Der Freischütz und die Regenbogen
The Sharpshooter and the Rainbow
Erster Abschnitt: Grässlicher Schlucht
Section One: Ghastly Gorge
Death by starvation is slow. –Mary Hunter Austin
Ghastly Gorge. Of all the various ways to be killed in Ghastly Gorge- windy caves, bramble bushes and quarray eels- the most embarrassing, painful, and slow is to be caught under a boulder, left to starve to death. And this fate is what was currently inflicted upon Rainbow Dash. The day had started out simplistically. She had gone to relax with her friends, gotten jealous of their pets, and had decided to hold a contest to choose a pet. This contest is what had led to her current fate. When she had raced ahead of all the animals, she had lost sight of what was ahead of her. Namely, a rock wall. She had crashed into it at full speed, and when she did, she ended up pinned to the ground by a boulder.
That had been two and a half days ago. Now, she was more that half-starved and completely parched. The rain from the night before had provided a small reprieve from thirst, but it had returned again at full strength today, and Dash found herself wishing that there were still some puddles nearby. The details of the cliffside formations had begun to blur and shift as lucidity slipped away. It seemed as though there was a stream of pure rock sliding down the cliff- another landslide perhaps. Dust swirled around as grey shifted past grey and stopped at the base of the cliff.
The instant it stopped, the blob of colour detached itself from the rocky wall and seemed to make its way towards Dash's stuck form. The closer it got, the more defined the lines became. When it got to about five yards away, she could finally make out a general description in her head. The thing was abnormally tall, grey, and seemed to stand on only two legs. In its right arm was what looked like a grey stick with some string pulling the ends together. The figure seemed to regard her with caution and curiosity. It slowly slid the strange device onto one of its arms, pulling a small metal stick from its waistline. The figure raised the curved metal and slowly began to walk towards Dash.
She closed her eyes and waited. Dash was somewhat happy to see the figure, because it meant that she wouldn't have to starve to death. She heard the clang of metal against rock, and relaxed slightly. Again, she waited for the end to come.
Which is why she was very shocked to feel pressure lift from her wing. She opened her eyes and looked over weakly. The creature had wedged the metal stick between the boulder and the ground, pushing down and lifting the stone. It took all of her strength to crawl out from underneath of the boulder. When she was clear, she heard the boulder drop. Just as she passed out, she heard the creature speak, though not in any language she had heard before.
"Schisse. Wie lange ist sie schon hier?"
Der Freischütz und die Regenbogen, Erster Abschnitt: Complete
Translations: "Shit. How long has she been here?"