Author's Note
This chapter was written some time ago. It was approved by Ecthelion before we lost contact. If he returns to the story, it may be added there later.
Dash vs Rosine
***
Dash exited the portal and looked warily around. It was night, full moon glowing between the thick clouds, which Rainbow’s pegasus senses identified as an approaching storm. The portal had opened at the base of a cliff - Dash was standing on a large rock shelf overlooking another drop, jagged rocks all around her. She walked forward and soon found a rocky path leading down. Below, a forest opened, strange lights dancing among the leaves. The pegasus was about to take into the air and scout ahead, when a wall of green flame erupted behind her. She flew up and took a stance, ready to fight.
“Chrysalis!”
The rock wall where the portal had been was now smooth and crystalline. Upon it, the reflection of queen Chrysalis appeared, her fanged mouth stretched into a mocking smile. Realising that the changeling queen had not appeared in person, Rainbow Dash relaxed her stance, but continued glaring. “What do you want? You came here to gloat, or what?”
“No, brave Rainbow Dash. I am just here to say goodbye”.
“Huh?” Rainbow Dash looked up at the wall with confusion.
“It is time for you to die. Nightmare and Discord seem to find it amusing to watch you break and lose yourself. But me, I don’t really have a grudge against you. You fell for my tricks and your later attempts to stop me were utterly useless. I do have a grudge against Twilight, but the rest of you I have no interest in watching suffer. The pink pony princess, on the other hoof... It will be delightful to send her your heads in a basket. And Rosine is just the monster to deliver yours to me. I have picked her myself. Enjoy your last night alive!”
And with a loud laughter she disappeared, the cliff face changing back into plain rock.
Dash stood there for a while, staring at the rock wall. So, things are serious now? Like they haven’t been already? She shuddered involuntarily, as memories of pain and bloodshed flooded her mind. I’d better find that “Rosine”, before she finds me. She turned around and took to the air, looking down towards the forest. This world felt differently than the last one she had fought in. She made a couple maneuvers to test her abilities. Everything seemed to be in order. No surprising new powers either, though. She would have to win the incoming fight just with the tricks she usually had at her disposal.
As she flew towards the forest, trying not to make unnecessary noise, she could see the moving lights more clearly - balls of pale green light, no bigger than an apple, moving like will-o-wisps among the branches of the trees. Some of them would fly closer, visibly interested at an intruder in their domain. As she got used to the glow, Rainbow Dash could make out their shapes - tiny, two legged creatures with slender bodies and translucent wings. They looked like tiny versions of the “humans” Dash met earlier, but with visible insect features. They had two pairs of arms each, one matching their bodies, ending in hands, one thin and definitely insectile. Their faces were flat with tiny noses, pupil-less, insect eyes, fluffy hair and twitching antennas. Furry collars surrounded their necks. They were all smiling at the pegasus, seemingly not at all threatened by her presence.
Dash stopped in the air, looking at the strange creatures, not sure what to do. They didn’t look threatening, but something in their smiles reminded Dash of parasprites. They called in childish, high-pitched voices.”Pony! Winged pony! Play with me!”
Flapping her wings, Rainbow Dash kept her distance. She still remembered her first fight. Looks could be deceiving. Still, those could at least speak pony. Leaning closer to one of the creatures, apparently a female, the pegasus asked, “Hey, do you know where I can find Rosine?”
The creature responded with a look of incomprehension.
Dash sighed, moving away to get a better look of her surroundings. It seemed the winged things would be no help after all. She wished she had more than a name to work with. She was about to fly up and continue her search elsewhere when her eye caught a bigger source of light in the distance. The creatures below saw it too, their movements suddenly showing signs of agitation.
“The queen! The queen is here! Look, we found a flying pony!” they started shouting.
Dash started gaining altitude, trying to keep her options open and stay away from anyone. The source of light was getting closer, flying gracefully among the trees. As it got closer, Dash saw more details. It was a girl, similar to the small flying creatures, with two pairs of arms, insect eyes and wings, but much larger - about the same height as the human girl Dash had fought in the Digital World. Her whole body was covered in fine turquoise hair, with thicker fur growing around her neck and shoulders like a small jacket. Instead of the insect wings the others had on their backs, she had a pair of huge moth wings growing out of the sides of her head. It looked as if she were wearing a large moth as a hood, with furry antennas over her brows and a coiled proboscis in the middle of her forehead. When she bent down to dive under a branch, Dash could see a small insect abdomen growing out of her back. What was strange was the manner of her flight - despite her moth-like appearance, she barely flapped her wings at all, instead gliding forward like an oversized swallow, or a really weird fish. When she saw Dash, she flew up and stopped, effortlessly hanging in mid air. Her face grinned. “There you are! I was about to ask my elves for help in finding you.”
Dash tensed. “So, you must be Rosine. You were looking for me? What do you need of me?”
Please, please, say something that will make killing you easier.
The girl clapped her human hands in joy. “Yes I am, though I don’t use that name anymore. Now I am the queen of elves. Oh, you are so cute. I wish I could keep you forever.” Her expression saddened suddenly. “But the changeling queen promised me an entire village of ponies to play with if I bring her your head. I hope they are all as pretty as you.”
That will do. With a single flap of her wings, Dash launched herself forward, charging at Rosine, aiming to kick her in the chest and knock her out of the sky. The girl’s insect eyes couldn’t convey much emotion, but her face had a brief look of surprise. Then she smirked and Dash saw something lash at her. She swerved at the last moment, avoiding a blow aimed straight at her face. Something pulled her, flinging her into the branches of a tree. She flew through them, narrowly avoiding the trunk and resuming her flight before the sensation of the injury caught up with her. Crying out in pain, she stared at her left front leg - there was a puncture wound close to the shoulder and judging by how much it hurt, something had pierced all the way through the limb.
Around Dash the tiny elves started howling and shouting in high-pitched voices. “We’re playing war! War on ponies!”
Rosine silenced them with a gesture. “Don’t interfere. This is a royal game to play. Just don’t let her hide or escape.” There was a small splatter of blood on her face and several inches of her coiled proboscis were now colored deep red. She charged against Dash, who dodged behind a tree, narrowly avoiding another stab. The proboscis coiled and lashed out again, this time slashing like a sword, taking out a branch in the elf queen’s way.
I need a plan, though Dash, zigzagging between the trees, trying to keep her distance from her opponent. She could feel the warm trickle of blood on her leg. Rosine was fast, too fast for a frontal attack, and her little minions would likely warn her against an attack from behind. One of the elves appeared just next to the pegasus as she tried to hide behind another tree. She swatted it away with a wing before it could call out. Surprisingly, it hurt, like getting too close to a stormcloud when it was kicked. Dash looked at her wing. One of the feathers looked singed.
The elf emerged from the bush Dash’s swat had knocked it into. It was glowing brighter now, and its smile turned from carefree to savage. Then the corners of its mouth cracked, revealing mandibles and rows of sharp teeth. Suddenly it had a long, striped abdomen with a vicious stinger, more a huge wasp than anything humanoid, its transformation complete in a blink of an eye. “Here she is!” it shouted.
Dash wanted to kick it, but hesitated to touch the burning globe of light. Instead she turned to fly away again. A second later Rosine appeared, attacking from below. Dash made a wild swerve, the whipping proboscis flying an inch from her chest. If she cuts my flight muscles, I’m a goner, she thought as the girl flew up and turned for another attack.
This time the elf didn’t charge directly, instead flying over Dash, beating her wings for a change. Dash felt a bitter taste on her tongue and instantly exhaled, beating her own wings to create a gust of wind. Her long list of aerial accidents included almost swallowing a moth once - the wing dust left her gagging all the way home, and that was just an ordinary moth. She had no intention of testing how Rosine’s brand of dust might affect her.
Another dive, another lash, this one leaving a red line across Rainbow’s cutie mark. I can’t keep dodging. I need to take initiative, now. Maybe if I can get close, I can time my counter.
Rosine slid between the trees and turned to strike from yet another direction.This time the pegasus was ready. She ducked only as much as she needed to avoid death, the proboscis ripping through her right ear, and closed the distance before the weapon could coil again. She bucked with both her hind legs, holding her breath to avoid the wing dust as she sent Rosine flying towards the ground. The girl struck a tree with such force that it broke. Before she could recover, Dash flew past her, kicking through another tree, and another, all the while staying out of range of her whip. One by one, the trees collapsed, falling on top of the elf queen, the forest echoing with the sound of breaking wood.
As first drops of rain started falling over the forest, Rainbow Dash looked around. The small elves were slowly gathering from everywhere around, all glowing hot and transformed into their insect forms. Dash couldn’t help noticing that the portal didn’t appear. She backed away from the tiny monsters.
“Don’t tell me I will have to kill all of you too... huh?”
There was a sound of breaking wood and then the pile of trees behind Dash exploded outward, revealing a glowing turquoise moth bigger than a manticore. The air filled with wing dust and splinters as the proboscis shot forward, ripping straight through a tree that had been lying across the creature’s head.
“What the hay are you?!” shouted the pegasus as she moved out of the way, preferring being nicked by a piece of a tree to a lash from an appendage that was now several times longer than her entire body.
As the monster fully emerged, Dash could see Rosine’s angry face on the underside of it’s head, encased in a bubble of protective membrane. Also, the moth had far too many limbs, the extra legs ending in what looked like gaping, toothless mouths. “You didn’t think it would be that easy to murder a queen, did you!?” shouted Rosine, taking into the air with several flaps of her wings. Dash saw the small elves scatter and followed suit, building the distance between her and the monster. She needed another plan.
The cone of a sonic rainboom had protected Dash in her previous fight. The move also packed quite a punch, perfect for dealing with a large opponent like the one she was facing now. She started rising into the stormy sky, trying to ignore the bruises and the slight light-headedness caused by the blood loss. Looking down, she saw Rosine rise. The strange leg mouths were open, sucking in air in front of her as her flight climbed. Then something happened that Dash didn’t expect. Rosine’s abdomen bulged and then opened at the end, releasing a roaring blast of air. The moth was launched higher into the air, rapidly building up speed, until she overtook the pegasus, who had to once again duck out of the way. Dash managed to stay out of range of the proboscis, but still felt the wind slamming into her - the moth was pushing her own pressure cone.
How can something so large be so fast? thought Dash. She needed to fly some distance in a straight line to make a rainboom and at this speed, Rosine would avoid a direct hit. She needed to get her into the right position or it would be a wasted effort.
This was when Dash’s vision swam and she veered off course. Her stomach turned and she stopped in the air, retching, trying to understand what was happening. With the portal system sustaining her through the challenge, her stomach was empty, but still she felt burning in her throat and on her lips, and then metallic taste that could only be blood. Her heartbeat surged with panic. The dust! I must have inhaled some.
Lightning flashed, illuminating the night. In the brief moment, Dash saw Rosine falling from the sky. She tried to get out of the way, but her wings reacted sluggishly. Worse still, she realised that she couldn’t hear the moth anymore. She didn’t see a rainbow, but she could feel the air being pushed out of the way and instinctively understood what it meant, even before the cone of air slammed into her, followed by a stab of the proboscis whip which narrowly missed her wing only to strike her hip, almost disabling her right hind leg. Rainbow Dash was thrown like a ragdoll and sent spiralling down.
I will be too weak to make a rainboom... right now, she’s faster than me!
Forcing her wings to get her out of her crash course, Rainbow Dash flew low over the trees. The monster was still somewhere above her. Unable to make sharp turns, it kept flying away after each charge, turning and coming back like a jousting knight, each pass followed by a deafening roar. Dash tried to get out of her sight, but discovered the small elves on the ground swarming towards her, indicating her location only to scatter again as their mistress approached. Desperate, Dash dove down among the branches.
What followed was an explosion of wood as Rosine flew lower, clearing a path through the forest as she simply crashed her way through all the trees in her way. Dash gasped with pain as a branch of a falling tree smacked her across the back, knocking the breath out of her. She knew her enemy was already making a turn for another go. Half-deafened and confused, she was frantically looking for a solution.
She just crashes through everything in her way like it’s nothing!. She won’t stop for anything and I can’t even make a rainboom...
The pegasus’ eyes widened with realisation. She knew what to do. She just hoped she had enough strength left in her to pull it off. Her vision was blurred from the toxin - she shook her head to clear away the flying colors. She took into the air, doing what she could to build up altitude before the moth returned. Rosine wouldn’t give her enough time. Dash braced herself as the monster charged and folded her wings at the last moment, dropping into a freefall to get out of the way, resuming her ascent before the elf queen could turn for another go. She was almost as high as she needed to now.
Come on, try to stab me again...
Rosine charged, flying upwards to get to Dash. The pegasus shifted sideways, but not quite fast enough, the tip of the proboscis nicking her flesh. The turned around in the air and began to fly down, at first pretending to be losing control, then purposefully building up speed. Behind her, the moth turned again and started diving too, the proboscis extended forward like a spear. Even though the pegasus was putting all her strength into flying, the giant insect was quickly gaining on her. Dash squeezed every last drop of strength from her muscles, going as fast as she could, the wind bringing tears to her eyes and familiar pressure building at the tips of her hooves. Another lightning flashed, casting a giant winged shadow on her. She knew she wouldn’t be able to pull off a sonic rainboom this time. She smirked despite the pain, as she saw the place where she had exited the portal, jagged rocks getting closer and closer.
Then she let go. The forming cone of air stretched like a rubber band, stopping her on the spot before launching her backwards. She twisted her right wing, to change the direction she was flung and felt something huge brush past her and then heard a mighty crash. She couldn’t pay more attention to it, as all her focus went into softening her own fall. Fortunately, spiralling out of control was something that happened to her daily, the new scratches and bruises from landing in the forest negligible compared to what she had been to so far.
When she recovered her sense of up and down, Dash found herself among the broken branches of a tree some distance from the cliff. Pushing herself free, she screamed involuntarily as her injured hip responded to the effort. Feeling her stomach twist again, she faced up, opening her mouth to the falling rain. The water would not help against the poison, but it would bring her a bit of relief at least. She wanted nothing more than to stay among the branches and let her pain become numb, but she knew better than that. Rest right now would not regenerate her strength, merely worsen her condition. To stop moving was to die. Forcing herself back into the air, she started flying up the cliff.
As she got to her destination, staying in the air to keep the pressure off her injured legs, Dash surveyed the crash site. Though the moth had managed to swerve enough not to flatten herself on the rock wall, she still crashed into the jagged rocks surrounding the cliff. She was in a broken heap on the ground, a trail of blood and entrails leading to her body from the spot where she had hit the ground. The rain was already washing away the blood, coloring the rocks red. Still there was no portal. Dash looked around and saw a swarm of lights approaching her from all directions, angry, high-pitched voices audible even through the downpour.
“She hurt her! She hurt the queen! Kill her! Stab her!”
Fighting another twist of her stomach, Dash tried to stare down the approaching elves. It didn’t work as well as she had hoped. She mentally prepared herself to make a stand. Then she heard something that made her blood run cold: an inhuman, reverberating scream of rage. The moth turned to face her, rising on those of her legs that weren’t bent at unnatural angles. Dash could see something move inside the monster’s abdomen, the remaining entrails rearranging, bulging and hardening to seal the gaping wound. With a sickening crunch, a broken wing set itself back to correct position.
“You... kha...got to .. be kidding me!” Dash nearly shouted in frustration. Then she flew up as the elves charged from all directions.
For a moment, everything was a confusing mess, cold, rainy darkness torn apart by globes of burning light. Dash was already too numb to scream when a few close calls left scorch marks on her hide. She just flew, as fast as she could, trying to shake off the pursuers. The elves no longers shouted, now just an angry swarm seeking to tear its prey apart. And then a different noise joined the pursuit - the beating of huge wings. Rosine had lost most of her speed and all of her grace, but still she continued her pursuit, as determined to kill Rainbow Dash as the pegasus was determined not to die.
Rainbow Dash herself was hardly in a better condition. Her speed lost to the injuries and tiredness, her coordination to poison-induced dizziness and the compounding blood loss, she was no longer able to throw a good kick and she knew it. It was taking all her focus to stay in the air despite the storm getting worse and worse around her. She suddenly thought how beautifully the chase must have looked from below, the darkness hiding all the gory details while leaving the dancing lights of the elves, like shooting stars. Slowly, she headed up.
The effort was immense and soon Dash felt the strain bringing her over the edge of consciousness. The last days had taught her to ignore pain that would have left her squealing like a pig just a week before. There was now a lot she could ignore through effort of will. But this time the pain was just going away. As the air was getting thinner around her, she started feeling warm and indifferent. A part of her brain screamed that it was a very bad sign. The rest kept flapping the wings, bringing her higher and higher. The elves had already abandoned pursuit, their tiny wings unsuited for such altitude. Only Rosine herself kept chasing her, silently struggling with her own pain as she continued pursuit. Dash didn’t have any strength left to look back, but could imagine her small face hidden on the underside of the giant moth’s head, twisted equally with suffering and determination. She had gone too far to give up. She would keep chasing the pony until she saw her lose the last of her strength, stab her until her blood stopped flowing. There was no hiding from her and no escape.
With the final effort, Dash flew up into the cloud, She was momentarily blinded, her body trembling from the immense power of the storm surrounding her. Then she pushed through and entered the clear night sky above, millions of stars looking down at her. Rising towards them she paused for a moment, suddenly marvelling how beautiful and calm they were. Quite unlike her. Then she leaned back and folded her wings, falling like a stone.
The world disappeared in blinding light as Dash’s hooves hit the top of the cloud, a scream of pain far below lost in the deafening roar of thunder as the power of the storm was unleashed all at once. The pegasus kept her footing on top of the cloud for a moment more, waiting for her hearing to return, then allowed herself to fall face-first through the moist darkness, returning to the rainswept world below. Spreading her wings to slow her descent, she headed towards the flickering flame she could see in the forest directly underneath. A shattered tree stood there, split by the lightning that had struck it, its upper branches in flames. Below, a small shape was sprawled on the ground. Dash grunted with pain as she landed almost directly on top of it.
Rosine had reverted to her prior form. Now she was shifting further. Gone were the insectile arms, the fur and the antennas. The unnaturally long hair still held the shape of moth wings but the rest of her body was of a young girl, burned, broken and bloodied, the gaping wound in the stomach leaving no doubts as to her chances. She stared at Dash with large eyes, now completely human, opened wide in shock and fear. But still she was breathing, irregularly, shallowly, clinging to life with the last of her strength. The portal would not appear.
Dash sat up next to her, unable to fly up or even lift her rump from the ground anymore. Through the rain she could see the lights of the elves approaching again. Crawling closer to Rosine, she lifted her good front hoof above the girl’s horrified face, then she stomped down, repeatedly.
“Damn you! Damn you! Damn you! Just DIE ALREADY!”
***
“So, how did you like it?” asked Discord, stretching on his sofa, a bag of popcorn in his claw. Chrysalis gave him a dirty look, standing up and walking out into the dark void.
“A thunderstorm? Just on cue? You purposefully let her escape!” she hissed, turning towards her host. Discord crushed the bag into a small ball and swallowed it whole, then snapped his claw. The sofa disappeared, replaced with a chair signed “Director” Discord was now wearing a white t-shirt, blue pants and a matching cap, and there was a megaphone in his paw.
“Hey, she only survived through using her wits. Besides, I’m just trying to make the show interesting here,” he responded. “Aren’t you?”
“I don’t know about you, Discord, but I’m here for revenge,” said Chrysalis, baring her fangs.
Discord crushed the megaphone into a ball and swallowed it whole, then snapped his claw again. This time the chair disappeared and Discord changed shape. He was now pale yellow and morbidly obese, his lower half grafted into a bizarre mechanical throne on spider legs. He walked closer to the changeling queen.
“Ok, I admit. I did help her a little. But only after you introduced the entire swarm of children into the scenario.” He kept walking towards her, the metal legs making random noises against the nonexistent floor.”I admit it would have been amusing to watch her squish a few, only to see them revert to their real forms. The audience loves sick tricks like that. However...”
Without warning, he reached towards Chrysalis, grabbing her by the throat and pulling her closer. Wisps of smoke appeared where his claws touched her neck.
“... every game, even the most nonsensical one, needs to have at least some rules and you have just broken a very important one.” Discord’s voice was now a harsh whisper. “I am the only one allowed to rig MY games. You find good opponents, you get to show up and gloat. I work to keep things interesting.”
Discord tossed the changeling away onto a pile of pillows that hadn’t been there before. He continued speaking, suddenly back to his usual cheery tone.
“I’ve seen what you did there, and last time in the Digital World. You make it look like you aren’t enjoying the show I’ve spent so much effort on putting together.” He wiped a tear from his eye, but didn’t stop smiling.
“I’m... not,” breathed Chrysalis, getting back on her hooves.
“Well, if you find it boring to watch the fights, perhaps you would rather participate? I have a couple of different bug queens I’m sure everybody would love to see you against,” continued the Draconequus.
The queen stood in silence for a moment, before her brain fully processed what was said. “What?”
“We’ll give it a try if you keep misbehaving. Now please excuse me. I have another match to prepare.” And with that, Discord disappeared, leaving the shocked Chrysalis in empty darkness.
bonus chapter: Alternative Rarity vs Toph
Author's Note
The very first thing I tried writing for Pony vs...
bonus chapter: Alternative Rarity vs Toph
Rarity shook her head to clear the confusion of a sudden teleport spell. She felt sun on her face and opened her eyes; she was now outdoors, a picturesque, rocky canyon stretching in front of her. For a moment the unicorn just stood there, taking in the landscape: the canyon walls, with stripes of layers changing gradually from grey at the top down to deep red, wind sculpted pillars of rock dotting the bottom of the canyon, their tips sparkling in the sun, the wind whispering gently between them, caressing the fashionista’s flowing mane. Curious, she cast her gem seeking spell and instantly got a reading – the ground was littered with crystals. Just then, a female voice sounded from above her, bringing her back to harsh reality.
“Hey, you! Are you my enemy here!?”
Rarity looked up. A small biped stood on the edge of the cliff above her. She was about the size of a diamond dog, slightly taller due to standing completely straight, but differently proportioned – her arms looked too short to allow quadruped locomotion. She was wearing a green shirt and pants with matching wristbands, headband and anklets, a khaki tunic on top completing the getup – a very simple, but pleasing design. Rarity’s fashion analysis was interrupted when she looked at the creature’s head. Below the black mane, tied into a ball with the fringe sticking from under the headband, was a face like nothing the mare had seen; almost flat, with a line for a mouth, a tiny nose and grey, lifeless eyes staring forward, as if completely indifferent to her existence.
She took a couple steps back, keeping her own eyes on the newcomer. “I am Rarity. I don’t know about enemies. And who might you be, darling?”
The creature smirked, a smile that didn’t reach the eyes. “I am Toph Beifong, the greatest earthbender in the world! And you must be the unicorn I have to squash to get out of here. Nothing personal, princess.”
Then she leapt, jumping down the cliff. Rarity shrieked in fright, once as she watched the girl plummet to the bottom, then again when the ground under Toph inexplicably bent like a rubber band, cushioning her fall while sending a wave of dirt and rock at the fashionista. She barely had the time to get back on her hooves when the girl attacked again; stomping her foot into the ground, she made a chunk of rock pop up to her shoulder level, then punched it at Rarity, missing her head by inches.
What kind of magic is this... What am I thinking! She really is trying to squash me!
Rarity jumped to the side as another small boulder flew at her face. She could dodge the flying rocks, but was kept completely on the defense. Toph kept summoning bigger and bigger projectiles, using her powers to slide along the ground at surprising speed whenever Rarity tried to gain some distance. “Hey, stop dodging around! I don’t have all day!”
“I’d rather keep dodging, thank you very much.”- Rarity kept running. However, she knew that it was not the way out. She had to find a way to strike back and soon.
Just then Toph cut a corner, punching one of the large rock pillars and making it topple towards Rarity. It missed and shattered, filling the air with swirling red dust.
Now is my chance!
Dashing through the cloud, too focused to even think of the dust ruining her mane, Rarity got around the pile of rubble, emerging behind her opponent. Despite being a lady, she did have a vicious kick and for all her magic Toph didn’t look very strong. If she could land a single hit...
Without turning around, Toph stomped with her foot. A shaft of rock shot from the ground underneath the charging Rarity, launching her into the air, the momentum sending her flying over Toph’s head. She landed painfully on her back.
“What was that supposed to be? I’m blind, not deaf.” Toph swung her arms in a circular motion, causing the biggest chunk of the collapsed pillar to rise from the rubble. Rotating slowly it floated over the sprawled unicorn before the earthbender sent it crashing down. Rarity looked up in mortal terror, fully aware that she wouldn’t be able to get up in time. Squeezing her eyes shut she did the only thing she could think of, pushing all the magic she could into her horn...
The spell hit the rock just before it connected. It struck the ground with a heavy thud, but it was no longer a boulder. Instead, Rarity’s magic had sculpted it into a statue – two unicorns standing on hind legs, their forelegs entwined in a lovers’ embrace. The fashionista was huddling in the small free space underneath.
“Ooh, nice trick!” Toph sounded genuinely impressed. On reflex, Rarity almost thanked for the compliment. She was interrupted by a sharp stab of pain in her chest, turning a “thank you” into a painful gasp. The blow that had sent her flying must have broken something.
As quickly as she could, she crawled back from under the statue. However, Toph was already moving around to flank her. She stomped the ground repeatedly, almost a kind of dance, summoning small rocks to chuck at Rarity. Smaller, faster projectiles proved too fast to dodge. Rarity moved out of the way, once, twice... her chest protested against sudden movement and the third rock connected with her left cheek. Half of her face went numb with pain.
“I told you to stop dodging, princess. It would have been over already.” Toph finished her attack with a salvo of three rocks, launching them all at once. None of them hit the target.
Instead, the rocks slowed down, losing momentum as they approached Rarity. They stopped right in front of her face before floating to her side. Rarity’s horn glowed with a blue aura. She didn’t have enough power to stop a boulder, but rocks were a different matter. With a pulse of blue, she sent one of the projectiles back, catching Toph straight in the face.
“Heu... how ded eu...” Toph swayed, spitting out a tooth, blood oozing from her broken nose. Another rock hit her in the chest, knocking the breath out of her.
Rarity smiled despite the pain, a sudden realisation dawning on her. She really IS blind! I can still do this! However, her smile waned when the young earthbender’s bloodied face turned into a mask of cold fury. Toph spread her arms wide before crossing them in front of her chest. From all around her, specks of dust and pieces of rock flew towards her body, coalescing into a rocky armour until she looked like a rough statue hewn out of red stone, only her blank grey eyes visible from underneath the shell. The third projectile hit her forehead and bounced off harmlessly. Waving her arms around her, she slid forward with the finality of an avalanche.
Rarity kept moving back, her magic lashing frantically around her, pelting the incoming earthbender with pieces of rubble. All of them hit, the girl barely bothering to block them as they failed to even chip her armour. Toph ended her slide with a wide swing of her arms, bringing her hands together in a loud clap. In response, the rock bottom of the canyon rose up, two heavy slabs slamming together around Rarity. The unicorn jumped back, but her battered and bruised body wasn’t quite fast enough. The rocks caught the tip of her right front leg. She fell to the ground wailing loudly as her hoof exploded with pain.
Toph spread her arms again, sending the two slabs flying to the sides, giving her a free path to her target. Rarity sat down helpless, turning her head aside, away from the sight of her incoming killer, or her crushed leg. She heard a rumbling sound, a clear indication that Toph was lifting something heavy again.
Suddenly the unicorn’s eye caught a glint of something shiny. Through the haze of pain, she saw a shard of crystal buried in the surrounding rubble, its beauty almost hidden beneath the red dust.
It must have been dug up by all that...
Suddenly an idea appeared in her head. Pushing her magic into a desperate effort, she picked the shard up, channelling her power into another sculpting spell.
There was a soft puff of magic as the dust and pieces of crystal fell off. What remained was a Neighponese style hairpin, a pink crystal needle, five inches in length, glistening beautifully in the sun as it slowly turned in Rarity’s magical grasp.
The fashionista turned once again towards her enemy. Toph stood with her arms above her head, half turned, a large boulder slowly flowing towards her, ready to strike a killing blow. Rarity knew she would not be able to dodge and she was in too much pain to focus on sculpting something this big. But perhaps she wouldn’t need to. She waited until the very last moment, forcing herself to control her magic until Toph faced her again. Then, looking into the blank, grey eyes, she pushed one last time.
The needle spun like a spindle, then shot forward faster than an eye could follow. There was a soft sound of impact and a surprised gasp, then a heavy thud as the boulder fell to the ground, mere feet away from the unicorn.Toph Beifong shed a single, red tear and then moved no more.
***
As the dust settled, Rarity took a moment to gather her thoughts. She was red all over, the red dust covering her fur and mane caked into a moist mess where it mixed with blood. Her vision was slightly out of focus and her face was already horribly swollen. Her every breath was like a stab to the chest. Her stomach squeezed and turned from the accumulated stress. She wanted to vomit, then roll up and just stay there on the ground until the pain goes away. But it was not to be. Rarity was no soldier, but she knew her injuries could well prove fatal if she gave them the time. She needed help.
With a soft hum, a white portal sprung into existence on the wall of the canyon. The fashionista remembered what she was told; upon crossing to the next area, she would be completely healed. But that meant walking straight into another fight. She would be healed, but would get no rest. Not a moment to relax and recover.
I may not need sleep, but at this rate... I’ll go crazy... perhaps this is what these villains want...
Pushing herself up, Rarity limped towards the portal, very careful to keep her crushed leg from touching the ground. As she struggled to stay on her feet, a thought struck her. She could rest after the next battle, before entering the portal, as long as she finished the fight without any serious injury. She just needed to be a more efficient killer. She nearly laughed hysterically at the thought.
Behind her, the earthbender kept standing right where she died, the rocky shell keeping her upright. With no magic to animate it, it became both her tomb and a monument. Rarity looked back at it for a moment, thinking who her first victim might have been. She had been so aggressive and yet seemed so young... But there was no time to speculate now. With a painful sigh, Rarity stepped through the portal, leaving the battlefield behind her.
