Chapter Two: Tears.
From the highest tower of Color Castle the young blonde girl who was once named Wisp stood on a balcony, watching the new day unfold around her with a smilfe. There really was no place in the universe like Rainbow Land.
By an Earth observer's views Rainbow Land society was one of repression and hardship. The only children who lived there were not schooled. Instead they worked in the fields, mountains and forests from sun up from sun down. They had no parents to take care of them, they instead looked after themselves.
From an Earth observer's viewpoint things were even worse for the Sprites, the small fury native inhabitants of Rainbow Land. At least the Kids got to work outside. The majority of the Sprites spent their days toiling away within the caves of Rainbow Land, mining the precious 'colour crystals' that the Color Kids desired. Those Sprites that didn't work within the caves instead worked within the Sprite Village that surrounded Color Castle, cooking for the rest of the community or performing other such housekeeping chores. And all this work was done by Sprite and Kid alike for no money or compensation.
People of Earth would look at Rainbow Land and think that their world was completely wrong. But in truth it was the people of Earth that were wrong, for they couldn't see the real beauty that was Rainbow Land.
In Rainbow Land no one needed for anything. There were no poor, mainly due to the fact that fortunately no one had ever had the bad idea of inventing money to begin with. With no need for money the people of this country spent their days pursuing activities that bettered both them and the world around them. The Sprites worked within the Color Caves because they wanted to, which was unlike much of the work that the people of Earth found themselves engaged in when they got older.
The Sprites that didn't like the subterranean environments of the Color Caves simply did a daily activity that appealed to them. From cooking, to gardening, to child minding. No one really minded what someone did, so long as they were happy.
The children that lived within the land were even luckier than the Sprites. For the Kids of Rainbow Land didn't just live in the land. They created it. Every blade of grass, every raindrop was coloured by their imagination and by the star sprinkles they carried. The Color Kids were connected to Rainbow Land and it was connected to them. Every new day was a wonder to behold, for it had been created and coloured by the hearts and joy of the inhabitants of Rainbow Land.
The girl who was once known as Wisp contently smiled again, walking back into her bedroom and towards the rainbow coloured stairs that would take her down to the grand hall of Color Castle. Rainbow Land possessed so much that Earth didn't have. Which is why herself and the Color Kids strived so hard to colour Earth's lands in the same beauty that the people of Rainbow Land were so accustomed to. To try and bring a little of the joy and peace that Rainbow Land possessed to Earth.
Rainbow Land possessed so much, but there was one thing that the Earth had that Rainbow Land didn't, the blonde girl considered, and that was human parents. The Color Kids had never been babies. They simply began their lives at the same age they were now and would probably stay that age for the rest of their lives.
A chorus of joyous 'Good mornings' greeted the blonde headed seven year old girl as she entered the main hall, to which her eyes twinkled happily and began to greet each of Kids present in the hall with a hug or a kind word. Rainbow Land may not have parents, but the Color Kids did have a mother.
And that was her, Wisp.
She was the one they ran to when scared. The one they approached when worried or confused and needed advice. She was their protector, their mother, and their best friend all in one. Whenever they had a problem, and even if they didn't, she would be there to care for them. No matter what.
She, Wisp, was Rainbow Brite and Rainbow Land and all the people of it were in her care.
A soft whispering voice touched Rainbow's ears as she was made her way through the Main Hall. It was a light, tranquil voice. Barely raised yet able to cut straight through the noise and the chattering that echoed through the hall. It was a voice Rainbow had always associated with the sound of nighttime slumber party whisperings. Of being ready for bed, yet enjoying the night too much to sleep.
"Rainbow.." The voice of Moonglow said as the silvery-blonde haired Color Kid walked through the Main Doors of the castle, the tiredness in her eyes seeming to indicate she hadn't rested yet since returning from her nocturnal work. "I was just at the Color Caves, getting some more yellow star sprinkles for tomorrow night. There is a problem. A whole supply of star sprinkles are missing."
Rainbow raised a quizzical brow. Missing star sprinkles? At first when Moonglow had said there was a problem at the caves she was expecting to hear about some sighting of Murky or some trick he was playing. It always seemed to be the way. The words 'There is a problem' and 'Murky Dismal' seemed to go hand in hand. When you found one, the other wasn't far behind. But missing star sprinkles didn't sound like something Murky would be involved in.
To be honest missing Color Crystals weren't a great concern. More could always be mined. But still, it was unfortunate that all the hard work of the Sprites within the caves could be lost due to some crystal misplacement. Moonglow was right to bring it to her attention.
"And the Sprites don't know anything about them?" Rainbow guessed. She knew Moonglow would have already investigated that before coming to her. So logically (Shy Violet would have been proud of her) the next people to check with were the Color Kids. Maybe one of them needed some sprinkles in a hurry, saw something in the world that urgently needed fixing.
Her blue eyes passed along the Color Kids assembled before her, each waiting expectantly. Buddy Blue, Pattie O'Green, Canary Yellow, Lala Orange, Shy Violent and Indigo all shrugged, shaking their heads as her eyes met theirs. None of them knew anything about the missing star sprinkles.
Out of all the Kids only Red Butler and Tickled Pink weren't present.
Days later Rainbow Brite would look back, upon reflection of when everything had gone horribly wrong, and pin point everything to this one moment.
She would wish she knew then what she knew now. That the decision she had made hadn't been one that would end up costing her one of her dearest friends. That's the funny thing about decisions. You don't realise until it is too late that each one you make ends up shaping the future. That a single decision, placed at exactly the right point in time, can alter the entire world around you.
"Well until we can check with Red and Pink I wouldn't worry about it." Rainbow concluded. "If those two aren't here it means they are probably out working in the fields. Which they probably would have needed star sprinkles for."
Moonglow nodded. She had seen Tickled Pink before she got to Color Castle, galloping towards her on Sunriser. It was a usual sight each morning. After she had finished her night's work Pink would usually run into her in the Sprite Village after sunrise. Though Moonglow would often be tired from her work the Pink Color Kid would often drag her to some little Sprite stall to have breakfast. Or dinner, depending on whose viewpoint you looked at. Though Moonglow often said she didn't have time, too much to do and prepare before the next night, Pink would always get her there in the end.
Moonglow smiled to herself. It was.. nice. She didn't get to socialise with the rest of the Color Kids too much, due to their differing schedules. But Pink would always be there for her each morning. As consistent as night turning to day.
Except this morning. When Moonglow had seen her she had explained that she really did need to see Rainbow about something important and Pink had finally relented on the offer of breakfast, saying something about going to see to some flowers instead. But would certainly not let her miss breakfast tomorrow.
With her Color Crystal concerns passed on Moonglow bid a good morning, which was for her a good night, to Rainbow Brite and the rest of the Color Kids and headed to her room and bed within the Castle, sure that Rainbow would be able to handle the problem now.
She thought to herself as she entered her room and climbed into bed that Rainbow was probably right. The more she thought about it, the more it sounded like Pink may have been the one who had taken the sprinkles. After all, a small pile of each colour had been taken. Except for the pink sprinkles, which had been left untouched.
Kind of made sense Moonglow considered, her eyes closing. Pink probably had enough pink star sprinkles already.
Oh well, she could ask Pink about it tomorrow morning. Or night. Depending on how you looked at it.
"How about these ones?" Sunriser asked, looking at a bunch of roses in front of her. Pink was by her side, having slid down to walk along side her since arriving at the secluded garden.
"No.. they're kind of a pale red." Tickle Pink concluded after a few minutes of examination.
Sunriser gave a nod of her long head and moved a few feet over to another bush. "Well these then? They seem nice."
Once again Pink came over to examine the roses, but once again they met with her dissatisfaction. "Nuh uh." She concluded. "They have an orange tint. Not what we are looking for."
They had been at this for at least half an hour. Each bush they went to met with an unfavourable response from Pink after an examination. Sunriser was actually beginning to have her doubts about Pink. Starting to feel as though this was one of her impulsive jokes.
"Orange tint?" The pink haired horse quizzed, not so ready to move away now. "They look pretty pink to me."
Tickled Pink gave Sunriser an over exaggerated gasp and then said, trying desperately to hold down the giggles that were fighting their way up from within her throat, "You are doubting the word of the Pink Color Kid?"
Sunriser noticed the corners of Pink's mouth twitching as she said this. If it was one thing Tickled Pink was bad at, that was keeping a straight face. Sunriser now knew one of her four legs were being pulled.
"Well then, Ms. Pink Color Kid. If the roses aren't the right shade of pink, why don't you colour them?"
"That's cheating! No, we've got to find naturally growing pink roses. It will mean that much more when you give them to Starlite."
Sunriser was rather dubious about this plan that Pink had talked her into, after her breakfast date with Moonglow had been cancelled. Sunriser was sure that the shoe should be on the other hoof. That it should be Starlite that was giving her flowers. But Pink had been quite insistent.
"Ah ha!" Tickled Pink finally exclaimed, having wandered over to another rose bush. One whose flowers seemed the exact shade of pink as every other bush in this grove. "These are them! Perfect Pink."
"Those? You mean the very first roses we looked at?" Sunriser replied, giving Pink a careful look. "The ones you rejected by saying they were a rare light purple-red rose?"
"Yes. I guess they must have ripened while we were looking at the other bushes. For now they are pink." Now she really was giggling.
Sunriser was laughing too. The joke was bad. And it had taken a whole half hour to work up to the 'punch line'. But when Tickled Pink laughed you couldn't help but join in. It was infectious.
But the laughter caught in Sunriser's throat as she noticed something on the edge of her vision. Something big and black hurtling through the air towards Tickled Pink. The graceful pink horse reacted instantly, launching herself towards Pink while emitting a roar from her mouth, a feat that only a true wild horse can sound. As soon as she was within range Sunriser whipped her long head at the startled Color Kid and sent her tumbling with a none too gentle flick. A mere second later a large iron cage crashed into the ground, surrounding the area Tickled Pink once inhabited.
Pink got unsteadily to her feet somewhat dazed and confused. One minute she was looking at the roses the next Sunriser was knocking her back. A shocked gasp escaped Pink's lips as her eyes fell upon the iron cage that now surrounded the rose bush she was only just examining. But it wasn't the appearance of the cage that frightened her, rather it was cause Sunriser was laying within in, unmoving.
"Sunriser!" she shouted, running towards the think bars that were blocking her from her friend, "Sunriser, are you okay?" she pleaded, desperately tugging on the unyielding metal.
But before an answer could be given the cracking of some dry underbrush alerted Tickled Pink to the fact there was someone else present within this secluded grove of pink rose bushes. Any hope she had that there might be someone else there to help her free her friend quickly faded as she spun around, her blue eyes meeting a pair of cold, black glaring ones in return.
"Murky!" Pink exclaimed, her heart beginning to race as she found herself backing away from both the cage and from him. The truth was the diminutive, angry grey man scared her. He scared all the Color Kids. Rainbow Brite seemed to be the only one in all of Rainbow Land that wasn't afraid of him. Oh how Pink wished Rainbow was here right now.
He sneered at her, advancing, "That cage was meant for you, brat." he spat, giving the fallen form of Sunriser only a brief, contemptuous look. "No matter. Once I'm done with you it looks like Lurky will have a new pet.."
Tickled Pink had only taken a few steps back but at those words she stopped dead in her tracks, looking over towards where Sunriser was imprisoned and starting to stir. She was scared, she didn't know what Murky wanted but whatever it was it seemed to involve Sunriser. Her best friend.
Tickled Pink hesitated, her little legs trembling. Then after a moment she opened her mouth.
"No.." the pink clad seven year old girl finally said, standing firm and retreating no further, "I won't let you have Sunriser." As Pink said this she tried to display the same fierce look on her face that Rainbow always wore when confronting Murky.
Rainbow Land was a land without parents. So Murky never realised what 'that' look was and why it always caused him such fear. But if he had of lived on Earth he would have known that the look Rainbow always gave him, and Pink was trying to approximate now, was one of the most dangerous in all of nature. It was the look of a mother ready to protect her children.
The diminutive man faltered for a moment, almost backing down. But the moment of hesitation was only brief. Tickled Pink was no Rainbow Brite. And to Pink's horror Murky began to raise his gloom gun towards her.
She had seen Murky's gloom gun in action before. One pull of the trigger and out it would expel a vicious cloud of noxious chemicals, so dark and gloomy that anyone who breathed in the cloud would lose any hope or free will they had. Yes, Pink had seen it in action before. So she was ready. As Murky raised the gun towards her Pink's hand flew to her star shaped belt pouch, gathering a handful of star sprinkles into her hand.
She may not be Rainbow Brite and she may not have a Color Belt, but she was a Color Kid and at least had some powers.
She had mere moments to react as Murky pulled the trigger. So it wasn't until seconds later, until her pink star sprinkles had left her hand and were already flying towards Murky and his gun that Pink realized that something was wrong. Instead of noxious plumes of smoke Murky's gloom gun was discharging a beam of colors from its nozzle towards her.
He was attacking her with.. a rainbow?
But before Pink could fully take in these strange turn of events her airborne star sprinkles intercepted the wave of colors streaming towards her. The resulting meeting produced a blinding flash of intense, pure white energy.
She cried out, turning away and bringing her hands up to shield her stinging eyes from the flash. When she dared open them again to Pink's horror she discovered the world before had transformed into a distorted, shifting blob of dark images.
"Help! I can't see!" the seven year old girl cried out as she groped about blindly, hoping someone, anyone, other than Murky was nearby. The only comfort about her present state was from the cries and stumbling she could hear coming from Murky's direction he hadn't expected the flash of light either.
"Pink.." came a soft whispered reply, the voice causing her heart to leap.
"Sunriser!"
"Shh.." came the whispered voice again, calm and reassuring. "Murky has been blinded by the flash too.. but I fear it is only temporary. You must be away from here, Pink. I will guide you to what direction you must turn.. and when I say the word you must run. As fast as you can go."
"No." Tickled Pink gasped, shocked, blindly waving out with her hands and finally locating the bars of the cage on which she began to pull again "I cannot leave you Sunriser. I will not."
There was a sad sigh in reply and Sunriser was silent for a moment. When her voice finally came back it trembled slightly, "When I fell I landed on my leg. I think.. it is broken.. Even if you could open this cage there isn't anything you could do."
There is no place in the Universe like Rainbow Land. No place whose lands are filled with such joy and happiness. And of all the Color Kids there was no one more cheerful and jovial than Tickled Pink. But as she heard the words that of her magnificent, wild pink horse spoke Tickled Pink did an act she had never done before.
She started to cry.
Tiny salted drops of water flickered down from Pink's eyes, running down the light pink tullip shaped birthmark of her right cheek before falling to the ground. She pulled at the cold, iron bars again, desperation filling her. What Sunriser was saying couldn't be true.
Sunriser's voice came to her once again in the blackness, her voice now becoming somewhat firmer than Pink had ever heard it before, "If our friendship means anything to you, you will do as I ask. Leave me. It is you that Murky wants, not me. Run back to Color Castle and tell Rainbow Brite what has happened. I'm sure she and the rest of the Kids will come back with you to free me."
She shook her head defiantly; ready to yell at Sunriser amongst her tears that she could never leave her. But deep down inside Pink knew Sunriser was right. Her vision was already beginning to clear and if Murky captured them both, here and now, she didn't know how long it would be before anyone realized. She had to get help. She had to get Rainbow.
The pink haired child managed three labored steps backwards, all but forcing herself to abandon her friend when a metallic click sounded to her left. Spinning about Pink caught sight of Murky aiming his modified gloom gun at her, a torrent of rainbow energy waves already rocketing towards her once again. With no time to make a grab for some more star sprinkles Pink simply dived to the ground, the torrent of colors racing above her. It was a close miss.
Murky cursed again, jumping up and down in uncontrolled rage as the Kid managed to avoid an attack yet again. The cage was meant to have stopped something like this from happening, he reflected bitterly. As his dark, malicious eyes focused on the pink horse within the cage, an idea began to form. One that only a twisted heart like his could ever think up.
"You've seen what this thing can do to pink star sprinkles.." He grinned, slowly drawing the gun away from Tickled Pink. "Wonder what it could do to a pink horse.." The casualness in which he said this and leveled the gun towards Sunriser was chilling.
Tickled Pink watched horrified as Murky's fat, gray finger began to slowly pull on the trigger. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as everything else around her faded away. All there was within her vision, within her universe, was the finger and the trigger. It was all that mattered. And then, when Murky finally squeezed enough to activate the gloom gun it was with a little surprise that Pink found herself jumping towards him. Jumping into the path between the beam of energy and Sunriser.
She heard Sunriser scream at her that it was a trick, but by that stage it was already too late. For the beam of energy had hit Tickled Pink.
Behind a pair of thick, purple horn-rimmed glasses Shy Violet's brown eyes frowned as she watched her Color Console monitor. With slender fingers she tapped away at her keypad, attempting to clarify the readings she was getting within the color spectrum. The readings were odd at best. At first she thought they were a glitch. But after running a few analysis programs and cross checking the data Shy Violet realised was she was detecting was real. She was picking up what looked like, for want of a better word, a 'shockwave' within the color spectrum. It originated from a point in Rainbow Land and seemed to be now rippling through the spectrum.
Shy Violet's fingers froze over her keypad as her gifted mind ran a few calculations. The Color Console was directly connected into the color spectrum and the shockwave was fast approaching their point in Rainbow Land.
"Away from the console!" she bellowed, throwing back her chair and suddenly running to seek refuge behind a table over in the corner of the Main Hall. The fact that timid, mild, quiet Shy Violet was shouting at the top of her voice was enough to ensure the other Kids stationed at the Color Console weren't far behind her.
There they huddled, behind a sturdy wooden table, everything around them having fallen eerily silent.
Then the shockwave that was working its way through Rainbow Land, invisible to the naked eye, hit Color Castle and the Color Console exploded in a shower of sparks.
Meanwhile, in the Color Mines, Dee Lite's pick slowly slipped from her grasp, falling into a pile of pink star sprinkles. She stood transfixed, not noticing as a handful of her pink Color Crystals were dislodged from the pile and rolled into a nearby pile of red Color Crystals. She didn't hear Romeo's annoyed protest at the contamination of his red pile and then, later, his concerned questioning once he saw the look on her face. Romeo and Dee Lite often worked side by side. Not by choice, mind you. Rather it just worked out that way because the pink color veins tended to be an off shoot of the red color veins. Netherless, over the years Romeo and Dee Lite had become quite close friends. So close, Romeo thought he knew Dee Lite better than any other sprite knew her. But over the years he had never seen the joyful, giggly pink sprite wear such an expression of horror and alarm. His pick too fell to the ground, scattering his own Color Crystals and he was instantly at her side.
"Dee Lite.." Romeo asked cautiously, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder, "What is wrong? Tell me, please."
There are hundreds of sprites in Rainbow Land. But of them all the most prestigious are the 'Head Sprites', the sprites that lead the mining of each particular Color Kid's rainbow sprinkles. A Head Sprite's high regard doesn't come from this though. Rather, being a head sprite means being a Color Kid's closest friend. The personality of a head sprite compliments that of a Color Kid's personality. And, over time, a close sub conscious bond forms between the two. Some have theorised that this is how Color Kids are able to understand 'sprite talk', their bond with their Head Sprite enabling them to translate this other language instantly. The bond between a Color Kid and their sprite is a bond of the heart and as such, given their complimenting personalities, it isn't unknown for a sprite to sometimes feel an emotion that their kid was feeling. And that is what led Dee Lite to knowing that something terrible was happening somewhere in Rainbow Land. Happening to Tickled Pink.
"Please.. get Rainbow." Dee Lite begged, her voice cracking as a small sob escaped her at the end. "Hurry. I think Tickled Pink is dying."
The waves of energy washed over her form. Where they touched her skin and dress there was a fizzing sound and the flaring of bright white light. It was like being hit with a torrent of water and she felt cold where it touched. But Pink also felt weaker too, as if each time it hit a little piece of her was eaten away.
"Surprised? Wondering what's happening?" A malicious taunting voice asked. It was Murky and he sounded pleased. The girl tried to reply, but she found it very difficult to talk all of a sudden. She was getting so very light headed. But that didn't seem to stop Murky. He was always one to boast.
"Simple science my dear. Those wretched colors that you and your brat friends both spread and are connected to come from white light.. Amazing how something as nauseatingly vile as 'pretty colors' can come something as simple as light." He grinned all the more, so full of his own self-importance. "But, it is a two way street. Any given despicable color can be returned to white light by reuniting it with the rest of the vile spectrum. Did you know that?"
With a cackle Murky, now that he had Tickled Pink where she couldn't escape, turned a dial on the side of the gun and colored energy spewing from the gun increased in magnitude, the full force of Murky's weapon now washing over Tickled Pink. And like waves washing over a sandy coast Pink felt herself being eroded away, grain by grain, wave by wave.
"Though it loathes me to say it, it looks like for once these nauseating colors you and your kind spread have come in useful. See, I borrowed some color crystals when your friends weren't looking. It allowed me to make the ingenious adjustment to my gloom gun that you see here. Though I loathe color, I must admit I find a certain amusing irony in using the very powers of your friends against you. That it will be them that will result in your end."
"Monster!" The enraged shout pierced the eerily still atmosphere that had descended over the grove.
Tickled Pink slowly turned her head, using what strength she had left, to ascertain from who it had come from.
It was Sunriser and she was standing to her feet.
By the time Romeo had scrambled the distance from the Color Caves to Color Castle activity in the mines was at a stand still. Dee Lite's mournful cries echoed through the cavern and a feeling of unrest had settled across the sprites as they gathered around her, trying to do their best to comfort her.
There was urgency in his steps, but even he couldn't help but falter once he burst through the doors of Color Castle. The scene before him was unimaginable. The Color Console lay in ruins and most furniture pieces within the grand hall were somewhat scarred, having shards of what looked like Color Console fragments lodged in them
Rainbow Brite was standing by what was left of the Color Console, looking on with a concerned and anxious expression as Shy Violet pecked and probed through the ruined circuits with some type of hand held device.
"Ah, I believe that the residual electrical energy within the circuits has indeed proved to be accessible in a somewhat limited manner." Shy Violet prattled. Out of everyone present she seemed the least worried about the fact that the Color Console was in ruins. Most likely because she now had some task to occupy her thoughts with, Rainbow considered.
"The answers that we endeavour to discover are only mere moments away, though please bare in mind that I cannot guarantee the specificness of the coordinates once I've downloaded the data pathways. But a cursory evaluation of the surrounding regions to which the.."
When Shy Violet had something to say, what would take one person five words would take her ten. And now didn't seen to be any different. Rainbow really didn't have the mental energy to devote to trying to translate what Violet was saying, she was too concerned with whatever had caused that 'shockwave' Violet had described to her. The one that had destroyed the Color Console. She didn't care what words Violet used as she performed the task of retrieving the location the wave had originated, so long as she was able to. The cause of the Color Console's destruction was her biggest concern right about now.
At least it was until Romeo had sprinted up to her and quickly shattered away in Sprite talk, urgently detailing what had occurred with Dee Lite within the Color Caves.
"Does anyone know where Tickled Pink was headed today?" Rainbow Brite exclaimed, turning to meet the worried faces of the Color Kids. They too had heard Romeo's words.
"She said she was going to look at roses. I think she meant the grove on the edge of Pink Prairie."
It was Moonglow who spoke. She had luckily gathered with the rest of the Color Kids after the console had exploded, awakening her. She was worriedly biting her nails, her eyes wide and watching Rainbow. In fact all eyes were on her right now. Even the sprites who were helping to clear the grand hall had stopped.
Rainbow Brite gave Moonglow a quick nod and turned to Shy Violet, to tell her to keep working but for now she, Rainbow, had more important matters. But by the way the color had drained from Violet's face the blonde headed girl knew something else was amiss.
"What is it Violet?" Rainbow said, not having much time or words to spare. Fortunately it was one of those rare occasions where Shy Violet thought likewise.
"The shockwave. . I just found out . . that's where it originated from. The edge of Pink Prairie." and Violet offered Rainbow the scanner that was in her hand for proof. The one that had only just finished downloading what data fragments she could from the Color Console.
But Rainbow Brite was already moving away, running out the castle doors. Minutes later she was on the back of Starlite, galloping across the countryside of Rainbow Land. Hoping that the fastest horse in the galaxy would be fast enough.
Sparks flew as metal horseshoes impacted against hard iron bars. Sunriser had gone wild within the cage, kicking and rearing. Doing anything she could to break down the bars. To get out and get at Murky.
Pale blue eyes shifted to gaze at Sunriser fondly.
Dear sweet Sunriser, thought the girl of pink sunrises and laughter, your leg was never broken was it? You lied to me.. you wanted me to save myself and leave you, so you lied.
She smiled despite the situation she was in and turned her eyes down to the ground, to her pink booted feet that were slowly beginning to fade away.
Dear sweet Sunriser, she thought, you just wanted me safe. I'm sorry that I couldn't give you what you wanted.
The light around Tickled Pink began to intensify. Before only the areas of the child's skin and dress had glowed white where the color wave hit. Now the light had spread, encompassing her entirely.
"Sunriser." The Color Kid said, her voice sounding as if it was very far away, like it was the final reverberation of an echo, "I couldn't let you be shot. I just couldn't." At that moment Pink wanted her horse of a different color to know exactly how important and special she was to her. It was suddenly very important that Sunriser knew.
The pink haired horse lowered her legs and whispered, perhaps in answer to both Pink's statement and the Kid's internal desire to let Sunriser know how much she meant, "I know.."
And the light continued to grow and flow from the child.
It was a final burst of white light that heralded Tickled Pink's departure from this world. The rainbow waves of energy washed over her one last time, this time taking not just her powers but the very child who was connected to them. As the last wave came she looked at Sunriser and smiled, whispering some reassuring words that none bar the two of them ever heard. Then the light came and swept the Color Kid away and she was gone.