Lonely Ocean

“Well, that was something,” Spike said, stepping out from behind a bookcase. A very exhausted Twilight Sparkle nodded to agree. Her lavender fur glistened with perspiration, and her mane was nothing short of what Rarity would call a “fashion emergency.” Shaking slightly, Twilight sat down and took a few moments to let the fogginess in her vision clear up. Spells like that could really do a number on a unicorn.

“I’m… just praying… it worked,” Twilight said breathlessly, trying to resist the urge to lie down and take a nap. Tempting as it was, sleep would definitely have to wait. She needed to make sure that Ponyville was alright and that a report was sent to Celestia about the whole ordeal.

This floor is so comfortable, though, Twilight thought, her mind drifting. She rubbed the floor gently with one hoof.

“Twilight, are you feeling alright?” Spike asked with a genuine look of concern on his face. After a few seconds had passed the purple mare was still unresponsive, so he snapped his fingers directly in front of her face. Twilight’s eyes opened and her typical personality resurfaced for a moment.

“Spike! Slap me if I fall asleep, okay?” she ordered, fighting to sit up. It was a valiant effort, but after a brief struggle Twilight began to lose her grip on consciousness once again. She hit the floor with a significant thud, and Spike winced at the sound. There was a short silence, and then the sleepy mare muttered something extremely disturbing.

“Twi-Twi wants to take a nappy.”

Spike blinked. Twi-Twi? Nappy? It was one thing for Twilight to refer to herself in the third person, but it was another thing entirely for her to use a word like “nappy,” even if she wasn’t conscious. I’d better slap her, Spike decided nobly. He hesitated for a moment, being a little reluctant to slap his best friend, even if it was for her own good. Spike slowly drew back his hand and prepared to strike, summoning as much courage as he could. Trust me, this is going to hurt me a lot more than it will hurt you. After several seconds and several second thoughts, he finally let his hand go, smacking Twilight squarely on the face.

Spike immediately turned away and shielded himself with his forearm, afraid to open his eyes. For a few tense moments, everything was quiet. Then, Twilight snored loudly. Spike opened his eyes with great astonishment. There Twilight lay, breathing heavily, lips pouting. Spike had failed his friend. No! Spike told himself. I won’t fail her. I have to wake her up!

With that, he forced himself to slap Twilight again. The mare stirred. For a moment it seemed that she might wake up, but much to Spike’s disappointment, Twilight rolled over and resumed snoring. A look of despair formed on Spike’s demeanor, and his brow became furrowed with frustration. He bit his lip and slapped Twilight a little harder. There was no response.

Spike was flustered. “Wake up, darn you!” he cried, raising a hand once again to strike. Spike paused when he saw Rarity standing in the library’s doorway. The white mare smiled sweetly. She was clearly amused. “You know, you could have just used some cold water,” she said with a giggle.

* * *

Senses came back one at a time as Rainbow’s mind slowly awoke from a very deep sleep. First was hearing; there was a soft, steady wind causing fallen leaves to rustle and creaky branches to sway. There was an eerie sense of calm in the air which suggested she was still in the Everfree Forest. Dash’s sense of touch was the next to kick in, and immediately she felt burning pain, especially in her wings and rear legs. It also felt as if most of her body was covered in mild scratches. Rainbow also felt something more pleasant, however; a hoof was gently stroking her back.

Finally the bruised and beaten pony opened her eyes, ready to face whatever the outside world happened to be. Blurry colors gradually took shape, and the first thing Rainbow Dash could make out was Pinkie’s face. When everything came into focus, she could see that there were tears in the pink mare’s eyes. The sight took Rainbow aback and she blinked several times, trying to make sense of the situation she’d just awoken to.

“Pinkie…” she began, pulling herself into a sitting position. The exertion was extremely painful. “What’s wrong?”

The pink mare looked alright, physically speaking. She was covered in dirt and had a few minor scrapes and bruises, but didn’t seem to be badly injured. “Dashie,” she said, stifling sobs, “your wing…”

Rainbow looked down at her side immediately, and gasped. Her left wing was bent at an unnatural angle, and was stained violet with blood. It had clearly been broken. The pegasus instinctively tried to move it, which was not a very good idea. Rainbow couldn’t suppress a whimper from the searing pain of her injury. Pinkie gasped and stepped back as if the pain were her fault. “I’m so sorry, Dashie,” she wailed, tears flowing freely.

Something about seeing the poor pink mare so shaken up made Rainbow Dash want to cry as well. “Hey, it’s fine,” Rainbow reassured her, in the most comforting tone she could manage. “So I won’t be able to fly for a little bit. It’s not the end of the world.”

Pinkie sniffed. “It’s not?” Her big blue eyes were wet with tears.

“Of course not,” the pegasus continued, with forced confidence, “after all, I can still walk.” With that, Rainbow attempted to stand. She immediately collapsed when her left rear leg exploded in red-hot pain. The cyan mare let out a sickly whine. “Or maybe not,” she managed to say, burying her head in her hooves and biting her lower lip as she waited for the intense discomfort to subside. She couldn’t help groaning as the shocking pain reverberated throughout her body.

It was too much for Pinkie. The pink pony began bawling loudly and she fell to the ground, completely distraught. The devastated mare then inched over to Rainbow Dash and embraced her, shoulders shuddering as she sobbed. Pinkie nuzzled the back of her friend’s head, whimpering and crying into that beautiful rainbow mane.

Rainbow Dash sighed. She wanted to believe that she didn’t need the affection, but it was undeniable that there was some sort of emotional connection forming between the two mares. Pinkie’s sympathy gave her a feeling of warmth and calmed her nerves, and soon the blue mare sunk into another exhausted sleep.

* * *

Twilight awoke with a start. She immediately noticed that her mane was drenched with water, and that Rarity was holding a bucket between her teeth. Rarity, noticing that Twilight was awake, set the empty bucket down and offered a hoof to help her friend up. Twilight took the hoof and stood with a grunt. She still felt a little dazed from the diversion spell, but not quite as much as before.

“Spike explained why you were on the floor,” Rarity said casually. “I didn’t notice anything unusual on the way here, so your spell must have worked.”

“Well, you can’t be too careful,” Twilight said. “I’d like to have a walk around Ponyville myself to make sure everything’s okay.” At that, Rarity nodded.

“Of course,” she agreed delicately. “Would you like me to accompany you?”

“Yes,” Twilight answered, finally feeling a little bit of energy return to her. A walk with Rarity would be a nice change of pace after such a stressful morning, and recreation was certainly something that Twilight could use a lot more of.

Looking down, Twilight noticed Spike’s expression. His eyes were wide and he held up folded hands, silently petitioning to come along. “Yes, Spike,” she said with a sigh. Rarity smiled knowingly.

The three set off from the library, greeted by warms rays of sunshine and a steady fall breeze. Ponyville looked gorgeous, and its features sparkled in the sunlight. Looking around, it was as though there had never been any threat at all; everypony went about their business happily, and there were no signs of anything unusual or dangerous as far as Twilight could see. Still, it would ease her mind to make a quick sweep of the town.

They continued on, and the scenery was so breathtaking that day that the group was usually too busy admiring it to make conversation. Occasionally Twilight would question arbitrary ponies as to whether they’d seen anything unusual that morning, and so far, none had. After twenty minutes of walking, the trio arrived at the marketplace, and everything seemed to be in perfect order.

To either side of the group vendors were selling fresh fruits and vegetables, and they all looked absolutely delicious—in fact, it was tempting not to turn the walk into a shopping trip. Even Twilight found the fresh goods a little distracting, but that was mostly because she hadn’t eaten anything all day. After a brief debate Rarity persuaded Twilight to take a break, and she treated them all to lunch.

The day wore on, and Twilight’s investigation yielded no suspicious results. After a couple hours, the group had made a complete circle of Ponyville, and Spike and Rarity were more than ready to call it quits.

“Really, Twilight, I’m sure everything is fine,” Rarity insisted.

“I’m pretty sure it is,” Twilight admitted, “but I want to talk to Zecora before hanging this up.” Something was still nagging at the back of her mind, though she couldn’t pinpoint exactly what it was.

“Well, you can count me out,” Spike said, yawning. “I’m in dire need of a great nap.” He hopped off Twilight’s back and began to head home. Rarity watched him go for a few moments and then turned back to Twilight.

“I’d go with you,” she said sincerely, “but I’ve got a bit of a tall order to fill at the boutique. It’s been a lovely morning, though.” Rarity’s eyes were bright, and she clearly meant what she said.

“Thanks, Rarity.” Twilight replied, with a grateful smile. She thought a moment. “It’s probably better if I go alone, anyway.” At this, Rarity nodded.

“I’ll see you soon.”

* * *

Once again, Pinkie was the first to wake. At first all she could see was gold-tinged rainbow hair, because her head was still nestled in Dash’s mane. She carefully pulled herself away from the colorful pegasus. As soon as Pinkie stood she felt cold, and a light wind sent a chill coursing through her body.

Rainbow Dash shivered in her sleep. It was still a beautiful day, but clouds were moving in and Pinkie Pie knew that weather in the Everfree Forest would be anything but predictable. With Rainbow immobilized, it would be important to get some wood for a fire, and to make some sort of shelter. Pinkie had no idea how it would be possible to get her friend back to Ponyville until she was healed, so for now their main focus would have to be survival.

Survival, thought Pinkie solemnly. I’ve taken so much for granted. What if we don’t even make it out? The pink mare’s heart fell and her ears followed suit.

“What the hay?”

Pinkie’s heart leapt at the sound of Rainbow’s voice. She turned around and dove at Rainbow, briefly forgetting about her friend’s injuries in the joy of the moment. In midair, she remembered that Rainbow was badly hurt. Unfortunately, she was already in the air and had no time to prevent the inevitable impact. As she collided with the cerulean pony, similarly colored sparks enveloped Rainbow Dash. The brilliant sparks transferred like electricity to Pinkie’s body at various points of contact, and she was repelled by the magic. Pinkie Pie felt an electric pain zip through her limbs.

The surprised mare crashed onto the forest floor with a pained cry. She slid a few feet after landing, gaining a few scratches from tiny rocks on the ground. Pinkie looked up with confusion, not understanding what had just happened. Rainbow Dash also had a shocked look on her face. “What was that?!”

Pinkie didn’t know, but now a cold sense of dread was beginning to form around her heart. The feeling wasn’t her Pinkie sense, but it unmistakably told her that something was very wrong. Regaining her composure as quickly as possible, Pinkie stood, looking Rainbow straight in the eyes. Dash’s eyes were flickering between their typical magenta hue and a chilling ice blue.

“What’s happening to—” Rainbow’s sentence trailed off, and her injured wing and hind legs began sparkling violently. Flares of magic leaped and sizzled on her wounds, and Rainbow Dash cried out, recoiling in pain. Her wing suddenly realigned with a snap, and blood stains began to disappear from her body. When the magic died down, Rainbow Dash looked as healthy as she had been prior to the fall.

Pinkie Pie braved another glance into her friend’s eyes. Rainbow’s irises now steadily shined blue, and tendrils of sparkling magic surrounded them. “R-Rainbow?” Pinkie stuttered, beginning to feel scared. The cyan mare said nothing and stared her straight in the eyes. Then she smiled wickedly.

Pinkie swallowed. Starting in a whisper and ending in a biting scream, she cried out to no one in particular, “Somepony help me!” Rainbow Dash’s eyes glowed brighter and a fallen tree limb became enveloped in a magical aura. As the branch hovered gently in front of the seemingly-possessed pegasus, another soft glow ignited on the forest floor. This time it encased a pointed rock, with which Rainbow Dash began to sharpen the tip of the broken branch.

She’s making a spear, Pinkie realized with horror. After several agonizing seconds, the pegasus seemed satisfied with the sharpness of her makeshift weapon. She met Pinkie’s eyes, and grinned sadistically. When the crazed mare spoke, her voice was metallic and nearly unrecognizable.

“Goodbye, Pinkie,” Dash said, hurling her spear at the petrified pony.

“Goodbye, best friend,” Pinkie whispered, in tears. She closed her eyes bravely.