Mistress Do Well: Extradition

Mistress Do Well: Extradition
by milesprower06

Prologue

Princess Mi Amore Cadenza's heart raced as she burst into her personal study at a full gallop. She nearly skidded to a halt, leaped over her desk, and quickly began scribbling a note to Princess Luna, dropping a small note from her hooves in the process.

8:55 PM
Crystal Heart
Rainbow Dash
Magical Cloak
Needs HELP

The hastily scribbled notes was all she could manage to write down stealthily while conversing with... Someone at the Crystal Heart, not even five minutes ago. She didn't remember who, but it had to be Rainbow. That cloak she was wearing was enchanted to conceal her identity, but she remembered...

The eyes. Her eyes were so hurt, so desperate. Cadance knew Rainbow needed help, but she ran off before she could persuade her. As the identity of the cloaked figure faded, she kept her eyes on the note while she made a beeline for her private study, to get somepony who could help.

Not even a minute after she sent her correspondence off to Luna, the Princess of the Night winked into her study with a flash.

"Where is she???" She asked hurriedly.

"I'm not sure, but she has to be close by. It had to have been her I was talking to at the Crystal Heart, not even ten minutes ago." Cadance said, showing Luna the note, who quickly read through it.

"Let's go!" Luna said, and they galloped from the personal study, and out the first available window they came too, and out into the night sky above the Crystal Empire.

"Which way did she go?"

Cadance thought back to the conversation, and which way the figure had run off.

"She left southwest from the Crystal Heart."

They followed the southwest path towards the outskirts of the city, which then gave way to about a hundred yards of plains and crystal formations, and then to the forest.

"Do you think we can find her in there?" Cadance asked, as they flew a few hundred feet over the forest, as the light continued to give way to night.

"If she is not wearing the cloak, I can detect her as she begins to fade from consciousness."

"That cloak... It hid her identity. That must be how she's stayed hidden all this time."

"Yes, and if it is the cloak I believe it to be, then as it shields her identity, it would also shield her from the effects of your Crystal Heart."

Cadance felt a lump in her throat.

"You... You mean?"

"She may believe no one loves her."

It was now dark enough where her vision would do no good, and was solely depending on Luna, and her dimly glowing horn. As they made another pass over the forest, Luna's horn flickered, and she paused for a split second before making a nose dive towards the treeline. Cadance had to sloppily correct her path, and even then, had trouble keeping up. She barely kept sight of Luna as she weaved through the trees, and then she saw it, and so had Luna who had stopped immediately.

A lump grew in her throat as she saw Rainbow Dash hanging from a tree a couple hundred feet away. Dread overcame her as she believed they were too late, but then she looked closer, and she saw struggling. She was a split second away from rushing to help when she saw Luna's horn glow.

Luna concentrated her magic, sent it forward, through the dozens of trees between her and Rainbow, found the branch she was hanging from, reached out, touched it, and twisted. The branch began to splinter, and a couple seconds later, it snapped, sending the pegasus into a free fall. Cadance was about to rush to help again, but Luna extended a hoof to stop her. Rainbow fell 40 feet through more branches and twigs, and landed on the forest floor with a thud. Again Cadance tried to go forward, but Luna held her back.

"Aunt Luna-"

"Not yet."

Cadance's heart ached with the sounds of Rainbow's sobs coming from the forest floor. Luna's horn began to glow.

"What are you doing?"

"Putting her to sleep. She can't know we found her here."

Luna's horn dimmed, and Rainbow's cries softened to silence, and the crickets overtook the forest night. They began to descend, and landed on the forest floor without a sound, 10 feet from the sleeping pegasus.

She had scrapes and cuts from her 40 foot fall, but otherwise seemed alright. Nothing looked broken. The noose was still tight around her neck, but loose enough to allow normal breathing. There was more rope keeping her wings folded to her sides. This confirmed Cadance's worst fears. She had just tried to take her own life.

Her saddlebags sat at the base of the tree next to her. Cadance lightly rummaged through it with her magic, finding a tape,some photos and other personal effects, and 500 bits, along with the magical cloak that had helped her stay anonymous for the past year.

Luna's eyes began to glow bright with her horn, as she pierced into the world of sleep.

Twilight couldn't be sure if she had been dreaming about anything, but right now she stood among an expanse of nothing. Blackness surrounded her on all sides.

"Call out to her." A majestic voice commanded her.

"P-Princess Luna? But I don't understand..." Twilight said, a bit startled.

"If you want any chance of seeing her again, call out to her."

She looked out to the expanse of nothing, and took a deep breath.

"Rainbow...?"

"Twilight?"

The response was muffled and distorted, Twilight couldn't even tell if it was Rainbow's voice.

"I'm... I'm so sorry, Rainbow. I wish... I wish I had done something."

Twilight felt herself suddenly pulled from the sea of black, and in a few moments, would find herself in her bed back in the library.

Cadance saw Luna's eyes return to normal as her horn dimmed. She concentrated her own magic, and was about to cast a healing spell.

"No, Cadance."

"But look at her, she-"

"If she suspects any outside influence, I fear she'll run off and try this again. Now, use your magic. She's not wearing the cloak. Is there anypony she loves? Anypony in the slightest?"

Cadance dipped into her own unique blend of magic, and peered into Rainbow's mind. There was so much chaos; so much sadness, pain, and hurt. But...

There. In the middle, among everything else there was a love... A longing... For...

"Twilight? Her friends?" Cadance asked, snapping out of her spell.

She had not spoken to her sister-in-law since before this had all started. All she knew was that she had been stripped of her crown, and that Shining Armor had refused to speak to her.

"I hope that's enough," Luna began, beginning to walk away and preparing to take off. "Come, let's go."

"What? We're leaving her here?"

"Yes."

"But she needs our help."

"No amount of help will do her any good if she doesn't accept it."

"You can't be serious. Aunt Luna, we just can't leave her-"

"Cadance," Luna began firmly, seeing Rainbow begin to stir, but remained sleeping.

She took a few steps closer to the Princess of Love.

"The help she needs, we cannot give. I will keep watch on her tonight, but this is something she must discover and do on her own."

Cadance remained unconvinced.

"She is alive thanks to your ingenuity. That must be enough for now."

With that, the Princess of the Night spread her wings and ascended to the treetops to silently keep guard.

It took every ounce of willpower she had to obey her aunt, and turn away from the pegasus. As she spread her wings and took to the sky, she knew she wouldn't be getting much sleep tonight, too distraught over the possibilities of what the poor mare had been through.