Equestria's chain of conflicts

by Dranz_89

A helping hoof

The Hayseed Swamps were a land of vast wilderness, amphibious creatures as much as insects, a dense forest of poor visibility and walking was heavy and tiresome due to the muddy ground flooded by dark green waters. Rarity, Moondancer and Lednik were all contempling the wonderful works of nature as they walked through the swamps, that were strangely unaffected by Discord's powers.

"I hate the mosquitoes! I hate the mud! I hate the swamp! And I hate Discord for making me come here!", Rarity walked on the mud, cleaning her hooves with each step, and her companions were only enduring Rarity's complaints and whining with a surprising patience which was slowly running out.

They walked through the flooded forest until they found a unicorn who was on the other side of a pond. Her coat was the purest white anypony has ever seen, white as the light of the moon, and her manes shone in a silver tone, so radiant, as if she could illuminate her surroundings by her mere presence, her cutie mark was a silver crown adorned with amethysts. She was apparently hurt in her right hind leg and she was lying beside an old wooden chariot carrying a pile of vaults and chests. Rarity completely forgot about her looks and jumped to the pond, it wasn't deep so she could run across the pond to help the fallen unicorn. She quickly used a healing spell.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you, Young lady", said the unicorn, trying to get up, "but your beautiful mane is all soaked, now."

"Oh! It's not important, miss", Rarity replied, "it was my pleasure, although it's just a basic healing spell, it wasn't of much help. Moondancer, you are a student of the princess, you may know a potent healing spell."

"I'm sorry", Moondancer came closer, "we don't learn healing spells from the princess, that's taught in the medicine faculty of Canterlot."

"Perhaps I can help, water has curative properties", Lednik approached the wound, and blew some ice on it, but his magic didn't seem to be strong enough, "Just as I feared, my powers have shrinked, just like my size."

"You..." the unicorn was surprised, then, she smiled at him, "you are indeed, a weird looking gecko", and Lednik laughed along her.

The healing took some time, but the unicorn's leg was well recovered, enough to walk for herself, and as soon as she could stand up, she pulled out some boxes from her chariot, "let me reward you", she said as she opened a small red rounded box, containing a small ring with a nice emerald jewel attached to it, "here, have this, it belonged to me, but now I have no use for it."

"My stars! It's beautiful!" Rarity took it and and put it on her horn, she took a mirror out of nowhere and contemplated it, "Hmmm... Emmeralds aren't really my thing, but...", she took it off, and suddenly put it on Lednik's neck, "look! You look lovely! It suits you very well, Lednik."

"I am starting to question why I decided to join you", said the dragon, not too happy.

"Who are you, mare? If I may ask?" Moondancer was suspicious.

"Oh! Me? Just traveling pony, you know?", the mare was very modest about herself, "I come and go around the world, selling some of my old stuff, they belonged to a way of life in which I don't belong anymore. They call me Starlight, because of my mane, or maybe because sometimes I help lost travelers. I know this world very well, for I have traveled for a long time, always selling my treasures, and always finding new ones to sell later. I was on my way to Dodge Junction, but something hit my carriot and I fell right on my leg. But it was not all bad. Right here in this swamp, I found this particular piece, it's gorgeous."

From one of her vaults, she took out a small jewelry box, golden with some diamonds attached to its contour, and a small silver unicorn statuette on top of it. She opened it, and to Rarity's surprise and her friends, the Necklace of Generosity was inside it. Rarity tried to touch it, but the mare wouldn't let it go that easily.

"No, no, no...", she said, "If you want it, you need to offer anything that equals its worth."

Rarity and Moondancer looked at each other, then, they both looked at Lednik, but unfortunately, they had nothing to offer. Starlight sighed, and locked the small box, and put it inside of one of her chests and was about to leave, but suddenly, the waters of the swamp began to wave, and the vines of the trees began to move, wrapping themselves in the hooves of the ponies and leaving them unable to move.

From the water, Screwball jumped out making fun of her enemies, she calmly walked to Starlight's chariot and picked up the jewelry box, The unicorns tried to use their magic, but their horns was blocked by the vines while she was casting the spell.

"Lednik! What are you doing?! Do something!", Rarity yelled, but Lednik stood still, only watching how the ponies struggled.

"You fools!", Screwball laughed, "Remember the rules? No help from your dragon friends. If Lednik helps you, you'll lose, and it will be Chaos Land forever!"

Screwball turned around with the box levitating around her, she walked to steps, and then, she stopped, "but... on second thought...", she turned around and stared at Lednik, "why don't you help them, Lednik? you're friends are in DANGER!", Screwball stomped the ground with her two front hooves.

An electric shock tortured the mares, as Lednik's claws trembled of impotence, listening how Rarity and Moondancer screamed in agony, but he stood still, and he wasn't willing to move.

"What an electrifying plight whe got here, you know? My father doesn't let me kill you"; Screwball said, and the shocks ended, "but in this kind of games, accidents are likely to happen, aren't they?" She smiled, and even stronger electric shocks started once again.

"What will you choose, gecko?", Screaball taunted the dragon, "Save your friends, or leave them to die, either way... Chaos wins." Screwball left with that characteristic laughter of hers, and Lednik didn't know what to do.

"Dont... Don't do it... Lednik!", Rarity said, while in pain, "I won't... lose... I want lose to that brat!", and Lednik calmed down, he stared at Rarity and his doubts were erased.

Even in pain, Rarity casted her telekinesis spell on the vines with all of her might, little by little, the vines covering her horn were unrolling and she tried to cut the vines holding her hooves, then she realised that she wasn't struggling alone, Moondancer and Starlight were helping her. Rarity felt an insoportable headache, as if her brain was being squeezed like a sponge, and suddenly, the vines were cut with the sound of a whip, the unicorns were free, and all three of them fell to the ground. Moondancer and Starlight fell on their hooves, while Rarity fell on her side, sweating and exhausted.

"Are you well, Rarity?", Lednik rushed to the unicorns, "I am ashamed for doing nothing, but I knew you had the strength to release yourself. Just like Fluttershy said, you have a strong will."

"My... my whole self... hurts a bit... but... I'm fine", she was regaining her breath, as if she had been underwater for hours, "how... how come you... you are not... exhausted at all?", she asked to the other unicorns.

"It was a simple telekinesis spell" Moondancer said proudly, "But those shocks hurt a lot."

"And I let you do all the work", Starlight also said proudly, "I just lent a teeny bit of my magic. I barely did something."

And so, the unicorns and the dragon went to pursue Screwball, chasing her hoofsteps, so clear and easy to follow as the trails of the train of Equestria, Screwball was too sure of her victory that she was careless with the hoofsteps she left behind. However, Screwball's steps disappeared in a lake of greeny water, in the heart of the swamp.

There was the pony of chaos, floating right in the center of the lake, playing with the jewelry box, tossing it and catching it, once and over again. She gazed upon the ponies, smiled and dropped the box to the lake. Rarity gasped, she stared at the lake's green waters, and exposed her tongue with disgust.

"You want it? Go get it!" Screwball mocked her.

"It. Is. On!", Rarity gulped and stepped inside the lake without hesitation, but the waters were getting more dirty as she walked deeper into the lake, and the unicorn didn't know what was going on.

"That's gross!", Screwball said, "You're willing to swim in that water just to get what you want? The waters are getting dirty because of the selfishness of your act."

"It's not selfish!", Moondancer yelled, "she is the Element of Generosity, it's only logical, that necklace belongs to her by right!", Starlight gasped in shock upon listening to her.

"You're wrong, Moondancer", said Rarity, with the water up to her neck, the waters had a black colored tone, and the smell of sewers penetrated through her nose and even her ears.

"It's not because it belongs to me", Rarity continued, and the blackness of the water was somehow clearing, "it's Starlight's treasure, and without our help, she may never recover it. Once I get it back, I will return it to her, and somehow I'll pay for it!" She took a deep breath, and slowly dived to the white lake.

"I don't believe it!", Screwball shouted, as Rarity came out of the lake with the box in her right hoof. Screwball growled with anger and disappeared. Rarity came out to the shore, and she opened the box, only to realise she was tricked, the box was empty and Screwball was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey! Threre's nothing here!", Rarity gasped.

"No way..." Moondancer looked down, "she... she won..."

Rarity's face had an anguish look, she didn't even care about how wet her mane was, or the patches of moss in her coat, she just looked at Starlight, "I'm sorry...", she said, her eyes were shining because of the tears she was containing.

"It's fine, it's fine!" Starlight smiled at her, and casting a summoning spell, the Necklace of Generosity appeared, "I got it right here!"

"What? How did you...?" Moondancer and Rarity gasped at the same time.

"Remember when she took the box?", Starlight giggled, covering her mouth, "We all tried to cast a spell. The spell I casted was a simple disappearing spell, I took the necklace without her noticing."

"I... I don't know what to say...", Rarity replied, "why didn't you said it in first place? I mean, I swam in a pond of disgusting water, for Celestia's sake!"

"I know, and I'm sorry, I thought it was funny", Starlight laughed, as Rarity grumped, then, Starlight put the neckalce on Rarity's neck, "But it's yours, take it."

"I can't accept it"; Rarity frowned, "I have nothing to pay for it..."

"I said you had to pay with something that equals its worth, the Necklace of Generosity it's worth just that, a generous act. You helped a complete stranger and expected nothing in return. Look at the lake, the whiteness of the waters is proof that your generosity is legit, and there isn't a single drop of hypocrecy in your acts. You are generous, indeed, and this necklace belongs to you."

It was a short and boring walk to the town of Dodge Junction compared to the trials Screwball prepared for them, Starlight didin't talk about herself much, but she revealed some of her past as they walked through the swamp.

"I lived in a big house, I had everything I wanted, and I was an important member of society. I got these treasures as presents of birthdays and fancy balls. And of course, when I grew up, I became the head of my house, and everything was going good, I even ended some rivalries of my family. But I took a wrong decision, and everything changed. Fate punished me for it, and now I must deal with it, I left my house in charge of somepony I could trust. And now I travel alone, sharing my treasures with the world. It will be my mission until the end of my days."

"So you're house is still running?", Rarity asked, "do I know who is in charge now?"

"Most certainly you do", Starlight replied, "she is very important."

"Well, who is her?"

Starlight laughed for a while and said, "I'm not telling!"

After that, the goodbyes were short and simple, it could barely be called a goodbye. Starlight continued her journey to the north. As for Rarity, Moondancer and Lednik, they followed the train rails leading to Canterlot.

"That Starlight pony is more than meets the eye, isn't she?" Moondancer said, as they walked.

"Yes, she most certainly is" Lednik smiled.

Comments

[AceCombat101fan]

3371485 Your story is good. When is next chapter?

[Dranz_89]

4265500 coming out soon... almost done!!!

[AceCombat101fan]

4266420 Oh good. Hey want to check out my story Ace Combat: Divided Feelings?