Rainbow looked around a dark void. It stretched on forever it seemed; just, nothingness in every direction. It didn't even seem like she was standing on anything.

"H-hello?", she asked. Her voice didn't echo like it should in a large space. So, she wasn't in the cave.

The where the hay am I? She looked around again, hoping to see something. Then, her eyes squinted in focus, she saw something. It was a small speck of white, sticking out like a fur-less pony in the blackness. It wasn't much, and she didn't know what it was. But it had to be better than just standing around. So, she flapped to get off the ground, then dashed forward.

As the white speck got closer, she began to make out details about the form. First, she saw it was in the shape of a pony; a unicorn, by the looks of it, facing away from her. Then, she began to make out their mane, which was a three-toned blue, pink, and green. Next was the slim figure, revealing the pony to be a mare. Finally, sealing the suspicion that Rainbow was fearing, a pair of wings and a sun-shaped cutie mark.

Rainbow nearly flew right into Princess Celestia, only barely managing to halt herself a few feet behind her. She would have flow backward, yet the Princesses aura latched around her neck. She began to choke, clawing and scratching in a vain attempt to free herself. Then, the Princess turned around.

Rainbow couldn't help but shudder at the sight. The princess wore a look of annoyed calm, similar to what she had seen her having when she and the others abandoned Twilight at the wedding rehearsal. The glow of her horn, usually a soft, light yellow glow, was now a dark, swirling orange like a fire. However, the worst part was the eyes. They were a swirling orb of reddish light, surrounded by a field of black as dark as the void they resided in. They smoldered like the magma of an open-topped volcano and were fixed with a look of sadistic glee, contrasting heavily with the emotionless gaze she bore.

She didn't say anything. The two simply locked eyes for a while, the Princess choosing not to speak while Rainbow couldn't. Then, she smelt something burning. The Princesses grip began to lighten a little bit, enough for her to get out a coherent action, that being sniffing for the burning smell. It was close; really close in fact. Then, she began to realize what it was that was burning: her.

Her tail burned a crackling orange, the whipping flames snaking up it until it reached her flanks. The fire wasn't painful, even as her cutie marks were consumed in the blaze. Her coat seemed to melt away, the flesh darkening underneath it. Still, it didn't even tickle. Suddenly, off to the side, she heard faint...Screaming? Her vision began to drift around her; at first out of confusion and curiosity, then out of horror.

Around her were many objects, all of which she recognized. Her house, her old trophies, her old ribbons, her
Wonderbolts posters, pictures of her family; all burning. What could be burned did, and what else was left began to melt. Then, she spied ponies. Ponies she recognized. Her parents, tank, and Scootaloo.

All of them were standing with looks of fear upon their faces, the flaming objects surrounding them. As she watched, the fires reached them and began to spread up their bodies like they were the wicks of candles. That was the source of the screaming, and the screaming only grew louder. Now it felt like they were screaming in her ear, and she clutched the side of her head.

She didn't even notice that Celestia had dropped her. When she did, the ponies present had all burned to death, the only movement the whipping tendrils of fire and the only sound their crackle. She looked up at the Princess, who stared right back. It felt like staring at the sun. Peaceful and pleasant from glimpsed from the corner of your eye, but searing and agonizing when viewed from head-on. The Princess leaned down, gazing into Rainbows eyes from her level, and spoke three words, in a fragmented, watery, and psychotic yet calm voice:

"Now, You Burn."

Rainbows' eyes snapped open, and she jerked up. For a solid minute, she simply sat there, panting like a dog. Her breathing began to slow, and she shut her eyes once again. Just a dream. Just a bucking dream.

She had never had a dream like that before. Sure, she had nightmares before. She didn't know a pony who didn't admit to having at least one. But, for her at least, most seemed to involve a massive meadow full of singing and/or smiling flowers. But, this was different. Very, very different.

She shuddered, then sat up. Her back audibly cracked, likely from the less than ideal sleeping space she found herself on. She looked over at the fire; it had almost completely died out. She put another log on top of it and blew lightly on the embers to bring the flames back up. Soon, the fire was burning again.

She then went over to the saddlebags, which still rested on the stone ground where she had left them after last night. She opened one and felt a little bit of joy when she discovered it was the one with the bread in it. She tore off a piece, then rummaged through it a little more looking for the canteen. When she had recovered it, she pulled it out, unscrewed the cap, then went back over to the fire to enjoy a little breakfast.

She began to think, watching the fire and absentmindedly nibbling at the bread. About what had happened, and what happened next.

She knew what had happened. She was gone, in Celestia knows where with limited supplies and no way of going home. Before this, the thought might've excited her. Alone in the wilderness, facing wild beasts and surviving, all while trying to find her way back to Equestria. It sounded like something out of a Daring Do book. Now though; the thought was terrifying.

She then began to think of what next, while taking a small swig of water from the canteen. What could she do? Well, that all depended on where she was exactly. If she was somewhere close to Equestria, she could maybe head back. Not into Equestria, mind you. She knew that the Princess likely wasn't kidding when she said she would go to Tartarus if she came back. Just, skirt the edges of the country, maybe find a way to get into contact with Scootaloo and her parents.

She looked out of the cave into the rainy sky, the lip of the cave being the only thing between her and the waters of the world. She thought about why she was her next, seemingly jumping to it at random. Somepony had to have set her up. There was no way all of what she saw could just be a coincidence. Something was up, but it wasn't like she could do anything to help...If she even wanted to now.

Her gaze shifted down to the crackling flames in front of her. She thought back to her dream, and how it correlated with what she was thinking about. She had seen all of what she cherished burn to a cinder; gone forever. She had nothing, and nothing to go to. No chance to see her family, no chance to achieve her dream: No chance to do anything now.

She continued to look at the swirling fire, its edges and wood looking almost like it was dancing. She was right; she didn't want to help any of them. Well, her family of course, and Spitfire too. But she couldn't do anything but miss them. The rest, however; they she could hate. They took her dream. She did nothing wrong; they were all the ones who damned her! All of them: Princess Celestia, her ex-friends, Shining Armor. All of them.

She stood up, eyes and face contorted in rage. She felt a slight soreness on the side where she had felt the flare of magic from Celestia, but she ignored it. "You hear me!? I did nothing wrong, and I have to suffer for it! If you can see me, Buck you! Buck you all! And if I'm going to Tartarus, I'll see you there!!"

She fell back down, tears falling down out of nowhere. She didn't feel them, but they came all the same. She was still angry at those who forsook her. Her anger at them didn't abate. What caused the tears then? Simple. She knew that for all that hate, it didn't matter. All that did? That they made it so she couldn't see those she wanted to, ever again.

Next Chapter: 9~Setting out Estimated time remaining: 9 Hours, 28 Minutes