And Nopony Gets Hurt. Well that's an odd set of directions."
"What in the name of hay are 'golems'?" requested Apple Core.
"Magical creatures of stone that live in mountains... but I never knew we had a colony so close to Canterlot! This is a prime opportunity to study their habits and-"
"Somehow I feel that there would be a more controlled and less risky time to study the activities of creatures that could potentially attack us? I'm not quite sure where your priorities lie, Midnight, but I personally like my mane the way it is. That is, not dead." Fashionista was obviously more concerned with herself than with the group as a whole, but she had a good point.
"Alright; I'll hold off on my studies for now..." Midnight seemed a little depressed, but she understood where Fashionista was coming from. The ponies quietly creeped by the cliffs where the golems lived, taking care not to yell.
"Do Golems even have ears?" whispered Wind Speed.
"Shh!" replied everypony else. Glitter Sky inched along and tripped on a round rock protruding from the ground. She skidded and yewled in pain, but was unheard over a terrible scream. The ground had opened up and a rocky tan beast burst out of it. Soon, eyes were opening up all over the walls and ground and this beast called for aid.
"My TOE!" he exclaimed at the top of his lungs. He curled up in a ball, holding his front leg and requesting his mother repeatedly. "Who did this to me!?! The pain! The pain! The inexplicable pain!"
"Oh fer Celestia's sake, stop that there whinin'! You're wakin' up th'... neighborhood." Apple Core chastised the crying golem, but stopped as she noticed a wide array of eyes staring her down. One cracked it's knuckles, a universal gesture even among ponies.

"What are knuckles?" asked Rainbow Dash.
"Err... Twilight, can you explain for me?" avoided Fluttershy.
"Knuckles are on creatures with hands, like dragons. If you push down on them with a finger, they make a cracking sound that represents the sound they make when, uh, punching you." Rainbow Dash was satisfied with her response, and hurried Fluttershy back to the story.

"What have you done to my baby?" questioned one of the rock creatures as they scooped up the rock golem and cradled him in her arms. It was assumed that that golem was the mother, and the smaller one was her child. The other golems stood at about her height, but there were a few more 'children' scattered around.
"She hurt me, Mommy! She hurt my toe!" whined the baby golem, pointing at Glitter Sky. "Make her pay!" he howled.
The biggest golem looked carefully at the ponies. Red clay smeared his face, the large stalactite staff he held imposing his authority. "You have 10 seconds to leave, before I do anything drastic."
"Gladly!" yelped Glitter Shy before catching up with the fleeing Fashionista and hightailing it out of there.

"That's it? No fighting or anything?" Rainbow Dash flipped.
"I think it sends a good message to everypony. You don't need to fight to get your way." Fluttershy sounded confident, for once.
"Pfft. That's a terrible moral. There better be some dragon fighting by the end of this." Fluttershy yawned once than resumed.

The troupe soon reached the cavern entrance, where they could hear a loud snoring.
"Who goes first?" asked Rosy Cake. The ponies mumbled to each other for a bit, then Midnight Moon spoke up.
"We should draw lots. That way, it's completely fair." All the ponies agreed, and got to it. In a few minutes, the group convened again.
"Alright, Fashionista, since you drew the best parking lot you'll go first."
"Naturally."
"Next will be Wind Speed, then Rosy Cake, and finally, myself."
"Well what 'bout me an' Glittershy, err, Flitter Sky, I mean-" Before Apple Core could spoil the secret, Midnight Moon explained her decision.
"Your art was so terrible, we decided you'll probably just run away. Any more questions?"

"My art ain't that terrible! I'd like t'see you do bett-ahh!" contested Applejack, but she was halted mid-sentence by a loud stomp. Everything in the house shook. Lanterns fell and crashed upon the floor. Books dropped down, pummeling poor Rainbow Dash. Fluttershy was thrown into Twilight, and both went cold on the floor. The fireplace spilled out onto Spike, covering him in embers and flaming logs. He didn't seem to mind, sleeping as peacefully as ever.
"Quick! Get some water!" shouted Rarity to Pinkie Pie.
This isn't good. thought Pinkie Pie to herself. I have to get them out of here. She grabbed a bucket of water and put out the fire. After Spike was doused and awake, she turned her attention to the two unconscious ponies on the floor. "Applejack!" she shouted. "Grab Fluttershy! I'll get Twilight! Everyone, follow me!" She slung Twilight Sparkle over her hindquarters and rushed over to the looked along the bookshelves.
"This is no time for reading, Pinkie!" shouted Rarity from her corner, where she was helping Rainbow Dash to her feet. Spike quickly grabbed a quill, some ink, and several parchments just in time to avoid the giant axe swinging into the fireplace. A huge, glimmering blade cut about a quarter of the way through the home, barely nicking Rainbow Dash's left wing. As it slowly removed itself, a secret passage opened into a tunnel.
"Everyone! Through the passage!" she shouted, and it wasn't long before everyone rushed in. Just in time, as it happened, for the next moment the house collapsed on top of the portal to the library.
"Wh-what just happened?" Applejack was white as a sheet, and her legs were about to give out.
Pinkie Pie lit a candle and gave Applejack a good, square look before opening her mouth.