The steady drip of water and the sounds of claws scraping at dirt carried through the musky air of the dimly lit tunnels. The rough and uneven walls of the earthen corridors were punctuated by occasional wooden bracings, fashioned from the salvaged debris of any carts or caravans unfortunate enough to fall across a raiding party. Shoddy mining carts littered the maze-like tunnels that ran deep into the earth, illuminated by a series of torches and mirrors. Individual rooms and chambers of importance were marked by the occasional crudely assembled door, cobbled together from scraps of wood, metal, and fraying rope.

One such mass of debris served as the main entrance separating the tunnels from the surface world above, hidden from view by a pile of fern leaves. Two diamond dogs stood on either side, lazily leaning against the dirt walls of the tunnel as they dozed at their post, the familiar noises of digging and dripping lulling them into a sleepy haze of boredom.

The haze was broken rather abruptly by the door's sudden transformation into a cloud of splinters as it exploded inward, carrying the two guards with it. The dust slowly began to clear, revealing a seething lavender unicorn standing in the entrance.

"WHERE IS SHE!?"

Already, a pack of large, muscular dogs was charging up from below to investigate the disturbance, barking, snarling, and ready to tear the intruder to pieces. One suddenly dropped to the ground, struck by a bright beam of purple light, followed by another, and another. Two more found themselves lifted into the air and batted about like rag dolls as they slammed into the walls, the ceiling, each other, and their fellow pack mates before being unceremoniously tossed aside. A second group, charging up from an adjacent tunnel, managed to get within several feet of their target before their direction was reversed by an expanding wave of force, sending them flying through the air to land on their comrades behind them.

"WHERE IS SHE!?" Twilight Sparkle repeated as she continued to cut a path of destruction, swatting away attackers like flies. She advanced deeper and deeper into the system of tunnels, leaving a trail of bruised, battered, and slightly singed diamond dogs in her wake. As dimwitted as they might be, they were still capable of learning, and it wasn't long until most of the inhabitants were charging away from her instead.

As the central tunnel she had been navigating began to level out, Twilight came upon a wooden door of marginally better quality than the others. After blowing it apart, she found herself in a large chamber that she guessed to be some kind of office or planning room, judging by the presence of a large table surrounded by several chairs. Sitting in one of the chairs was a diamond dog wearing a tattered vest and hat, with an old pair of goggles hanging around his neck. Twilight assumed him to be the leader of this pack, given that he wore the most accessories. He also seemed to have some basic amount of literacy as it appeared he had been looking over the various maps and papers covering the table.

Now he was looking at the angry purple unicorn standing where his door had been a second before. He stared at her. She stared at him. He stared back and blinked for a second before leaping out of his chair and running straight toward what looked to be a small cell at the far right of the room. Upon reaching it, he slammed the metal door shut behind him. Twilight looked up to see a barely legible sign above the door. 'Panik Rooom'. As Twilight approached, he slid open a small barred window at eye level to sneer at her.

"Nyahaha! Me safe in here! Stupid pony cannot get me now! What you do now pony? Hahaha!"

Twilight looked at the door. Being made of solid metal, it was plenty strong, and certainly a step up from what she had encountered so far, but the rusted hinges were simply sunk into the compacted dirt of the adjacent wall and what passed for a frame was partially rotted wood. It would be foal's play to simply rip the door out and throw it across the room, yet to hear the crowing insults of the diamond dog behind it, he may as well have been in the Canterlot vaults. Twilight supposed he could be forgiven for not knowing her or the extent of her abilities, but she still couldn't help but feel a little insulted at the disturbing lack of faith.

"Nyahahaha-URGGH!" The diamond dog's mocking laughter was cut short by the appearance of a purple glow around his neck. He pawed at his throat in vain as he slowly began to rise off the ground.

"Now, I've got some questions that need answering." Twilight spoke in a calm, measured voice. "First and foremost being, Where. Is. Rainbow Dash!"

The helpless dog sputtered and kicked a bit before choking out an answer.

"Who?"

Twilight pulled him forward with a quick jerk, pressing his face against the bars as she gave him a glare that made it clear that patience was something she did not have in abundance.

"Blue pegasus. Rainbow colored mane and tail. Cutie mark shaped like a lightning bolt. I know you brought her here, and for your sake, she had better be completely unharmed or things are going to go very VERY badly for you." Twilight gave a small extra squeeze for emphasis. "Now, Where Is She!?"

"Don't know! Gone! Blue pony not here anymore! Taken away!"

"Go on."

"Armor ponies come and bring lots of gems. Take blue pony away in big cage. Blue pony asleep whole time. Not hurt! Just like letter say!"

"Letter?" Twilight glanced back at the table, spotting a scroll with what looked like a royal seal. Levitating it over to herself, she quickly scanned through the contents.

"When did this happen!? Where did they take her!?" Twilight's magical grip began to tighten slightly as the unwelcome news set her nerves even more on edge.

"Gahk! Early this morning! Sunrise! Ponies leave to north, but not say where going. We not ask. We just take gems!"

Twilight turned and began to pace as she tried to keep a hold on her thoughts. This was bad. They were hours gone by now and she had no idea where they were even taking Dash. If they continued north, Canterlot was a decent guess, but if they took to the air (and there was no reason to think they hadn't) they could be anywhere by now and tracking them would be next to impossible. For all she knew, Dash could be in the heart of Canterlot Castle by now, or deep in a secret bunker somewhere where she would never find her. She would probably never see her again.

Twilight's heart froze. There was a loud *thump* as her magic released and the suspended diamond dog fell to the ground gasping for air. She fell to her knees as a cold, sick feeling rose in her stomach.

Rainbow Dash was gone. GONE!

Twilight had known this was a possible outcome from the start. It was a risk she had knowingly taken on when she had committed to this path that fateful night about a month and a half ago. It was a possibility that had grown in likelihood to a near eventuality ever since yesterday morning. That there would come a day when she and Rainbow Dash were separated for good. All of her foreknowledge did absolutely nothing to prepare her now that that day was finally upon her.

Twilight gripped her head between her hooves and trembled as the world spun and swam around her. What was she supposed to do now? Keep running? Turn herself in? What did any of it matter if she could never see Rainbow Dash again? Never again share a laugh over breakfast or read together in front of the fire! Never again stare into those magenta eyes or bury her face in that wild rainbow mane! Never again feel those lips against her own! Never again! Never again!

"NO!" Twilight shouted as she jumped to her hooves, letting out a brief pulse of magic that buckled the metal door and upended the table and chairs, sending papers fluttering through the room.

It couldn't end like this. It was unacceptable. She refused to allow it. Dash had been taken from her, but as long as she continued to draw breath, she would continue to fight until she had her back. She would fight all of Equestria if she had to.

But how? Purged of crippling panic and self-doubt, and filled with renewed resolve, the gears of Twilight's mind began to spin. The beginnings of multiple half-formed plans rose and fell, being disassembled and reshaped constantly as she took stock of her resources.

No, I don't have an airship....No, that would take months to build alone....Time travel doesn't work that way....That could work. I have most of the parts. I'd need a good collection of quality gems to properly calibrate though.

Twilight spotted an enormous pile of exquisitely cut gems of every variety sitting in the far corner of the room. No doubt this was part of the extremely generous bounty awarded for Rainbow Dash's capture.

"I'm taking some of that." Twilight said with a pointed hoof. It was in no way a question. The diamond dog raised no objections, too busy rubbing his throat and cowering behind the bent and twisted remains of the metal door.

Twilight pulled in a cart from the hallway and began to fill it with gems, along with some of the bits from the adjacent pile. It couldn't hurt to have some extra funds for this adventure, even if she couldn't exactly stroll into a market to spend it. When she was finished, she silently started her way back up the tunnels to the surface. None of the dogs tried to stop her. Most were either still unconscious, or quick to throw themselves out of her way.

Twilight Sparkle stepped out into the sunlight, ready for whatever the world could throw at her next.

Hang on Dash. I'm coming.

Short single scene chapter this time. I know short chapters suck, but it seemed like such a good cut off point, and the scene I had planned to follow works better as the opening to a chapter than as an end.