Pony's Story

Rarity’s hoof fell on the fourth path, labelled “Storm Drain”. Walking past the stone without a second glance, Rarity didn’t even pause to think about what she was getting into. In her mind, it was just a bit of water. Not a big deal.

The path in front of her began to slant upwards, a gentle rise that was easy to walk. Not long after, she found herself at the entrance of a large, surprisingly clean pipe. The inside of the pipe was well lit, and it seemed like she would be able to navigate it with relative ease. Smiling to herself, she stepped inside, grateful to be out of the dark, dirty cavern.

Almost immediately water came pouring down from somewhere above her, landing on her head and soaking her fur. As the stream ended, Rarity fixed her gaze on a point on the path ahead. She didn’t move, only stared as she felt her perfectly styled mane, now ruined and wet around her shoulders.

“Of all the things that could happen,” she cried, flicking her head back to shake off some of the water, and in turn giving herself a sublime radiance. “This is, most definitely, one of the least enjoyable. Why would someone force me to go through this? Is there somepony who likes it when my mane is wet?”

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Across the universe, in a dimension very close to Equestria’s, someone felt a chill run down their spine.

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“Ah, well, I guess that’s not entirely bad. It could be worse. It could be jelly.” With that, Rarity continued up the now slick and treacherous slope. The water was beginning to pour into the pipe at periodic intervals, and Rarity knew that her travel was about to become that much harder. But she had to press on through it.

Climbing up to the top of the slope, Rarity found herself at the edge of a large pool of stagnant water, complete with dirt and debris. It went on for a long while, the opposite edge hidden from sight. Rarity knew she would have to swim through it. She wasn’t too keen on the idea, though.

Dipping a hoof into the water, she shivered and grimaced. “Oh dear. And I thought getting my mane wet was bad enough. At least that water was somewhat clean.” Groaning, she waded into the water, feeling it dampen and chill her to the bone. The pool became ever deeper, and eventually, Rarity was swimming through the murky water. Due to the cold, each stroke became more and more of a challenge.

She felt her head dip below the surface as she struggled to make it across. She had reached about the halfway point, and could see the other side, when the water washed over face. She gasped, sucking in water and struggling to reach the surface once more. Her mind began to panic. She felt as if she was going to drown. She didn’t want it to end this way.

After about a minute of flailing about in a blind panic, she realized she was standing on the ground, neck deep in water. She slapped herself mentally, thankful that none of the others were around to have seen her acting as she had been. She would never live it down. Wading the rest of the way, Rarity finally made it to the opposite edge of the pool. Ladylike as ever, she refused to shake herself dry, and instead opted for the much colder, less pleasurable experience of trekking through the tunnel, soaked to the bone.

Of course, this proved to be incredibly difficult. Most of the tunnel was slanted upwards, and her damp fur and hooves, along with water constantly pouring down from above, made it very difficult for Rarity to find her footing on the path. More than a few times she lost her footing completely and slid down a decent distance. Having to climb back up several long lengths of tunnel made her trip all the longer, and her mood all the more sour.

Of course, this was not the only thing in the storm drain. There was a large amount of refuse and random garbage, giving the place a foul odor. Rarity grumbled constantly about the fairness of life, but pressed on through it all. ‘I will need a bath. A long, long bath.’

The tunnel seemed endless, and as it progressed, the slant grew steeper and steeper. Eventually, it became a vertical tube shooting up out of a deep, murky pool. There was a winding path leading up and around the tube, leading further on. But, Rarity was displeased as she saw that the beginning of the path lay on the opposite side of the pool.

Steeling herself, she dove into the pool, trying hard not to think about just what she was swimming through. The small pool wasn’t half as long as the one she had swam across earlier, but it was far deeper. Rarity knew that if she became exhausted, she would most certainly drown. Luckily for her, she reached the other side before she became too tired. Unfortunately, her coat had browned from swimming through the murk.

She sniffed the air, gagging and groaning in pain. “Ugh. I smell dreadful. I simply must have a bath before this is all over, or I’ll go mad!” Shaking her head, she trotted up the winding path, wrinkling her nose to avoid the smell.

The path wound up and up, seeming to never end. Rarity watched as, from numerous angles and entrances, water poured from small pipes into the pool far below. She peered over the side after several long minutes of hiking, and skittered back in fear of the height. Looking up, she saw that she still had a long way to go.

It wasn’t long before Rarity got one of her wishes. One of the pipes opened off to the side of the path, almost like a little shower, and the water flowed clear and clean. Although she missed her shampoos and soaps, she satisfied herself with getting most of the dirt off of her coat and mane. After a moment, she stepped out, feeling not quite pristine, but certainly far more clean than before. Nodded with a smile, she resumed her trek up the path.

More long minutes of trotting up the path passed for her, the only sound being the occasional rush of water into the pool far, far below her. Rarity wondered just who built the pipe, and who, for that matter, made it so tall. ‘Quite a curious thing.’ She mused, looking up to see a welcome sight. A small doorway stood half open not far above her. A renewed energy in her step, Rarity dashed up the path.

Pushing the door open, Rarity let out a sigh of relief. There was her Element, waiting for her, floating just above the floor of a small, circular room. Stepping over, the unicorn reached out for it. As her hoof touched it, the gem flashed, and the necklace fastened itself around her neck. She smiled as the world tore open, revealing the small room once more.

Stepping inside, Rarity watched as her friends started to dash up to her. They all stopped after a moment, gazing at Rarity in disgust. She frowned.

“I know, I know. I smell absolutely awful. But there’s no use complaining. I don’t have anything to wash myself with, so-” She stopped herself as Pinkie dug into her mane and produced, much to the astonishment of everypony around her, a shower, complete with curtain, soaps, shampoos, and a hot water heater. It landed with a thud on the ground, Pinkie smiling next to it.

“And they told me I was crazy for buying this!” She laughed. Rarity stared, dumbfounded, at the marvel of magic. After a moment, she picked her jaw up off the floor and dashed over to the shower, not one to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“If you’ll give me a moment of privacy, this will only take a moment.” The other fillies turned away, leaving Rarity to her shower.

As it transpired, a moment turned out to be roughly twenty minutes of shower time. When all was said and done, Rarity stepped out, looking clean and pristine as ever. She batted her damp mane with a hoof.

“Ah, much better. Now, Twilight, I believe we have a door to open, do we not?” With a nod, Twilight and her friends stepped over to the door. Twilight lit her horn, latching onto the handle with her magic and giving it a pull. It swung open to reveal the third, beautiful world.

“Dibs.”