"Diamonds are unbreakable?" Really? Diamond Tiara groaned, rolling her eyes. Why did I say something so stupid? Sure in a nasty fight where somepony thought I was beaten, broken and defeated it would be a great thing to say before getting back up to win. And why in the name of Discord was I laughing? Am I going insane already? Pretty sure that laughing while running into a dangerous situation is a sign that something is wrong with you.

Except something was wrong. Not with Diamond Tiara (well...not just with her anyways), but with Dinky Hooves. Dinky had been scared and angry over what happened to Rumble. So Diamond Tiara found herself trying to reassure her ... (friend? were they actually friends?) ... teammate (seemed like a safe choice) that everything would work out fine.

And how did she choose to do that? By acting like the same arrogant, know-it-all filly that she used to be. Why did that arrogant little brat always seem to show up at the worst possible times? Why was she finding it so hard to leave that part of her behind and become a better mare?

With a shake of her head, Diamond Tiara tried to push the thoughts aside and focus on what she was supposed to be doing now: finding Rumble. She had already been heading in the direction. Looking up, she gazed at the trees in search of any broken branches. Hopefully none of them would be impaled with a grey pegasus stallion.

There was no blood that she could see. So either he was somehow not bleeding, or -- more likely -- any injuries were too small to be immediately fatal. Of course this was mostly speculation. For all Diamond Tiara could know, Rumble could have hit something and been decapitated, his headless corpse lying in grass and a puddle of its own blood.

Maybe nothing's that bad, she thought to herself. Maybe Rumble is a little bruised but fine otherwise. He might even be trying to make his way back toward the path now. Maybe we'll be lucky enough to just run into each other and be able to head back.

And maybe I'll sprout wings on my flanks, a horn from my plot, and be crowned Princess Jewel-Butt.

The mental image of flying upside-down butt first and farting magic* did bring a small smirk to her face. One that quickly faded as her body tensed.

Something was wrong.

Crouching low and ears perked, she slinked forward. Taking slow, deep breaths through her nose, she smelled the air. It mostly had the freshly washed smell that came with the rain. Normally it was a smell that she would enjoy. In this case, it was a bit of a hindrance. The smell of the rain covered up the scent of pretty much everything else in the forest. The patter was a nuisance as well. If there was something to hear, it would have to be louder than the rain to be noticed. That was assuming that she was able to hear it at all to begin with.

Continuing forward, Diamond Tiara tried to pay attention to everything around her, including where she stepped. Her senses strained, trying to pick up any indication of what it was that had gotten her worked up.

The movement of something caught her attention. Crouching low enough that her barrel touched the ground beneath her, she crawled forward. Poking her nose through the brush, she looked for what she thought she saw. Her eyes went wide as her breath caught in her throat.

A large figure moved ahead. It looked like a lion, but had massive dragon-like wings and a scorpion tail. The creature -- a manticore -- seemed to be interested in something. It was circling around a specific spot, sniffing again and again.

Diamond Tiara shifted to get a better look at what had the creatures attention, and had to fight back the urge to gasp out.

A pale blue-gray colored form was laying on the ground, unconscious.

Rumble!

It was hard to tell what exactly, but something about the way he looked seemed off.

Weapon! Diamond Tiara thought. I need a weapon. Buck, buck, buck. I should have brought a weapon with me. Stupid, stupid, stupid. She looked around, trying to find something -- anything -- to use against the manticore.

A branch!

Turning back around, she headed back the way she came. Her eyes looked up at the trees and down at the ground, searching for any branches that had fallen or could be pulled free.

Finding one she felt was large enough, Diamond Tiara grabbed it in her teeth and ran back. This time, she made as much noise as possible, wanting to get the manticore's attention and distract it from Rumble. Unfortunately, that would mean the creature would be ready for her.

Shouting as best she could with the branch in her mouth, Diamond Tiara charged at the manticore as fast as she could. Rearing up, she twisted her body in an attempt to slam the thick wood against the manticore's head. She felt a shock of pain in her jaw as she struck something.

Opening her eyes, she looked.

Diamond Tiara had hit the manticore... in the shoulder. It did not seem to be hurt by the blow. In point, it looked annoyed.

Wings flaring, it let out a roar.

Shit! Diamond Tiara mentally screamed. Shit-shit! Fuck! Shit-fuck! I'm dead I'm dead I'm dead.

The manticore reared up on its hind legs and lunged, swinging one of its massive paws at the nuisance.

Diamond Tiara was able to lift the branch in time to block the strike. It sent a shock of pain through her body and caused her to stumble, but she managed to keep from falling. More importantly, she managed to keep from having those claws tear into her armor or flesh.

Okay. Okay. Calm down Diamond Tiara. Just calm down. She braced herself, facing the manticore again. You can do this. It should be a lot like sword fighting. Except that the creature you're fighting has the equivalent of, like, four swords at the same time, is a lot stronger than you, pissed off, and hungry.

The manticore took another swing of its paw at Diamond Tiara. She was able to jump back, just barely avoiding being struck by the razor sharp claws. Lunging forward, she then swatted at the thing's head with her branch.

This time, she was able to strike the head. There was a satisfying audible thump as the thick piece of wood slammed into the skull. The blow was sufficient enough to throw the manticore off balance for a moment, stumbling to one side. Unfortunately, it was not enough to actually defeat the creature.

Shaking off the impact, the manticore turned toward the pony fighting it again. Claws out, it swung at Diamond Tiara again. Eyes wide, Tiara turned, trying to face the creature and block the attack again. The claws struck the armor on her flank. There was an ear piercing screech as the claws scratched the armor, leaving shallow marks.

Well, since it's back there...

Diamond Tiara kicked out with her hind legs, aiming to buck the manticore. Her legs stretched out as far as they could, hooves hitting nothing. There was a huff as the air was knocked out of Diamond Tiara's lungs, hitting the ground from kicking too hard.

Something moved above her. Shoving herself hard, Diamond Tiara rolled to one side, trying to avoid whatever was coming toward her.

There was a shriek of metal and burst of pain as something stabbed into her flank.

The creature roared out in pain.

Diamond Tiara turned around to look, her eyes going wide at the sight. Sticking out of the armor on her flank was the end segment of the manticore's scorpion-like tail. Blood -- and some sickly yellow substance -- oozed from where the barb had pierced the armor, and her flank.

The manticore glared at her before disappearing into the forest. Diamond Tiara was skeptical that the creature was simply running off to leave her alone, even if it was injured. More than likely, the manticore would stay close by, simply waiting until the venom killed her before taking both her and Rumble as its prize.

It took some shifting and struggling, but Diamond Tiara was able to get a hold of the barb. With a hard yank, she pulled it out, jaw clenching against the chitinous surface as she hissed out in pain. More blood and venom poured from the wound, running down her leg and across the tear in the armor.

The pain was worse when she pushed to get up, the sharp metal edges digging and cutting at her flesh. All the same, Diamond Tiara was able to stand up, limping over to where Rumble laid, still unconscious.

She let out a sigh at the sight of him breathing.

"Come on," she said, lifting him onto her back. "I don't know about you, but I don't want to wait around here just to die." Once certain Rumble was balanced, Diamond Tiara started to walk back the way she thought she had come.

"I just hope to Celestia we get help in time," she whispered to herself as she walked.

At first, each step sent a fresh burst of pain through her leg, spiraling out and causing her to wince. As she continued, the pain grew less as a tingling sensation began to spread through the injured limb.

It had to be the right way. Diamond Tiara was sure of it. It looked familiar. So why did it seem to be taking longer to get back than it did to find Rumble?

The tingling sensation reached her back and stomach. She could feel it along her spine and tail. Worse, Diamond Tiara could no longer feel the leg, or move it. Instead, it simply dragged along, slowing her down further as she limped her way back toward the path.

There was no way for her to clearly measure time at the moment, but it seemed to take forever to make her way through the forest. Time and again, she was expecting to see the path ahead. Time and again, she only saw more trees. It had to be the right way. Had to be. Not only were there still signs of the broken tree limbs over head, but there was no time to go back the way they had come. They had to get back to the path. Otherwise, they two of them would die somewhere in the forest and nopony would know what happened to them, or where their bodies were.

Her other back leg gave out as she lost all feeling below the hips. Reaching up with a front hoof, she grabbed onto Rumble to keep him from sliding off her. The weight of two bodies being supported by a single leg was too much. Diamond Tiara collapsed against the ground, face first. There was a burst of pain as the front of her muzzle hit something. She tasted blood.

We have to be close. Just need to get a little further. Please, whatever powers are out there, please, please let us make it.

Digging her front hooves into the ground, Diamond Tiara pulled herself forward. She moved about an inch at most, but it was still movement. She did it again, slowly making a little more progress. The dirt, twigs, and rocks rubbed uncomfortably against her underside -- the part of it she could still feel anyways -- most likely scraping it raw.

Slowly, she moved further along, dragging herself inch by inch. Her lungs started to burn with the effort. The muscles in her front legs started to ache and stiffen as she kept trying. The tingling traveled further up along her body, making its way up toward her chest, as did the numbness.

"Please," Diamond Tiara gasped out. "Somepony, something, anything. Whoever is in charge out there, whoever is listening. Just please, please, please don't let it end here. Not like this. I don't want to die. And definitely not out here."

She saw the path.

"Oh. Thank you. Thank you so much."

She continued to drag herself forward. The tingling reached her shoulders. Her lungs started to ache. She felt like she could not breathe. Everything started to go blurry.

No! Not now. Not yet. I'm so close. Just a little further. Please. Just... just... a little...further...

...Apple Bloom...

Author's Note

*if anyone wishes to draw such a silly thing, please share it with me when you do.