Hours Once Gone

Rainbow finally had a chance to catch her breath and compose herself. Her and Rarity were sitting across from each other at a table in the middle of the library. Rarity had a pen and paper, taking notes of what Rainbow was saying. For the past few minutes, Rainbow had disclosed what she saw in Scarlet's memories. It was the only thing that didn't give away the fact she was time traveling, so she couldn't say anything more. Of course, she had to keep Light Speed's situation a secret too.

"This book sounds rather troublesome… can't we do anything to take it away from her?" Rarity said.

Rainbow Dash shook her head. "It's in her stomach, she said. If we wanted to even get it out, we'd have to cut it out."

Rarity put a finger to her chin. "And you can't use any teleportation spells?"

"If Scarlet can't use the Alicorn Amulet to get rid of it, I don't think any spells will work," Rainbow theorized. "Unless… the elements…"

Rainbow's eyes lit up with hope. The Elements of Harmony could be the solution she was searching for. But in order to use them, she'd need her friends. She couldn't waste any time.

Rainbow paused in thought. She could use the goggles to turn back time to when she was in Equestria, but was that really a good idea? What would happen to the present? By turning back time, would she erase everything that's happened, including her meeting with Rarity?

Rainbow hesitated, but ultimately someone's life was on the line. She had to go back. "Rarity," she started. "I'm sorry."

The guilt piled onto Rainbow as she turned the cog back one hour. The last thing she saw was Rarity's confused face, before time reversed. Next thing she knew, she was standing in front of the Crystal Mirror.

"I'm back…" she mumbled.

Her hooves, tail and wings were all there. Her skeleton was completely different. No longer was she bipedal with a little nose and ears. It felt good to be back.

She sighed in relief, before turning around. "Hey um…" she flexed her wings, glancing to the side. "I know this is sudden but… could you all maybe come with me?"

Everypony looked back and forth at each other, confused why Rainbow had suddenly changed her mind.

"Rainbow Dash, the map chose you. We can't go with you," Twilight said.

"Well, I don't know about that…" Rainbow argued. "Maybe the map is just saying it's my mission but… I can still have some support just in case, right?"

Fluttershy spoke up. "Rainbow… are you… scared?" She almost couldn't believe her own words.

Indeed, Rainbow was shaking again, both her body and her voice. "S-Scared? No! Just… it could be dangerous, so it would be nice to have the Elements of Harmony…"

"You can be honest with us," Applejack said. "But I reckon Twilight's right, you know. The map specifically called you."

They were right. This was a job for Rainbow Dash, whether she liked it or not. It didn't make any sense though. She needed the Elements of Harmony, but the map was denying her that. Frustration started to boil in Rainbow's chest.

"Who cares what the map says? You're my friends, right! Friends help friends!" Rainbow raised her voice.

"Rainbow…" Twilight said softly. "We're believing in you because you're our friend. Whatever that Scarlet is up to, we know you're able to handle her. You're Rainbow Dash."

Everypony nodded and agreed, but Rainbow simply lowered her head. Why did everypony believe in her? She'd already failed twice. A third try wouldn't do any good.

"Rainbow?" Twilight called out to her, as she was being quiet.

Rainbow looked back at the portal. She tried to think of any cunning plan, something that could save Scarlet, but her mind went blank. She had no theories of who could've killed Scarlet or how to stop them.

Frustrated, Rainbow lifted off the floor and flew out of the room, away from everypony else. After zipping out a window, she flew to the highest cloud she could find, throwing herself onto it and shoving her face into it. She screamed as loud as she could, her voice muffled.

Rainbow laid on that cloud for minutes, thinking of what she could possibly do. She couldn't use the elements with her friends at Canterlot High because they were missing Twilight, the most important element of all. What could she do on her own?

She began to doze off on that cloud, wanting rest more than anything. Her mind had been awake for a whole day after all, even if her body was well rested. She stretched out her limbs and gave into her exhaustion, falling asleep. The world went silent and her senses shut down as her brain began to recharge. Never had she felt so glad to be sleeping, even with how much she loved to sleep on a daily basis.

Eventually, Rainbow started to see. Not reality, but the imaginations in her dream world. What she saw was a city of skyscrapers, echoing creaking noises as if they were unstable. They were so tall she couldn't see where they ended above the clouds. In her dream, she was a pony, but her wings were missing.

As she wandered through the city, eventually she found what looked to be herself. Although, it was her human form. Standing, facing away from her, completely still. Rainbow slowly approached them, circling around them. As soon as she was able to see her face, she saw a horrific sight.

Her eyes were wide, wider than humanly possible, almost as if her eyeballs were about to pop out of her skull. Her mouth was wide open as if she were screaming, with her facial muscles stretched beyond proportion. As Rainbow hesitantly reached a hoof out, the human version of herself fell backwards, slamming against the floor. Her limbs spread out, but her facial expression was the same.

Rainbow stepped backwards, and as she did she heard laughing. It was her friends. All laughing at her, their voices circling around her head like flies, invading her eardrums.

As she tried to swat the voices away, she looked to the sky when a bright light formed. There was a face on the moon, glowing a pure white. The eyes of that figure shone brightly before letting off a burst of light that illuminated the entire city. With that, the laughter faded and the body in front of Rainbow disappeared. Even the buildings stopped creaking and the atmosphere became less eerie.

In front of Rainbow, an alicorn descended from the sky, landing on the street. It was Princess Luna. Her mane flowed with speckled stars sparkling in the moonlight. All fear left Rainbow's body.

"Princess Luna?" Rainbow instinctively bowed. "What are you doing here?"

"You are dreaming, Rainbow Dash," Luna said. "We are the princess of the night. Tis our duty to watch over the dreams of ponies."

"Oooh, that makes sense," Rainbow said. "So that was a nightmare."

Luna nodded. "Pray tell, what is it that has you frightened?"

Rainbow sat on the street, thinking to herself. Being frozen in time, watching somepony die, failing her mission, which scared her most? She was afraid. For the first time in a long time, she was scared. It had been forever since she'd had an actual nightmare.

"I… can't say," Rainbow explained. "If I told you, I'd get in a lot of trouble."

"Have you forgotten? You are dreaming," Luna said. "There are no consequences here. Whatever you have to say won't leave this dream."

"How can you be sure? Just because I'm in a dream doesn't mean that thing won't get me," Rainbow said.

Luna raised her eyebrows with suspicion, quickly catching on. "Whatever that 'thing' is, this is our domain. If something dark is pursuing you, it cannot do anything while we are here." Luna suddenly shot a beam of magic into the sky, before a sphere bursted outward and cleansed Rainbow's dream of all its surroundings, leaving only her and Luna in a starry void.

Rainbow looked back and forth. "You're sure?" she asked. It wasn't like her to be so worried, but she absolutely didn't want to be stuck in time again.

Luna nodded. "You are safe, Rainbow Dash."

Those words gave Rainbow the strength she needed. A simple affirmation that she wasn't in any danger and that they were alone. Rainbow could vocalize her feelings without fear.

Rainbow sighed, closing her eyes. "I've been…" she paused for a moment, before building up the courage to continue. "...traveling back in time."

She said it. She actually said it. Luna wasn't lying, she could really speak here. Luna blinked in surprise, but didn't interrupt Rainbow. Even just blinking her eyelids reassured Rainbow that things were alright.

"The goggles Princess Celestia gave me, they can take me an hour back in time," Rainbow said. "But I can't tell anypony or else I'll be frozen in time… and please, don't tell anypony either, or you could be cursed too."

Luna nodded. "We promise not to tell anypony," she assured Rainbow.

Rainbow sighed with relief. "I don't know what to do…" Rainbow put her head in her hooves, before realizing, she could ask Luna. "Wait! Wouldn't you know all about sleeping spells?"

"Of course, that is part of our duty," Luna said.

"Then, do you know any spells that could force somepony to sleep and… kill them?" Rainbow hesitantly asked.

Luna's eyes widened in surprise, not knowing why in Equestria why she'd ask such a dark question. "We are to assume this is important," she guessed, as Rainbow nodded. "Very well. Certainly, any high level unicorn can put somepony to sleep, but to kill somepony through the means of a dream is reserved for the most talented in Equestria. Unless of course, it is through dark magic."

There it was again. Dark magic. How did it keep coming up again and again? It started to hang over Rainbow like a shadow, following her everywhere she went.

"Is there any way to stop it?" Rainbow asked.

"To stop it? No, but to prevent it, that depends on if it is instant or dormant," Luna said. "A sleep spell that is casted instantly can be prevented if you do not let the caster touch you, but a dormant spell can be set on a pony without their knowledge and be inactive for many years, only able to become active if a requirement is met."

The world around Rainbow and Luna began to rumble. Rainbow's vision started to appear hazy as time was running out for her to remain in the dream.

"W-Wait!" Rainbow shouted. "How am I supposed to know what activates it?"

Luna shook her head. "We cannot be sure. If this is truly of great concern to you, then please, speak to us in Canterlot."

Luna began to drift away into the endless cosmos surrounding them, a great swirling mass pulling Rainbow away for her. She tried to run towards Luna, but it was no use. The faster Rainbow ran, the further away she got. Before she knew it, she was awake.