She hadn't even realized she had fallen asleep again. No nightmare came this time. Just an inky darkness. She was there for what felt like years. Doing nothing. Just nothing.

When she awoke, she felt two things. One, a lack of heat and orangish light; that meant the fire was out. The second was a different warmth and light. That of the sun. That light shone threw the opening of the cave, falling down on her. She stood up, once more cracking her legs and back as she did so, and walked out to the mouth of the cave.

The rain had abated, and the area was awash with light. She now saw clearly from her position to the horizon. The rock of the mountain was a darkish light gray, speckled with fragments of a darker gray and smaller ones of white. Below the mountain was a large valley, dotted with trees, hills, and a river snaking through the center, which emptied into the sea on the far side. Said sea took up most of her view; a dark blue color that broke off from the green and brown to stretch out as far as the eye could see from there. The sky was a cheerful blue, the sky cloudless, and the forests and plains below her a sweeping, faded green.

It could've been mistaken for Equestria, and she still hoped she was close to it, if not for a few details. The most obvious was the mountainside. She had never seen, in person or in pictures, a mountain that looked like this. The next was the lack of habitation. If this was Equestria, she would have seen a break in the trees, or some smoke, or something to signal that something lived out here. And yet, there was nothing.

She then walked around the edges of the rock platform. At first, she looked over to see if there was anything off to the sides of the mountain. She didn't see anything, and so she looked down. She was high up on the mountain, as the wall of grayness shot down into the earth a great distance before it would finally spread outward, fading into the forest. Seeing all she needed to, she stepped back and looked down at the stone floor.

She then considered her options. She could always stay in the cave. It could be warmed, it was in a high up position, and it wasn't really all that noticeable. She could slip down into the valley to get food, water, and wood. She could stay here.

"The hay is wrong with me? I'm Rainbow-bucking-Dash, for cryin' out loud! I'm not just gonna sulk in a cave, feeling bad for myself the rest of my life!", she said. She then realized she was saying this. Out loud. "Ok. Talking to myself also won't help matters."

She figured that something had to be nearby. Even if Celestia went full 'Nightmare' on her, she wouldn't just dump her in the middle of nowhere. She didn't even know of anywhere like that; that had nothing living in it, that is. So, something had to be nearby. She could still scavenge for some food after what she had would have run out. She could last until she found somepony.

Her mind made up, she turned to head back to get her new saddlebags from the cave. However, before she got far, she saw her face in a puddle. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue; it was just her face. But, now, she noticed something new.

It was a blackened mark, around her left eye. It appeared to be some sort of brand or a tattoo. It started up at the base of her ear, the black line running down to the edge of her eye. It then spread out a little under it, separating into two designs. One was on her cheek; the lines forming together into a small sun. The other line ran up along the side, completely encircling her eye. She also noticed something white in the center of the black pupil. A small white sun, this one shaped like Celestia's cutie mark.

She recoiled a little bit, then snarled. That was what that flare of magic along her eye that Celestia cast. A brand. As if what she had already done wasn't enough. She supposed it was to prevent her from coming back in a disguise. She snorted, then continued on to the cave.

She went over to her new saddlebags. Anything she had taken out of them she put back in, except for the letter and the flight goggles. She considered bringing the wood but decided against it. She didn't have all that much room left, and she could always just pick up or cut down more.

As for the two things that she hadn't put back, she put them in front of her. She read the letter to herself once again. Yet another tear threatened to fall, yet she held it in. She was bucking Rainbow Dash. She was too cool to be crying every ten minutes. Carefully, she folded up the letter and slid it into a secure area of her bag, as not to crush it. She wouldn't cry over it often, but it was still something she would hold onto.

She then slipped the bags onto her back. A small strap ran along the bottom part, likely to keep it on better in flight. After tightening it, she slipped on the goggles. The elastic band tightened around her head, the lenses resting just above her eyes.

She then trotted out of the cave again. She looked out over the valley and the sea again, trying to plot a course. Going straight would put her right over the ocean, which likely wasn't a very good idea. Lifting off, she flew around the side of the mountain, to see what was on the other side.

On the other side, a similar sight to the valley greeted her. A large forest, interspersed with small valleys and clearings, which stretched on as far as she could see. Looking around, she didn't see any smoke or any other signs of other creatures. She looked around, finally deciding on a direction. Lowering the goggles over her eyes, she tensed back, before shooting forward like a bullet, her rainbow-colored trail following behind her. Into the land where she now dwelt; into what lay ahead.

Next Chapter: 10~Wilds(PT. 1) Estimated time remaining: 9 Hours, 23 Minutes