//------------------------------// // And Magic Makes It All Complete // Story: Ynanhluutr // by Imploding Colon //------------------------------// Morning rays of light scattered through waving palm fronds. It was a bright and sunny day, and the humid air resonated with the sound of crashing waves against the sandy white shores of a lonely island. All the while a salty breeze blew through tall blades of grass still moist with dew. Dragonflies, beetles, and other insects buzzed from leaf to leaf amidst the dense foliage. Overhead, seagulls cried, circling that lush emerald dot situated within a great blue sea. All of this tranquility didn't last forever, for all of the sudden, emanating from the western shore, a fervently panting breath increased in both tempo and volume. It was accompanied by frantic hoofsteps that shook the soft black soil underneath. Dragonflies flitted away in opposite directions while lizards and spiders scurried into the deepest niches of bent palm trees, hiding. Within seconds, Rainbow Dash came bursting through the underbrush. Wet leaves and thick fronds slapped against her muzzle, but she didn't care. The mare was a sweating, heaving mess, and she galloped all the harder, piercing her way deep and deeper into the heart of the island. The ground turned soft underneath her heavy hooves, and she tripped more than once—her Element of Loyalty pendant rattling with a ruby shine. Gnashing her teeth, she pressed onwards, stumbling her way past tree stumps and anthills and various other natural obstructions. At last, dripping from her frazzled head to her blistery hooves with sweat, Rainbow skidded to a stop, leaning against a tree and struggling in vain to catch her breath. With a dull shudder, the petite pegasus tilted about, staring into the thicket from which she came. She trembled more than a little bit, her ears twitching to the persistent sound of crashing waves. From her vantage point, she could catch the tiniest sliver of white sand and blue surf from beyond the trees. A few seagulls shrieked, fluttered off, and were silent. As the forest became still once again, Rainbow felt a mosquito or two clinging to her fetlocks, but she hadn't the strength nor the desire to swat them away. Her ruby eyes remained locked on the dense foliage, watching, waiting, dreading. Ocean waves roared gently. Grass swayed in the warm morning breeze. Sunlight continued its fragmented dance through the leaves. Rainbow bit her lip, trembling. Her nostrils flared the very moment her twitching eyes reflected a hint of lavender. “Honestly, Rainbow, is this any way to treat a friend?” It came from the shore, slowly but steadily, until it phased through the palm trees altogether. “Look, I figured it all out. Discord zapped us. All of us... well, most all of us.” Twilight Sparkle trotted eerily through the body of a tree stump until she came to a dull stop in the center of the clearing. Her body glimmered with tiny beams of lavender light from where the swaying grass shifted through her fetlocks. She stood in place, gazing sympathetically at the pegasus. “The point is, he's done something to everypony I care about. Even you. So that's why you're not acting quite so... loyal at the moment. It's okay. I get it.” Rainbow's ears folded back. She stumbled in reverse, on the verge of hyperventilating. “But, you can't be that worse off! I mean... look at you!” Twilight smiled, trotting closer, one icy step at a time. Her hooves lit up like lavender beacons with each move she made through the impervious grass. “You're not even that gray! Pffft... you should see Pinkie Pie. From the last time I looked at her, she hardly even lived up to her name! And Rarity, she's—... well, I guess she's always been kinda 'gray,' though she'd probably slap me for saying that, Discorded or not.” She rolled her eyes. “Anyways, the girls are all in trouble, and they need our help. So, Rainbow, I'm going to need you to get your head back in the game and help me find out where they are so we can—” Just then, the unicorn froze, her lips pursed. “Wait a second...” She pointed a hoof at Rainbow's neck. “How... h-how did you get the Element of Loyalty? I thought I gave that to Spike!” Rainbow kept trotting backwards. At one point, she tripped over a loose coconut and plunged hard on her flank. “Ooof!” “Er... s-sorry!” Twilight blushed. “I-I didn't mean to steal your thunder or anything, Rainbow! It's just that... th-that we needed to take down Discord, and I thought that maybe we could do it with just the Elements alone—no matter who was wielding them. I mean... I-I guess it was a pretty desperate move, eheheh... but it's not like the other girls were cooperating much with me. Plus, you had flown off to Celestia-knows-where...” Rainbow whimpered, scooting backwards until her body pressed up against a tree. She was all sweat and panting. “But you've got your Element back! That's so great!” Twilight beamed. “That means we still can make this work! All we need to do is figure out where exactly we are and get back to Ponyville before Discord officially makes it the Chaos Capital of the world. And—” Twilight blinked, as if focusing on Rainbow's panicked expression for the first time. “Uhm... Rainbow? Have you been listening to a word I've said?” “Mmm... mmmfffuuu...” Rainbow bit her lip until it almost bled. “Oh dear.” Twilight gulped. “Did Discord cast a sickness spell on you? Here...” She trotted briskly forward, forelimb outstretched. “Let me feel your forehead—” “...!!!” Rainbow Dash kicked off the earth, twirled about, and flapped her wings. She shot through the trees like a blue missile, tearing her way across the forest. “Hey—!” Twilight's voice echoed in the distance. “Was it something I said? Whoah—!” At the last second, the unicorn's voice took on a frightened pitch, as if she was being swept off her hooves. Rainbow Dash paid no mind. All she could do was fly. Her body had regained much of its strength since making contact with the ruby flame inside the Machine Tower, but a deep exhaustion still persisted. Through the panic and adrenaline surging through her, the pony was aware of a deep-seeded hunger ravaging her bowels. It was enough to sap the air from her wings at the last second, and she fluttered to a gentle glide, landing on soft soil in an open patch of sunlight several hundred meters from where she last stood. Wheezing, the mare slumped to her belly, resting her chin in the springy grass. Hear ears flicked to the sound of buzzing flies, and she smelled wild tropical flowers lingering all around her. After a full minute, she reopened her eyes, gazing tiredly at her warm surroundings. Finally—with relaxed muscles—she let loose a long and heavy-winded sigh. Seconds later, a set of lavender hooves trotted to a gentle rest in front of her. Twilight's worried face leaned down. “Are you done?” Rainbow inhaled, accidentally swallowing a bug or two. She leaned back, grasping her throat and sputtering for breath. “Oh jeez!” Twilight Sparkle winced, raising a dainty hoof. “I'm so sorry, Rainbow! I didn't mean to—!” “Krkkkg—Hauckkt!” Rainbow choked, spat, and hurled. “KAFF!” Two beetles flew out of her throat, fluttering safely to freedom. “Whew...” Twilight leaned back with a smile of relief. “For a second there, I thought you were a goner.” She gulped. “Look, there's obviously something more going on here than Discord's chaotic pranks.” She looked all around, gesturing. “Where exactly are we?! And how did I end up like... like...” She flung her hoof through an exposed rock, only for it to pass through it with a faint lavender glow. “...like this?!” She looked at Rainbow with pouty lips. “Do you have any clue?” Rainbow Dash spun away from her. Seething, she shut her eyes and clamped a pair of hooves over her ears. “Grnnnngh... mmmffghhh...” “Rainbow, please,” Twilight pleaded, trotting closer. “Talk to me. I... I-I'm sorry for anything I could have said to offend you. It's just that I'm really, really confused and... and I-I'm not used to being clueless.” She gritted her teeth. “Can you help me? I have to know what's going on here...” Rainbow hissed under her breath. “This isn't happening. This isn't happening.” Her eyes opened, glaring ruby daggers into the forest. “Is this your idea of a joke, Whitemane?” Her brow furrowed as she winced. “Grrrrgh... angels... Urohringrettes... space ponies... whatever!” “Rainbow, what are you even babbling about?” Twilight trotted up. She attempted to place a hoof on Rainbow's shoulder, but it only phased through with a dim glow. “Won't you at least talk to me—?” “Guhh!” Rainbow immediately took off, wings flapping. She pinballed awkwardly off a pair of palm trees, then shot ahead at full force. Twilight Sparkle cupped a pair of hooves over her muzzle. “If this is all about you forfeiting Discord's game in the Royal Hedge Maze, it's okay, Rainbow Dash! I forgive you!” A concave beam of lavender light billowed around her, opposite of Rainbow Dash. “Uhhhhh...?” In a swift streak of energy, the incorporeal unicorn was thrown forward and off her hooves. “Aaaaaack!”