The dense jungle of the pirate-infested island was even more frightening and difficult to navigate for Rarity when she only had one ear. Where before, she used her hearing almost equally in part with her eyes to figure out where things were, now she had to rely almost entirely on her eyesight as the two sides of her head sent her brain mixed signals about what they were hearing. And given that it was still the dead of night out, still cloudy, and still drizzling at a steady rate, Rarity felt almost completely blind and lost in the suffocatingly humid jungle.

But she couldn’t use that as an excuse now. Only she knew where she’d set up Gyro, and so she had to lead Rainbow back to their other companion if they wanted to reunite and figure out their next move. But there was no noise through the jungle trees save for the occasional clattering of a noise maker or the whistling shuffle of the breeze ruffling the tree canopy. The worry gnawing at her gut that something bad had happened to Gyro only grew and grew the longer it took them to get back to the mechanic.

Rainbow, meanwhile, kept her head swiveling left and right and tilting up and down as the two mares quietly stalked through the forest. Her ears pointed this way and that, picking up the haunting notes of the chimes Rarity had strung up earlier that evening. “This is like some seriously spooky stuff, Rares. You and Gyro did this?”

“I did the bulk of the rigging, but yes, this was our work,” Rarity said in a quiet murmur. She couldn’t even tell if she was being louder or quieter than normal, so she erred on the side of caution. “Gyro and I tied scrap metal and wooden scraps to rope and hung them through the trees. Thankfully between the cover of night and the storm it was too dark for the pirates to notice them. Or at least, so I hope.”

“So you had Gyro just pulling on the ropes those noise maker thingies were attached to?”

“Yes, as far away from the pirates as we could manage.” Her eyes darting through the trees, Rarity picked out the glint of one noisemaker and immediately started following it through the foliage. “Though I found lots of rope, it certainly wasn’t infinite. That being said, Gyro had a comfortable cushion between where she was and where the noise makers were placed. Even in her crippled condition, she would have had enough time to flee to someplace safe and hide from the pirates. They’re likely returning to their camp presently because of such a scenario.”

Rainbow frowned in worry and peered through the plants, as if already looking for Gyro hiding somewhere in the undergrowth. “Or they found her, killed her, and are bringing her body back to their camp for a friendly bit of cannibalism.”

“I was trying to avoid thinking about that possibility,” Rarity muttered. “I prefer to think positive.”

“Good vibes aren’t gonna do anything for our cripple if she’s living-impaired.”

“Celestia, Rainbow, sometimes I wish to make you living-impaired.” Roughly shaking her head, Rarity slid into a bush and halted while the leaves still provided her muddy body some shelter. “Gyro? Gyro darling, are you here?” she whispered into the darkness. She could see ropes tied to a branch out ahead of her, so she knew she was in the right spot, but there wasn’t any sign of the mechanic. “Gyro, please answer, you’re going to give me a heart attack!”

Rainbow moved into the bush beside Rarity, a blue wing comfortingly placed against the unicorn’s side. “Are those bodies?” she asked, pointing to a shadowy corner of vegetation.

Rarity strained to see through the shadow. But, sure enough, after a few seconds to focus on what she was seeing, she started to make out the outlines of bodies. There were two of them, a stallion and a mare, but she couldn’t make out more than that in the darkness of the night. And next to them, she saw the familiar outline of the walker she’d made for Gyro hours before.

Worry for her friend made her throw caution to the wind. Bursting out of the bushes, Rarity dropped the sack of pilfered goods on the ground and used her horn to light up the surrounding area. She immediately recognized the two bodies as pirates, given their nasty, salty, and overall barbaric look. And the walker lying next to them had been forcibly removed, if the damage to the harness was anything to go by. But there wasn’t any sign of Gyro, and that made Rarity’s gut sink.

“They took her,” Rarity moaned, nearly on the verge of frustrated wailing. “They took her! Celestia damn it, I can’t, I can’t!” She collapsed on the ground from sheer exhaustion, both physical and emotional. “One step forward and two steps back! Every time! We’ll never get off these blasted islands! Never!”

The plants around them began to rustle, and Rainbow shot Rarity a nervous look. “Uh, Rares? Could you be quiet? Somepony’s coming…”

“I’d almost prefer that they ended my miserable existence right here and now. Prevent me from suffering any longer!”

While Rarity took her diva tendencies to dangerous new levels, Rainbow spread her wings and readied herself for a fight, exhausted as she was. But instead of a pirate making his way through the foliage, it was an older stallion, and lying on his back, a familiar gray mare.

Rainbow blinked. “Gyro?”

“Rainbow?” Gyro squeed and flailed her forelegs as if trying to fling herself off the stallion’s back. “You’re alive! Oh my goodness, I was worried you were gonna be pirate chow or something!” Then her expression darkened. As her eyes fell over both Rainbow and Rarity. “Holy crap, what happened to you two? You look like you went through Tartarus and took a second lap just for fun.”

“Squall happened,” Rainbow said, helping Rarity stand with some insistent nudging from her wing. “She tried to kill both of us.”

The stallion carrying Gyro widened his eyes. “You fought that crazy mare… and lived?”

“I’m definitely not a ghost, if that’s what you’re asking,” Rainbow said. “And just because Rarity’s white doesn’t mean she’s a ghost either.”

“Is she dead?”

“I would certainly hope so,” Rarity said. Standing up, a happy smile fell onto her muzzle at seeing Gyro safe and sound. “Oh, goodness, Gyro, we were so worried about you when the noise makers stopped ringing.”

“I had a bit of a pirate problem,” Gyro said. Then, slapping the stallion on the shoulder, she grinned at him. “Then Ratchet and some other ponies from the Concordia saved my flank. They’re gonna take us there where it’s safe!”

“I’m all for safe,” Rarity said, floating the walker over to Gyro and reattaching the harness around her body. “I’m exhausted and feel like I could sleep forever. Not having to worry about pirates jumping me while I sleep will be a blessing.”

Even Rainbow was inclined to agree. “Fighting pirates and stuff is cool and everything, but yeah, some R&R would be awesome right now.” She pointed to the tarp on the ground and grinned. “Plus, we looted the pirates after we messed up Squall. We’re all set to kick some ass now!”

“A blessing, to be sure,” Ratchet said, letting Gyro off his back now that she had her walker attached once more. “We need every little bit of help we can get.”