Friendships in the Mist

How could this have happened? How in Equestria could she have agreed to this? That was the question Fluttershy kept asking herself. She had the choice of not going to watch the return of the dragon migration and staying at home with her pet rabbit Angel Bunny. But Rainbow Dash kept insisting that she had missed out and she owed her for both the first viewing and a broken rib. After careful consideration she had finally mustered up the courage to finally join her friends, and what did it result to? A dragon managing to spot them and abduct her of all people. She dug her head in her arms and wept as the tears made a puddle on the cold, lime covered floor of her stone prison. It had been days since her kidnapping took place as she waited for her friends to come and save her. All she could do was look out of her stalagmite cage at the piles of precious gold and jewels that laid beyond her.

"Oh, how am I going to get out of here?", sighed Fluttershy. "If I'm not here to be a treasure, I'll surely be a snack for that scary dragon!"

The chamber she was in was enormous and brightly lit from all the treasures that shined off the light from various fire pits. They ranged from stolen portraits, ancient artifacts, and pounds upon pounds of wealth in precious stones and metals. And amidst all of these riches, she was one of them. She couldn't understand why a dragon would even kidnap her. She wasn't anywhere out in the trenches, and she wore the most camouflaged dress Rarity could distastefully make. Ah yes, the dress she wore was no ball gown, but she took a liking to it like all of Rarity's dresses. Now it was torn and ruined from her encounter. But that wasn't the only thing that made the day terrible. Her wings, which she treasured and rarely even used, had their feathers pulled out by the large beast. All that was left were bare, fluff covered limbs that served her no use. She felt each pore where the feathers were and knew that new ones would grow in time. But at the rate she was in, she wouldn't make it then.

Her chances for survival seemed impossible. She didn't have food to eat and the water that dewed from the rocks wasn't enough to satisfy her. The dragon had offered her animal bits for food, but she rejected them. Each hour that passed made her weaker as she tried her best to think of an escape plan. However even that was far from her reach. She had tried clawing her way out of the prison, but found the rock too tough for her weak hands. Her usual strength was also a hindrance since she only exerted great force when one of her friends or small animals were in danger. Even her stare, a power that would tame any frightful creature, was no use in negotiating with a stone column. Even if she did find a way out of her stone cage, she would have to evade an enormous dragon and travel through the Everfree forest; all without flight. She was helpless in this predicament. All she could do was wait and hope that a rescue was under way.

"I just hope my friends can find me. I want to be home with Angel and my other woodland friends."

She was about to burst into tears when all of a sudden she felt the ground shake. She quickly scrambled to a corner and did her best to hide, but she knew that it wouldn't have stopped it. The rumble grew until finally she saw a claw with red scales appear on the other side; Her dragon captor had returned. She held her breath as the limb moved on, followed by another as a tail followed it soon after. She then saw the entirety of the dragon as it moved ever closer to a large pile of gemstones. The beast itself reminded Fluttershy of when she had encountered Basil for the first time. He too was as scary as this monster, but he was at least understanding and polite when it came to reason. This particular beast may have looked like him, but its heart was more savage than basil. This beast was everything Fluttershy feared in a dragon: rude, greedy, and out right unpleasant. As its head neared the top of the pile, it dropped a shiny orange object near the top. She presumed it to be another gem and gasped when the dragon slowly made its way towards her. She backed away from the openings and crouched as she heard the stomps become louder. Her heart raced and her breathing became too much for her to hold in. She suddenly heard the ceiling above her scrape as a claw dug in and began moving the boulder keeping her in. As soon as the cover was lifted, She shielded her eyes as dust fell on top of her.

When she opened her eyes, she dropped in horror at the sight of an enormous maw filled with razor teeth. Panting in fear, Fluttershy then saw the jaw open and reveal an elongating tongue. The wet sliver of flesh then snaked its way towards Fluttershy and began lapping against her. She screamed as the tongue pressed against her body, leaving moist stains where it touched. Each lick was a hot sting that burned her, yet the dragon played without remorse. Thinking that this was her end, Fluttershy awaited her doom. However she felt the pressure around her lessen as the tongue retracted back inside the maw. Looking at herself, Fluttershy broke into a wail as the dragon then covered the opening. Her fear for dragons overpowered her actions, even when her friends were with her for support. It was only when they were in danger that she managed to overcome her fear. Without them, she was powerless. She covered her face and sobbed as the tears mixed their salty aroma with that of the dragon's foul odor that marked her. Her weeping was then drowned out by the noise of the beast, who was making a bed out of its bounty. Fluttershy wiped the tears off of her face as she heard the dragon let out an enormous yawn. She got up and looked out to find the beast now snoring. As she sat back down, she felt a small poke on her foot and gasped. As she lifted her foot, she found a piece of granite that had broken off the boulder above her. She suddenly realized the opportunity that laid before her. She looked out again and found the dragon deep in its slumber. Without any hesitation, she took the small shard of rock and began chiseling her way out through the stalagmites.

As she dug around the edges, she thought of how she would escape. First, she would try to remove two of the spikes that barred her way. Second she would sneak her way around the dragon and hopefully outside. Thirdly and finally, she would try to find her way out of the Everfree forest and back to Ponyville. Granted that would be harder than it sounded, but all she cared about was getting out of this cage. The rock she worked with didn't have a fine edge, but she felt that it would take her within the hour to free herself. It would be enough time since the dragon slept for hours without any disturbance. She felt the rock pillar become weaker and started thinking happier thoughts. She thought of how both her friends and animal companions would greet her. How they would rejoice from her safe return and how Pinkie would throw an excessively huge party, just to show how much they cared. While in the middle of the thought, she suddenly heard a soft trickling of coins in the distance. She stopped and looked out, but found the dragon still deep in its dreamscape. She hastily went back to scraping away the stalagmite and felt it crumbling.

"Oh, I hope Angel hasn't forgotten about me", thought the timid girl.

Just as the long stalagmite went loose, she looked up to see if her captor was still asleep. However she suddenly let out a surprised yelp and tried to cover her mouth. She looked at where the pile of jewels were and found that someone or something was near the top. It was a dark knight-like figure in blue armor, with a violet robe draped over it. It held onto the wall as it tried to grab something near the top of the pile. It looked at her with glowing pale blue eyes, yet she couldn't see a face. Fluttershy could hardly believe what she was seeing and was frightened by the thing's outward appearance. The figure then grabbed the glowing gem that the drake recently brought. She then heard a rustle and looked where the sleeping drake was, only to find the monster no longer sleeping. The dragon charged at the figure trying to escape and swiped at him. The two then began fighting as Fluttershy looked on.

While the two enemies brawled, Fluttershy remembered that she was escaping and that this fight could prove to be a useful distraction. She then rapidly struck against the weakened pillar of rock. Upon finally budging the rock, she had managed to topple it over. Before she could work on the second stalagmite, she felt a wave of intense heat knock her back. Getting back up, she saw the destruction the dragon caused by spewing fire all around the cave. Some of its flames managed to cover the stalagmite, which forced Fluttershy to stop. She covered her mouth and tried to see what was happening through all the smoke. She saw the dragon's head positioned over the blue warrior as it prepared to rain down more hellfire, but the man didn't move from his spot. The vile drake then let loose a stream of molten fire down onto the knight as Fluttershy let out a scream. Even though she hadn't known him, she felt as though she was responsible for his demise. However as she continued watching, she let out a gasp at what had transpired. The warrior stood where he was and had a strange green flame surrounding him. Fluttershy watched as the beast then began swiping and attempting to crush the man, only for the blows to be deflected. Finally, after the dragon used another jet of fire, the mysterious warrior leapt onto it and began stabbing the creature in the back. Her thoughts on the warrior changed as she witnessed him maim the beast. She watched in silent horror as the rogue knight impaled the beast into submission. "What man of honor would torture a defenseless creature?", she thought. She wanted to shout at the warrior to stop, but ceased when the glow around the man faded. Out of no where, the dragon suddenly regained its strength and threw its attacker to the side.

Fluttershy watched as the dragon began swallowing its treasures while the man too was looking through its bounty. It was now or never to escape and she had to get out before either of the fighters found her. She slammed the rock pillar with the stone and tried desperately to free herself, but found it too sturdy. Her heart then raced as the sounds of stomping and heavy huffs became deafeningly loud. The rock ceiling suddenly disappeared and Fluttershy looked up to find the glaring face of the dragon. She let out a surprised shout as the drake's tongue shot out and wrapped itself around her waist. She felt the ground leave her as the dragon then lifted her up above everything.

"Nice mister dragon. Good...kind mister... dragon!", she stuttered. The beast only opened its mouth even more.

"Please don't eat me! I don't want to leave my friends forever!", she cried.

She desperately tried to free herself, but the dragon's bind was too strong. She looked to the warrior for help, hoping that he would save her. However the man only stood there, watching from a distance as the dragon held her aloft. It was at that moment that Fluttershy put two and two together and came to a conclusion: The man in armor was death incarnate, and he had come to seal her fate. With a swift motion, she then felt her body being pulled inside the dragon's maw and down its throat as the mouth closed behind her. She screamed as the muscles around her contracted and opened as they kept pulling her ever closer to the beast's gullet. The pressure she felt almost left her breathless as she slid deeper in. Finally, after what seemed like eternity of being squeezed in, she exited the tunnel and landed on a pile of gold coins inside the beast's stomach. She held her breath inside the toxic, fleshy chamber as she knew it was only evading the inevitable. As she tried to survive the deadly acids that were around her, she found that all of the treasure the creature ate began to deteriorate. Fluttershy found a pile of slightly soaked, but safe fabrics and decided to stay on top of them. And so it looked as though it were the end for her. Having such a happy life with her friends and being an element of harmony, only for it to end by dragon digestion. With nothing other than death all around her, she stood onto the fabrics and started feeling light headed from holding her breath. At last she finally gave up and gasped for air, only for her to regret her decision. The fumes began choking her as she tried to cry one last time. However, before she could bawl, something hard hit her on the head, causing her to fall over.

Fluttershy was on the verge of losing consciousness as she lied on the soaking drapes that supported her. She truly felt that her own actions led her to die here. Perhaps it was life's way of punishing her for being a coward. The sound of the dragon's heart beating almost felt tranquil, as though it was lulling her to sleep. Her body suddenly became heavy as she finally let go of her worries and accepted her fate. It was until the beating above her stopped and she suddenly felt herself fall and crash hard. Part of her senses surged as a bright light suddenly revealed itself onto her. She tried her best to see what it was, but her body ached as she crawled. She then felt the air become slightly cleaner as she neared the bright illumination. Her vision then showed a figure approach her as she crawled. She began to feel happy and even glad that someone was there to greet her, and without prejudice she welcomed it. However as the figure came into view, her feelings of joy ended. Her eyes widened as she soon came face to face with the armored rogue without a face. His turquoise eyes piercing hers as he stood in front of her. Fluttershy then suddenly felt her body being lifted aside as the man moved her away from him. She looked at what he wanted and saw an orange gem laid between her and him. However it suddenly began to disappear as the sound of an enormous heart beat rang. Fluttershy looked on as the knight began grabbing at the gemstone but failing to recover it. After a while the warrior gave up and prepared to leave her. But the timid girl didn't want him to leave. She wanted him to take her and save her from this fate. Even with his appearance, she found something about him wasn't right. He looked evil, but somewhere deep in her heart, Fluttershy saw more than violence in him. Using the last of her strength, she began to crawl towards him.

"Help me...", she gasped.

The warrior then turned and looked back at her. The cold, glowing eyes seemed much more comforting now that she wanted someone with her. She cried one last time to him.

"Help... Me..."

And at that she felt herself go loose as the world around her faded into darkness.