Laments of the Dimension-Stranded ⁽ᴿᵉᵐᵃᵏᵉ⁾

Rain drummed against the forest floor. Water droplets dripped among the leaves as they descended and eventually struck the soil, being absorbed. Rainbow observed the process silently from her shelter beneath the ochre trunk of a curly tree. She shivered in a desperate struggle to retain body heat.

“Rainbow Dash…”

A gust of wind banished the storm clouds, sweeping them away. She rose to her hooves and looked around. “Hello?”

The wind whistled. Chilling mist poured forth, churning and billowing as it pooled on the ground. From the smoke emerged the distinct silhouette of a familiar tall, lithe pony. She didn’t attempt to speak. She merely sat on her haunches, extended one of her forelegs, and motioned welcomingly.

“Luna? O–Oh my gosh, I—!” At a loss for words, Rainbow stuttered, choking. She staggered forward, tripping over her own hooves, and grasped Luna with her forelegs and drew her into a tight embrace.

Princess Luna smiled and reciprocated the hug. She unfurled one of her extensive alicorn-sized wings and gently rested it over her. “I’m so relieved to see you’re alright. I've meditated ceaselessly attempting to locate your mind in the dream realm. You are well and truly lost. It’s a miracle you and I are together tonight as your body rests."

“Is everypony okay?” Rainbow partially withdrew from the hug enough to gaze upward. She blinked rapidly, delaying the tears which threatened to fall from her wetted eyes.

“That's what I like to see. Your first thoughts are of the wellbeing of your friends and family. You’re a good pony, Rainbow. You have a heart of gold inside, even if it's hidden by a tough exterior.” She smiled and tenderly brushed the tip of one of her feathers beneath Rainbow’s eyes to dry them. “When you awaken, I’ll deliver the news that you are alive and in good health."

“Can we… talk for a little bit before then?"

Luna nodded wordlessly.

“I don't know where I am. Everything and everyone around here are so ignorant. One of them named Vincent, he… killed three others. They were the first humans he had seen in years, but... he killed them. He did it without even thinking."

“It seems he was pressured to make a decision quickly by their aggression.” Luna raised her foreleg and waved her hoof. The world which surrounded them melted and dripped into the black infinite abyss like hot candle wax. Their surroundings altered. Rainbow saw Vincent and the soldiers from her own viewpoint. She witnessed him raise the rifle she had reluctantly relinquished to him, and with a draw of the trigger, he…

She tore her eyes away from the gruesome scene and buried her muzzle into Luna’s side below her wing. Her muscles tensed and her ears folded in anticipation of deafening gunshots, but the scene was silent. It faded from view.

“How do you know about all of this?"

“We are in your dream. Our minds are connected, and the dream is the medium that allows us to communicate. Through this tenuous link, I have access to all of your memories, everything you’ve witnessed and experienced."

"He's a monster. He’s selfish. He doesn’t care about anything but himself. He’ll hurt anyone to get what he wants." Rainbow sniffled. Tears welled in her eyes. "I need to leave! I'm next, I know it! I–I ju–just... I don't know where to go!"

Luna gently nuzzled the top of her head between the ears to alleviate her sudden onset of panic.

Rainbow bit her tongue. Several offensive thoughts crossed her mind, words she felt guilty for even considering saying. "He tricked me. He’s only acting this way because he wants someone to be there for him. Years of being alone could make anyone feel desperate. But I'm not that way. I could never be there for someone like that.”

"To be deprived of everything and everyone you once cared for and violently thrust into a foreign world far from home, to suffer there, imprisoned, in isolation and silence…” She gazed into the night sky thoughtfully and sighed sadly. “...that trauma is ruinous. He requires someone to help guide him along the path to redemption. It will be difficult, but not impossible.”

“I can’t! This isn't my job! Anypony else could do this better! I'm not..." She lowered her head. "I'm not a wise pony. Not like my friends. Not like you."

“You’re capable of more than you think.” Luna raised Rainbow’s chin using her feathers and smiled. “You’re courageous. And kind. You’re humble when it matters most. But, most importantly, you’re loyal to just causes. You have to overcome this. I know you will rouse the inspiration—you’re anything but undetermined.”

Rainbow’s eyes wetted as emotion surged within her and threatened to imminently burst forth. “I wanna go home! I’m not ready for this! I was never prepared to try to be friends with someone as awful as him!”

“You’re an Element of Harmony. That is the burden a hero must bear: great suffering for the betterment of others. Besides, there is light within this darkness. You have eyes to see it. ‘Evil’ is but a matter of true intentions.”

"What do you mean? You're too smart for me, Luna." Rainbow glanced aside thoughtfully. Her eyebrows furrowed with frustration. "When can I come home?"

“Locating your mind required rigorous meditation for many days. This means, regrettably, I will likely be unable to locate it again for a long time. You may think of the dream realm like breathable air—it thins across vast distances, like the air atop the summit of a mountain. Everyone is working tirelessly to invent a magical solution, but there's still much research to be done. Until then, I’m afraid we will be separated."

Luna nuzzled Rainbow's cheek affectionately. "The time for you to wake draws near. Don’t think of this as an eternal goodbye. We shall see each other again.” She withdrew from the embrace, stood, and folded her wing against her back. She gradually retreated. As she drew further away, the mist absorbed her. Her form blurred and darkened until she was naught but a silhouette, then a shadow, and, finally, she vanished entirely.

In a clearing, sheltered beneath the shadow of the elevated asphalt plateau, Vincent had trampled the grass and fashioned a cross. A rifle protruded from the ground vertically, surrounded by pairs of boots and crowned with a helmet atop the butt of its stock. It marked a grave which contained multiple bodies. The soil was still fresh and loose.

Rainbow neared and firmly pressed her hoof against the ground, creating a hoofprint-shaped indentation in the soft earth. Then, she plucked a wildflower from the grass and rested it delicately before the grave. She stepped backward to contemplate her new offerings to the memorial.

“I made a mistake. I realize that now. You have to understand, I never wanted this to happen." She bowed her head, closed her eyes, and hushed her breaths, adhering truthfully to the method she had been taught to formally convey respect of the utmost degree. "I can't believe that I'm still standing here, but you're not." She released all of her breath in a long, sad sigh. "Maybe if I had made better choices, then I could have changed that. I'm sorry."