The Rainbow Crusade

by TheRainbowDashShow

Chapter 7

Silver Spoon lay in her bed staring at the ceiling, the morning sunlight pouring into her room from the open window. She couldn't help but think of the pendant and everything else she had learned about it just from yesterday alone. She remembered every detail of that day when she had found it on her way back from school.

When she had awoken she went out to her usual spot and waited for Diamond Tiara so they could walk to school together as they did every morning. After half an hour she guessed her friend must have been sick and had finally given up and trotted to school by herself. When she arrived at class she had not only found Diamond Tiara was already there, but she had given her seat to the new pony in class.

During the break from class she had gone to talk to her, but Diamond Tiara completely ignored her the entire time. Every chance she had the opportunity to talk to her, Diamond would find some way of occupying herself. When school was finally out for the day Silver Spoon had decided to try being a bit more firm with Diamond Tiara.

Pulling aside the pink filly, "Why didn't you meet me at the willow tree?" she asked.

Diamond Tiara groaned, "It's not like I have to be with you every second of the day!"

The response took her by surprise, "W-what?"

"Honestly Silver Spoon, every pony needs their space and you just won't leave me alone." Diamond Tiara said.

"I don't understand…" she said.

Diamond Tiara placed her hoof on Silver Spoon's shoulder, "I've been thinking and I don't think this is going to work out with us." Diamond Tiara said softly, "I think we should stop seeing each other."

"B-but…" she said as tears started to pool around her eyes, "W-why?"

With a heavy sigh Diamond Tiara gestured to all of her, "I just can't deal with this." She said and trotted away.

Silver Spoon reached her hoof out at the pony as she walked away but her mind was blank with pain and her heart shattered apart inside of her like glass. A gray sky had formed and cold rain began to dribble from the sky. Lowering her eyes to the ground she started running back towards the apartment she and her older sister were staying at.

Once she had arrived she couldn't bring herself to go inside, not like this. Dropping herself to the stone streets she sat there crying. She didn't understand what had just happened, everything between the two of them had been going just fine. Whilst she was sitting there sobbing into her hooves the rain had slowly frozen into a heavy snow.

When the first of the flakes had fallen on her head she had looked up towards the sky and that was when she had seen something. There was a dazzling gold light that flashed through the sky and stopped right above her and vanished. She returned her eyes back to the ground and as she was drying her eyes off a golden pendant rested in the stones just a few feet away from her.

The snow and cold weather had seemingly vanished just as she had discovered the pendant. Sliding her foreleg through the chain she dangled it in front of her and popped open the latch to reveal the locket was empty. She didn't think much of its sudden appearance she had assumed she just hadn't noticed it when she had stopped here.

A few hours later after she had gone inside there had been a knock at the door. She had gone to answer it to find Diamond Tiara barge in throwing her hooves around her and crying hysterically. She explained that she had seen the heading for yesterdays newspaper about two filly foolers being attacked by a gang of ponies and were now being hospitalized. So out of fear she had wanted to end their relationship but after they had parted she could hardly care less about that anymore and wanted nothing more than to pretend the day never happened.

Silver Spoon frowned at the memories. Though glad that was nothing more than what they were now and for the most part everything had ended up okay. Now she couldn't help but wonder if there was something more to that day. With everything she had learned just yesterday her finding it made so much more sense to her. That day had easily been one of the worst days she had ever had in her life. With how she had been feeling that day she thought maybe the pendant must have somehow found her that day.

Her ears perked up when she heard the front door slam shut; "Is that you?" she called out excitedly hoping that it was in fact her older sister whom she rarely saw.

"Yeah, it's me. I brought you some breakfast." The pony called out.

Silver Spoon hopped up and sprinted into the kitchen giving the silver Pegasus a hug, "I missed you." She said.

"Aw, I missed you too." Quicksilver said with a smile, "So what've you been up to while I was gone?"

"Nothing much, just hanging out with Diamond Tiara." She answered as she retrieved a cinnamon bun from the table, "Applejack and Raven Flame dragged us all around town yesterday. I thought it was kind of fun although Diamond Tiara hated every second of it."

Quicksilver cringed at the mention of the two names, "Applejack and Raven Flame?"

"Yeah!" Silver Spoon said taking a bite of the sticky treat.

"Are they your friends?"

Silver Spoon laughed, "I like them but I don't know if they like me." She took another bite, "I feel kind of bad for them, Rainbow Dash didn't show up for Raven's cute-ceanera yesterday and she has been missing ever since."

Quicksilver began to feel nauseas, "Yesterday was Raven Flame's cute-ceanera?"

Silver Spoon nodded, "I'm sure Rainbow Dash is just fine though."

"Yeah…" Quicksilver said, "I'm sure she is." Her mouth began to try and her muscles tensed.

"You okay?" Silver Spoon asked worriedly as her sister started to sweat profusely, "You don't look that great."

"I'm fine." Quicksilver chuckled nervously, "I just need some air."

Silver Spoon smiled, "Alright, talk to you in a bit."

Quicksilver waved her hoof goodbye and ran outside the door and dropped herself against the wall. She started breathing heavily and her stomach began to grow more and more queasy. It was one thing for her to kidnap a pony she hardly knew but had become so much more. This pony had a family and her own sister both knew and cared for these ponies.

Conflicting thoughts ran through her mind, she needed the money and had already taken the advance. She couldn't just give the money back and be on her merry way. On the other hoof she couldn't just do this to her own sister and pretend to not only be okay with it but continue to lie to her every day for the rest of her life knowing that she was responsible for destroying the family of her sister's friends.

Quicksilver started to scream a slur of curses and launched herself up into the air. She pushed herself towards the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres and could hardly believe what she was going to do. Landing at the porch she held her hoof out by the door and retreated it. She began to trot back and forth, if she did this she was practically condemning herself to death.

If she were to die who would her sister have left to care for her? She slammed her hoof into the wall as she tried to think if this was really what she should do or not. "Can ah help yah?" Applejack asked rather angrily staring at the rather large dent that had just been planted into her wall.

Quicksilver blinked and saw a small fiery black filly standing next to the orange earth pony. She could only assume the young Pegasus was Raven Flame and seeing the pony just made everything more difficult for her. With a heavy sigh, "Uh do you remember me?" she asked.

Applejack trotted over inspected the Pegasus and then the damaged wall. Though she didn't recognize the pony at all the voice did seem to trigger the burning sensation in her brain that she felt whenever a memory slowly started to reform inside her head. "Ah don't know."

Quicksilver ran her hoof against her temple pressing down hard on it hoping it would somehow help her to think more clearly. She stared at the two ponies watching her with confusion and could see so much worry in their eyes. She had never stared directly at the lives of two ponies she would be directly affecting because of job she was doing. Now that she was her heart started to ache as she realized just how many lives she could have destroyed. "I'm sorry." She said as a trickle of tears ran down her cheek.

Applejack blinked, "Ah don't worry about it! It's not that big of a deal, ah can get this dent fixed no problem." She said placing a hoof on the silver Pegasus trying to comfort her.

"No, it's not that." Quicksilver said, "It's that I…" she paused and asked herself if she was really going to tell her the truth.

The searing pain inside Applejack's head intensified as the memory finished connecting back with her. It was a Pegasus she had only seen for a few brief seconds but her mind had recorded every detail that day. "What in the hay did yah do?" Applejack shouted suddenly pushing the Pegasus against the wall and pressing the side of her foreleg against her throat.

"I came to tell you…" Quicksilver coughed at the pressure, "Rainbow Dash is…" she couldn't squeeze out anymore words; the pressure on her neck was too tight for her to speak.

"Rainbow Dash is what?" Applejack screamed in the Pegasus's ear lightening her grip just enough for her to speak again.

"Rainbow Dash is in the cabin at the top of the mountain." Quicksilver gasped, "Please… that's why I'm here."

Applejack removed her leg from the neck causing the Pegasus to drop to the wooden floor, "And why is she there?"

Quicksilver breathed heavily and rubbed her throat, "Somepony paid me to kidnap her. Don't ask me who or why because I honestly don't know."

Raven Flame stared at the panting Pegasus and then towards the mountains, "What if Rainbow Dash escaped?"

"Even if she did get out of the cabin…" Quicksilver said in a scratchy voice, "She's at the very peak of the mountain and she'll never get those wing clamps off…"

Raven Flame ran inside and returned with her pair of binoculars and looked around finding a barely visible brown dot completely surrounded by cliffs. "Applejack, don't let her leave." She said as a plan slowly devised into her brain.

"Ah don't plan on it!" Applejack said grabbing the Pegasus's wing and dragging her into the house.

"Ow!" Quicksilver cried, "I came here on my own free will you don't have to treat me like a prisoner!"

"Hush it!" Applejack commanded, "This is the second time yah've put Rainbow Dash in danger. Ah wouldn't care if yah were Princess Celestia herself!"

Raven Flame watched as the two slowly moved inside the house and then she shut the door behind them. Not wasting another second she ran off the porch and launched herself off the air and headed straight in the direction of the snowy peak where she had seen what she could only assume was the cabin.

Hurdling herself through the cold wind towards the mountain top Raven Flame lifted the binoculars to her eyes. Adjusting the lens to clarify the image she spotted the cabin just barely visible through a passing cloud of mist. The trip had completely exhausted her; she was far from ready from making such a far distance she had forced herself to travel. Pushing herself forward she landed on the flat snowy surface where the cabin was.

Looking at the front door she could easily tell she was nowhere near strong enough to clear away what blocked it. However her eye caught glimpse of the tip of the trap door protruding from the roof. Lifting her tired body off the ground she flapped herself onto the roof and peered inside. Apart from the scattered bags of food that littered the floor the room was completely bare.

Upon further examination she noticed dust-covered hoof prints scattered around the room where they went out of sight beneath the wooden beam directly below her. On the stretched out log she could see thick deep scratches imbedded into it. Looking around the roof she found more hoof prints scattered across the ceiling.

Following the trail she peered down the cliff to see a silver chain dangling from a blue pony thrust her hoof into the rocks. Shortly after the sound of metal clanking against something hard and black iron flung from the ponies hoof and she was now being held by a single pole plunged into the mountainside. Raven Flame's eyes widened, Rainbow Dash was going to fall at any second and she definitely couldn't carry her. Looking around she noticed a single remaining fireplace skewer beneath the cushions.

Her mind raced for something, anything she could do. Sprinting towards the pile of junk she clenched the pole beneath her teeth and ran back to the cliff leaping off the edge. A deafeningly loud snap boomed from beneath her and Rainbow Dash began to fall. Driving herself down faster she grabbed at the chain that was following slightly above the falling pony.

The chain in hoof she slid the metal rod in between one of the links and lowered herself even further. The icy ground was rushing closer and closer towards them, her wings feeling as if they were burning themselves up just to provide the needed energy for the task. Stabbing the metal rod into the icy mountainside she threw herself upwards and pushed into Rainbow Dash's back to slow her fall as best she could.

There was a sudden jerk as the chain suddenly halted the Pegasus's fall, the force transferring into the black filly throwing her down into the snow only a few feet below her. "Raven?" Rainbow Dash shouted looking down as she hung from chain. The rod snapped and she plummeted the remaining short distance landing next to the black filly.

"Raven?" Rainbow Dash repeated brushing off the powder that covered her. There was no answer. She rotated the pony onto her side and the blue eyes opened, "Raven are you okay?"

"You're an idiot…" Raven Flame said weakly. Rainbow Dash laughed and grabbed her squeezing her tightly with a hug. She let out a cry of pain, "Let go, let go, let go!" she begged as her left wing began to twinge from the pressure.

Rainbow let go quickly and examined the awkwardly bent wing, "You're gonna be okay." She said gently and picked up the pony and slung her onto her back.

"What in the hay were you thinking?" Raven Flame scolded trying to keep her mind off the pain.

Rainbow Dash giggled, "When am I ever thinking?"

Raven nodded her head in agreement, "Good point."

Trotting through the deep snow down the gentle slope of the mountain towards the grassy fields at its base, "How did you find me?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Oh, you know, I just followed the overwhelming scent of you being a complete featherbrain." Raven Flame said grumpily as her pain intensified.

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, "No, really, how did you find me?"

"Some pony named Quicksilver." Raven Flame scooped up some of the snow and dropped it onto her burning wing, "Next time you get ponynapped can't you just wait like… ten minutes?"

Rainbow Dash shook her head, "How else would I get you to do incredibly stupid things to save my flank?"

"Ask nicely?" Raven Flame said kicking Rainbow Dash's side gently.

Rainbow Dash frowned, "Sorry, I guess I missed your cute-ceanera."

Raven Flame mumbled, "Dashie, I think you should probably know…"

"What's that?"

"That pendant…" Raven Flame said shakily, "Silver Spoon found it and gave it to me."

"Wait…" Rainbow Dash halted in her steps, "THE pendant?"

"Yeah." Raven Flame dropped another hoofful of snow onto her wing, "It sounds like she found it the same day you smashed it." Rainbow Dash said nothing back; she broke into a sprint the rest of the way through the snow and onto the damp grass. Brushing herself past the tree lines and onto the dirt road she turned sharply through the always open Sweet Apple Acres gate.

Bursting through the front door Rainbow Dash slid Raven Flame onto the couch, "Applejack?" She shouted.

Applejack tackled the Pegasus, "Ah'm so glad yer okay!" she said smothering Rainbow Dash with her lips.

Rainbow Dash giggled, completely forgetting about the pendant for the moment, "I missed you too!" she said returning a kiss. The corner of her eye caught the sight of a silver Pegasus sitting in the corner of the room and her mood faded quickly. Shaking Applejack off of her she trotted over to the pony and kicked her in the leg.

Quicksilver let out a whimper of pain, "I'm sorry." She said quietly. Rainbow Dash ignored her and tipped over her chair, pressing her hoof down on her wing as she had once before.

"STOP!" Raven Flame cried from the couch, "Don't hurt her."

Rainbow Dash backed away and stared at the black filly, "She almost got me killed!"

"You'd be dead right now if she hadn't told us where you were." Raven Flame said.

Quicksilver smiled, "Thank you!"

Raven Flame blinked, "Quicksilver?"

"Yes?"

"Shut up for a minute, okay?" Raven Flame said. Rainbow Dash giggled and stuck her tongue out at the silver Pegasus. "You too Rainbow Dash, I'm trying to think."

"What exactly are yah thinking 'bout?" Applejack asked as she trotted back into the room with a roll of linen.

"Quicksilver, how much were you getting paid?" Raven Flame asked raising an eyebrow.

Quicksilver scraped her hoof nervously against the wooden floor. She found it a little strange to be divulging such details to such a young pony, "50,000 bits." She said quietly.

"So it's fair to say that it's a bad idea for you to have backed out of this deal?" Raven asked, receiving a nod from the silver Pegasus as her answer. "If whoever the pony is, was willing to pay that much money, then I don't think they are just going to give up."

Rainbow Dash didn't like the way things were starting to sound, "What's your point?"

"My point is that we could get this all over with by tomorrow." Raven Flame said, "We just need Quicksilver to change where she was going to meet whoever hired her."

"Wait, wait wait!" Applejack shouted, "Yah want to purposefully put Rainbow Dash in the same room with the pony that hired a ponynapper to snatch her?"

Raven Flame frowned, "It isn't exactly like we have much of a choice." Both Rainbow Dash and Quicksilver had expressions on their faces that asked if they even had a choice in the matter. "You two have a better idea?"

The two Pegasus sat in deep thought for a few minutes, "No." they answered simultaneously.

Raven Flame hopped of the couch once Applejack finished bandaging her wing, "Didn't think you did." She said as she sat down in front of the writing desk. Dipping the feather quill into the black jar of ink she began to scribble her thoughts down rapidly on the parchment.

Comments

[TheRainbowDashShow]

How?! How did this get uploaded before its prequel! How!