When Rainbow Dash tries to take a nap, a water dragon calls out to her.
Rainbow Dash was flying one day, when she decided to rest on a small cloud. Her nap is interrupted when a new friend of hers calls out to her. Neocros and Rainbow have known each other for a few months now, and though he is a bit strange, he's rather nice once she got to know him.
Today was a perfect time to go for a fly. Spring certainly is one of the most beautiful times, aside from Hearts and Hooves day. Flowers had begun blooming weeks ago, yet there were a few still yet to do so, outside of the small town known as Ponyville.
Rainbow Dash was flying over the hills of flowers, moving so fast she nearly uprooted them! She smiled as she soared across the sky, wanting to go for a fly after finishing up her routine.
The feeling of the breeze flowing through her colorful mane and tail, was a feeling she always loved when soaring through the sky. Finding a small, comfortable cloud, she decided to take a small rest before she went back to her usual routine. The cloud felt nice against her wings, as she relaxed her muscles. Feeling sleepy, she takes a short nap...
"Rainbow!" a soft voice said from below. Her eyes opened, feeling a little annoyed by this. However, she recognized the voice. She sat up, and looked down from the cloud. Surprisingly, no one was below her, but someone was standing nearby, looking up at a nearby cloud. She saw him, and her eyes lit up.
"Oh hey, Neocros!" She smiled. Below the cloud, a tall blue dragon stood, staring up at her with a curious gaze. The dragon had orange colored horns, a row of clear gray dorsal fins going down from his forehead to his lower back, sporting long brown hair on his head and a large tuft of hair at the tip of his lengthy tail. "What are you doing over there?"
He rubbed the back of his neck, as he thought she was on the cloud above him, but she was actually sleeping on the one next to it. He didn’t talk much, save for a few phrases and replies. He was capable of speech, but was selectively mute.
"I thought you were on this one." He said. Rainbow Dash flew off the cloud, and hovered in front of him. Neocros looked up at her, as she stared at him curiously. She noticed that his gaze wasn't on her eyes, but was a bit off to the side. "So uh... how is today?"
Rainbow initially found the way he talked a bit weird, but she got used to it after getting to know him.
"It was awesome as usual. I pulled off a really cool stunt with my squad, and got the crowd roaring!" She gushed. Neocros was a little uneasy, but he didn't know why. "How about you, Neocros?"
"Uhm..." He paused, a little hesitant to speak. "... I.. thought I'd meet you..."
She chuckled. "Say, you wanna check out the next show in a little while?"
"The Wonderbolts?"
"Yeah!"
"Uhm..." Neocros was nervous about the roaring crowds. Last time he went, he was put off by everyone's cheers, he had to cover his ears just so he could see Dash perform. "I like your performances, but I'm.. not a fan of the crowd..."
"Huh? Why?" She asked, blinking at his words. He cringed, fearing that he hurt her feelings, so he tried to fix the wound.
"I-I'll go but.. I just am not a huge fan of the noise..." He had visible panic on his face, which confused Rainbow.
"What? But the roaring audience is one of the things that make it cool!" She said, however, it was evident on his face that something was wrong. She saw his worry and anxiousness. "Uhm...Neocros? Are you okay?"
He sighed. "... I know you like crowds.. it's just... the loud sounds hurt..."
There was something in his voice that made her concerned. Even though she didn't entirely understand why he's like this, she could tell he was... different than any of her friends, aside from the obvious.
"Hmm...alright, we'll find you something to block out the noise, so that you can enjoy my awesomeness!" She tried to cheer him up a little. She only got a brief smirk before he seemingly forced his mouth to frown. He nodded, before they went off to continue with their day. The show wasn't until noon. Deep inside, Neocros felt something when seeing Rainbow Dash, but didn't know how to say it...
...
Unsure what to do until noon, Neocros just stood around, next to a tree he would frequently see. He had met Dash a while ago, and he started to feel strange. There was something about her that felt... oddly familiar. He shrugged it off though, as Dash was famous around. However, he still had a slight fixation on her. Every time he saw her, he felt a small drive to follow her, but he'd try and not let himself follow her to the point of creepiness. In that time, he was able to somewhat keep his feelings stable by engaging in a small activity in the form of reading a comic series.
He was mute when he first met her, so he couldn't communicate his admiration of her, but he was slowly able to speak.
As he was thinking, he remembered something that he overheard from Twilight and Starlight. Ponies have been going missing recently, five to be exact. What made this worrying was it happened over the weekend, with little to no traces of the victims. So much so that the mayor decided to enforce a law that ponies must have somepony next to them when returning home for the night.
That's when he began to worry for Rainbow. What if something happens to her? He knew she was stronger than him, but this felt like it was beyond her, which scared him a little more...
...
Noon had arrived, and Neocros was sitting slightly in the back, so he could get a better look from afar. He was wearing a pair of ear muffs that Twilight gave him, as he didn't like the ear plugs Dash gave him, but he felt bad for not using them. The sound did deafen most of the noise, but he was able to vaguely hear the crowd.
The crowd roared as Rainbow Dash and her squad began their show. He nervously watched Rainbow, still feeling a bit uneasy being around a huge audience. As time passed though, he started to feel better while watching her flip in the air, coordinated by her fellow Wonderbolts.
She then flew high in the clouds, readying something, before she swooped down toward the ground, preparing a Sonic Rainboom. Neocros watched with anticipation, but while feeling so, he felt something else. There was an odd feeling of anxiousness, as if something bad was about to happen, somewhere, but he didn't know where exactly. Neocros watched, as Rainbow finally performed a Sonic Rainboom!
The shockwave spread as a rainbow trail followed her, before the wave hit Neocros' ears, causing him to immediately press on the earmuffs, quietly hissing from the loud thunderclap. Despite his wincing, he still loved seeing the bright colors as Dash made the crowd cheer loudly.
...
After the show, Neocros was walking when Rainbow flew up to him.
"So, what'cha think?" She asked. Neocros nodded.
"Nice." He said. Dash cocked her head to the side, wondering why he'd reply like that. He then said he liked the colors for the Sonic Rainboom, which pleased Dash more. He glanced down again, a somewhat saddened look in his eyes. Rainbow Dash noticed his change in mood, and asked what was up. He kept his eyes focused on the ground, before speaking. "I'm sorry..."
"Huh? Why're you sorry? You didn't do anything wrong." She pointed out. He sighed.
"I... embarrass you.. with earplugs..." Neocros was having trouble speaking again, like he always does when under pressure. At first Rainbow didn't understand what he was trying to say, but was able to piece together his words.
"Uhm...you didn't embarrass me. You said you didn't like the feeling in your ears." Rainbow said. "You don't have to be sorry, Neo."
Neocros glanced to look at her wings, as he didn't make eye contact often. That depressive look was still on his face, but his gaze softened a little. He muttered softly. "okay."
They were about to part ways when Neocros felt something. Part of him had the odd motivation to ask Rainbow if he could stay over at her place, but he wasn't sure how to word it.
“R-rainbow…” He started. Rainbow glanced at him, asking him what he needed. He bit his lip. “Can… can I… sigh, can I visit you… sometime?”
He immediately glanced away, hoping to not sound awkward, but he felt it anyway. Her expression changed, seemingly surprised he’d ask her that, though it wasn’t surprising. Rather than hearing something that would make him regret his life choices, Rainbow thought for a second, before smiling.
“Sure! It’s my day off tomorrow, so you can come over. You may need something to help you fly though…” Rainbow said. Neocros nodded. “Twilight has some spells you can use.”
“She has some? Okay.. so tomorrow then?” He asked. Rainbow smirked.
“You bet!” She then glanced at the sky, before she looked back at him. “Alright, I gotta go now. See ya later, Neo!”
Neocros liked the nickname she’s given him. With the two agreeing, Rainbow sped off to her home, leaving Neocros there to feel a bit happy about his choice, but he also felt intimidated by the task he’s given himself. He’s never visited his friend’s place before. Twilight didn’t count as visiting, as he simply needed a place to live.
As Neocros started heading back to the castle, he had that sudden anxious feeling again. It was stronger this time, forcing him to turn around. He didn't see anything out of the ordinary, just some empty stadium seats, and closed bathroom stalls. Oh wait, he thought he saw something quickly move behind the bathroom stall. He stared at it for a long time, before he decided to cautiously head back, making sure to look over his shoulder every second or so.
He didn't want to think of the missing ponies, but his brain began thinking of them anyway. Thankfully, it looked as though whatever was behind the stall wasn't following him, so he could safely resume his walk...
It was another day in Ponyville. Neocros was hiding next to a tree. The reason is he never liked the many stares everypony gave him while walking. It was a feeling that made his core uncomfortable, so he chose to not be seen often. He liked the breeze that was flowing over his scales, but it was starting to get kind of chilly for him.
Neocros normally liked the cold, but for some reason his scales weren't in the mood today. Still, he stood there, back pressing into the bark, his dorsal fins would fold down whenever something was about to press on his back. To this day, Fluttershy still routinely tries to check how his biology worked. The feeling of unwanted touch would unnerve him though, so he always pushed the golden pony away. He didn't mean ill will, just didn't want unwanted hooves on him.
His mind started to think back to that incident back at the Wonderbolts show, where that filly's father went missing. That mysterious stallion was creepy, as if plucked from another world.
As he was thinking to himself, he suddenly heard a familiar voice nearby. He glanced behind the tree, and saw Rainbow Dash. She was talking to a pony, who seemed to be one of her fans. Neocros waited patiently for them to finish talking, but he couldn't help but feel a little jealous, and he didn't know why, which made him feel a little off. As the pony walked away, Rainbow noticed Neocros standing there staring at her.
"Hey Neo!" She smiled, walking over to him as he approached her carefully. She saw him staring at the dirt, having a look of deep thought before he spoke.
"So.. your place?" He asked, rather timidly.
"Oh yeah! Got the walking on clouds potion?" She asked. Neocros had a small bag that Spike gave him. He pulled the potion out to show her he had it, which made her grin. "Cool! Let's go!"
...
When they arrived, Neocros was taken aback by how huge the place was. The magnificent architecture combined with the rainbows made for a beautiful and breath-taking sight. Though he had seen a few pictures of it, it really was a different feeling when he was actually in front of it. When Spike left with the hot air balloon, Rainbow Dash led Neocros to the front doors, landing there before Neocros could catch up, but she did wait for him.
Upon entering, the first thing that came to him wasn't the huge statue of a Wonderbolt flying, but was the scent, not that it was bad or anything, far from it actually, it was a pleasant smell. Clouds is something that he thought of when trying to describe it, similar to Rainbow's scent. There was a staircase that led to a higher level, which impressed Neocros, as he liked stairs, but only when he goes up them, going down can be oddly scary.
"Uh, yeah...welcome!" Dash said. Neocros glanced around, and felt comfy with the nice shades of blue, purple, and white, and some other colors here and there as well. She noticed he had gone silent while glancing around. "Yeah, I know, it's pretty awesome."
He shrugged, a small smile on his face. "It's nice."
Neocros glanced over at what appeared to be the living room over to the left. He slowly approached as Dash followed. The room had a sofa made of clouds, as well as a chair, along with a glass table in the center, and a large window with purple curtains that had lightning bolts on them. Neocros walked over and sat down on the sofa as Rainbow floated over.
"So what's up?" She asked. Neocros glanced at the table, as his mind had nothing to say, or comment on. He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.
"I did not think this far." He commented. "I don't know what is up..."
Rainbow chuckled. "Why not I show you around?"
He nodded, before she and him explored the house, with her showing off a lot of her collection of Wonderbolt posters and some of her trophies.
"Impressive." Neo said, nodding.
She even showed him her Wonderbolt suit, which was next to her Gala dress. He found himself looking at the colors of the home, loving the nice shades of blues and whites, combined with accent colors like purple.
Finally, they returned to the front entrance, where Rainbow flew up to the top of the stairs. "Let's check out my room!"
Neocros walked up the stairway, and entered into the room Dash entered. Inside, the bedroom was quite big, bigger than his room at Twilight's, exposed windows were on both walls on either side of the bed, and a larger window with curtains were next to the door. What drew his attention the most was the bed. It looked very soft, and the clouds gave him a welcoming feeling inside, as if the bed was inviting him to lay down, but he feared doing so.
"The bed looks.. cozy." Neocros sheepishly said. Rainbow Dash agreed, but didn't think much of his words. As they hung out, she asked him how he's been doing.
"I'm... okay, I guess." He replied, after going silent for a moment. Rainbow figured that Neocros had to think hard with that one, but was it really that tall of an order? She thought. He wasn't too talkative, but he did say a few things of interest, to her at least. "... Sam taught me how to make board games."
"Really?" She replied.
"Yeah... and I began making my own game pieces.. using clay." He said. His fingers helped with this skill, but it's a skill he rarely shows off. They continued talking for a few minutes, with Neocros asking if he could sit on the bed. When Dash agreed, he carefully sat down. He was taken aback at how comfy the bed was. "This bed is... better than the one I lay in at night."
...
After a while, they went outside, where the sun was high in the sky. Neocros felt the wind on his scales. It gave him cold chills, but it was a good kind of cold. He saw various mountains off in the distance, before he glanced over to Rainbow Dash, who was staring at the trees below.
"Uhm... Rainbow?" He began. Rainbow Dash looked at him, as she landed on the soft cloud. "I'm.. sorry--I mean.. I'm sad I didn't speak much."
"Ah c'mon, it's cool spending time with you." She replied, "I like how chill you are."
Neo looked down, his eyes close to locking with hers, yet were just shy. He asked if she meant it, which she replied she had no reason not to be. He glanced down at the grass far below them, and a small smile came to his lips.
"...thank you." He said. Deep down, he felt an odd connection to Rainbow. He wasn't entirely sure of it, but somehow he felt compelled to know her more. He rolled his eyes, looking around his surroundings, until he finally rested his gaze on the sky blue pegasus next to him. Somehow, even if he doesn't know, he could see her mane looked pretty to look at, along with her tail, and even her cutie mark. He tried not to stare, and so he looked at her eyes. The amethyst color, it was close to his own sapphire colored ones. Before he lost his train of thought, he asked her. "... Dashie?"
Rainbow glanced up at him again.
"Uhm... I don't know why... but I..." He wanted to ask her if he could get to know her more, but somehow his body locked up, preventing him from saying it. It was in his throat, but it wouldn't pass. Rainbow could see the visible worry on his face. "... I think I need to... take a rest..."
Rainbow Dash was initially confused, but he told her he didn't know why this was the case. Dash eventually nodded. After what felt like a while, Spike returned with the balloon.
Neocros felt really bad for not saying what he wanted to say, but deep down, he felt that maybe it wasn't time to say it...yet.
As the sun began rising, Neocros stared out through the window while laying in bed. He was comfy in bed, as it was the only sense of relief he felt in the moment. His mind began to play tricks on him, intrusive thoughts, but he didn't know they were called that. The subjects worried him, making him uncomfortable, despite the bed supposedly being his safezone.
After a little bit, his intrusive thoughts subsided, mostly due to him keeping himself curled up. It's then he thought about Rainbow Dash. Although he visited her yesterday, he started to feel something surrounding her. At first, he couldn't pinpoint what it was, but remembered back when he first met her. Somehow... in a very strange way, it felt as if... he met her before, but didn't know why.
Oddly enough, as Neocros started to think of her more, he felt Dash's mane looked gorgeous, especially when the light reflects off it. Her magenta eyes look rather nice, and somehow, he thought on a deeper level, there's a hint of softness behind her hard exterior. Her cutie mark was unique to the others, as he felt the others were the same having three butterflies or three diamonds, not that he had anything against them, he just felt Dash was more like him, being different.
Although, being different is something he had mixed feelings on. Neocros liked being himself, sort of, but at the same time, part of him felt lonely, as it seems he's one of a kind.
Deep inside, he wished that there were more water dragons like him, but it seems there's none that resemble him.
As he was lost in thought, he realized he needed some water, and so got out of bed. His bedroom was decorated with the same things as any of the guest bedrooms Twilight had, but yet somehow this room looked even less unique to his earth pony friend.
...
When Neocros entered the kitchen, he could hear Twilight and Starlight talking in the other room as he poured himself a glass of water. Spike was in the room stirring some mix as he had a somewhat worried look on his face. Neocros noticed his down look, and asked what was wrong.
"A Few days ago, a pony ended up missing at the recent Wonderbolts show." He replied. Neocros blinked, and looked down at the floor. It was the ninth pony to disappear this week, nearing the weekend. As Twilight said yesterday, despite the amount of investigating, there was no traces of these ponies. Its then Spike's words had made Neocros question which show. He asked which one it was.
Spike replied by saying the one during a specific time slot... the same one he went to. Neocros' eyes widened, as he felt his face become cold from horror. Spike tilted his head seeing his reaction. "Uh... are you okay?"
"... I was there."
Spike's eyes widened. "Woah, really? Did you see anything there?"
"N-n... no." Neocros replied, nervously. It was terrifying to think that he was at the same event as a recent missing case occurring. He feared that it could've been Dashie missing, but thankfully it wasn't. He asked who went missing, and Spike replied that it was a janitor who's job was to clean the bathrooms. When he entered one, that was the last time he was seen alive. With a sigh of relief that it wasn't Rainbow, he walked back to his bedroom, leaving Spike confused as to why Neo asked who it was.
...
Neocros sat on the bed, thinking of Rainbow again. Deep inside his thoughts were scattered. On one side, he thought of visiting Rainbow, having a fun time with her, and doing various activities, but on the other, his mind began thinking of her in... other ways. He didn't know if it was okay to feel this way, for that he felt he was harming her.
Though, the thoughts were tempting. Admittedly he thought she looked cute. The thought of her in a dress was something he couldn't resist, but feared for her image.
Somehow fear came back, making him want to squirm out of bed and hide in a corner, but he wasn't sure why he was feeling this way. It seemed his mind loved harming his sense of security, his safespace and everything he loves.
Always afraid and upset whenever life decays or dies out, uncertain if the world will ever be cleaner, or how life will prosper. It all is a lot to take in, for a guy who's only been in Equestria for months now. Despite his lack of memories, he still had these fears and doubts from unknown sources.
He laid down on the bed, his thoughts dying down as he allowed himself to think of Rainbow. He initially didn't have an opinion on her wings, but when he saw them in action, as well as being close enough to look at them, he felt they'd feel very soft, wishing to touch the beautiful feathers, and the thought of caressing Dash's cheek was comforting, but he thought he was creepy for thinking such.
Neocros stared at the ceiling as he tried to think of Rainbow in a more kinder light, wishing to be able to keep up with her in a race, or watch her perform with her wonderbolt friends. Neocros felt as though he couldn't keep his mind off her, not that he wanted to not think of her. All this thinking was making him tired. Getting under the covers, he felt himself drifting off, taking a brief nap...
...
After his nap, he felt the motivation to see Dash again. Grabbing the side bag that Spike gave him to hold stuff, something that he keeps forgetting to bring with him whenever he goes out, he leaves the castle to see if he could encounter Rainbow Dash.
He came to regret going out though, for that he stood out among the residents. As he tried not to look suspicious, he started to hear some ponies talking to themselves about the recent disappearances. It was something that he was more or less neutral on, but was scared that Rainbow would join the count.
It was an awful feeling, something that Neocros found hard to shake off, let alone not think about. As the dragon decided to go underneath some nearby shade, he felt like he should be doing something, but had no idea what. He stood under a tree, holding his bag as he stared at the ground.
It was then he thought to himself. Why was he so interested in Rainbow?
At first, he had a lot of trouble figuring it out. Perhaps it was her looks, as she was the most recognizable girl he's met so far, but he didn't want it to be just looks. Though he saw her as pretty cool, sometimes there was a hint of boldness he wasn't happy about, though it seemed she had lightened up a little, and was willing to take it slow with him. It feels like Rainbow was more willing to understand him, unlike Applejack who found Neocros' 'quirkiness' to be off putting. He felt that Rainbow was hiding herself by keeping up an image or so, which he didn't fault her for, but somehow deep inside he really wanted to see who she was on the inside.
As he thought of her, he suddenly heard some ruffling in the bushes, which made his ear perk up. He glanced toward the direction of the sound, but saw nothing in the brush. Even if he didn't see anything, he began backing away from the tree anyway. It was then he felt a discomforting aura. He felt like he was going to puke from the feeling, causing him to begin walking away from the area, keeping his eyes on the brush as he walked over to an area more populated.
The feeling disappeared, but he still worried. Not long after, he began walking back over to the castle, not accomplishing much of anything outside. However, he then remembered that Rainbow was probably flying with her fellow Wonderbolts, so logically he'll go to the current show going on. Problem was, he forgot where the shows usually happen. He'll have to ask Twilight or Spike where the Wonderbolts were...
Arriving at the Wonderbolts show, Neocros covered his ears as the crowd roared over Spitfire pulling off a successful stunt. Rainbow Dash flew with a rainbow trail behind her as she flew side by side with her teammates. Neocros glanced up at her, amazed by the beautiful pegasus.
The more he watched her in the air, the more he felt assured he won't lose her. After the show, he patiently waited for Rainbow Dash. Deep down he wished he could visit her place again, but he wasn't sure if she'd be okay with it as of now. As he thought for a moment, Rainbow began approaching him, hovering at eye level with him.
She was surprised that he went to see her again, even with the crowd.
"How's it going, Neo?" She smiled,
"doing.. okay I guess." His thoughts were a little lost, he wished he told her his interest in her, but he was okay with keeping it to himself, for now. Neocros stared at the ground awkwardly, as Rainbow paid no mind to it.
"I was able to pull off a new stunt! Though judging by your reaction back there, I kind of feel bad for making the crowd roar in your ears, big guy."
He shrugged, his face remaining expressionless as he bowed his head. If anything, he felt bad for making her feel disappointed in herself.
As they hung out, his mind would intrusively make him think of the disappearances, causing him to feel concern for Rainbow. However, seeing her in front of him assured him that she wasn't going anywhere. Rainbow Dash glanced at him as he stared at the ground.
"Soo..what have you been up to?" She asked, Neocros looked back at her, and had a moment of trouble trying to say something.
"Uhm... I guess... the same old thing, so far..." He rubbed the back of his head, his fingers digging into his hair as he noticed Rainbow's confused look. After the rather bad sentence, he managed a better one. "I haven't been up to much."
"You don't seem to be very active recently. What's up?" Rainbow pointed out, making Neo frown.
"I've just... been so worried over the missing ponies..." He admitted to her, Dash's eyes widened, but she wasn't too surprised by his feelings. They were all concerned, especially the families of these missing ponies. Rainbow Dash felt angry that she couldn't help or save them, and her friends shared that thought.
"Sigh, I have been, too. I dunno what's with the guards unable to find the culprit, especially since a lot of the missing ponies have vanished in public areas! Somepony's gotta have seen what happened to them!" She told him, as Neocros nodded with each point, focusing his gaze on the ground. To Rainbow, it was a sign that he was indeed listening. In the beginning, when they would talk, she initially got annoyed with him not looking at her, but when she said something nice about him later on, he quickly thanks her, surprising Dash. She didn't even realize he was listening that whole time.
"I see." He replied, voice slightly somber.
"Well, not to worry, Neo. We'll find them, and me and my friends are gonna make the kidnapper pay!" She said, determined to find out who did it. Neocros nodded, eyebrows furrowing in a determined look matching her own, before softening.
"I wish I could do something as well." Neo said, glancing up to see the trees nearby. "... but, I feel powerless."
Rainbow's look softened as well, relating to his pain. "Yeah, me too..."
"... I just..." He hesitated, but decided to say it, hoping she won't catch on, "I don't want my friends to disappear either... especially you."
Her eyes widened, a bit surprised by his words. In some way, she realized that if she and her friends vanished, he would be alone, as he's generally looked at by ponies as weird, even for a dragon, and his friends were the only ones that try to understand him, even if he's not that talkative.
"I won't get kidnapped, I promise you." She tells him, and tries to reach out to put an assuring hoof on his shoulder when he suddenly recoiled. She blinked, before he bit his lip.
"Sorry.. I don't like touch very much..." He told her, before he reached out to touch her hoof, but quickly hesitated. He bowed his head. "I know you're used to it..."
"Nah, it's okay Neo." She told him, "I won't do that again."
...
Neocros was walking down the usual pathway connecting Ponyville to the Wonderbolt stadium he was just at. It had some trees and bushes around, as well as flowers reminding him that it was spring. The dragon was still worried that Rainbow would go missing as well, to the point where he hesitated on leaving the area, in fear she would literally disappear when he wasn't looking.
As he carefully followed the path, he could hear the birds and cicadas in the brush, and maybe a locust or two. It felt really weird to be alone like this, and even though it was in the middle of the day, he wondered if maybe he would go missing. It was a terrifying thought, especially since the culprit could be anybody.
It was then he sensed the strange aura, now much stronger than before. His body felt sickly, as if he was going to vomit, and his back started to feel cold chills running down his spine like needles and knives. It was much more sudden than before, and he wasn't expecting it. He decided to hurry his walk, not wanting to be around here for much longer.
While he was thinking to himself, he passed by something that was well hidden in the same brush. Underneath a leaf, hidden in shadow, black, soulless eyes watched his every move. After getting itself stronger, it knew he was next. Not now though, it wanted his fear, then his flesh...
...
Rainbow Dash rested on a cloud above a small clearing near Ponyville. She was going to take her usual nap before the next show. She sighed, relaxing on the very, very soft cloud. She was able to let her worries drift a way for a second, as the sky blue pegasus rolled over to her side with her eyes shut.
However, unknown to her, a long, muddy hand reached from beneath her, and quickly snatches her leg!
Rainbow's eyes snapped wide open as she's suddenly yanked off the cloud!
"WHA!!?" Rainbow yelled, as she grabbed onto the cloud! She looked down, and her eyes widened with absolute horror. Below her, the hand belonged to a large beast, about the size of a minotaur! It's face was crocodile-like, and it didn't seem to have eyes, only black, empty slits in the place where eyes should be! She hung onto the cloud for her life, vigorously kicking the monster as she tried to hang on!
The kicking only annoyed the monster, before it's weight pulled her down onto the ground! She felt the monster release her, allowing her to fly away to gain some distance from it. She turned to face the ugly beast, and she was able to get a good look at it.
Its arms were lengthy, having three fingers and a spike on the bottom of it’s palm, and the hands had red coloring on it. Its body was covered in leathery skin in various sickly browns and greens, and a hint of red in the center of its chest. It's feet had some red coloring on it as well. The beast looked malnourished, but despite that fact, Rainbow was terrified by it.
"What is that!?" She thought to herself. Rainbow Dash hovered back as the beast stared at her. She had seen many creatures, fought tons of them, but there was something about this creature that made her feel like she wouldn't survive an assault with it. Before she could fly away though, it quickly lunged at her!
She screamed as it grabbed her with both arms, before slamming her down onto the ground on her belly! She felt the wind getting knocked out of her, as it rolled her onto her back, and pinned her down with it's foot on her chest!
It was then the red stuff got onto her chest, and the horrifying realization came to her. She looked up at the monster that now loomed over her. It then made a chilling sound, sounding like an incomprehensible language, which chilled her to her core.
Rainbow kept trying to kick and punch the beast's foot. She kept calling out for help, as the monster just stared at her, a demented smile coming to it's face. With it's long snout, it's grin looked unsettling. Rainbow then felt it press harder on her chest.
...
As Neocros approached Ponyville, his body started to act up again. His heart was racing all of a sudden. He actually needed to stop just to collect himself. He started to feel panic over this, unsure what was going on.
"W-what is going on?" He thought to himself, worriedly. He sat down on a small bench as he held his chest. He wasn't aware of it, but his dorsal fins were glowing faintly. As he pondered what was wrong, he suddenly felt thoughts of Rainbow going missing flooding his mind!
He remembered that Dash was going to take a nap, which was something she mentioned while leaving. Without knowing why, Neocros started to think of that aura, and now this.
"Neocros!" He could hear his name in his ear, in Rainbow Dash's voice.
His irises shrunk, before he snapped his gaze toward the woods. Without wasting time, he sprinted toward what he felt was Rainbow Dash's location! He saw several clouds that were closer to the ground, before he suddenly sensed something deep inside him. He remembered every time he'd meet her, how she made him happy, how she looked, all of it, it drove him to see her okay.
Despite his lack of evidence, he felt like the culprit was there.
...
Rainbow Dash screamed out once more, as the beast growled at her.
"Who are you!?" She shouted, her eyes welling up a little. The monster loomed over her, its face showing no empathy for her struggle.
It began to lower its head, mouth opening slightly, as she could clearly see a bone in the back of it's throat!
"Noooo!!!" a shout from a familiar dragon roared. Rainbow Dash snapped her gaze toward Neocros, and so did the beast. He arrived just in time, standing on the grass in front of them over ten feet away.
“Neocros!” She cried out. Neocros froze instantly. The beast turned around, before facing him. For a moment, everything fell silent, two creatures staring at each other, the water dragon full of fear and uncertainty, while the monster stood with child-like apathy.
The fuel-feeling aura was stronger than ever here, within Neocros. It was then a horrifying thought came to Neocros, that this must’ve been the thing he was sensing all this time!
Rainbow Dash blinked, glancing back and forth between the two, worried for Neocros' safety. She knew he hadn't been in a situation like this before, and was about to warn him when Neocros' eyes widened, grunting as he held onto his head, wincing from a pain in his head. Suddenly, he heard a new voice right in his ear.
"You’re that dragon, right?'' The voice was deep, rugged, and monstrous in tone. The monster turned its body to fully face Neocros now. Its eyes continued to be empty and soulless, and Neocros kept his eyes away from them at all costs. Somehow, he felt like it was the monster who was talking to him.
"W-w... what?" He meant to ask what are you, but he only managed a small whimper.
“You, are you the dragon?” It said, eyes fixed on Neocros. Neocros didn’t want to reply, in fear of what may happen.
“So if you’re the water dragon…” The beast took a few steps toward him, and Neo took some steps back. “Then… you’re in my way. You’re in ALL of our way!”
“What you mean…?” Neocros nervously asked, terrified of what could come in reply.
It chuckled darkly, a guttural sound that made Neocros want to throw up. Rainbow Dash found it weird that Neocros was somehow communicating with the beast, but she didn’t understand what it was saying. It's eyes suddenly flashed, and two bright, sickly yellow eyes glowed from the empty sockets on it's face. “All the magic inside you is enough to make me really strong…!”
Though Dash didn’t know what was happening, it was clear from how pale Neocros’ face was that he was in extreme danger!
“Run!” Rainbow shouted, not knowing why, but felt she needed to. He bolted away, sprinting as fast as he could, Neocros nearly ran out of breath, but the adrenaline fueled him to run! The beast let out a loud bellow before he heard its loud stomps rapidly approaching behind him! Neocros glanced back, and nearly had a heart attack from seeing it charging right at him! He chose not to look back, nearly tripping after glancing back. He ran past tree after tree, as he heard the hulking monster close by!
Rainbow Dash saw him run, as the beast chased after Neocros! The water dragon started to lose breath fast, not pacing himself well as he could practically feel it's breath behind his neck!
It was then he saw a small river, one big enough for him to swim in. It lead to a waterfall, which stood as tall as a house. He saw a huge tree fly right past him, scaring the absolute tartarus out of him as he heard the monster uprooting trees!
"YOU'RE MINE!!" It roared, as Neocros jumped just in time to narrowly avoid a tree trunk rolling under him! This causes him to land hard on his ankles. He yelped, but couldn't think, only instinct was here! He was struggling with his legs, as the monster was almost in arms reach of him!
Dash saw the monster start approaching Neocros as Neo struggled to get up, and her expression was full of anger. She bolted toward the creature, and used her body to quickly hit it in the shoulder, knocking the beast to the side causing it to fall flat on its side!
"Go Neo!" She shouted, voice desperate as the monster released an enraged roar, nearly shattering their eardrums from how loud it was! Neocros quickly got to his feet and sprinted toward a nearby waterfall.
Somehow, through the panic of it all, he heard the water, as if inviting him to swim. He had another idea though, and it was something that he couldn't think much of.
As he stared at the rushing water, his irises lit up and somehow instinct took over! He jumped toward the raging stream, grabbing onto the rock under the waterfall.
Somehow, the water didn't affect his grip as he started climbing the rocky wall! The monster got up, and saw Rainbow Dash flying toward Neocros, and the beast hissed in agitation.
Rainbow Dash was shocked by Neocros literally going against the stream of the water, and not just that, but climbing faster than she ever seen a pony!
"How're you doing that!?" She called out, but Neocros couldn't reply. He reached the top, and was about to climb over when he heard a sharp noise fly past his left ear, it sounded like a laser. Rainbow saw the beast's white streak of energy fire from it's mouth and narrowly missed the water dragon's head!
Rainbow Dash quickly hovered over the raging water, and reached out. Neocros instantly grabbed her hoof, and she pulled him up. While the monster charged up another blast of energy, Neo and Dash ran. Rainbow Dash flying over the river while Neocros straight up ran through it, the current not slowing him down, something they both didn't notice while fleeing.
This river though lead to a small lake, but behind the lake was a cliff. Neocros and Rainbow stopped, seeing the sheer drop in front of them. They looked around, fear coming to their faces as they realized they weren’t going anywhere.
"Oh no..." Rainbow said to herself, "This is really, really bad!"
“Where you goin’ blue boy?” The beast teased darkly, Neocros had chills run up his spine. It was scary only he could hear it's voice. All Rainbow heard was a low bellow. They snapped their gazes behind them, and saw that the monster had somehow climbed up and caught up with them!
"You're not touching him!" Rainbow yelled, her teeth gritting as Neocros saw her. Everything slowed down, as his mind thought of her, the fact she saved his life, and then he desired to protect her, even though he was the one who probably needed saving.
Feeling braver than before, Dash charged at the monster, but the beast grabbed her chest, stopping all momentum in her. Neocros' eyes widened.
"No!" It was then, Neocros started to well up in his eyes as the monster looked at him, holding Dash in one hand while staring at the water dragon.
"Want her? Fight me." It taunted at him, while to Rainbow Dash it sounded like gibberish. Rainbow struggled, as she tried kicking the beast, but it kept her at a distance, so she was just kicking the air.
"Neocros! Run!" She cried out, but Neocros didn't know what to do. He was stuck feeling indecisive over it all. He wanted to run, but he cared for Rainbow Dash. It was then, he had the urge to close his eyes, looking deep within himself for an answer.
The monster’s smug look disappeared upon seeing him close his eyes, and it seemed like the beast was getting nervous, as if it sensed something that Dash didn't. It looked at Rainbow Dash, having an almost disappointed look on it's face.
Neocros groaned as he got to one knee. He sensed the danger he was in, but he also felt a cold build up in his body, it was rising to his mouth fast! He, without thinking, opened his mouth, only for a strong burst of water to shoot out! He jumped back, surprised by this, but then his mind got to thinking as he glanced at the monster. The small noise made from the water caused it to snap its gaze at him.
The dorsal fins on Neocros' back all started to glow a bright cyan glow. His heart pounding as his eyes were now like his dorsal fins! Rainbow Dash stares in awe, seeing the dragon seemingly charge up some kind of magic inside him.
The monster made a deep gasp, before releasing Rainbow Dash, and before Neocros could open his mouth though, his foe quickly started running away. It fled into the brush, and disappeared.
It was pretty evident that whatever Neocros was about to do, terrified the beast. Seeing that his enemy was gone, he fell to his knees, his dorsal fins stopped glowing, and he groaned in pain. For him, it felt like a sneeze, except he didn't sneeze, and was left with the pain of having the feeling linger before fading away. His body began to quiver from this.
Rainbow Dash saw him there, unsure what had happened, but she could guess that maybe he was about to unleash some kind of attack, but never got the chance to release it. She flew over and hovered down to him, all she could hear from him was slow, exhausted breathing.
"Hey, you okay Neocros?" She asked, visible concern for his rapid breathing. Upon hearing her voice, Neocros didn't think before he acted. He reached out, and took her hooves, startling Rainbow, before he placed them on his chest. She felt his violent heartbeat. "Woah!"
He held her hooves, as he wheezed, as if begging her not to push away. His breathing began to sound a bit more calm now, the sound of his heartbeat not as violent as before, everything was becoming more stable for him. Rainbow felt awkward, but still was worried for her friend.
She didn't know what was happening, why was he like this? Was it because of the move he was about to pull? Is this natural for his species? So many questions raced through her mind. Though it felt weird, she could see that her presence was helping him calm down. She hovered down, feeling for him.
As Neocros felt himself coming down, he felt an urge to hug the sky blue pegasus, but something told him inside to not do so... yet. He kept holding her hooves, as his body returned to normal. He looked up to see her face, and saw that she seemed concerned, but he didn't exactly read it that way, and thought she was embarrassed of him. He glanced away, feeling ashamed, as he released her hooves. Rainbow could see a small tear on his cheek, and wondered what was wrong.
"Neocros? Tell me, are you alright?" She asked.
He mumbled something, but he eventually spoke up. "I.. embarrass... you..."
"What? No! You're not embarrassing me, it's just...you looked like you were about to explode! Your chest was..."
".....I see..." He whispered. He tried to get to his feet, but he almost fell over, but Rainbow catches him. He didn't expect her to catch him, and asked why was she caring all of a sudden.
"I may not know you well, but I'm not gonna just sit there and watch you die!" She replied. Though he wasn't dying, he did feel uneasy about the thought of it.
"I'm low..." He said, holding his chest. "l-low.. on energy..."
Rainbow Dash blinked, but nodded. "Let's get you to Twilight, she should know what to do!"
Neocros couldn't even think, everything felt like a blur when Dash brought him to Twilight Sparkle's huge castle. Next thing he knew, he was on a couch with a washcloth on his head and fell asleep.
He slowly opened his eyes, feeling a headache. As his vision focused, he saw Twilight and Rainbow Dash were talking, presumably about what had happened. Upon noticing that he was awake, Twilight quickly assured him he was alright.
"What... wrong with me...?" He asked, exhausted.
"There's nothing really wrong with you, but it seemed you were on the verge of some kind of heart attack." Twilight explained, which made Neocros anxious. "However, everything seems to be fine with you physically. I'd recommend a checkup though just in case."
"Phew, at least we survived that beast." Dash chuckled, but Neocros wasn't laughing. He was horrified by what this beast was intending to do to him. He looked at Dash for a moment, before trailing off to think of what that creature was. His gaze was locked on somewhere behind Rainbow, as Dash and Twilight noticed he had gone quiet. “Uhm…Neocros?”
Neo glanced back at them, only making eye contact for a moment before looking around.
“Sorry. What was that thing?” He asked. Twilight placed a hoof on her chin.
“I don’t think I’ve seen anything like Rainbow described. Perhaps we should talk more in the morning.” She said, thoughtfully, with Neocros noticing the digital clock indicating that it was nightfall.
...
It had been a week since his encounter, and ponies had stopped going missing. Though it was a relief to everyone in town, it was unknown why it stopped. Over twenty ponies, including mares, had gone missing, and so far they haven't been recovered, but that number was about to increase...
Neocros was behind Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, with Twilight walking alongside Fluttershy as Dash flew above. He looked at the blades of beautiful grass blending into the golden sands next to them on the path. Rainbow's shadow hovered around them as they strolled along. They were heading toward the beach after the girls received troubling news, and he chose to tag along.
Two coast guard ponies were behind them, and Neo heard them quietly whispering about him. It made him saddened that they were talking about him, but he didn't have the courage to speak about it.
"We also had a lifeguard go missing in this area," one of the coast guards said, "which would explain why we have no idea why the reef died so suddenly."
"You sure?" Twilight asked. The two stallions nodded.
"She didn't check in at the main building, and her family said she hadn't returned home since leaving for her night shift." the other guard said. Twilight, as well as her friends were all dreading the return of the epidemic.
Neocros shuttered, chilled to the core over this. Just why were people just up and vanishing like this? It was making his anxiety worsen, especially with the thought of Rainbow vanishing, or his friends. As they approached the beach, the water dragon heard seagulls, and the peaceful sounds of wind and water singing in sync. It helped that no one else was there with them, for that the beach closed due to pollution. Yet, it seemed calm here, perhaps the dead reef was further down? He wasn't given much knowledge on where it was.
After around five minutes of walking, the coast guards brought them to an area down the beach, near some rocks and a small cave. The reef would have been a brightly colored underwater forest of various coral and tropical fish, easily seen through the clear water, and it is a common spot for sea ponies to visit. That was not the case upon arrival. The reef was gray and lifeless, with dead coral almost invisible beneath the clear blue waves. On the shoreline, black sludge with what looked to be purple veins in them littered the sand, even making the water near it turn purple, with the edges where the pollution and water meet was a bright red. Patches of dead coral stuck out from the sludge.
The coast guards warned not to come any closer, but the mere look of the mysterious pollution made everyone nearly gag, despite them standing a fair distance away. Twilight and Fluttershy were absolutely baffled, never having seen this kind before. Neocros couldn't even look at the toxic sludge, feeling like he was going to be physically sick.
"What could've done this...?" He thought.
"Somepony or something must've dumped sludge into the reef overnight, as it can't be due to natural causes." The coast guard suggested, looking down with shame on his face as Twilight had a hoof on her chin, trying to figure out who or what could've done this.
Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash flew high into the sky, being careful to be distant from the sludge. She wanted to get a bird's eye perspective, but while she was in the air, Neocros wanted to call out to her to be careful. He was not sure how poisonous the pollution was, and feared for her health. Biting his lip, he asks Fluttershy if she's going to be okay.
She told him Rainbow knew what she was doing, but she could tell he was nervous. They were all on edge over this. The string of disappearances had caused the entire town to up their security, combined with paranoia settling in with the locals, to the point where some actually accused Neocros of being responsible, after all, the epidemic started not long after he moved in. At least two ponies had approached him once, saying that it’s rather suspicious that he came to town before ponies went missing. Twilight and even Rainbow were furious when Neo finally told them about it. Needless to say, he hadn’t had ponies approach him after that, but he still felt like just because they won’t approach him, doesn’t mean they didn’t think he’s responsible.
Above them, Rainbow Dash had a greater view, and it wasn’t any better. Some of the fish and sealife had floated to the surface, stained black by the toxic waste, and though Dash couldn’t see it with her vision, the fish were tattooed with the same veins as seen on the sludge at the shore.
What unnerved her though, was there was a nearby seagull trying to get out of the water, but it had sludge on its wing, making it desperately try to fly for freedom. Rainbow would’ve tried to save it, had it not been for the seagull going under. It didn’t surface.
Feeling chills down her back, she felt really bad for not saving the seagull in time, but figured that if she did try, she would’ve gotten infected as well.
While Fluttershy and Twilight were looking around, Rainbow flew back after her aerial view, and hovered at their level. Neocros wanted to stay as far away from the pollution as possible, and find any clues to help out his friends.
Despite his anxiousness, Rainbow Dash safely landed next to them.
“What did you see?” asked Fluttershy,
“It looks worse from up there. The whole reef is engulfed in it!” She replies with a sense of worry. There was a sense of dread in the air, while Fluttershy and Twilight tried to figure out what’s causing this, Rainbow Dash decided to hover over to Neocros, who was pacing around nervously as the sky blue pegasus could see the look his face was making.
“Neocros?” she asked, prompting the water dragon to notice her, “What’re you doing?”
“Not much.” He simply replies, but it’s evident he was still bothered by the pollution. He started walking away from the site, as Rainbow Dash was wondering whether or not to follow him.
He didn’t walk very far before he took notice of the cave. It was further down the beach, on a small island that was connected to the shore via a few large rocks. Neocros saw a faint shadow receding deeper into the cave.
He blinked, before glancing back at Rainbow.
"Dash? I thought I saw something." He said, before pointing toward the cave. "I saw movement in the cave."
“Huh? Really?” She followed his hand, and saw the cave entrance. She didn’t see anything, which made Neocros feel like he made a fool of himself. Normally he’s very chill about stuff like this, but not today. As he moved further down the shore, but still within range of the girls, he noticed some faint tracks. He called out to Rainbow, telling her he saw footprints, which naturally caught everypony’s attention.
Twilight and Fluttershy approached, and saw the tracks. Although faded, they were large enough to remain solid for a good while. They were tree trunk shaped, with three toes in the front and two smaller ones on the back of the heel.
“Huh, those weren’t there when we inspected the site.” one of the coastguards said. Twilight found this both odd and intriguing.
“What could’ve made these?” Rainbow asked, Fluttershy shook her head.
“I don’t know any animal who made these tracks.” Fluttershy replied.
…
As Fluttershy and Twilight were investigating further, Neocros and Rainbow Dash were walking down the beach. Rainbow Dash was curious as to what was in the cave, but was also a little weary, after that time she was ambushed by that monster, but she made sure not to make it obvious to anypony.
Neocros didn’t want anyone seeing his anxiousness again, and knew Dash was aware of it. While they were traveling side by side, Rainbow noticed Neocros doing something strange with his hair and fingers.
"Why do you keep pulling your hair like that?" Rainbow asked. Neocros would dig his fingers into his long hair, before pulling it, seemingly combing it over and over. It was hard for him to explain. Rainbow Dash would see him do it from time to time, but didn’t know how to feel until she decided to ask him.
"Uhm... I don't know.. I guess it's... to help me ventilate..." He stuttered a little. "Like... If I'm stressed... or afraid... it helps me stay stable..."
Rainbow Dash found this behavior odd.
"Why does it help you?"
He took a second to think of a reply, and though normally he'd feel pressure to reply before somepony moves on, his brain seemed dull enough to speak. "... I don't know."
Rainbow Dash squinted, but shrugged it off. They glanced around with the sun on their backs. While strolling, he couldn't stop thinking about that beast they encountered over a week prior. It was scary just how freakish the thing was. As they continued walking, he remembered something he thought of around the time after encountering the monster. Neocros wasn't sure how to communicate it to Rainbow, but Twilight encouraged him to speak with her more often, since he was mostly known as the town mute, and the scapegoat for the disappearances.
"H... hey, can I ask you something...?" He asked, judging by the tone of his voice, Rainbow knew something was wrong. She had learned from prior experiences with him to listen carefully and be patient.
"What?"
"I... remember that monster...?" He asked.
"Yeah."
"W-well... I've been getting these brief.. episodes where I get sickly. It just happens, and I don't know why..." He said, before following it up with something his intrusive thoughts have been saying from the beginning. "I think it’s linked to it... somehow, someway. I felt the feeling when facing him."
"Huh? That's weird, but it's probably just a coincidence."
Neocros glanced down at the sand below them, trying to figure out if it truly was a coincidence or not. After the walk, they finally reached the cave entrance. They were about to enter when Dash remembered something, “Hold on, we don’t have a flashlight!”
Neocros scratched the back of his neck.
“I’ll be back, you stay here.” she said, before bolting away toward Fluttershy and Twilight. Neocros stood there, a bit taken aback by her immense speed, and waited patiently for her. After only a few seconds, Rainbow Dash stopped midair in front of him in a huge breeze of wind. She was holding a flashlight in her hooves. “Back,”
Rainbow gave the torch to him, and he flicked it on. With it, the two journeyed inside. With careful steps, the two entered the dimly lit crevice, Rainbow noted that it was much cooler here.
Inside the cave, there was a noticeable dip in elevation, with the cavern going deeper into the earth. Stalactites and stalagmites surrounded them while they followed the prints, which seemed to get easier to see with each step. However, it was getting darker the deeper they went, daylight from the entrance not reaching far enough.
Normally the tunnel would be glowing with bio luminescent microbes inside, but the cave was dark.
Small droplets of water fell from the ceiling, forming small stalactites while exploring the tunnel. In front of them, there was another tunnel that led toward their left. Neocros considered going inside, but Dash wanted to keep going forward. Following her lead, they kept going forward.
While walking deeper and deeper, the tracks slowly started to fade. Neocros tried to figure out what could’ve caused the pollution. It pretty much left everyone puzzled as to what happened. The tracks had led them in here, but Neocros was having second thoughts about this. It feels like they were being… baited.
“Uhm… maybe we shouldn’t go any further…” He said, which made Rainbow puzzled. How could they be…
Just when he had said that, there was a quiet, but audible booming sound. Pausing, they looked around, as it sounded like it came from behind the walls. After a few seconds, a low rumbling was heard, with a little bit of vibrations on the floor, as if something was… erupting beneath them! Rainbow Dash and Neocros looked at each other, before they heard something splashing and swooshing… behind them.
When they turned around, Neocros pointing the flashlight down the tunnel, they saw just in time large amounts of water rushing toward them!
Neocros gasped, as Rainbow Dash yelled out in fear!
“Ru-u-u-un!” Rainbow shouted as she bolted forward, with Neocros not far behind, the duo running as the entire tunnel started to quake and crumble! Bits of rock and ancient coral fell from the ceiling as Rainbow dodged each one, Neocros struggling to keep up. He could feel the water droplets rushing past him, touching his back as he could barely catch a breath!
Rainbow Dash zig-zagged through the air, avoiding falling debris as her eyes were wide with fear, Neocros sharing her expression as he tried to keep up!
Suddenly, one rock hits Rainbow’s wing, causing her to fall to the ground. Neocros ran past her due to his momentum, before turning around to see her on the floor! He darts over and helps her up, immediately picking her up, which surprised Dash, but she couldn’t reply because the water was only a few feet away when Neocros bolted full sprint!
Neo didn’t even notice how fast he was running, nor was he paying attention to the fact that he was carrying Rainbow Dash over his shoulder.
The water was gaining on them, but Neo ran faster than his legs could carry him! Dodging each falling debris that landed in front of him! He could feel the waves nearly touching his tail while running!
In front of them, a small light began to glow, it was sunlight! Neocros was huffing, and Dash knew that he couldn’t hold out for much longer, so she tried to motivate him.
“C’mon Neo! Keep going! You can do it!” it worked, for that Neo felt for her, realizing he can’t just let the waves crash on him. They were running uphill now, it was subtle, but the light was noticeably rising with each step.
The water threatened to pull them under, he felt those same droplets hitting him again.
Finally, after what felt like a whole minute, the exit shined in their faces, before the water forced them out of the tunnel!
Rainbow Dash yelled out, as Neocros didn’t have time to react upon impact!
Splashing into normal water, Neocros quickly rose to the surface, wincing as his eyes were forced shut, disliking the feeling of water in his eyes, especially sea water. Some also went up his nose, causing him to cough and groan.
Despite being a water dragon, which is already an unfamiliar creature, he couldn’t open his eyes underwater, let alone stand having water on his face. He spat into the water, disliking the taste of salt, and shaking his head.
When he did manage to get his eyes open for a few seconds, he noticed Dash wasn’t surfacing, and he instantly knew something was wrong, before desperately searching around the water, trying to see through the surface. His heart instantly sank when he saw a multicolored blur beneath the water only a few meters from his right.
“Oh no, no no no NO NO NO!!” He thought, swimming over and without thinking, he ducked his head underwater, holding his breath. He outstretched his arms to try and feel for her, but it was no use. He was blindly flailing around as Rainbow Dash sank deeper. She stared up at the dragon, briefly thinking to herself how dumb he seemed.
Neocros tried to open his eyes underwater, only to instinctively shut them. In the brief moment when he was seeing through water, he realized Dash was not in front of him. In reality, she was sinking nearby behind him
His heart was pounding, making him groan as a huge air bubble escaped his mouth. The anxiety, fear, and worry was so overwhelming, he felt he was going to pass out. He can't even see Rainbow underwater and his body is calling it quits! He didn't want to give up, he cared for her with every fiber of his being!
It's then, he realized something, he could hear everything. The water didn't fill his ears, but rather he was able to sense so much noise. That alone almost sent him into a panic-filled meltdown!
Among all the noise, he heard the air escaping Dash's mouth, the air bubble sent chills down his spine.
"Buck it." He finally opened his eyes, the water felt cool to them, and he almost shut them again, before he realized that it didn't hurt as much as when he did it the first time. He opened them again, and this time, he kept them open. Realizing Dash wasn’t in front of him, he turned around below him, he saw Dash's eyes had closed, and it seemed she had gone limp! "Noo!"
He quickly dove down to reach her, not noticing that webbing formed between his fingers and toes, and the hair at the tip of his tail became almost... paddle-like. He swam as fast as he could toward her, everything inside going silent as all other noise didn't matter anymore to him, for that adrenaline rushed through his system from his drive to save his crush!
She kept sinking, air leaving her as she felt herself fading! The last thing she felt was a hand grab her hoof, and yanked her upward! Her head lowered as he wrapped his arms around her, his right arm locking underneath her shoulder while the other hand wrapped around her rear. He made sure to secure the limp pegasus in his arms, and he quickly swam upward with just his feet and tail!
With his heart racing out of control, he held her close to him tightly, not wanting her to slip from his grasp. The water pressure seemingly didn't affect him, as he felt her slipping from him!
He grabbed her again! His tail wrapped around her briefly, before he locked his arms around her, and this time he wasn't letting the pressure take her away from him again! Neocros swam back up once more, this time his dorsal fins glowed, and suddenly she wasn't being dragged down anymore.
"Please don't die!!" He cried in thought, the surface just feet above them.
He finally surfaced! He didn't need to take a breath, for that he wasted no time in taking her to shore. He kept staring down at Rainbow with fear and dread on his face. He realized that the shore was a little far, which gave him a sinking feeling.
It’s here he realized she wasn’t breathing. His eyes widened, and his heart was about to explode. He held her in his arms, and stared at her for only a second when he felt something he hadn’t before.
Without thinking, he kissed her on the lips, and he suddenly felt water rushing into his throat. He almost recoiled, but kept calm, as his dorsal fins glowed vibrantly while absorbing the water from her lungs. Neocros held her gently before she suddenly began coughing into his mouth, causing him to release her.
After a few seconds, Rainbow slowly opened her eyes, and was met with bright sapphire irises staring at her. Neocros was holding her before staring off to the side. Rainbow froze. Usually she'd bolt away by any form of affectionate touching, but Neocros wasn't doing anything to make her uncomfortable, and when she glanced around, she saw that no pony was around. Dash blushed, staring back at him.
"... y... you okay?" He asked, voice shaky, and on the verge of tears, which he had shoved down for the entire ordeal. Rainbow glanced at him, her eyes widening upon seeing his now watery eyes.
"You...you just..." She was lost for words,
"I... I thought I lost you..." He cried, bowing his head and turning away, hiding his tears. Unlike every stallion she ever met, he was actually concerned for her privacy, and would constantly beat himself up if he even remotely stared at her in an awkward way.
"... I know you're strong... b-but... but..." He stuttered, "... I can't imagine.. I don't want a beautiful girl like you dying..."
Cringing, he shut his eyes in fear of repercussion, but instead of being yelled at, when he glanced back, he saw her expression was different. Her eyes were wide, her face as red as the red part of her mane, and her mouth agape. He feared he offended her, until she looked away, a hoof covering her mouth, as if hiding a smile. Neocros remained quiet, unsure what to do in the moment. Does he tell her he likes her? Does he stay quiet? Does she already know? So many questions raced through him. Rainbow Dash looked back at him.
“…Do you like me?” she noticed his eyes darting around, before he met her gaze. For a moment, Neocros felt calm seeing her. He was still a bit afraid of what she’ll say, but the fact that she’s alive made him feel better. Neocros nodded.
“I care for you… I love you…” he said, glancing away once more, fearing for his skin and afraid of hurting her. Instead of getting a huge protest, he instead heard a faint gasp from her, and Dash stared at him. She looked calm about this, which made the anxiety go down for a bit.
Rainbow was surprised, he showed no indication of loving her, but yet now that he said it, she started to see the hints. He always seemed on edge whenever she was unlucky enough to encounter Zephyr Breeze, but Neocros remained stoic, despite the fact that he'd have his eyes on them every time she had the misfortune of having to hear Zephyr flirt with her.
He was always looking out for her, even though he very much didn’t hang out with the locals often. He met her gaze again, and this time he tried to retain eye contact. Rainbow Dash was blushing, but smiled.
“Heh…you may not be the best, but you’re awesome when you’re yourself. I like you too…” she trailed off, when she noticed movement in the tunnel behind Neocros. In that exact moment, Neocros felt the all too familiar sick feeling in his body. For a moment, Neo tried to refute the feeling, only for him to notice Rainbow Dash glancing at something behind him, her irises shrinking as her mouth grew agape.
Rainbow Dash saw a pair of gray claws grip the sides of the tunnel they came out of. A Large beast began to emerge from the tunnel, eyes black and empty. It had some kind of goop connecting its jaws together, with a sneering look on its face. Chills ran up her spin, it was the same creature that chased them!
“N-Neo! Watch out!”
“Rainbow, hold your breath, please.” he said, with a shaky voice. “Quickly…!”
She took a deep breath, and held in. Without looking behind, Neo wrapped his arms around her and swam forward, diving into the water before he darted through like a seal! The monster made a gigantic splash as Neocros used his tail as a rudder!
He held her to his chest, as Rainbow held her eyes shut, before Neocros zoomed across the water!
Fortunately though, the beast wasn’t as fast as he was underwater.
He was close to the beach, before he breached the surface! Jumping out of the water and onto shore, he ran with Rainbow in his arms. Rainbow coughed a bit, and was about to protest when she realized they were on the beach!
Running as fast as he could, Neocros sensed the monster not far behind them, but he was now huffing and puffing, the exhaustion now catching up to him!
Not far from the cave, Twilight and the others were running toward the cave, having heard the blast from the water and hoping that their friends were okay.
As Neocros ran, he briefly glanced back, only to see the beast not far behind. Now that it was on the shore, the earth shook with each step it made, and it made a loud roar, which sent low frequency vibrations through Neocros, causing him to sprint faster and more desperately!
Rainbow Dash looked over Neo’s shoulder, and saw the beast.
“He’s gaining on us!” she cried. Neocros grunted as his legs started to ache a little from running. The monster growled, admitting a voice.
"You're not getting away this time." The beast said, voice gurgled and incomprehensible to Rainbow, but only Neocros understood it, and it only freaked him out more.
Ahead of them, the small patch of land stopped, with the only thing connecting them to the mainland were a path of semi-large rocks, making a sort of bridge. Neocros saw this, huffing as he had to think fast!
Neocros sprinted forward, narrowly dodging a swipe from the spikey arm of the beast! He knew he’d need to slow down to jump across each rock, but just before he could jump, he saw Twilight and her friends approach the area!
“Help!” He shouted, with Rainbow turning around to catch a glimpse of her friends.
He slowed down a little, just to jump to the first rock, then the next, and then the third before he heard the beast stomping right behind him!
It opened its mouth, admitting a gurgling sound, with a faint red glow in its throat before it was hit with a beam of Twilight’s magic! The beast stumbled backward, roaring in fury as Neocros was able to leap across each rock, landing safely on the sand!
It’s here he finally released Rainbow Dash, letting her run since her wings were still wet from the sea water. She ran up to her friends, as Neocros caught up to them.
They reunited with Twilight and Fluttershy, and all of them were about to run again when they noticed that the monster was backing off. It let out a loud bellow in rage, but didn’t immediately chase them.
“What is that thing!?” Twilight said, with Fluttershy staring with fright, the purple alicorn turned to Fluttershy, “Fluttershy, do you–”
“I don’t!” Fluttershy replied.
For a moment, they’re able to get a better look at it. It had a large mouth that hung open on its abdomen, hair covering its forearms, or at least looked like hair, it had tree trunk-like feet, a long thick tail, and its chest had an open cavity that exposed a strange, spongy red core. The sight was horrific to say the least.
“Is it just me, or is that thing bigger and more…zombie-like, than before?” Rainbow asks, which confirmed Neocros’ suspicion as well. It appeared the creature had gotten larger than their last encounter.
“Is this the creature you guys saw a week ago?” Twilight asked, which the duo nodded in response. It seemed the creature was not used to seeing more than two targets, and started to back away beneath the shade.
After a few seconds, the creature disappeared back into the water. The water started to bubble, and darken. The area where the monster sank was now starting to resemble what was seen at the shore…
“Huh, guess that solves the mystery.” Rainbow muttered, referring to the pollution. For a moment, Neocros was paranoid he got pollution on him, but it seems that he swam so fast that it didn’t affect him or Rainbow.
…
As the sun was setting, Twilight had decided to contact authorities regarding the creature. Neocros and Rainbow Dash were sitting near an ice cream stand outside of the beach.
Neocros rubbed the back of his neck, staring at his ice cream while Dash got hers. He was still bothered by that monster, just why was it so angry at him? He tried to distract himself by glancing at Rainbow, but not outright staring as to not appear creepy.
“Hey Neo,” Rainbow began, holding her favorite flavored popsicle, “Thanks for saving me back there, I never seen you run that fast before!”
He only hummed in agreement, giving her a brief nod. Rainbow Dash and Neocros both ate their ice cream, with Rainbow eating hers in less than a few seconds, but unfortunately gave her a mini brain freeze. Neocros asked if she was alright, which she said she was, even though beneath it she was cringing from the pain.
After finishing his ice cream, they were about to go their separate ways when Neocros remembered something. He turned around, and called out to Rainbow. She hovered down to his level, and asked what was up.
“Uhm.. Rainbow, you busy tomorrow?” He asked. Rainbow Dash rubbed her neck.
“Yeah, why do you ask?”
Neocros glanced down at the ground, and feared he might come off as demanding, but then again he already confessed but was interrupted by that monster, so he thought it wouldn’t hurt to ask.
“Can we go somewhere… on sort of a date?” It took all of his courage to get those words out.
Dash’s face lit up, and now it was her turn to look away. Neocros’ anxiety was out of control at this point, but anyone looking at him from the outside wouldn’t exactly know that. She was unsure at first, but after a few seconds, Rainbow smiled, and nodded.
“Sure, I’ll need to finish some weather work and other things, but I’ll see what I can do!” Rainbow smiled, which in return, Neocros’ eyes lit up, and gave her a small smile, before nodding. With that, after a few more minutes of hanging out, they both had to part ways due to the rising moon.
Needless to say, so many emotions were flowing through him upon returning home and laying in bed. Neocros was under the covers while holding onto a pillow, which he had been doing for a while, imagining it as Rainbow.
Admittedly, he felt something in the back of his mind, a dark feeling that told him his feelings were fake, or that he was wasting his time. He would’ve refuted them, but due to his anxious self, he couldn’t write them off either. Until he went on this time, there’s no way of really knowing for him.
He couldn’t focus on them though, and needed to sleep early…
