Out in the middle of the ocean, several miles away from the temple Rainbow Dash wound up in, a large ship sat in place, searchlights beaming through the surface to search for something in its depths. On the deck, the unconscious pegasus began to stir, groaning as she could feel a bruise form on her abdomen. Once again, knocked unconscious by someone or an injury and waking up somewhere else that got her more lost only irritated Rainbow. It didn't help that her stomach was growling more, demanding food right now.

"This is perfect," she muttered, sitting up, wincing slightly at her still injured wing needing medical attention. "First, that giant...Sin thing swallows me and Rarity up, then I almost get eaten by a giant fish monster, got attacked by another monster, and having ponies I thought would save me end up kidnapping me. Will I ever catch a break!?"

The door leading to the cabin of the ship opened up, two of the stallions Rainbow encountered earlier walked out and approached the mare. She stood up, only to have the butt of one of their rifles shoved hard in her chest, shoving her back down to the ground.

"Ced, lybdeja!" he warned.

"Ow! You know that hurts, right!?" Rainbow rubbed her already sore chest as she glared at the firearm wielding stallions.

"Hu sujehk, rayn?" the second stallion said, both of them keeping their weapons aimed at her.

She decided to stay quiet for now, watching two more ponies walk out on the deck, the doors closing behind them as they walked out. One of them was the mare that helped her against the monster and also knocked her out, while the other was somepony that wasn't with the "search party" of theirs. His mane was just as poofy as the young mare's, though it was brown instead of pink, and his coat was orange. He wore a tropical shirt under the overalls he was wearing, his eyes covered by a pair of goggles around his head.

"Caynir ran!" the new stallion ordered as the mare helped Rainbow Dash up.

As soon as she stood up, the stallion began pantomiming diving and swimming, making grunting noises to try and get his point across to the pegasus. She had no clue what he was doing, staring blankly at him.

"Uhh, yeah. I'm not good at charades," she said.

"Tu oui hud cbayg?" the stallion questioned, pulling out a pair of goggles and pointing them to his face, making more grunting sounds.

"Dude, speak Equish! I don't know what you're saying!" she complained, unable to understand the strange language they were speaking.

One of the stallions thought she was retaliating, holding the rifle up to her head. "Ehcumahla!"

"Fyed!" the mare quickly said, keeping them from getting too trigger happy. "He said you can stay with us if you do some work for us."

Rainbow blanched, turning to face the pink earth pony as she was able to talk to her like a normal pony. "Wait, you can understand me!?" The pegasus was suddenly smacked in the back of the head by a stallion's rifle, growling in frustration after getting hit so many times. "Will you quit hitting me already!? I'll work! Sheesh!" She rubbed the back of her head, having enough abuse to last for a lifetime. "Can you at least give me some food and something for my wing?"

"Work first, then food!" the mare exclaimed, making Rainbow groan as she felt her stomach begin to eat itself. "Oh yeah, before I mention what we're going to be doing, I wanna show you the Sphere Grid!"

"The what?" Rainbow asked, greatly confused as the young mare pulled out a video screen, holding it up to the pegasus.

"You see, if you want to improve your strength in battle, you're going to need to use spheres in order to upgrade your stats, or even learn a few cool moves that can help in the future!" She began going through the massive board, showing Rainbow Dash's position, her own spot, and several other silhouetted images in different areas. "Once you earn enough experience, you can move your pointer up another space, though I recommend waiting until you get a few levels up so you can upgrade more than just going one space every time. But be careful; it gets harder to gain experience every time you level up, so you'll have to fight tougher fiends consecutively so you can get stronger! Just make sure you have the correct sphere for the parameters you're near, and you're all set to go!"

After she finished her explanation, Rainbow was completely lost. The other stallions just shrugged their shoulders when she looked at them, obviously no help to figuring out this mare's thoughts and randomness.

"...I don't get it," she finally said.

"Of course not! That's why the player chooses what's better for us, silly billy!" The pink mare tossed the screen into the ocean, not making a splash as it disappeared over the side. "Now, for the nitty-gritty. Under the ocean, as I speak, is an ancient temple underwater. There should be some power left inside to help us seek out our prize we can salvage deep in the ocean floor." Rainbow nodded her head, understanding what she really wanted her to help them do, though what the prize is was a mystery. "So, let's head on down there and get this party started!"

"Alright then. As long as I don't get smacked around by your lackies." Rainbow leapt up on the railing of the deck, saluting to the ponies that are holding her captive, vaulting off the rail and doing a few flips as she dove into the water.

The pink pony leapt off and cannon-balled into the water, floating alongside Rainbow Dash as she pointed them down, where they could sort of see the ruins down below. The ship was grounded into the wall the ruins were held on by its anchor so it wouldn't be thrown off course by the shifting waves. Rainbow was forced to lead the way as the two mares swam down along the chain. They ran into a few piranha fiends, only slowing them down as they were easy to kill. Though, Pinkie kept stealing stuff from them, somehow getting more grenades from the sharp toothed fish.

After mostly being annoyed by the fiends, they finally made it inside where it seemed to be safer. Inside, Rainbow could see that it almost looked like Zanarkand's technology, though she was absolutely clueless on how it all works as she chose to be an athlete rather than a technician. Knowing she was going to be ordered to do all the work, Rainbow fiddled around with the control panel that was still active, finally getting the doors opening up to the power core deeper inside. Again, they were met with a large group of the piranha fiends, only a minor nuisance after swimming down the flooded corridor.

While the pegasus messed around with the core, banging on it a few times, the two mares didn't notice something much bigger was stalking them, disturbing its territory. The power soon turned on, lighting up the ruins as the building hummed to life, scaring some of the less dangerous aquatic fauna. With their short mission accomplished, Rainbow and the pink mare headed back down the corridor, when suddenly, the random pony began flipping uncontrolably in place. She began to panic, grabbing Rainbow Dash and pulling her out of the circular corridor just in time as a giant octopus fiend came swimming through, almost ramming into the pegasus.

With this fiend on a rampage, getting what they needed would be troublesome if it ran loose. Rainbow pulled out her sword and the other mare tightened her claw glove, both of them rushing toward it at blinding speed. Rainbow Dash hacked one of its tentacles off, making the fiend screech in agony, only to be annoyed by the pink pony as it swam around it, scratching it with her claw weapon while also snatching some more grenades from it. If Rainbow wasn't underwater at the moment, she would be questioning her as to how the heck fiends are able to carry grenades when they have no clue how to use them.

The monster retaliated, grabbing the mare in its tentacles, threatening to squeeze the life out of her. Thinking quickly, Rainbow swam and tackled into it, freeing her captor while slamming the evil invertebrate into the wall. Swimming back, the mare pulled out a few more grenades and threw them at it. Surprisingly, they were able to work underwater, blasting the fiend, leaving its body singed. It soon swam away from them, the two thinking they beat it, only for it to come back on the other end, ramming through the two of them, smacking them into the walls of the room.

It was about to do the same tactic again, but Rainbow pointed the mare in one direction in order to pincer strike the fiend so it wouldn't get them both again. They split up and trapped their foe, as more grenades were flung at it with the pegasus slashing the octopus when the blasts disappeared. With it on its last legs, Rainbow Dash swam at it, thrusting her sword deep in its head as it screeched, the fiend's body shuddering as it faded into nothing but small lights. With the threat taken care of, the two mares relaxed after getting out of that hairy situation.

Now that the power was up and running, the other stallions dove in to reroute the power to the lights on the ruins, lighting up the ocean floor a lot more than from the surface. Curious as to what they were searching for, Rainbow Dash swam down to find out what it was. As the lights made contact with what they were finding, her eyes widened as she spotted what looked like a large vessel sunk to the bottom of the sea. It was really big, able to maybe fit two or three ships like the one on the surface, though she had no clue what this was supposed to be.

"Fa vuiht dra airship!" one of the stallions said as most of the crew were back up on the ship.

"Ruf yna fa kuehk du tnyk ed ib?" one of them asked as they walked over to the cabin doors.

Rainbow Dash climbed up over the railing, shaking herself dry. "Ugh. I think I've had enough of the water for one day..."

She was about to walk in with the others, only to be shoved back out on the deck by one of the crew members. "Oui, uidceta!"

"Hey! The hay's your problem!?" The doors began to close, the pegasus growing frustrated. "I did all of the work! You idiots just swam around and looked at what that thing is!"

They closed tightly, leaving her out on the deck by herself, alone, hungry, exhausted, and still injured. She grumbled, feeling so unlucky. Her stomach growled loudly, making her whine as she begged for some kind of miracle to give her some slack. She was even desperate to eat a fish in the ocean, alive and raw, even if it was one of those annoying piranha fiends. Rainbow was just about to complain when she felt someone smack her flank, trying to get her attention.

She turned to punch the stallion who was trying to cop a feel on her, stopping as she saw the earth pony mare standing behind her. She was balancing a tray of food on her poofy mane, setting it down in front of the pegasus, staring at the delicious meal with her lips salivated by the aroma. Without needing to be told it was for her, Rainbow sat down and stuffed her face, not even bothering to chew half the time as she filled her empty stomach.

"Uhh, I wouldn't eat that-" Rainbow suddenly began to choke, struggling to breath with her mouthful of food going down the wrong tube. "-fast..." The mare got behind the pegasus, giving her a few hard pats on the back. Rainbow managed to swallow it all down, panting heavily as the mare dropped a canteen of water in her lap, taking long swigs to ease her sore throat. "I tried to warn you."

Rainbow didn't leave a crumb on the tray, making sure to slow down her binge eating as she licked the tray clean. Satisfied with her stomach finally full, she got up and stretched out her exhausted limbs. Sighing in relief, she turned to face the only nice pony she had met since being sucked up by Sin. Even with how weird she may have been, she could easily trust her more than the others.

"Uhh, thanks...What's your name?" Rainbow asked.

"Pinkamena Diane Pie. But I just prefer Pinkie." Pinkie yelped as she was suddenly spun around by the pegasus, who giggled with glee.

"You can understand me! I'm not crazy after all!" She soon stopped celebrating, pulling Pinkie closer as she bumped her forehead against the pink mare's. "Why didn't you say anything earlier!? I could have taken less abuse, and you didn't have to punch me in the gut!"

"I couldn't that easily," Pinkie explained. "The guys all thought oui were a fiend."

Rainbow stared at the earth pony, her brain trying to understand what she meant, though confused by the language she and the others were speaking. "...Uhh...what do you mean by 'we'?"

"Oh. 'Oui' means 'you' in Al Bhed," she said, which only confused the pegasus further. "Wow. I'm surprised you've never met an Al Bhed pony before."

"I have no clue what the hay an 'Al Bhed' is, or where I'm even at." Pinkie breathed a sigh of relief while Rainbow tried to figure out where in the middle of the ocean they were.

"I thought you would have been one of those Al Bhed haters, especially after being roughed up like that. Where you from?" she asked.

"Psh. I think you should know that by who I am." Pinkie only stared at Rainbow as the pegasus struck a pose. "Come on. Rainbow Dash? Blitzball star player from Zanarkand, playing for the Zanarkand Wonderbolts?" She flipped up onto the railing, leaping up as she pretended to kick a ball in the air, flipping back down on the deck, acting cocky. "Youngest rising star in the sport? Ring any bells?"

"...Ok. I know others say I can be loco in the cocoa, but I think you hit your head pretty hard to say stuff like that." Rainbow fell over comically, getting back up to glare at her.

"You guys kept hitting me!" she shouted. "I didn't do anything to you guys and you practically kidnapped me, forcing me to help you get whatever you found down there!"

"Oh. Sorry," Pinkie apologized. "Is there anything you remember before we found you in the temple?"

Rainbow told Pinkie everything that had happened to her before winding up around that temple. She talked about her home, Sin's attack on Zanarkand, getting sucked up into it, then winding up outside of the temple where she was almost eaten and nearly froze to death. Pinkie said nothing, completely shocked as the two leaned over the rail as Rainbow Dash finished telling her exhausting tale.

"...Did I...say something strange?" she asked, afraid of her new friend's silence.

"You were that close to Sin, AND you're still alive!?" Pinkie whistled, commending Rainbow's luck. "You are one lucky pony. No wonder you're making up stuff like that. They say your head gets all funny whenever you're near Sin and its toxin."

"...So you're saying I'm poisoned or something?" Rainbow asked.

"Not life threatening. Just makes you loopy and say random things." The pegasus groaned, looking down at the water, feeling just fine. The only thing that was wrong with her was her injured wing, not her head. "Besides, Zanarkand doesn't exist anymore. Hasn't been for a thousand years. Nopony plays blitzball in a destroyed city, after all."

"Psh. There's thousands of-" Rainbow froze, quickly turning her head to Pinkie, her pupils shrunk in fear. "WHAT!?" She pounced the earth pony, slamming her down on the metal deck. "The hay do you mean 'a thousand years ago'!? I just saw Sin attack my home and kill everypony I knew there! That's impossible!"

"Well, that's what happened. I'm not making it up, Dashie." Rainbow Dash got off Pinkie and began pacing back and forth across the deck. She didn't want to believe her home was truly gone, her fans, her team, even her mother had all been killed or they no longer exist anymore. "Maybe somepony might know you in Luca."

"...Luca?" Rainbow stopped her pacing, never hearing of a place called Luca.

"Yeah. You play blitzball, and that city's the only place where it can be played. Maybe you may recognize somepony or they could recognize you!" Pinkie bounded back on her hooves, patting the stressed pegasus's back. "We'll get you there! Or would you like to stay with us?" Rainbow leered at Pinkie. "...Ok. Luca it is." The bubbly mare bounced back to the cabin, only to quickly turn around, remembering something important. "One more thing, Dashie. Don't tell anypony you're from Zanarkand. Faust says that it's a holy place, so you might end up getting somepony upset and have them hate you."

"...Alright..." Rainbow sat down next to the railing, soaking in all this new information, her mind reeling with so many emotions.

"Okie dokie lokie! I'll be back up in a little. I'm baking cupcakes for dessert, and I'll save you one! Be back in a flash!" Pinkie headed back inside the ship, bouncing happily while singing a little tune, leaving Rainbow Dash on the deck by herself once again.

Rainbow had no idea how much time had passed. She couldn't sleep, not just because of the cold, metal floor of the deck, but also the reality of her situation. She had somehow been transported through time by a thousand years, an entire millennia, and was now in this new future. Everypony she knew was gone, her home was nothing but ruins now, and she has no idea what to do anymore. She paced again, getting more stressed as she began to despise Rarity for dragging her through this.

And the strangest thing was Rarity wasn't with her, and they were sucked in by Sin together. Either she was now dead or lost somewhere in this future in another location. She should have left the older mare to her own demise instead of listening to her.

"...This can't be happening to me," she uttered, seething with frustration as she walked over to the crane set on the ship. "There's no way this is real! This is a bunch of ponyfeathers!"

She bucked the side of the crane hard, but as she hit it, the ship was suddenly struck by something massive, knocking the pegasus over. She tumbled back against the railing, keeping her from falling off the ship as the Al Bhed ran out on deck. Suddenly, a pillar of water shot out from the distance, and was getting closer to the vessel.

"Sin!" one of the crew exclaimed. "Sin ec lusa!"

"Ihtan ic! Ihtan ic!" Pinkie said, her chest covered in frosting after being interrupted from her baking.

The pillar shot up underneath the ship, shooting water up and threatening to pull anyone off the deck and into the water. The Al Bhed managed to keep a firm grip on the railing, but Rainbow wasn't so lucky. She fell off the side and fell into the water, taking one last, terrified look at Pinkie and the other stallions before being swept off by a whirlpool, disorienting her until something hard struck her in the head, causing her to black out.

"Cra ec kuha...Aydah po Sin," one of them said as the whirlpool disappeared, finding no sign of the pegasus anywhere.

Tears welled up in Pinkie's eyes, the pony she wanted to help was forever lost to the sea, or eaten alive by Sin, who's attack stopped just as quickly as he appeared. "Dashie...Cra tet hud ajah kad ran liblyga..." Next Chapter: Chapter 4: Welcome to Besaid Estimated time remaining: 12 Hours, 30 Minutes