Starlight was having a truly wonderful day. The past week or so of flurries and freezing weather had finally passed and in its place the sun was burning strong. Wrapped up with just a scarf and hat she trotted down to the town hall to see if there was anything she could do for the town, for Twilight, or for anyone else.
“Morning Spike.” She happily greeted as she bumped into the young dragon heading out himself.
“Morning Glimmy.” Spike replied with a wave.
“What are you up to?” She asked curious as she had hardly ever see him leave the building.
“Twilight gave me a week off so I am going to go help Rarity gather some of those delicious gemstones.” He explained already drooling.
“That sounds nice… Oh, oh no. I forgot to go back to Lilly!”
“No worries, when were you supposed to meet up?”
“Nearly a year ago!” Starlight exclaimed.
“Oof… Well, it is never too late to try again… Maybe.”
“True enough Spike and it does seem like a great opportunity to reconnect with those I did not give the time.” Starlight confidently stated as she remembered a few friendship reports. Following the young dragon they both headed down to the west side of town to the Bejeweled Bridle. After the recent events even walking through the door made her heart flutter but she took a breath and continued on inside all the same. Spike meanwhile headed around and towards the mines in search for this most delicious of minerals.
Mythril Lily sat behind the main desk of the shop focusing on her craft. Using her magic she pulled thin threads of white gold across the air and together with pristine cut jewels bound both together in floral patterns. Gold roses studded with emerald dew. Silver lilies streaked with rubies. Starlight could not help but stand and watch her work in awe. The box full of materials next to her was enough to buy a castle with already but along with her skills it would all sell for several times that in the end. Each a masterpiece.
“Do you need help with something?” Mythril Lily asked without looking up.
“No I am fine.” Starlight replied as got closer. “I can come back later if you are busy.”
“I have all the time in the world but I do love your sense of humor to come back this many months later and ask if I am the one who is too busy to talk.” Lily retorted with a smirk. “Good to see you again.”
Heading into the back rooms Starlight sat down in the cozy living room while Lily went to put some tea on. Looking around it was a modest home. The carpet thick and clean yet the door mats heavily worn and dusty. Likewise, the open fire did not seem to ever be used but the central heating was always burning away underhoof. Lining the walls were several family photos and paintings while the shelves all held various rocks or geodes. Even the air had a sweet scent to it.
“How has Rarity been?” Starlight asked as Lily came back.
“Better than I expected.” Lily replied as she made herself comfy on the large sofa. “Fluttershy has really helped her come out of her shell, and mines.”
“Yeh, I… Noticed.” Starlight muttered before taking a sip of her tea. “I have been curious about Rarity for a while now to be honest and since I am now making an extra effort to catch up with my friendship studies I would love to know everything.”
“I don’t think it is quite right to go so much into her personal life but I do have a few tales.” Lily began.
It was about two years now nearly. I was up in Canterlot working as a goldsmith. Everyday I would take the precious metals from the elite and bend it into beautiful designs, the thing is though, is that the designs were always the same. It was boring as sin, if not soul crushing. One night, if I remember it clearly, the moon was high overhead and I was wandering around the town in a sleep deprived state after making another hundred brooches. As I was stumbling around those streets I ended up overhearing some late night workers on their way home talking about Ponyville. Apparently some unicorn had moved in like a damned storm and brought the place from ruins to riches in only two years!
I stood amazed by the words I was hearing. Ponyville was practically throwing bits around and if you were willing to work yourself into the ground then you would find riches and wonders well worth the time. Many from other towns and cities had started to flock and even the pair I was listening to were thinking of moving on town as builders. I liked the idea. No, I loved the idea. A place where I can be creative and find some challenges while also making more money than I could imagine? It sounded almost too good to be true.
I quit my job the very next day, slept for two days after that, and then took the first train to Ponyville. I did not care. I had enough money to not have to work for several years at this point so finding something much more enjoyable took priority. Arriving in Ponyville I found the town to be… Interesting. Half of it was under construction, roads were being redone, pipes and wires being laid under every inch of the ground too. I did not understand any of what was going on but it looked expensive… And fascinating. I moved with a large group to the town hall to find tents sent up around it and pones in uniforms everywhere. The next 7 hours were a blur of paperwork, tests, form signing, more form signing and several inkpots worth of writing. Back then I swore whoever came up with such a system was insane, and obsessed with organization, and knowing Twilight now I can say that both are true.
I got to admit. I expected some kind of boom town where I would roll into the place be given piles of gold from some newly tapped mine and I could do whatever I wanted for the local hicks. What I did not expect was to be put into the iron foundries for several months to make more metal goods than I knew what to do with. I will say, I did not hate it. Ok tell a lie I did but only at first. The other workers were mostly unicorns much like myself, you know the wealthy types from upper class cities that have had piles of money thrown at them for easy magical related tasks. We bonded quite nicely in how much it sucked but as time ticked on we found a routine, our magic grew stronger and most of us really came to like this blue collar lifestyle.
Several months passed by quickly and the town had grown massively even in that short time. The next surprise I got was when we were all told we were going to school for a week. Apparently the ponies over at town hall really liked school and book stuff and watched to make sure everypony in Ponyville at least passed the basics, then the not so basics. In the end I was given a small stack of papers that proved everything I knew, how smart I was, my magical skills and spell list, my specific talents and the knowledge of such. We were also given the option to find new work for ourselves based on what those papers proved. Nobody really understood all that much at first but we got used to it and once again I found myself on the up and up.
“That is really interesting but what does it have to do with Rarity?” Starlight asked.
“I am getting to her don’t you worry.” Lily replied with a shake of her head. “Now where was I…” She muttered.
I was about to be given my own shop where I could get back to all the goldsmithing I wanted to do. Funny phrase that, gold smithing. There was always blacksmiths in Equestria but then someone decided that they wanted, you guessed it, more organization so now there is like a dozen smiths of every color. Anyway, as I was going to the town hall to get my keys to the shop and more papers I suddenly got called in for a meeting with the mayor and the architect, an odd mix I thought. They told me that they needed a caring, well spoken, and kind unicorn who was very good with precious metals and that I was being offered a special job. I listened to them closely, read over the files and could not believe it at first. A young unicorn had recently been rescued from some monsters and they needed someone to help her with, well, practically everything. I did want a challenge and I used to look after my younger sister so I accepted. How hard could it be, I thought.
Turns out it was going to be the hardest thing I have ever done. We both moved into this shop and Celestia above I was lost for a while on how to help her. Rarity really was a mess. She had lost all ability to do anything for herself, I even had to order her to eat or she would starve herself. On top of all that I had to run the shop itself and make bits. I think that one month aged me a year or two alone but I did it and I did it well. I came to understand why Twilight wanted a unicorn who was skillful at goldsmithing as well. Rarity only found comfort when she was underground or digging and with her skills there was tons of gems and metal being pulled up. No literally, tons of it, a day. All the iron and buildy stuff got sent down to a big foundry north of the mine while all the pretty stuff got sent to me. It took a long time but Rarity began to speak, she began to think on her own. Once the job was done though I refused the choice to leave. Rarity was important to me by then and we worked together fantastically. Twilight had such a great smile and was very understanding. Of course the mountains of bits our designs began to make also made her happy…
“Wow, you two really are close.” Starlight commented as Lily stared off into nothing. “Tell me, what were the monsters like? How did Rarity get rescued? I have so many questions!”
“Ah sorry I don’t have much time left.” Lily said as she stood up. “Feel free to ask Rarity any questions you have but do be gentle, she has still not gotten over her time.”
“Hm well I know she is busy with Spike.” Starlight replied as they headed into the shop front.
“Try Big Mac then, I heard he helped out as well.” Lilly explained as a few customers entered.
With the snow starting to fall once more Starlight put up a magical wall to act like an umbrella and set out down the path towards the apple farm. Brimming with curiosity she trotted quicker and quicker before finally giving into her inpatientance and teleporting straight to the orchard. The flurry of snow was silenced for a moment as the bubble of magic and light burst just outside of the apple family’s household. Banging her hoof firmly on the door she called out to see if anybody was around and in turn she heard a faint noise from the other side. She banged again. Not wanting to be rude Starlight then waited another minute or two before raising her hoof up but just before she could knock for the third time the door opened.
“Hey sugar cube, come for a visit?” Applejack asked. She stood with her hair wet and a towel around her strong neck. Shivering she nodded for Starlight to come inside.
“I came to ask your brother a few things actually, do you know where he is?” Starlight asked.
“He is upstairs. Should be down in a bit.”
Sitting down in the living room the old farmhouse Starlight found the place to be quite rustic and surprisingly warm for how simple the construction was. No, the more she looked around the more she noticed that the windows were double thick and several parts of the walls had been painted in the past few months compared to the much more weathered patches. It made sense to her as the orchard provided a massive amount of high quality food items for most of the year, although she was curious to what they did in the winter time.
Hearing the stairs creak Starlight turned her head around to find Big Mac trotting downstairs. Much like Applejack his hair was wet and he had a towel all the same.
“Oh Big Mac. I have been dying to ask you about Rarity.” She called out.
“Rarity?” He questioned as he dried his hair.
“Mythril Lily had told me about how they met but I wanted to know more about her for friendship related studies and she did inform me that you helped rescue her, I think?”
“Not quite.” Big mac spoke. “While I did help lead the charge on the Diamond Dog mines I was never put into the main group myself.” Applejack came back with some fruity tea and sat down to listen as well.
I remember it like it was yesterday. The farm was going through a right mighty storm of planting and building the likes of which even our first settlers would be proud off. Applejack had only recently come back to us after living in the city for most her life and while she was real eager to help she had little idea of which way to bury a fence post let alone real farm work. Still, having her take care of Applebloom was mighty handy. Anyway. I was out mending some fences in the east field when I saw a whole bunch of the Ponyville guards marching up from the town…
“Ponyville has guards?” Starlight asked. “I have never see any guards.”
“That is because they don’t act like guards. Fancy bunch, sneaky too. Calling themselves ‘police’ they dress and talk all normal but if they spot trouble they flock together like a murder of crows!” Mac explained dramatically.
Anyway. On this day you could tell that they were looking for something a tad bit bigger than a cart pincher I tell you. Each one of them was clad in some real fancy looking armor and were marching along in neat lines. Do you know who I saw leading that rabble? Twilight. Barely 18 she was but that look in her eyes, I tell you, she looked like she could pull up a stubborn tree stump with her teeth on that morning.
She told me something mighty worrying. Foals were being taken! We had all heard of the dangers to the west and east. The Everfree forest full of nasty critters and the Ghastly Gorge full of even worse monsters. Well, that is what we used to call the canyons over yonder. They had heard of my rugged strength apparently and wanted me to join them on a mission to get the foals back. Being as noble and honest as I was I could not refuse such a task…
He stopped for a moment as Applejack snickered to herself but he ignored her and carried on.
I was given some armor and together we took a long path down to the canyon. It was an awful place even on the outside, smelly, and in every hole you could swear there was eyes staring back at you from deep under the ground. I will admit, I was scared but so was all the so called trained ‘police’ so I did not feel bad about it. Twilight led us down to this big main tunnel at the very bottom that was all lit up with spooky crystals. The plan was pretty simple to be honest with y’all, we were going to break into three teams and go running in. Alpha team would go straight down deep to where the foals were being kept while Beta and Gamma teams would keep any of the other Diamond Dogs busy.
“You ever saw a Diamond Dog?” Mac asked directly.
“I have heard of them in stories but not much.” Starlight replied on the edge of her seat.
“Vicious things. Not really violent but nasty all the same. They talk and walk like any pony could but they care nothing for us. All they want is gems, crystals, shiny rocks alike and will do anything to get it… Even capture young ponies to dig for them.”
“That is terrible…” Starlight muttered with a soft shake to her head.
Anyway. Alpha went in first with Twilight being flanked on all sides. That mare really is crazy, she refused to use magic and had some sparking metal box thing on her back instead. Looked a bit dangerous but that is good news when you are fighting monsters I reckon. I was part of Beta team. Go in loud and knock some heads. I have not been in a fight to be honest but I have bucked enough trees that even a single tap can send any dog flying. Every bunch we beat went running while plenty more we managed to tie up. I heard myself that Rarity was with the foals but she was a might bit older than them, poor girl could not even speak for how long she had been down in those tunnels.
We wanted to clear the place out and take all the gems and good stuff for ourselves but just as we were getting progress a shout came from deep down. A whole bunch of foals with some of the guards came running like a bat out of tartarus and followed just behind was Twilight with this real skinny looking unicorn on her back. I did not stop to ask as I had noticed that the cave was starting to collapse. Most of the treasure was lost that day under a mountain of rock and rubble but those dogs never came back. Seeing all those happy foals and Rarity herself though I think was the best treasure we could have gotten… Plus I became quite the town hero.
“A real knight in shining armor.” Applejack added with a roll to her eyes.
“Between you and Lily I am starting to get a clear picture now but I am still curious about the rescue that Twilight pulled off.” Starlight spoke out loud. Finishing her tea she quickly headed for the door.
“Do take it easy, that snow is getting wild.” Applejack pointed out.
“I will… Um before I go, was you, you know… With, um, and he… Never mind. Have a nice evening.” Starlight said before putting up a shield and trotting out into the increasingly rough snow storm.
What had started as a flurry had quickly gotten worse and worse. Cursing the pegasi weather team for whatever they were up to Starlight struggled against the freezing wind as she made her way back to town. She tried to teleport but found it too difficult to concentrate, even the shield she had up to protect her from the wind and cold was losing strength by the minute. By the time she had finally gotten into the town square the snow storm had formed into a small blizzard. The receptionist who sat at her desk, all warm and cozy, had quite the sight as what seemed to be a large snowball rolled into the building. It burst sending cold water everywhere and in the middle of it was a frosty looking Starlight.
“S-s-sorry.” She stammered. “I-is Twilight here?”
“Aye. Feel free to go on up Miss Starlight, if you were out in such weather it must be important.”
“Q-quite important yes…” Starlight stated as she shook the frost off her mane.
One quick trip up the elevator and Starlight was simply bursting with curiosity. She was finally about to get the last piece of the puzzle and at the same time spend some of the day out of that cold. She found that it was much more tidy than the last time she had came although the duct tape monstrosity that had been laying on the table had only gotten worse. While nothing seemed to make sense she could make out what appeared to be two wheels made of a black material and a helmet among the chaos. Ignoring it sat down by the lovely yet oddly green fire to thaw.
After making herself some coco with what bits she found in the kitchen, at least she thought it was a kitchen, she waited for Twilight to come down to greet her. As the minutes ticked by however it was clear that Twilight was in no rush to come to her and at the same time Starlight was not in a rush to go find her. Laying on a luxury couch with thick and creamy hot chocolate as it snowed and howled outside was not the worst way to spend some time but as the minutes got longer and longer her need for the story to come to an end started to annoy her.
Just as she was losing patience Twilight came down the stairs. Sitting herself down she took one look at the raided kitchen and the expensive chocolate that had been defiled to make Starlight’s huge mug of a drink before taking a breath.
“So, you wanted to see me?” Twilight asked already annoyed.
“Celestia yes! Ok so at first I went to walk with Mythril Lily about Rarity because I had forgotten to go back like nearly a year ago and that led me to learn a lot but not enough and Big Mac had a lot more of the story but I just need to know the rest of that rescue mission.” Starlight explained quickly.
“Hm. Listen Starlight, there are two versions of that story. The official report that got spread all over and the truth. If you want to know the truth then you have to promise to keep it between us.”
“I promise… Oh my first friendship promise, I should write this… No wait. Yes yes I promise.”
“Fine.” Twilight sighed at how excitable Starlight was being.
Let me start by saying that the official reports were changed because Equestria could not handle the facts and Celestia herself was none too happy about it either. Everybody was told this tale about how Rarity was captured a few years back but put on a brave face and soldiered on no matter how hard it got, while the foals that were captured recently was how we found out about them and thus rescued them all in one go. That is false.
The truth of this matter was that Rarity was captured when she was a foal herself. While exploring some of the ravines and mountains for gems she got snatched by the Diamond Dogs. The search teams looked all over but were not able to go jumping down dangerous holes and they quickly gave up. A bit too quick for my liking anyway. They had seen she had some blossoming ability to find minerals with her magic and refused to let her go no matter what. I cannot recount how cruel they were but over the years she became a servant, nay, a slave to them. She worked hard every day pulling up large amounts of the crystals and gems they sought and in turn they would give her treats like a pet. Being treated like an animal for so long has long lasting effects on any pony but the day I went to rescue those foals I had no idea what I was in for.
The Diamond Dogs had grown too large. The crystal kingdom that they were constructing had become huge and in turn one ponies ability to find the minerals was not enough. They needed more and they knew that if they repeated what they did with Rarity then surely they would get all the help they needed. In the middle of the night they crept out and stole a handful of unicorns from around Ponyville. Parents took notice and there were several eyewitnesses who saw them fleeing as well but we had an idea even without them. The dogs had always been a danger, with that kingdom growing under our very hoofs nobody dared to go near the west canyon. I wanted to get rid of them myself for some time but never had the excuse to spend so much time, bits and effort without a cause. On that night they gave me all the cause I could want.
The police that I had been training were new, young, but there were several ex-guards from Canterlot who had jumped ship and several other strong fighters who never found themselves fitting in elsewhere. With the help of some other strong locals, like Big Mac, we were ready within hours.
Heading deep down into that rat nest of a kingdom taught me a few things about expectations and the value of planning several steps further than you think is needed. The dog guards were easy but almost too easy, several of the old guards pointed out quickly that any pony with enough time could escape from here unless they had a much more confined prison further down. We agreed that just meant we had an idea of what to look for and we continued all the way to the deepest levels. We heard a whole bunch of noise coming from the scouts ahead and rushed to catch up. It was strange, there were signs of geomagical rituals and transmutation all over but as far as anypony knew Diamond Dogs could not use magic at all. It was difficult to navigate an underground maze of tunnels when the tunnels themselves keep changing but a few bombs later and we found the central room.
It was here I learned something that all of Equestria had never considered. Rarity was not a prisoner. She was a slave yes, a pet even, but not a prisoner. The many years of conditioning and training had eventually broken her down into liking her captors, even loving them. She had no desire to leave and she was willing to fight to the end to keep them safe as well. We understood why she had never managed to escape now and while we were all in shock we had made a promise to rescue everypony in that mine. It was hard and she was not listening to a word we said but as we pushed them back further and further into the tunnels Rarity herself eventually learned something herself. She was not an equal. In an attempt to save themselves they left her to die in a cave in, of course they did not realize how strong her magic was and while she was injured she did not come close to death. Skinny, abused, unable to talk, I saw her sitting in the dirt with such pain in her eyes over being betrayed by those she had once loved so dearly but she made the right choice and came to her senses in the end.
The reports had to be faked because such a story would cause chaos across the country. A foal being left in such conditions for so many years, the fact that a pony could be hurt to that point of betraying their own race. It was too much for the public to handle and so we had to create a much nicer story instead.
Starlight sat horrified and shocked at what she had just heard. With all the pieces put into place it now made so much more sense why Lily was so protective over Rarity and while Rarity herself had some issues in communicating to others. While chugging down a quarter of the still warm chocolate mess that was her drink Starlight remembered something. Her ears shot up and she sharply looked towards the window.
“Thank you Twilight so much but Rarity was still in the mines when the snow was coming down, I should go check on her.” She explained.
“If you plan on teleporting, I have a favor to ask…” Twilight mentioned with a smirk.
Standing in the middle of a metal ring Starlight could not help but feel somewhat in danger. The exposed wires sparked and the machine it was connected to had this awful rattling but Twilight would reassure her time and time again that it was safe, safe enough anyway. Flaring her horn up Starlight closed her eyes and focused on the mines, on spike. There were several types of teleportation with instant moving to where you are looking at the bottom of the list and teleportation to a location you see in your mind near the top. The difference in power was staggering but with a blinding flash of light she disappeared from Twilight’s home.
With a sharp pop Starlight appeared waist deep in a hot pool. While the entrance to the mine had no doubt been snowed over Spike and Rarity had seemingly found some of the underground hot springs. By the look of the pair they had been enjoying quite a nice day together as well. Spike himself was relaxing with a huge bowl of extremely high quality bi-colored emeralds while Rarity lay with her head on the side of the pool gazing dreamingly at him.
“Oh hey Starlight.” Spike called out as he threw another emerald into his mouth. “I hope you did not come to pick us up yet, we were planning on spending some of the week end down here.”
“I admit I was a tad worried but it looks like you two have it covered…” Starlight admitted as she looked around the cave. There was fruit chilling in piles of ice, an underground river no doubt full of mineral water flowing through. Rarity herself must have been spending some time down here because there were plenty of blanks, pillows, tables, chairs and other small furnishings to make it comfy for anyone to camp out for days at a time. “Mind if I stay a while myself? I do have a report to write but after the day I have had this does feel quite nice.” She asked while sinking a little deeper into the water.
“Take all the time you want Glimmy, I know I am.” Spike replied.
