Lost in a New World

by KingBrony

Fluttershy 6 - In The Cell

The yellow pegasus had no idea how many days passed since she was thrown in the cell. The only comfort she had in the dark dungeon was the small, flickering fire that was changed every few hours or so. Fluttershy tried to tell how much time passed by taking note of when that fire was changed and timing that with the various meals the Sleipnir fed to her. She had calculated that the fire must have been changed about four times a day, roughly six hours apart. However, she lost track after about twelves times and has only focused on her next meal afterwards.

The Sleipnir were not talkative with her at all - not that she continued to try and talk to them after that one encounter with the captain of the guard. Fluttershy didn't see a point in trying anymore - she was honestly surprised she was not killed by now. Speaking of the captain, he never returned after giving Fluttershy the element of Loyalty, a memento of the life before. What Fluttershy would give to go back to those days - sitting in her little tree home, surrounded by her best animal friends. She imagined drinking tea with Pinkie Pie, or going shopping with Rarity.

But alas, those days were behind her now as the faced the next chapter in her life - a small and damp cell in the dungeons of Canterlot - or what used to be Canterlot. And she was alone - Fluttershy has no idea what happened to Discord since they became separated. If anything, the Sleipnir would see him as a threat and dispose of him quickly.

Fluttershy shook her head at the thought. I'm sure he's alive somewhere...she talked to herself from time to time to keep from going insane. The little light failed to illuminate the entirety of her cell, so Fluttershy spent most of her time in the light when she was awake, and sat in darkness when she went to sleep.

Her dreams were nothing but memories of the old days. The gala in Canterlot. Twilight's Library. Sweet Apple Acres. All relics of the past. Fluttershy woke up crying every "morning", not being able to do anything but sit and think about those days while she was awake. The constant reminder of what was made her go almost completely insane, as she was helpless to do anything else.

One day, something finally changed as a Sleipnir approached the cage. It wasn't during a meal time, which Fluttershy calculated to be once after each torch change, except for the last one when she would go to bed. The Sleipnir approached the cage and looked down at Fluttershy, who paid it no mind.

"Hello," A female voice broke through the darkness. Fluttershy didn't move.

"My name is Rana. I wanted to just say hi - I've been wanting to come down here and visit for a while these past few-"

"Go away."

The voice paused for a moment before continuing. "You have a lovely color. I love pink and yellow."

"Please leave."

Another pause. "I'm sorry you're in this position," the Sleipnir known as Rana spoke in a more hushed voice so as not to alert the guard standing outside. "Roddel and I had a chance to end it all before, to save the ponies, but we failed and now you ponies are in a position like this..."

Fluttershy heard something metallic hit the ground behind her. She turned in response and saw a key lying on the ground at the hooves of the Sleipnir who stood outside. She was a beautiful mare adorned in armor. Her face was actually kindly, something Fluttershy had never noticed with any of the other Sleipnir she had met so far.

"After the next torch change, listen for fireworks. Out the door and to the right." Rana said before turning to leave the room. After she left, Fluttershy crawled to the key and picked it up before placing it within the darkness of the cage. As she did, she looked back at the element of Loyalty, gripping her own Element of Kindness in her hooves.

***

The Sleipnir guard entered the room once again to change the torches. Fluttershy sat pretending to sleep as the guard entered and exited, as usual. After he left, Fluttershy turned around and listened to see if that Rana was right, if she could be trusted. Sure enough, Fluttershy heard a faint explosion, followed by the sounds of guards scurrying away from the dungeons. Fluttershy took the opportunity and bolted towards the cage door, using the key. It was a perfect fit. The door squeaked open, giving the pegasus a chance to escape.

Once she exited the dungeon door, she took a right as per Rana's instructions, following the pathway as it curved left and right, before reaching a single door. Fluttershy took a deep breath and opened the door, and came face to face with the Sleipnir from before, the one who had given her Rainbow Dash's element.

"This way," He motioned behind him - a single stairway leading upwards. The two made their way up and Fluttershy found herself next to a running stream of water. The Sleipnir continued moving along. "Quickly!" He said, trying to get the pegasus to move faster. The explosions grew louder in sound now, this time coming from the opposite direction the two were moving. They moved within the shadows of the towering castle above them, moving swiftly and quietly along as whatever was causing the explosions drew away the attention of the Sleipnir.

Soon, the two came to an open area of the stream, leading right to a waterfall. The Sleipnir stopped next to a barrel and turned towards Fluttershy. "Get in."

"What's going on?" She asked in confusion. The past events were coming at such high speed that she had no idea what was happening.

"No time to explain," The Sleipnir responded. "Just know that you do have friends here."

Fluttershy hopped in the barrel as the Sleipnir placed the lid on it. She heard a few hammering sounds before feeling the barrel move. The splash of water was heard as she found herself bobbing up and down on waves.

"Wait, what's goin-AAAAAHHHHHH!!!!" Gravity took over as Fluttershy felt herself falling. The Sleipnir must have pushed the barrel into the water and now she's going over the waterfall! Another loud splash and Fluttershy found herself bobbing once again. Not wanting to risk anything, Fluttershy maintained her position and let the waves carry her to wherever her destiny may take her next.

Author's Note:

What a journey it's been...I can't believe it's almost been 4 years since I started this single story, let alone the entire series! I've been on and off due to various things happening in my life and other commitments I had, only being able to stop and write a little more when I had downtime, but be assured that I'm not stopping until it's all done. I have been following a general outline I created when I started the series - and while I'm still heading towards where I had originally planned to take these characters, the path to get there did change quite a bit! I may or may not start the (planned) final story in this series soon, but I do want to eventually go back and fill in the gaps of my stories with detail, to flesh out the narrative a little more and make it a more enjoyable read. For those who are bearing with me and following the story, thank you.