EverDream

by mm1145

Rough Diamond: part 6

Starlight galloped down the passage that led out of Rough Diamond’s cave and stopped as he nearly ran in to the back of Rapier and Papyrus.

“Aren’t we getting out of here?” he asked.

A trumpet blast echoed through the forest; there was an answering blast from a different direction.

“We got company,” Rapier replied. There were a couple of more trumpet blasts. “...and lots of it.”

There was rustling from the bushes and Starlight could see darker Diamond Dog sized shapes in the shadows, lots of them. Beside him there was the metallic rasp of Rapier’s hoof blade sliding out.

“Should we head back inside?” Starlight waved a hoof at the cave behind them. “Rough Diamond can probably do something to keep them out.”

“I do not think that will be necessary, my young pony.” Papyrus said, pointing a hoof at where the star swirl was clearly visible over the treetops.

Starlight followed the line of his hoof to where a shape was just cutting into the brilliance of the swirl.

-----

There was the patter of thuds and rattles of small objects striking the hard hull of the Everdream. Genoa looked out over the top of the wheel. “Willow,” he said, in a mock enquiring voice. “Are those creatures trying to attack us?”

The junior officer floated the looking glasses off their stand and walked over to the edge of the command deck. “Yes, Captain, I do believe that they are,” Willow replied in a helpful tone.

“My word, that is not very friendly of them is it?” Genoa replied, his tone still mocking.

“Distinctly uncivil, Captain,” Willow replied.

“Would you kindly ask them to desist?”

“With pleasure, Captain.” Willow grinned back.

Genoa was in a surprisingly good mood; it felt very good to have his ship in the sky again, and the relief of having got the repairs completed before anything nasty decided that they where prey had lightened his spirit considerably.

Once they had managed to get the Everdream airborne, it had been a relatively easy matter for Rainstorm and her scouts to find the trail that Rapier and Papyrus had left, guiding them to wherever that young idiot had wandered off too. But no sooner had she reported that she had found where she thought they had gone, then another scout had rushed back with the news that a large pack of Diamond dogs was on the move towards them as well -- and this one seemed to be very single minded, none of the flyers had managed to get their attention enough to divert them. Fortunately, it seemed that this pack of Diamond Dogs had not expected to encounter an airship, and so for once Genoa did not see any chance of his ship being damaged.

The airship shook as its cannons spoke. Teardrops of magic spellfire, blindingly bright in the dark of the night, thudded into the forest below. The patter on the hull ceased. “And signal the flyers to retrieve Starlight and his ponies,” he said casually. The guns spoke again. “When ever they have time.” Genoa stared down at the explosions rippling through the trees. “No hurry.”

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Rough Diamond watched as the strange ponies disappeared down the tunnel that lead out of her home and back to the forest. She sighed and then turned back to made a start on picking up the scattered things that the explosion of her arch and the Dark puppet Diamond Dog had strewn around her cave.

At least it will reaffirm that I am not an easy picking, she thought, as she effortlessly picked up a table and righted it. I will need to build myself a new arch, of course. But it is unlikely that I will have any trouble with my doggy neighbours before then. An echo of a hunting trumpet drifted through the cave mouth. Well, that is if they calm down when they have finished hunting those ponies. For a moment she felt worried about them; they had been a bit strange -- especially that first one -- but it had been a very long time since she had spent any time around ponies and she had forgotten how much fun they could be.

They will be fine, she thought, as she picked up a fallen bookcase and pushed it back against the wall. They seemed to be fairly capable fighters, and that first one had said that they had an airship close by; they should not come to harm between here and it. As she pushed the bookcase back against the wall a book fell from the top and landed heavily on her head. Curious, she caught it before it bounced to the floor and looked at it.

It was a copy of ‘The Ponyville Letters.’ It was the book that Twilight had published with her -- and later her friend’s -- collected friendship reports to Princess Celestia. This copy was one of the first editions, and she had gotten it as a birthday present from auntie Twilight. She idly opened it and flicked to a random page.

It was one of the letters written by Spike. She remembered Rarity telling her about it when she showed her the fire ruby.

Dear Princess Celestia,
Today I learned a great lesson about friendship. Well, you might think that it would feel good to get lots and lots of stuff, but it doesn't feel nearly as good as giving something special to somepony you really care about. But I learned that it truly is better to give than to receive, and that kindness and generosity are what lead to true friendship. And that's more valuable than anything in the world. Well... almost anything.

On the page opposite the printed letter was a drawing, showing Spike as a young dragon standing in the library at Ponyville. In his out-stretched claws he held the fire ruby, the same one that hung round her neck. He was offering it to Rarity, who had been drawn with a expression of quiet happiness. She looked at the picture for a while and then she looked out the door, to where she could still hear the sound of the pack of Diamond Dogs hunting the ponies.

She closed the book with a snap.

------

Spell fire thudded into the trees and the ground shook as the Everdream’s cannons discouraged the nearest pack of Diamond Dogs.

“It is always nice to have friends in high places,” Papyrus commented as even the closest Diamond dogs broke off their charge in the face of the threat of fire from on high. There was a flutter of wings and the small space by the cave mouth was suddenly full of pegasus ponies.

“I see you found him,” Rainstorm shouted at Rapier, as the rest of her wing sped past pursuing the fleeing Diamond Dogs.

“Yep, we did.” Rapier grinned back at her.

“Good, well you get him back to the ship while me and my friends here deal with these puppies and then--” She stared at Starlight. “--we can have a little talk about certain ponies running off.”

Starlight gave her a half smile and an apologetic wave, but she had gone off, darting through the trees. More pegasi arrived and Starlight let one of the grab him in its strong legs and carry him up above the tree line.

As he cleared the trees he got a good look at the Everdream. The ship was obviously up and flying again; all three lifting envelops were repaired, and from what he could see the crystal canopy looked intact. Despite all the work, But he could still see some places where the plating on the hull had been ripped away by its passage through the trees and not replaced, and when the cannons fired he could see that there were gaps in the battery fire.

His thoughts were interrupted by the swish-zip sound of arrows passing close by. Those creatures on the ground are shooting at me, he thought, as the pegasus carrying him started to swerve. There was another barrage of arrows and he heard a scream as one of them hit his carrier in the leg; its grip on him weakened and he fell from its grasp.

As he plummeted towards the green sea of the trees, the only coherent thought that went through Starlight’s mind was that he seemed to be spending all of today falling. Then strong limbs were wrapped around him and he was again lifted clear. For a moment he thought that the pegasi had managed to catch him, but then he realised that the legs holding him were rougher and covered with scales.

“You know, pony. I now know why your friends were so anxious to find you,” a familiar, slightly raspy, voice said to him. “You do seem to need a lot of looking after.”

Starlight twisted his head around and starred up into the odd but wonderfully welcome face of Rough Diamond.

-----

Outside Rough Diamond’s cave, the relatively recent past

The late afternoon sun shone through the leaves and dappled the book in front of Twilight with shadows. A thought struck her, and with a small grunt of effort she levitated the quill pen off the ground and made a small note in the corner of the page.

You are getting tired, Twilight, she thought to herself. You are too old to be galloping round the country like you used to do when you where a filly. Even if you do not do much of the actual galloping anymore. That thought reminded her of why she was here, and she looked up from the book propped on the rock in front of her and towards the cave mouth. It had been quite a while since he had gone in there and she worried what was happening. She made herself relax and went back to studying the book.

I am getting old now, she thought as she read the pages again. In fact, if she was truthful with herself she had been old for a very long time -- she was so old that only her teacher, the immortal alicorn Princess Celestia or her faithful assistant Spike, had any idea how old she really was. She herself had long since forgotten.

There was a rumbling from the cave and she looked up to see a purple blur emerging from the cave mouth. With a grunt of frustration and pain she reached up and pulled her glasses down. The blur resolved itself into the large shape of Spike. Too many books, Twilight my filly, she thought. Too much studying. You can still read, but your eyes are no good for anything else now.

Spike unfolded himself from the cave and walked over to where Twilight was sitting. “It is done,” he said, bending his head down to her. “She knows it is important, she will look after it.”

Panic crossed Twilight’s face. “You did not tell her what it was?”

Spike shook his enormous head. “No of course I did not. I just told her it was something important to her mother.” Twilight relaxed. “She will take care of it.” Spike said softly.

“I know,” Twilight responded gently.

“We dragons are good at guarding things.”

“I know, after all you have always managed to keep me safe.”

Spike looked back at the cave mouth. “There is so much of her mother in her,” he said with sadness heavy in his voice. “She is so like Rarity.”

“So much of you too,” Twilight said, “the best of both of you went into her.”

Spike smiled a little. “Maybe not the best, but definitely the most typical.” His face sagged again. “I wish I could have told her you know,” he said darkly. “I wish I could have told her the truth all those years ago.”

“I know, Spike.” Twilight again comforted her oldest friend. “We all have ponies we wish we could have told.” Her fore hoof went unconsciously to the little locket she always wore around her neck. “But we could not. Celestia thought it was too dangerous. The more who knew the true nature of the enemy, the more risk.”

“I know, but if we had told her maybe…” Spike trailed off.

“…and maybe if I had never been sent to Ponyville the whole world would be different. But it is not and what is done is done.” With an effort, Twilight lifted a scroll out of her saddlebags and made a check mark on it. Then she let the scroll and the quill fall to the ground. “And it is done,” she said with finality. “Take me home Spike. I am tired.”

Spike bowed his head. “Of course, Princess Twilight,” he said, slightly mockingly. He extended an enormous claw and lifted Twilight to his back. He looked back at the cave.

“Come on, Spike,” Twilight said kindly, but with firmness, “we must not linger to long. As long as it is asleep the Dark Seekers will not find Generosity, but they know our taste. If we linger here too long they will get suspicious.

Spike turned around. “Of course, Twi. Let’s go home,” he said, setting out through the forest.

Twilight settled down in the space between Spike’s scales. Sometimes she wondered if her oldest friend knew that he had carried her so often that she had worn a pony shaped space in his hard scales. It was done. Just as the Princess had asked, she had put down the last of the burdens she had been force to take up from her friends. But she still had her own burden. She thought of the small stone orb nestled in the bottom of her saddle bag. No, she could not put that burden down. That one she would have to watch over for some time to come. It was her burden and she could not put it down, she would have to look after it until somepony came to take it from her. The regular, famillar rumbling of Spike’s breathing started to lull her to sleep. Yes she would have to stand guard over Magic but she did not think she would have to watch alone.

----------

The present, onboard the Everdream

The two stone spheres sat in the middle of the desk.

“Two of them,” Papyrus said, looking at the strange stones. He picked up the book. “It looks likely that these are something to do with the Elements of Harmony.” He picked up the letter. “…and therefore it seems likely that Twilight took these stones and hid them in places important to these ponies. Applejack, Fulttershy, Rarity, Pinkiepie and Rainbow Dash.”

There was an intake of breath from Rough Diamond at the list of ponies.

After Genoa had picked them up from the forest floor, he had taken the Everdream up and away from the pack of Diamond Dogs – they did not have any way of following the airship, and seemed to have lost interest after their leader was dealt with.

They were now sitting in Papyrus cabin

“You recognised those names,” Papyrus stated.

Rough Diamond nodded.

“I thought you might. Twilight Sparkle said that they were friends of hers and you knew Twilight, so there was a good chance that you would know them.”

“Rarity was my mother,” Rough Diamond said softly.

There was silence around the room as everypony tried to think of what to say. Starlight wanted to say something comforting, but was at a loss as to what to say to somepony whose mother died hundreds of years before he was born.

Rough Diamond shook her head as if to shake off a memory. “But yes, old pony, I did know those ponies. Not as well as my mother or father did, but I knew them. Can I see that letter?”

Papyrus floated the letter over to where Rough Diamond sat. She grabbed it in one of her claws. Starlight looked at her claws and wondered about them. Sure, he had seen other creatures that had dextrous limbs before, both griffons and Diamond Dogs had ‘hands’, and ponies could manage quite well to hold things that where large enough in the crook of their forelegs, but what must it be like to have those strange things? In fact, what must it be like to be the strange creature that was sitting across the cabin from him?

She finished reading the letter and lowered it. “And you think that these stones--” She waved one of her claws at the two stones on the table. “--are the things that auntie Twilight said she hid.”

Papyrus nodded. “It is the only thing that makes sense,” he replied. “We found the first one with her and the second one with you.” He looked at Starlight. “Our young friend here seems to be being guided to them. But what they are and why they are needed, we still do not know.”

Rough Diamond looked at the letter again ‘Places that where important to their bearers,’ she muttered under her breath. ‘My most precious gemstone.’ The last comment seemed to be an echo of somponyelse’s words. Again Rough Diamond seemed to pull her mind back from wherever it had gone and she put the letter back on the table.

“Well,” she said with firmness. “I do not know what might be important to the rest, but everypony knew that there was only one place in all Equestria that was important to Applejack.” She turned to look at Starlight. “Time for me to visit my home town,” she said. “We need to go to Sweet Apple Acers.”

End of chapter 2

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The harsh truth is softened by a caring word. They endure together where both called home; one with longing and the other with love.

Next chapter: The Last Harvest