The strange pony.

She tensed as she saw the blue maned gray coated unicorn, but as she saw that he was a stallion, she relaxed a bit. She recognized him from Zecora's today. He shook his mane, then noticed Rainbow. "Ah, Ms. Rainbow, good to see you." He scanned the room. "Where is she?" He asked.

"First of all, my name is Rainbow, no Ms. And second, are you who Dusty mentioned?" Rainbow replied.

"All right, Rainbow, and yes I would be the 'friend' that you're looking for. But since she probably asked you to listen to me and answer my questions, I ask again, where is she?" He was a bit irritated at the fact that they were losing time and he needed to explain his position.

"Out the door, turn right. But why-" He interrupted her while heading out the door with Rainbow in tow.

"I suppose that you encountered Brain while you were here, yes?" He trotted down the hall. Rainbow nodded. "I also suppose that she told you that Dusty knows the only way out, yes?" She nodded again. "Well, she was right, in a way. Dusty IS the way out, just like she's the only way in. She'll help as much as she can, but it'll be a bit more challenging with Brain there, but we'll manage. I have a plan. Follow my lead." They finally found the double doors 'outside'. The ravine was gone, replaced by millions of ghost looking ponies. Brain was counting the ponies below her.

"Good. Everyponies here. And look, our visitors found us." She spoke to the ponies, looking at the duo. "Let's give them a good farewell, shall we?" She smiled. The ponies grouped together, and what Rainbow saw next was terrifying; a large, no GIANT,  black and red Alicorn materialized next to Brain, while the unicorn mare marveled at her plan working this far. Thunderbird was BEAUTIFUL, and looked very powerful, just like she'd wanted. She turned her attention back to the duo and laughed. "It's time to-"

"Leave." Brain said in Dusty's voice. Or was it Dusty? Wait, what'd happened to Dusty anyway? It was too late to think about that any longer, because a huge beam shot out of the Alicorn. How was this a good plan? What part of this was a good plan?! I'm probably dead right now! Rainbow thought. She flew backwards and hit something. Then she opened her eyes.

Meanwhile........

"Where are they? Are you sure that they were here? I mean, you might have gotten lost after flying off." Rarity said.

"I'm sure that I saw them here. I mean, who could forget the sister's castle, after all?" Twilight argued back.

"But we've been waiting so long! I need to get back to my boutique sometime today!"

"Rarity, it's only been a minute. Calm yerself down, missy." Applejack replied. Twilight had finally rounded the crew up, but it was taking a bit. I hope that we're not too late. Twilight thought. They weren't though, and everypony knew it, because a dust devil whipped up in between them and the bridge. It grew a bit bigger and turned even faster before two ponies tumbled out. Rainbow hit a tree, while Brain almost crushed the bridge. Rainbow opened her eyes.

"Am I in heaven?" Her friends laughed, happy to see her again. She got up quickly. "I wasn't afraid or anything. I was just....happy to see you guys again." She smiled.

"Aw, did we come in at a bad time?" The mares turned to Brain and Thunderbird. Brain smiled. "Never mind, it won't matter much longer. Thunderbird?" The Alicorn turned. "Could you please-"

"-Now!" She ran toward the mares, and they, in self-defense, completely obliterated the duo in rainbow power. Thunderbird exploded into a million breezie-sized ghost ponies that disappeared as they hit the ground. And Brain's body peeled back in parts so that you could see Dusty inside. After it was done, Dusty was clearly visible, and Rainbow ran up to her, giving her a relieved hug.

"What just happened? Dusty, are you ok?" Dusty blinked, then shuddered. She looked at Rainbow and smiled, weary.

"I'm sorry, but I can't stay." Dusty replied.

"What do you mean?" Rainbow chuckled nervously.

"What I mean is that I need to go, because Brain will never go away, because she's-"

"-Me." A flicker of Brain came and went.

"As long as I am free, so-"

"-am I." Brain smiled, then Dusty frowned. "Goodbye." Then she ran past the six, to their surprise. A patch of Poison Joke was a little bit away from the clearing and path, and she ran straight for it. After the rainbow faded off, Rainbow flew after her, and the other five followed, curious. Brain finally came to and noticed the mares going into the forest and followed.

"No!" Rainbow flew over to Dusty and picked her up carefully from the patch, and hugged her with all of her might. She was slowly turning into stone.

"It's - ah - okay, Rainbow." Dusty whispered as loud as she could. "It's going to be okay." She smiled at Rainbow.

"Where's the little cockatrice? I'd like to-"

"No."

"But-"

"Rainbow. It'll be okay." The stone crawled up her legs. She laughed a bit. "You are loyal to the end." Sigh. Almost to her neck. Dusty looked into Rainbow's tear filled eyes. "I can't in good conscience stay to do who knows what when that damaged mare comes back. I can't allow myself to stay because you're the first loyal friend that I've had since forever. Thank you for everything." She gasped as the cold crawled up her neck.

"But - why? You - can't.....please!" Rainbow sobbed.

"She causes too much pain." Sigh. Dusty hugged Rainbow as best as she could. "This way I will never hurt anypony ever again." She smiled as her face turned into stone. Rainbow sobbed as she fell to the ground. All of this hurt in just two days. She felt somepony jostling her, but she didn't want to get up.

"Rainbow, wake up!" Twilight called out to her, pleading. Rainbow opened her eyes, but saw nothing. She was in a black void of some sort. "Come on, please Rainbow! Wake up!" Rainbow was jostled even more. She snapped her eyes open, and this time saw Twilight. She was at Zecora's house.

"What the- why am I back here? I was just-"

"At the castle of the Sisters, right?" Twilight finished her question. "I was just there too. Actually, we weren't 'there' there, but within our minds we were." Rainbow looked at Twilight like she'd just grown a second horn. Twilight explained. "You see, Dusty tricked us." Twilight started pacing. "She's actually a golem's ghost, which can enter minds, especially inquisitive ones. She was trying to understand emotion, since she isn't a real pony. She did this to us for 'fun'. The whole thing isn't real. She made it all up." She stopped to look into Rainbow's eyes. "So she's very much 'alive', in that sense."

Rainbow tried to processes this. "So, why you and me then?" She thought some more. "And why that 'story'? I mean, she could've done the same with anything else."

"It might not mean so much to you, but for others it may be true." A different yet now familiar voice spoke. Dusty had walked through the door. "You were ones that would come, even if the job was done. I'm sorry for the hurt I committed and all of the suffering that I give, at the time that was permitted, but now I face the life I live. I shall go to leave alone the ponies where I  called my home." Her head drooping and turning more transparent by the second, she turned to leave. "And to think, you were so real, the way you act, the way you feel." Twilight looked at Rainbow.

"Wait. Please don't go. You weren't trying to hurt or harm us." Twilight stated.

"And if you're as friendly as the Dusty that I met, you can stay. As long as you don't do this again." Rainbow replied.

"Actually, I have an even better idea. Dusty, I have a friend that I think would love to meet you."

    "It was a good idea to talk to Luna and me about that situation, Twilight." Celestia gazed at the moon rise. "Dusty can help her workload ease up a bit." Twilight stared off into the distance.

"What will the next challenge be?" Twilight asked. "Fighting off monsters in my sleep is getting tiring." The two chuckled.

"Just you wait, Twilight Sparkle, just you wait."