Rarity stood outside the cottage, unsure if she should enter. It reminded her way too much of the witches house from the Horsel and Gretchen fairytale. A fabled magical cottage in the middle of the Everfree, said to transform into your hearts desire. 'But why Fluttershy's? Shouldn't it be the Boutique?' She wondered. It smelt just like her friends house, like every animal under the sun. But no matter how real it felt there was still something not quite right.

"Why would anyone put this here? Maybe I could just, have a peek." Opalescence meowed her agreement. She took a deep breath. "Well... here goes!" Rarity clasped the door with her magic and slowly pushed it open. It creaked as loud as it possibly could, echoing through the mushrooms. The door eventually smacked against the hinges.

"Of course it couldn't be silent."

She stepped inside and gently shut the door, in case any changelings should happen to show up looking for her. It was very gloomy thanks to the unnatural lighting the cave gave off. A large round table was set for a meal, for who, Rarity could not fathom. The table was also made up with several candles that were clearly waiting to be lit. With a tiny flame of magic, she dipped her horn onto the wicks, lighting each in turn. The light was not the yellow or orange light she was expecting, but a very strange silvery-blue.

"Well, odd magical light is better then none I suppose." The light gave everything a slight ghostly tinge, Opalescence was definitely fitting her namesake beneath said ghostly tinge. Her snowy white coat now flecked with a multitude of different colours. Rarity was about to say she looked like a furry discoball, but the upstairs bedroom squeaked its way open. Hoofsteps thumped down the stairs, the strides were slow and deliberate. Clearly Rarity was expected.

'Don't be Fluttershy, don't be Fluttershy...' Rarity mouthed the words to herself, terrified of what she'd do if it was her.

The figure stood in the shadows of the stairs, a familiar mane pattern traced upon the wall. The figure trotted forward into the light. It looked an awful lot like Fluttershy yet she very clearly wasn't either. For starters her body was a dark blue, not as dark as the night sky but still pretty close. Her mane was a brilliant shade of baby blue that glittered ever so slightly. Her eyes were a lovely shade of teal but they seemed as cold and lifeless as space. Rarity was stricken, both by her shockingly similar appearance but also the unwavering gaze she held.

"Oh hello there, I don't get many visitors down here. It's a long trip, you know?" The figure noticed her uninvited guests staring and laughed. "Quit it you're making me blush! My name is Sapphire by the way. No last name, I've kinda forgotten after so long."

Rarity shook her head. "I apologize for my staring, you just look a lot like a friend of mine. I'm Rarity by the way, but I much prefer Miss Rarity around strangers."

"Miss Rarity? What a lovely name. And perhaps we should meet sometime, she can't be all that bad if she's as pretty as me." Sapphire giggled and held out a hoof.

Rarity, being ever the lady, took it and gently shook hers with her own. Though even she could see there was something else behind this friendly appearance. Not to mention the fact that whatever she was wearing, obscured her cutie mark. But she figured it couldn't hurt to at least discover her new friends motives.

"So, Sapphire... how exactly did someone like you end up so far down here?" She asked, feigning a polite smile.

Sapphire sat herself down at the table. "Seat?" Rarity shook her head. "Just me then, alright. Well I'll start at the beginning. Sometime ago, not sure how many years, I read some tale about a magnificent, giant diamond. Being an explorer I took it upon myself to seek it out. I got all the way down here but the cavern proved itself to be quite dangerous. So seeing as I was trapped down here I decided to build myself a house among these lovely mushrooms."

Rarity was still not sure. "Alright, then why is there a note from Discord?"

"Dis-cord? I've never heard of such a name, perhaps he's simply playing a trick on you?" Sapphire got back up aand trotted into the kitchen. "Would you like some tea?"

"I uh, no thanks. I need to find a way out of here. Do you perhaps know a way out?"

Sapphire put the kettle on anyway and slowly turned around. "Well I do but... first I need a favour."

Rarity raised an eyebrow. "What kind of, favour?"

"Well you're also here for the diamond, yes? I thought perhaps you could find it for me. I'm much to scared to go deeper and it would be delightful for one of us to discover the truth behind the legend." Her eyes shown with what looked like hope.

Rarity felt a pang of guilt and sighed. "I"d love to Sapphire, I'll tell you all about it."

"Fantastic!"

From outside, came the faint buzz of wings. It seemed the changelings had finally found their way through the forest. Sapphire wandered over to the window and peered outside, a steaming mug in one hoof. She looked around for the familiar shape. "Blasted changelings, always ruining everything!" She turned to face Rarity. "You should go now, before they come barging in. Please take some tea, it'll help, trust me."

Rarity begrudgingly agreed to take a small amount of tea in a flask, putting it beside Opalescence, who curled herself around the warm liquid. Rarity thanked her friend and stepped outside. The door shut almost as soon as she stepped out, the faint click of a lock following suite. A whisper of "Good luck!" came through a window.

The buzzing drew closer, but by the time they discovered the cottage, she was already long gone.

The mushroom forest seemed to go on for miles, she could've spent days aimlessly wandering for all Rarity knew. Every new twist and turn seemed to break into two more, leading every which way. It was so strange and ethereal, so far beneath the ground yet in a place as lush as the Everfree above. She began to notice more webs strewn across the way, seemingly pointing towards something. It was the only sign of anything living, everything else was as silent and empty as a grave. Sometime later, it seemed the forest finally tapered off. At the end of it was a vast bridge leading up and over a canyon. Rarity could vaguely make out a shape across the other side. It was something ponymade.

She took a few tentative steps onto the bridge, not willing to take any chances. Without thinking she decided to look off the edge into the deep canyon far below. A river of molten lava flowed through, bubbling and flowing like a burning red river. "Lava... lovely." Rarity looked away and continued across the bridge. Once she neared its narrow end, the shape made itself quite clear. It was an entrance to a mine, something about it seemed somewhat familiar. A lone mine cart sat on a rusty set of tracks that lead down.

"Down again? Why can't caves ever lead up?" Rarity looked up at the sign hanging over the track. It was clearly very old but it still kept the shape of the letters. "Royal Canterlot Mines, where the stone glitters with opportunity! A cheery slogan for a place hidden so far away from anything."

She tried to continue forward but was block by a bunch of logs barring the way into the mine. It looked way to heavy to move by muscle or magic alone. Rarity looked back at the cart, it was a little rusty but otherwise looked capable of running. She pulled herself into it.

"This should be fun, right Opal?" She grasped the lever in her magic and pulled. It creaked and groaned but eventually gave way, sticking in place. With a puff of dust, it began to roll forward. It pushed the logs out of the way, moving slowly at first. It stopped at the top of a rise, teetering on the edge, before dropping suddenly. Rarity let out a loud scream as it flew down, down, down into the earth. Travelling so fast the air whooshed past at a ridiculous speed. It rocketed across the track at a hundred miles an hour. Down below the river of lava followed beneath, winding it's way through the mine.

All around her were other tracks, leading into dead ends, drop offs and even one that seemed to dive straight into the fiery river. "Well, that's definitely a great sign." Rarity muttered. The mine cart screeched loudly while it rounded a corner, the brake sending sparks up at her. She hunkered down to protect herself and to avoid having to look down. Opalescence popped her head out for a second, saw the moving mine cart they were currently sitting in and retreated back inside the bag.

Rarity tried to make the most out of her dangerous ride, by pretending it was simply a rollercoaster. Pinkie had convinced her to ride one for her last birthday, the Rolling Rainbow they called it. Three hundred feet high, several loop-the-loops, until lastly smashing through a cardboard cloud. It was the most fun she'd ever had while also being completely terrified. She held her hooves up high and braced around the tracks corners, just like she did that day. Her screaming of both delight and concern, this rollercoaster had a very nasty case of molten lava.

"Weeeee!" Rarity cried, feeling that familiar surge of energy. It was quite fun, that is until it reached another rise, to which she couldn't see an end in sight. "Brace yourself!"

It clattered it's way up and once again stopped on the very edge. She raised her forelegs over her head. And then, it dropped. Rarity felt her stomach gurgle as the mine cart fell at a speed that no other living pony had likely ever ridden. Down it went, with no visible end in sight. The scenery was simply a blur it was so fast. It travelled so deep that she began to wonder if she'd eventually reach the centre of the earth. The long tube eventually opened up into a vast underground labyrinth that was filled with murky water, black as ink. The end of her descent was getting rather close, very quickly.

"Please don't shatter me into a million pieces!" She cried, ducking down into the cart.

With a ear-piercing screech and a tremendous crash, it hit the bottom. Luckily it was still able to cling to the track, despite almost ending up on two wheels. Rarity popped back up with a green face and vomited out the side. She heard it splash into the water beneath.

"Let's never, ever, do that again!"

The track was now coming to a stop, she could make out the bumper in the dim light. Gradually the cart rolled to a stop, bouncing slightly as it smacked the bumper. Rarity was just glad she was still completely intact. She clambered her way out of it, splashing into the few inches of water that had apparently flooded the mine. Behind her came the gentle sound of waves smacking against this new tunnel. She looked back at the black water and shivered.

"No more swimming in underground lakes..." Rarity shook her head and walked into the darkness. She lit her horn with magic to use as a makeshift torch.  The light blue reflected off the walls that seemed to be somewhat shiny. "Caves, changelings, mines... what's next? Ancient temples?"

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