//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 // Story: In This Town // by iLikeMuffins //------------------------------// Chapter 5 “We sleep, we dream, and when we wake up, we face reality.” Why, yes. Of course. I expected you. Just so you know, I had a terrible time with the kids. Allow me to repeat that... An absolute terrible time. But enough about me, my personal life will always be kept with me, and there's nothing for you to know about me. At least, not yet. Until the time comes, my friend, then will I only answer all your questions. As usual, come in and take a seat. ☽ ♕ ☾ “Let's make a deal.” That was the only thing Fluttershy could remember after waking up and finding herself together with Rainbow Dash. “What happened?” She questioned, sitting up and looking around her surroundings. The both of them were in some sort of cave? The cave was filled with sparkling gems that was stuck onto the walls and ceilings, as if they were stars in the night sky. “What is this place?” “Nice to see you're finally awake,” Rainbow Dash crossed her arms and smiled at her proudly. “I found you collapsed on the ground while searching for Pinkie and Twilight. The forest was big, and I never thought I would've come across you, but I did!” “Where are we?” Fluttershy asked. “Somewhere in the forest,” Rainbow Dash replied. “I couldn't carry you forever, you're too heavy, so I decided to drop you off here while I watch over you.” “That's very nice of you,” Fluttershy let out a smile. Rainbow Dash laughed and patted Fluttershy on the back, “Don't sweat it!” She exclaimed. “But don't try too hard next time, okay? I don't want to see you collapsing onto the ground every now and then.” Fluttershy laughed, but something was still on her mind. “What happened to me before I collapsed? What happened to me before Rainbow found me?” These were questions that filled Fluttershy's head. “Take some rest, you'll need it. We'll continue with the search after a while,” Rainbow Dash said. Fluttershy just nodded her head and laid against the cave walls. “What was that black goo thing? ...and how does it know about Pinkie and Twilight being lost?” She kept questioning herself. “What sort of favor does it want from me? Did I make the deal with whatever creature it was? If so, what kind of deal did I make?” Rainbow Dash snapped her fingers in front of Fluttershy's face. As if she snapped out from a trance, Fluttershy blinked her eyes several times before looking up at Rainbow Dash's face, staring at her confusingly. “You were thinking too deep about something... Is something bothering you?” Rainbow Dash asked, sounding a little concern. “N-no!” Fluttershy quickly replied. “Nothing's bothering me. Nothing at all.” Rainbow Dash eyed Fluttershy for a while before nodding her head, “I see... Okay then,” that was all she told her. Rainbow Dash stood up and pointed at the entrance of the cave, “There's a small river nearby,” she begun. “I finished drinking my water, so I'm going to go there and refill my bottle,” she said, shaking her empty bottle at Fluttershy's face. “Be safe,” Fluttershy whispered. “Will do,” Rainbow Dash nodded her head before walking out of the cave, leaving Fluttershy all alone. “I think I should keep this a secret for now...” That was what Fluttershy told herself. Fluttershy stared up at the gem-filled ceiling and let out a sigh. “Where are you?” She mumbled to herself, questioning Pinkie and Twilight, as if they were right beside her. But they weren't, so she was questioning no one in particular. ☽ ♕ ☾ “Mushrooms, mushrooms, mushrooms!” Pinkie sing-sang as she twirled and spun around the path in front of Twilight. She was taking the lead now. “Green mushrooms, blue mushrooms, spiky rock candies! Oh so yummy, my most favourite treat!” She continued. Twilight wasn't paying any attention to whatever Pinkie was singing, or what the lyrics even were. She doubted it made any sense. “Hey, Pinkie?” Twilight called out. “Poisonous mushrooms are no good for you, but the ones that tastes just like cherries are certainly pretty tasty!” Pinkie continued to sing, ignoring Twilight's call. She was either too caught up in her musical singing, or she was... Just being Pinkie. “Pinkie!” Twilight repeated, this time, she spoke louder than the previous one, breaking Pinkie's rhythm and tune. “Yes, Twilight?” Pinkie asked, a smile across her face. She was enjoying every single second of whatever she was doing in the forest. Twilight just rolled her eyes and stopped after her eyes focused on Pinkie. “I would like to read the diary,” she said without hesitation. Pinkie raised an eyebrow and eyed her suspiciously. “No, Pinkie. It's not what you think it is,” Twilight said. “The goo thing said it wanted the grimoire, not the diary.” Pinkie crossed her arms, both her eyebrows were raised. “What if you're lying?” Pinkie asked. Twilight let out a sigh. “You know what? Forget it,” she said, walking pass Pinkie. “We still have to find a way out of this forest, and we have no idea where we are. Plus, I bet our families are worried sick back home! They may even have contacted the cops! Think we've been kidnapped, murdered or whatnot.” “Maybe we could ask somebody for directions?” Pinkie suggested. “Like who? There's nobody but us in the forest,” Twilight stopped in her tracks and turned to Pinkie. “Or maybe... Something?” Pinkie rephrased her sentence as she pointed to something that was minding its own business in the forest close to them. Whatever it was, it doesn't seem like it had noticed them yet. Twilight walked towards Pinkie and stared at whatever creature Pinkie was pointing at. “Just what the heck is that?” Twilight questioned, eyes wide. “That's not normal!” Pinkie laughed, “Everything isn't normal in this forest. I thought after the Timberwolves incident, you would get used to seeing loads of abnormalities in this forest.” Twilight glared at Pinkie, “Yeah. Maybe I'll get used to it if you shared the diary with me for once?” “You've never asked,” Pinkie said. “I did.” “When?” Pinkie tilted her head. “Just now.” Pinkie shook her head, “Don't remember.” Twilight didn't even bother arguing back. “Either she's acting dumb, or that she has a memory of a goldfish.” “But since we're here, we might as well take the chance to ask whatever creature that is where we are!” Pinkie said, already walking towards the creature. The creature had a body of an eagle and a head of a snake. The neck was long, about eight inches. “Hello,” Pinkie said, waving at the creature. “My name is Pinkie, and I was wondering if maybe you know the way out of the forest?” The creature flapped its wings at her and hissed. Pinkie nodded her head, “Uh-huh. Okay.” “What in the universe is going on?” Twilight questioned herself as she watched Pinkie talking to the creature. “Thank you!” Pinkie waved at the creature and walked back to Twilight. “What did it say?” Twilight asked, hands crossed in front of her chest. “That it's hungry,” Pinkie replied. Twilight raised her eyebrows, “Okay...” “And the exit is nowhere to be found,” Pinkie added. Twilight went silent. “Nowhere to be found?” She repeated. Pinkie nodded her head. “We're trapped here. A barrier was enforced around the forest. Whoever enters it will never be able to escape.” “You've gotta be kidding me,” Twilight said, not wanting to believe it. Pinkie shrugged, she looked calm as ever. “Nope,” was all she said. Twilight slid onto the ground, “What will happen to us? To our families? We'll be trapped here forever!” “We could use magic to break the barrier,” Pinkie suggested, holding the grimoire in her hand. Twilight looked at her, “I thought you didn't want me touching that?” “Being in the forest is fun and all,” Pinkie shrugged, “But I rather be resting in my warm and cozy bed than spending my whole eternity living here. Plus, I rather pick life over death anytime! Who knows what lurks in the forest?” She pointed to the snake-headed eagle that she'd spoken to moments ago. Twilight nodded her head, it was true. They could've died anytime, yesterday too. The last time could've been just luck. “We'll use magic to get out of here,” Twilight said, nodding her head once more. “But we can't mess it up,” Pinkie said, opening the book, flipping through the pages. Something was different about the book. This time, the words were all written in weird symbols that she had never seen before in her life. “Huh?” Twilight stood up and stood beside of Pinkie. “What's wrong?” She let out a sigh. “The words... I don't understand a thing! They weren't like this before,” Pinkie said, pointing to the book. Twilight looked at the book, it was indeed written in symbols, but for some odd reason, Twilight was able to understand them. Twilight snatched the book away from Pinkie and flipped through the pages. “Huh... I don't know how, but I'm able to understand everything that's written in here.” “What..?” Twilight didn't know how to explain it, so she ignored her. “Okay, in order to break a barrier that's made of magic, we have to gather some few things...” She read through the book. “And we have to draw out this circle,” she pointed to the picture of the magic circle that was drawn into the book. “Couldn't we just draw the magic circle, say whatever we need and get out of here? What do we need the ingredients for anyway?” Pinkie questioned. “They're needed to draw the magic circle,” Twilight answered. “Oh.” “Let's get to it then,” Twilight said, closing the book in her hand. “What do we even need?” Pinkie questioned. “I've got it all memorized,” Twilight smiled proudly as she pointed to her head. Pinkie glared at Twilight. “She could at least tell me.” This time, Twilight was taking the lead. She would turn her head every now and then to make sure Pinkie was following her, and she wasn't distracted by everything in the forest. Twilight, without telling Pinkie what they needed to collect, collected the ingredients without Pinkie knowing. The ingredients were surprisingly simple, and can be found nearly everywhere in the forest, such as a poisonous mushroom and a moss from a rock. “Just one more to go,” Twilight thought to herself as she collected a rainbow crystal from the ground. Pinkie, on the other hand, was admiring the trees. There were weird patterns on the trees, “Hey, Twilight!” She exclaimed. “Don't you think these patterns on the trees mean something? As if it's telling us something?” “I highly doubt so,” Twilight answered. “I mean, look at all these trees. Every one of them have patterns on them.” Pinkie's face was touching the tree, and she slowly petted it. “Hush... She doesn't mean it,” she whispered. Twilight was weirded out by Pinkie's behavior, but she decided not to question it. “We have one more thing to find,” Twilight said. “Will you tell me what it is this time?” Pinkie brighten up. “In fact, yes!” Twilight said, nodding her head. She opened the grimoire and flipped to the page she'd bookmarked using a sticky note. “It says here that we need something that belongs to the place where we want to go,” she said. “Wait. Hold up. I thought it was some sort of magical spell to break the barrier?” Pinkie questioned. “Breaking a magical barrier requires powerful magic,” Twilight said. “So... We're teleporting out of here.” “We're making a portal?” Pinkie asked. “Uh... More or less,” Twilight shrugged. “Making a portal back home is much more easier and simpler than breaking a barrier. And since this is our first time using magic, making a portal would be kinda hard... But we have to try.” Pinkie searched through her bag and took out an old music box. “We could use this,” Pinkie said, “As the last item thingy.” Twilight took the old music box out of her hand, “This look ancient!” “It's from my great, great, great grandmother, who got it from her grandfather, who got it from his wife, who got it from her aunt, who got it from her sister's boyfriend, who got it from his mom, who got it from her uncle on her birthday, who got it from his great grandparents, who got it from their parents, who got it fro–” “I think I get it,” Twilight cut her off. She then put the old music box into her bag. “We'll have to find a place to draw the magic circle. A big clean place.” “We passed a clearing moments ago, let's go there!” Pinkie suggested. “We wouldn't be able to draw the circle properly with all the grass and all,” Twilight said, “We would need to find a place with a stony floor. That'll be much more easier.” “Let's find a rocky mountain! Maybe a cave? If it's a cave you want, then I've been to one before! I'm not sure if it's even considered as a cave? But it's underground, so it could be? I don't know! But it has a flat surface, so it can be used to draw a perfect magic circle!” “Where is it?” Twilight asked. Pinkie shrugged, “I don't know.” “Then how do you know about it?” “I've stumbled across it by accident. I fell into a hole, and found this tunnel that led me to some sort of laboratory. That's where all the creatures were kept in tubes... And that's also when I've released them...” Pinkie's voice trailed off. Twilight raised her hands in the air and turned around, “Great! Let's continue on our little adventure!” She exclaimed. She was clearly done. Done with everything. Done with Pinkie. Done with this. Done with her life... Not really. She wasn't quite done with everything and her life. “Let's get a move on,” Twilight said, looking back at Pinkie. Pinkie nodded her head and followed Twilight. They were so close to getting out of the forest, but they still had so much to do before they could escape. ☽ ♕ ☾ Applejack was running for her dear life. “What in tarnation did I got myself into?!” She questioned herself. She turned to look back, just to see more joining in. “Oh come on! That ain't fair!” She yelled. Apples that were as big as horses, with six spider-looking legs, three at each side were chasing after Applejack. But that wasn't all. There were gnomes riding on the apples. “Charge!” The gnome with the longest beard shouted. “Ya'll been saying that for once every five minutes now!” Applejack shouted back. All the rest of the gnomes cheered. “We'll feed you to the apples. I bet you'll be a great meal for them” said one of them. How did it came to this? It's simple. As Applejack was walking in the forest, minding her own business, she accidentally stepped into gnome territory. And after that, she found herself running away from fifteen gnomes on creepy-looking apples. “I'll never see apples the same way ever again,” that was what she thought after looking at one of the apples. The apples were the size of a horse, as I've said. Other than the six spider-looking feet... It had eyes and mouth. The eyes glowed, and changes depending on their mood. If you look into their mouth, all you can see is darkness, as if there was a void inside of those things. Can't forget the teeth. Their teeth is as sharp as a butcher's knife, and can seem to cut through anything. Anything at all. “Name one thing ah've done wrong,” Applejack shouted. “You've invaded our village!” Shouted a gnome. “Invaded? More like terrorized!” Corrected another gnome. “What? Ah've done none of those things!” The gnome with the longest beard chuckled, “That's what they all say.” “I didn't even know I was in yer village!” “Trying to act innocent? It's not going to work, human,” the gnome said. “Doesn't look like I could reason my way outta this,” Applejack let out a sigh. “What if I helped ya do something? Will ya let me off if I did?” The gnomes whispered among each other before the gnome with the longest beard shouted, “Stop!” Applejack stopped running, and the gnomes had stopped chasing her. Applejack turned to the gnomes, and the gnome with the longest beard got down off his apple... Or whatever they called those things. Due to him being a gnome, he fell to the ground instead. Applejack tried her best to contain her laughter. The gnome picked himself up and walked slowly towards Applejack, keeping a good distance between the two of them. “You've said you'll do something for us right?” The gnome asked. Applejack nodded her head, “In return that ya'll never bother me for this round.” “Hmm...” The gnome had his hand under his chin. He turned back to the group of gnomes, and back at Applejack. “We've been having this little problem for as long as we gnomes can remember...” “And what's that?” Applejack questioned. “Food!” The gnome raised his tiny arms in the air. “Food?” “Yes! We gnomes don't like to go out from our home to find for food, since we're basically the lowest in the food chain... So we want you to find food for us!” The gnome said. “How many?” Applejack asked. “A good amount for us all to survive a week,” the gnome answered. “Why a week?” Applejack questioned. “We can't tell,” the gnome said, shaking his head. Applejack shrugged, “Okay, that's fine with me. Ah'll help ya find for yer food and make sure it'll last a week, as ya've said.” “I'll send Steve with you,” the gnome said, looking back at the group of gnomes. “Steve, get out here, you lazy chump!” The gnome screamed. Steve fell off his ride, but he quickly picked himself up and scrambled to the gnome's side, “Yes?” “Keep an eye on this human, make sure she gets a week's worth of food for us. If you see her slacking, feel free to kill her,” the gnome said. “Yes sir,” Steve said. Steve was different from all the other gnomes. For some reason, he didn't have a beard, and his hat was smaller than any of the others. “We'll leave him with you...” The gnome glared at Applejack before walking back to his group. “We'll kill you if we have to,” he warned before leaving. Applejack looked down at Steve. “Well, nice to meet ya,” she said. Steve looked up at Applejack and hissed at her. “Yeesh, fine. If ya don't want to be friendly, ya should've said so,” Applejack backed away a few steps. “Anyway, ah'm gonna get started on finding yer food now... How many gnomes are there in ya village?” “Twenty-six,” Steve answered. “That's a small number,” Applejack said. “Most have died,” Steve added. Applejack went silent. “I'm sorry,” she apologized. “It's fine. They were all stupid anyway,” Steve shrugged, and he looked at Applejack. “Now, get to work before I kill you!” Applejack shrugged and began searching for food. Berries, fruits and vegetables. Anything that's edible and healthy, really. After a few minutes, close to an hour of search, she had already found two handful of food. “Can we head back to yer village first? I can't carry all of these all the time if ah'm gonna gather a week's worth of food,” Applejack said. She didn't brought her bag with her, and she wished she did. “Fine,” Steve said, keeping an eye at Applejack. “Follow me, and don't wander off.” After a few minutes of walking, the two of them were back at the village. Applejack received many glares from the gnomes, but she ignored them and placed the berries in the middle of the village before heading back out in search for more food. “That's not even worth a day,” Steve said. “Ah'm trying, okay?” Applejack gritted her teeth. From time to time, Steve would comment on how lazy or useless Applejack is at finding her way around the forest in search for food. He was slowly getting onto Applejack's nerves, and she had the urge to punch him in the face. Steve, on the other hand, was enjoying his time insulting Applejack at every way he could. He was clearly bored and had nothing to do. “You're so slow. At this rate, you wouldn't be able to collect a day's worth of food for a few days!” Steve said. “Then why don't ya help me?” Applejack asked. “Why should I?” Steve questioned. “Then won't ya shut yer trap?” It wasn't a question. “I could kill you anytime, you know?” “Yer tiny, I bet my hat that I could defeat ya without much work,” Applejack laughed. Steve didn't argue back, for it was indeed true. Without his group, he's useless, and it would take a lot of effort to kill Applejack if he did it alone. “Fine, I'll shut my mouth, but you better speed up on your work,” Steve growled at her. Applejack nodded her head with a proud smile on her face. She felt good after telling the gnome off. It's not much, but she felt as if she'd won a race. Hours had passed, and so far, Applejack had only found half a day's worth of food. “Where do you even find all yer food up till now?” Applejack asked, grumbling to herself as she did. She was getting tired of this. Steve shrugged, “I don't know myself. The boss goes out with the elites every once in a while to gather food, while the rest of us gnomes stay back in the village.” “Have ya'll ever tried planting yer own crops?” Applejack questioned. “That's... No. We haven't. But that's a great idea!” Steve said, nodding his head. “I should tell this to the boss.” “Just remember to give me credit,” Applejack said with a smirk. “Yeah, sure. If I remember,” Steve said, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms. “Stop chittering chattering and get back to work!” He yelled. Applejack shrugged it off and continued her search for berries and whatnot. She still hadn't forgotten about her search for her friends though. It's just that... It wasn't a good time to find for them yet. “This is going to be a long day...” Applejack let out a sigh as she payed attention to her surroundings, making sure she didn't missed any berry bushes or fruits hanging from a tree. ☽ ♕ ☾ Rarity wiped her sweat off her forehead using a handkerchief that she'd brought with her and let out a sigh as she sat on a stump. She was so extremely tired that she didn't even bother if there were dirt or mud on it. “This is... Much more exhausting... Than I've expected...” She's been walking in the forest for who-knows-how-long, and was separated from her friends. Without any reception in the forest, she had no clue where she was going, and how was she going to get back home. She looked down at her feet, her shoes was all muddy, and the ends of her dress had dirt and mud stuck onto it. Rarity shivered at the sight of it, “Once I find my way back home, I'm going to have to make sure I take a nice, long, warm bath!” She told herself. She couldn't stand being dirty and covered in mud. A mud bath is an exception... Since... Well... It's for her complexion, and the mud the spa provides for her is much more different than the mud in the forest. Even though the both of them are... Mud. “I wonder how's Sweetie Belle doing,” Rarity imagined her little sister playing with her friends in the house. She giggled at the thought of it, then she remembered how she tried cooking breakfast for her, but burned the food instead. Those were good times. “Why am I remembering all of these now?” Rarity wondered. All the good and bad times she had with her family replayed in her mind. Some were long forgotten, but she found it odd how she was able to hear everything and remembered everything so clearly. Even the faces of the people in the background, she could see them all. She remembered a saying that said when you're about to die, all your past memories would play in your mind, as if you're watching a movie, but instead, it's your life. She wasn't dying, she could clearly see that. There was nothing around her that's going to kill her. At least, that's what she thought. Rarity didn't thought much about it and shrugged it off. She looked at her phone, it was already dark. “Sweetie Belle must be preparing for bed right about now,” she whispered to herself as she looked at wherever she was. This place, compared to her home, was... Well... Horrifyingly dirty. Rarity smiled as she took out something from her handbag. It was an inflatable tent. She pulled on a handle, and the tent inflated in just mere seconds! She walked into the tent and took out her sleeping bag from her purse and arranged it neatly in the tent. Her shoes and dress was clearly dirtying the tent, but this was no time to complain. She needed her beauty sleep. She snuggle herself into her sleeping bag and stared at the top of her tent before closing her eyes and dozed off to sleep. ☽ ♕ ☾ Rainbow Dash found herself in a bright white abyss. There was no sky, there was no ground, nothing. Just a white endless space. “Anyone there?” She called out, only to hear her voice echoing in the space. She felt as if she was falling, at the same time, she felt as if she was floating. “Who's there?” A voice questioned. Rainbow Dash frantically looked around, trying to find for the source of the voice. The voice sounded familiar, but she couldn't remember who does it belong to. “I'm here! I'm Rainbow Dash!” She exclaimed. She waited for the voice to reply back to her. “Oh, it's you! Rainbow Dash,” the voice said to her, happy to hear that it's her. It seems that there's a delay in between each message. “I'm Twilight, remember? The new girl?” “No wonder her voice sounded familiar,” Rainbow thought to herself. She looked around the white space for Twilight, “Where are you?” She questioned. “Not sure... I'm in a white endless space. There's nothing here,” Twilight replied. “Same,” Rainbow Dash said. “We've been searching for you! Where exactly are you?” “Deep in the forest... Somewhere,” Twilight answered. Clearly that the both of them were somewhere in the forest, but none of them knew exactly where. “Well, hurry up and find us! Applejack, Fluttershy, Rarity and I separated in order to find for both you and Pinkie. Fluttershy's with me, but not sure about the other two.” “Easy for you to say, this place's huge!” Twilight exclaimed, her voice echoing in the space. “Oh? What's this?” Pinkie's voice can be heard. “Pinkie? What? Huh? What... How?” Twilight stammered, didn't know what to say. “I don't know, Twilight. I don't know,” Pinkie said. If you could see her right now, she's shrugging. “Hey Pinkie! Nice to hear you're still alive!” Rainbow laughed. “You wouldn't believe what happened! We got attacked by a Timberwolves!” Pinkie exclaimed, “We outran them, of course.” The white space was slowly changing into something... Rainbow was unsure of what it's changing into. “Hey, is your space changing?” Rainbow questioned. “You mean as in colors are fading into the walls?” Pinkie questioned. Rainbow nodded her head, even though the others can't see her. “Yeah.” “Mine's doing the same,” Twilight said. A green grassy field formed under Rainbow's feet, causing her to land gently. She looked around, and she immediately knew where she was. The entrance of the forest. She spotted Twilight and Pinkie standing at the entrance and ran towards them, “How did you get here?” She questioned. Pinkie shrugged, “Don't know.” Twilight observed her surroundings, “We're dreaming, that I can say for sure. But the question is... How could we be dreaming the same dream?” “Don't sweat the details, Twilight. You'll burst your brain!” Pinkie giggled as she took Twilight's glasses off her. “Relax for a while. It's a dream,” she said as she twirled her way towards the town. “She's right, you know,” Rainbow said, looking at Twilight. Twilight grumbled and squinted her eyes. Her vision isn't very good without her glasses. “It's a dream, Twilight!” Pinkie reminded. Right. It was a dream. Which means, Twilight could do whatever she wants. Twilight imagined another pair of glasses, and it appeared right in front of her. She took the glasses and wore it, then glared straight at Pinkie. “If you ever do that in real life, I'll break your bones,” she threatened. Pinkie laughed, she doubt that Twilight would actually do that to her. Rainbow shrugged, “Might as well enjoy this. It won't last.” ☽ ♕ ☾ Fluttershy was awoken by the light shining from outside of the cave, which was reflected directly at her by the gems. She moved away from the light and saw Rainbow sitting at one corner of the cave, writing something on the walls using a gem. She slowly approached her, “What are you doing?” She questioned. “You're awake?” Rainbow continued writing whatever she was writing on the wall. Fluttershy noticed that there were a few drawings here and there, with words written underneath them, such as ‘lake’ and ‘berries’. It was a map... Though it was poorly drawn. “Trying to find a way back home?” “Well... Yes and no,” Rainbow replied, tossing the gem onto the ground before she stood up and stared at her masterpiece. “I've met with Pinkie and Twilight.” “How?” Fluttershy questioned. She was eager to hear the answer. “In my dreams,” Rainbow answered. Fluttershy frowned. “Rainbow... I think you just dreamt of them.” “No. Our dreams were... Connected somehow? I don't know how, Twilight's finding an answer for it,” Rainbow Dash tried explaining it the best she could, but she noticed she didn't have enough details or information to actually explain the whole thing to her friend. She scratched her head, messing her hair, “Gargh! This is so frustrating!” She shouted. Explaining things wasn't really what she does best. Fluttershy patted her friend on the back, “Calm down,” she said. “We'll find for them.” Fluttershy didn't know why was Rainbow Dash so frustrated over whatever she wanted to tell her, but she decided to keep her mouth shut and let Rainbow be... Rainbow. Even if she cared for her friends and worried about the others, there's one question that had been stuck on her mind for as long as she could remember. “Did I make a deal?” ☽ ♕ ☾ Hey, kid. I got something important to tell you. Well, it may not be that important, but if you want to hear the end of this story, then yes, it is sorta important. I have to go over to the next town to solve some business issues, so I probably won't be back for three days at most. Think you can wait for me till I come back? What? Why're so surprise about me having a job? Don't tell me you thought I was some sort of shut-in person who does nothing with their lives other than telling stories? I told you before, I have my own life too! That's very rude of you to think that, you know? What am I working as? That's not important for you, now is it? Well, fine, if you really want to know... Psyche! You thought I would tell you? Geez, calm your head. I'll tell you everything about me once we're done with this story, okay? I haven't forgotten about my promise with you. Oh, that reminds me. Another one of these cryptograms was sent to me. It's fun to solve them when you've got nothing better to do. ☽ ♕ ☾ You've received another cryptogram. 13-9 25-9-5 26-11-18-3 11-25-6 13-3-11-19-12 I've told you the clue during your third visit. Remember it. Dig deep into your memory if you have to.