Apocalypse

The red lightning-bolt shaped gem clacked in echoes against the stones as it fell into the abyss. Nodding in satisfaction, Pestilence turned back around and trotted down the mountainside. She had successfully gotten rid of one of the Elements used to defeat her and her sisters. Now they'd never be able to find it, and thus they'd never be able to defeat them!

Pestilence leaped off of the last rock and landed firmly on the grassy ground. She made her way to the cave she and her sisters lived in and walked in, and almost immediately she heard the sound of muffled cries. It didn't sound like their captive. No, instead it sound a lot like...

"Famine!" the pony cried out before leaping into a gallop down through the cave. She ran into the clearing where their captive usually was - who was now gone - and at the corner was a tied up gray and black pony.

Pestilence rushed over to her sister and unzipped the zipper on her mouth, which then vanished instantly. She tugged on the ropes to try and untie her, and she spoke through clenched teeth. "What happened here? Are you okay?"

"Th-The ponies..." Famine whimpered, shaking too vigorously in fear to make out any other words.

"What ponies? Famine, what happened?"

"They... They took her..."

"Who took who?" Death's voice asked. Famine and Pestilence turned to see her and War walk into the clearing. Her eyes widened when she saw her youngest sister tied up and she and War both helped Pestilence untie her. They finally managed to break the ropes and help the youngest pony to her hooves. "What happened?"

"The... The ponies..." Famine whined with another fierce quiver.

"Where were you two?" Pestilence asked her older sisters. "You should've heard what happened to Famine and our captive!"

"We were chasing what looked to be a stray wisp pony filly," War replied with a snarl. "Turns out it was all a trick to lure us away from the cave."

"The ponies came... They took our pony..." Famine finally managed to stutter.

"Those ponies are quite clever," Death credited with a small chuckle. "Taking on the youngest of the sisters and luring the strongest two away. Well played, Equestrian ponies." Her gaze suddenly turned dark and an intimidatingly evil grin stretched across her face. "But two can play at that game. Nopony cheats Death and gets away with it."

Numerous hooves pounded against the ground, riding the Equestrian and Mytholander ponies back into town. They stopped and panted heavily from the harsh run once they reached it, and they made their way in a slower pace to Breakneck's house.

Twilight and Rarity helped untie Rainbow Dash from the Sleipnir pony's back and placed her on the pile of sand the ponies slept on before. Twilight approached her unconscious friend and inspected her wounds.

"It looks like Rainbow took quite a beating from those ponies," she announced after she finished analyzing and dressing the pegasus pony's wounds. "She has many cuts and bruises that will heal, but the gash on her belly had to be wrapped. A few chunks of hair were yanked out, too, and her wings had been plucked clean of their feathers. Her left wing had also been dislocated, so I had to pop it back into place and wrap it with bandages, as well as her chest; a few of her ribs are broken."

"This all looks like the work of War," Strike hissed. "It's just like her to beat another pony up this badly."

"I also noticed that she no longer has her Element of Loyalty," Twilight went on. "I'm guessing that the sisters took it and hid it somewhere."

"I know where it is," Future chimed in very softly, almost missing Twilight's attention and having her carry on. "When I was checking the cave, I also noticed somepony walking up the mountainside. It must have been Pestilence. I also sensed a powerful magic from her."

"That must've been Rainbow's Element!" Applejack exclaimed. "Where did that good-fer-nothin' pony take it?"

"It looked like she was heading towards the Annihilation Abyss. That's where the sisters throw any valuables belonging to any Mytholander ponies into. Nopony who's tried to go down there to retrieve anything the sisters threw in every came back out, not even Typhon or wisp ponies."

"So that's it, then!" Applejack shouted in defeat, exhibiting fury. "We're done for! We lost the Element of Loyalty forever and now Equestria and Mytholand are gonna pay!"

"Calm down, Applejack," Rarity tried to reason with her upset friend. "Maybe somepony of another species can fly down there and retrieve it."

"Oh, yeah? Like who?"

"Like an alicorn!" Pinkie squeaked, leaping on Twilight's back.

The princess' eyes flew wide open in surprise and teleported out from under the party pony, then reappeared next to Fluttershy and Future. "What? But I can't fly down there!"

"Who else can fly and use powerful magic?" Rarity challenged, catching on to Pinkie's proposition.

"But didn't you hear what Future Sight said? Nopony who's ever gone down there has ever come back out!"

"Just like a princess to care more about herself than her pupils," Strike growled, glaring at the alicorn hostilely.

"That's not what I meant!" Twilight snapped back. "I mean if I go down there and I don't come back-"

"Then what?" the Typhon pony interrupted. "Mytholand is doomed? Or better yet, Equestria is doomed? Because that's all that you ponies care about: your homeland!"

"We care about everypony and every place!" Rarity shouted in Twilight's place. "We aren't greedy or cruel unlike somepony who yells at a princess and accuses her of not caring about her friends when she clearly does!"

"Well, if she doesn't go down there, then we're all doomed!"

"Can't you think about nopony else but yourself?" Applejack growled. "You have no idea how difficult this is for Twilight! She doesn't want to disappear from existence because she doesn't want to leave her friends behind!"

"Friends this, friends that, we're all such wonderful friends!" Strike mocked, venom literally spewing from his mouth. "Friendship doesn't stand a chance against death itself! We were all doomed from the start!"

"Please stop!" Fluttershy suddenly cried out, her shrill voice causing everyone to halt their fighting. A single tear fell down her cheek as she glared at them. "If everypony's going to make such a big deal out of all of this, I'll go and get this all over with!"

The ponies all widened their eyes, and a few of them gasped in disbelief. Rarity was the first to leap to her side. "Fluttershy, sweetie, you can't!"

"Somepony has to," she replied, her voice quivering. "I'm not doing this for just Equestria or just Mytholand. I'm doing it for everypony I care about, which includes you." She looked at the Mytholander ponies.

"But Fluttershy..." Pinkie whimpered. Tears began to fall down her cheeks as she launched herself at her friend and hugged her tightly. "I won't let you go, not by yourself! I'm coming with you!"

"So am I," Applejack chimed in, holding her hat to her chest. "If one Element goes, they all go."

"This will be such a risky mission, but I'll come as well for Rainbow Dash and for everypony else," Rarity declared, wiping the wet mascara from her cheeks.

Twilight looked down guiltily. "I can't believe what I did... I was more concerned about myself than I was for my friends... Some Princess of Friendship I am..."

"It's okay, Twilight," Fluttershy spoke softly, lifting her friend's head up and smiling warmly. "There's nothing wrong with trying to protect yourself. You should never try to throw yourself out in the face of danger for your friends may end up paying the consequences. But you can count that your friends will still always be by your side no matter what."

"We were foolish to try and single you out," Rarity admitted shamefully. "As close as we are to one another and to Rainbow Dash, we all should have offered from the get-go to go together."

Twilight smiled and wiped her own tears away. "Thank you, everypony. Okay, let's go and get that Element for Rainbow Dash!"

"Not without me, you're not," Breakneck suddenly interrupted before the ponies could walk out. The Sleipnir pony walked over to their side. "We're all friends here, so we all should help you retrieve the missing Element."

"Yay for adventure!" Flash cheered, floating to their side.

"I'm coming, too," Future smiled, walking up to them.

Everypony then turned to look at Strike, who looked back. He glared at them all for a while, then suddenly he softened his gaze and smiled. "I'm coming, too. I'm sorry for all my accusations. I should really learn how to trust my friends instead of accuse them."

"Thanks, Strike," Twilight smiled. "Okay, let's go!"

The ponies all galloped out of the house and towards Apocalypse Mountain, leaving Rainbow Dash to sleep in her sandy bed and regain her strength.

The pegasus pony's eyes flickered open.