The Stone

                                                                           I

  It was a warm, humid night making the night air uncomfortably sticky and damp. Rainbow Dash was not exempt from this feeling. She had been tossing and turning on her cloud bed all night, to the point that the cloud she was sleeping on became a dark storm cloud. So of course being Rainbow Dash she went for a short flight session.

  The night air was spectacular. Blowing in her multi-colored mane. She couldn’t have felt more alive than in the sky. She soared through various clouds, her body becoming damp from the wetness of the water filled clouds. She smiled and turned her head to the glowing moon. The glow of the moon was brilliant that night, it was glowing a nice yellow making the night a bit brighter than usual.

  She soon disregarded the moon completely and focused on gaining more speed. The air began to rush by her faster, and faster. Causing her cheeks to make swishing motions, and her saliva to brush off of her cheeks and down to the far off ground. This would usually tell any pegasus to slow down. But Rainbow Dash raged on into the night.

  She veered up, then down, then up again creating the shape of a perfect circle in the clouds. She giggled to herself, stopped, and shook the water from the clouds out of her mane. She was floating just below the clouds now and saw the perfect circle she had created in the clouds.

  She put a hoof to her chin, “I can do better than that.” She muttered with a smirk. And she zoomed back into the clouds.

  She dipped in, and out of the clouds. Zigzagging to and fro, back and forth, her heart pounding against her chest as she sped along at lightning fast speed. And when she felt she was done she zoomed back below the clouds and admired her masterpiece.

  It was a large image of her cutie mark, down to the last detail. Every inch of fluffy cloud was crafted perfectly into her cutie mark. From the zigzagged lightning bolt to the cloud just above it.

  Rainbow put a hoof to the back of her head and laughed, “You done good Rainbow, you done good.” She said to herself.

  But there was so much more she could do. The taste of the fresh air in her mouth was intoxicating. “Ghastly Gorge here I come!” She shouted into the night.

  Rainbow raced to the outskirts of Ponyville. Soaring over Fluttershy’s cottage along the way. She rolled her eyes at the thought of Discord being in there. How could Fluttershy trust that creep? Even just the thought of his voice made her feel sick. But if she was to fly accurately she was going to have to push Discord out of her mind.

  Rainbow continued on her way until she was at the gorge. She flew into the large chasm, cut into the earth like a scar and prepared herself. She breathed in the air slowly. Inhale, exhale. Tasting the earthy taste of the rocks around her, and feeling the wind brush against her blue coat. She was ready.

  Rainbow stretched her wings in one last act of preparation and zoomed through the narrow gorge. She raced through until she would reach the Quarry Eels. Here she used extreme caution, but still maintained her extraordinary speed.

  She zoomed past the first hole in the gorge. Nothing. That was definitely weird. Next hole, nothing. Third one. Nothing. Rainbow Dash stopped midflight and peered into one of the holes. “Hey! Big snake thingies!? There’s a tasty, blue snack waiting for you!” Her voice echoed through the serpent’s home. She waited. No response, “Helllloooooo!?” She yelled again this time putting one hoof into the cave.

  The cave was dark, but she was still able to see where she was going. Rainbow could feel her heart pounding now. Rainbow frowned, “C’mon Dash! The dark never hurt anybody.” She yelled vigorously into the cave.

  What would Twilight say? Rainbow thought to herself as an image of the purple mare came to mind. "It’s dangerous Rainbow! Think before you act!" Rainbow’s imaginary Twilight said. Rainbow Dash shook her head to and fro and laughed, “Yeah. Something just as egg heady as that.” Rainbow said, still laughing.

  Dash trotted along into the cave, as the air became abnormally heavy, and the rock ceiling became lower, and lower causing her to hunch over. Rainbow wormed her way through, now laying on her tummy. Rainbow sighed. The idea of turning back now was becoming quite appealing.

  Yet, something told her to continue on. Despite the uncomfortable circumstances. So, out of instinct she crawled on, one hoof after another. After what seemed like hours the sound of a cascading waterfall made Rainbow perk up her ears. It didn’t sound too far off. As a matter of fact it sound pretty close to Rainbow’s sensitive ears.

  The idea of getting a refreshing drink made Rainbow crawl faster than ever. After some moments the ceiling began to rise, and the tunnel suddenly swooped down. Taking Rainbow for a short slide, until she plopped into a large cavern.

  The cavern was magnificent, it looked so beautiful it had to have been created by ponies. Around her were a good many of oak trees. But. They looked too…perfect. The branches were obviously trimmed and the leaves looked almost golden. And a cobblestone path that lead through a small grove of the golden trees and behind a glorious waterfall. Its mist spraying everywhere, and an unknown light as if emanating from the trees creating a rainbow from the mist.

  Rainbow soon readied her wings to take flight around the cavern and lifted off. But. She couldn’t lift off. It was as if her wings were magnetized to the ground, “Huh?” Rainbow muttered. She tried once more and still nothing. “Darn it!” Rainbow shouted in anger. Maybe she should have listened to imaginary Twilight after all.

  But the loss of her flight didn’t stop her. She trotted along the stone path, admiring the golden trees. “I’ve never seen these before.” She muttered, her mouth agape.

  Rainbow Dash stopped and admired the glistening leaves. The urge to fly up and pluck one was so great, but without her wings she could toss that idea out the window. But she couldn’t help but try. She grabbed the trunk (Which was surprisingly soft.) and attempted to climb it like a pole. But every time she would get close to grabbing one the tree’s trunk would go higher.

  “What the?” Rainbow said as she was just inches away from a leaf. She tried again and the tree rose higher, “Hmph! I see how it is tree!” Rainbow pouted and slid back down to the ground, and continued on the path. Until she reached the waterfall.

  The water was so clear. You could literally see fish swimming around in the little oasis that the waterfall had created. Rainbow could smell the water but it didn’t smell like water, it smelt of raspberries and honey which made the cavern even lovelier.

  Rainbow stooped down for a drink and pressed her mouth to the water. But right as she was drinking the water receded like bath water going down a drain, “Aw c’mon! This isn’t funny!” Rainbow said with a scowl and her hooves folded. After a few more tries she gave up and continued on the path that went behind the waterfall.

  Rainbow Dash now kept an angry scowl on her face as she trotted on. Behind the waterfall the mist from the water sprayed her relentlessly. “I’ve had it with this place.” Rainbow muttered, her hooves still folded.

  As Rainbow looked at the stone wall behind her there was something off about it. On the stone wall was a shining symbol of the sun. It shined like a flame. Bright, and warm. It filled Rainbow’s body with an intoxicating warmth. Rainbow Dash raised a hoof and touched it.

  Suddenly the stone wall before her crumbled into a pile of dust and pebbles, “Okayyy. This night just keeps getting weirder and weirder doesn’t it?” Rainbow said.

  Behind the crumbled stone wall was yet another room a very dark room. Rainbow eyed the room cautiously. It didn’t hold the same beauty as the cavern, it was just dark. Rainbow placed a hoof in the room and immediately felt freezing. As if winter had come to stay.

  Rainbow was ready to turn back. But the idea of being conquered by a dark room sickened Rainbow. So she entered the room. And suddenly it turned dark. She turned, ready to gallop to the exit and found that the open stone wall had reformed, trapping her inside.

  “Lemme out! Hey! Please!” Rainbow Dash yelled as she stomped her hooves on the stone wall, “Please!” Rainbow soon gave up and slumped onto the ground, “Am I gonna be stuck in here forever!?” Rainbow shouted at the top of her lungs.

  In a few moments there was a swirling sound, followed by a sinister looking, dim, purple color. That made Rainbow Dash’s lungs feel tight, as if she were being smothered by some malevolent force.

  When the sound stopped a strange purple light emanated from the center of the room. A strange deep sound as if something were in the room too. Something alive. Rainbow edged slowly to the center of the room, and saw a small black wash basin. The basin looked as if it were made of obsidian, it was black and shining from the purple light.

  When Rainbow was right in front of the basin, she saw that the water inside was black and swirling around in the basin. Rainbow furrowed her brow and stared into the water. She could see something shining underneath the water.

  As Rainbow Dash was just about to reach into the water a voice like a beast’s split through her head.

“Choose wisely Rainbow Dash.”

  Rainbow jolted from the voice, “W…who’s there!?” Rainbow called.

“I am but a friend Dash.” The deep voice called through the dark room.

  “What do you want?” Rainbow asked with a shaky voice. She could feel herself shaking, no matter how hard she tried to keep calm.

“I’m just here to tell you how to retrieve my stone.” The voice cooed to Dash.

  Rainbow looked offended, but still feeling quite scared said, “Your stone!? Sorry pal, finders keepers.”

“Sure young mare it is all yours.” The voice said slowly, but menacingly.

  Rainbow’s eyes widened, “You’re serious?” Rainbow asked, now feeling stupid.

“Why of course. That stone has been nothing but a waste of space. I was thinking more along the lines of a diamond rather than that thing. So, yes it is yours.” The deep voice called to Dash.

  Rainbow smiled. Maybe this deep voiced guy wasn’t a problem after all. She began to reach with her hoof into the swirling black water, “Awesome! Well I better-”

“STOP!” The voice shouted so that the whole room rumbled.

  “What?” Rainbow asked.

“You have to drink the water to get to the stone. Unless you wish to be trapped in here forever.”

  Rainbow Dash brushed a strand of her mane out of her eyes, “Yeah wouldn’t want that.”

“No we would not.”

  Rainbow peered into the basin, “Are you sure this is safe?”

“Safe? Who said anything about safe? If you want the stone, go for it. Or if not.” A rumbling noise came from behind her and the beautiful cavern was visible again. “You may leave without it. Your choice.”

  Rainbow Dash felt like something fishy was going on here. But that stone, it glowed so brightly she just had to have it. Rainbow gulped and breathed in the air, which had now become rather smokey and plunged her head into the water.

  Rainbow gasped at the feeling of the water. It was as if she were being stabbed multiple times through her snout. Water went into her lungs and she could feel herself drowning in the shallow water. She tried to pull her head out of it but it was no use she was stuck there.

  So she began to drink the water. With just the first swallow she could feel her throat burning. It was as if it were on fire, her body began to slowly go numb as more water filled her lungs. But she continued drinking up to the final droplet, when she was at last free.

  Rainbow Dash could feel herself blacking out but just before she could fall under the darkness she clutched her reward close to her heart. The purple stone was hers.

“Well done Rainbow Dash. Well done.” The voice called one last time just before Rainbow fainted.