Losing Air

Twilight ran as fast as she could. She had teleported outside the hospital the moment she had heard, but she did not risk landing directly within the lobby where someone might have been standing. She hit the double doors and sent them blasting in on their hinges. The resounding bang from the doors colliding with the wall caused the orderly in front of her to drop the folder he was carrying with his mouth, sending the papers flying in a mess all over the floor.

“Where is she?” Twilight said to the orderly. Her voice was filled with such dread he actually took a step away from her.

“I-I'm sorry, I-I d-don't know who...”

The receptionist behind the glass wall at the back of the room stood from her chair and motioned to the door to the left. Twilight barely heard the shout of 'Room 56!' as she was already in through the door and running down the hall.

The purple pony's breath came ragged as she ran down the maze of a hallway, which seemed to twist back and forth on itself. As she glanced at each door as she passed, she almost knocked over a doctor coming out of one of the rooms but didn't—no, couldn't—slow down until she reached her destination.

52...53...54...55...56

Twilight stopped running and stared at the door, terrified of opening it, terrified of what she would find on the other side. She took a deep breath to calm herself before leaning her front hooves against the solid wood and giving it a shove. The door swung inward as it opened onto the scene in front of her.

Rarity was sitting up on a chair in the back corner of the room, staring straight ahead, not even registering Twilight's entry. On her lap lay Fluttershy, whose sobbing was so vicious, it could almost be felt from across the room.

Twilight walked slowly into the room, terrified of what she would find waiting on the bed behind the curtain that currently blocked her view. Her movement seemed to snap Rarity back to reality as she looked at the new arrival. Her eyes were full of glass, waiting to shatter, and her mouth turned down slightly at the corners. She looked directly into Twilight's eyes and shook her head, slowly, which only served to fill the unicorn with even more dread than she already felt.

Twilight took a deep breath and swallowed the lump in her throat. She stepped forward to reveal the bed behind the curtain. Her eyes took in the cyan mare in front of her. Tubes were running from Rainbow Dash's face and forelegs linking into various machines that Twilight had only the vaguest idea of their function. One of the machines pumped up and down in time with the rise and fall of her friend’s chest. The breathing machine was keeping the mare alive, despite the state she was currently in.

Half of her mane had been shaved, giving her an odd look that was not helped by the casts on both her forelegs. She had a large split down the front of her chest and on the back of her head, which were obviously surgical in nature, and were now held together with staples. Twilight's eyes glanced across the dozens of bruises and stitched cuts along her friends body.

Not one of these things held Twilight's attention. She swallowed the sob in her throat as she took in her mutilated friend laying on bed. It was sickening to see the usually energetic pony lying so still. A chill went through her body as the consequences of what she saw in front of her struck home. She could not look away from the bandaged stump on the back of her friend’s body right where her left wing used to be.

It took Twilight a moment to realize that Rarity had spoken. She tore her eyes away from the pegasus and looked over at the seated unicorn. Fluttershy had turned her head to look at Twilight, with tears still streaming down her face, and she looked toward her friend as if searching for something. Twilight looked at Fluttershy and shook her head slowly. The light in the the mares eyes seemed to die as she lay her head back down on Rarity's lap.

Twilight shook her head. “Sorry, Rarity, what was that?” she asked, looking at her friend.

“I said the doctor should be back in about twenty minutes to check on her. I am sure you have questions for him.”

Twilight sighed and walked around the other side of the bed to sit with her friends. She looked at Rarity, still unable to comprehend the blue mound in front of her.

“What happened?” she asked.

Rarity looked down at the head in her lap. “We aren't entirely sure. Fluttershy found her.” Fluttershy twitched at the sound of her name, but did not move from her position as she began to speak.

“I-I was walking along the border of the forest looking for Angel. He had run off after we had an argument about what he was to eat for dinner and I was starting to get worried. I noticed part of the canopy was broken, so I wandered into the forest to investigate. There was blood everywhere... I couldn't... the smell. When I saw Rainbow I just froze. I-I think I passed out,” Fluttershy said with a sob.

“The next thing I knew, I woke up and Dash was still there in front of me. I could see she wasn't breathing and I didn't know what to do. I was scared to move her, but I knew I had no choice. It took me what felt like forever to get her onto my back before I made my way as fast as I could to the hospital. I'm not very strong, so it took me a long time. I was shaking so hard, I thought she was going to fall off.”

Fluttershy lifted her head and looked up at Twilight. “When I got here the doctors took her into surgery and the nurse asked me a lot of questions. I had no idea the answers to most of them so I just told her what happened and then she left.” Fluttershy sat up suddenly and put her forehooves on both of Twilight shoulders. “I would have come to get you right away but I couldn't move. I didn’t want to leave in case the doctor came back. I'm so sorry,” she said with a whimper.

“It's okay, Fluttershy, I understand. I wouldn't have left her either,” Twilight said, smiling in what she hoped was a reassuring way. Fluttershy seemed to sigh as she lay her head back down and closed her eyes again. The purple unicorn looked up at Rarity with a questioning look on her face.

“I came in with Applejack for our monthly blood donation,” Rarity said with a sigh. “I barely noticed Fluttershy before she ran straight up to us and burst into tears. Once we calmed her down enough for her to tell us what happened, she gave us the same story she just told you. Once she finished, the doctor came out and told us the extent of Rainbow’s injuries. We came straight in here to see her and we have not moved since.”

Rarity looked back at their injured friend in the bed, drawing Twilight's eyes in the same direction. “I don't think we were here very long before Applejack left to find you all and let you know what had happened. I don't know how long ago that was-–I've not really being paying attention to the time.” The white mare looked to her friend and tilted her head to the side.

Twilight sighed recalling what had happened earlier in the night. She was working at her desk in the library, about to get ready for bed, when Applejack burst in through the front door. She was instantly on alert as Applejack had never failed to knock before—especially not so late in the night and so far after closing hours. Twilight was expecting some kind of monster from the Everfree, but when she looked into the eyes of her country friend, she could see only pain. The earth pony was gasping for breath so all she managed to get out were the words 'Rainbow' and 'hospital' before Twilight instantly teleported herself outside the entrance of the medical center.

Rarity nodded slowly as she finished. Once she was done they sat in silence for a few minutes. The only sounds in the room were the beeping of monitors hooked up to Rainbow, the steady wheeze of the breathing machine, and the soft snores indicating that Fluttershy had finally fallen asleep.

Rarity broke the silence. “W-What are we going to d-do Twilight?” she asked her friend, voice cracking under the strain of holding herself together. The unicorn looked up at her friend and saw she was starting at Rainbow. Twilight looked to Rainbow herself with her mouth set in a grim line.

As she opened her mouth to speak, the door suddenly jumped open and banged loudly against the wall behind it. Fluttershy jumped and squeaked as she was torn from the peaceful world of sleep. They looked up to see a pink blur run into the room followed by a tired looking Applejack. Twilight watched as Pinkie came around the curtain and stopped dead in front of the bed. It was as if somepony took a pin to her as she seemed to sink on the spot, collapsing to her knees, and starting to cry. Twilight stood and went to Pinkie, slowly lifting her up, and guiding her to the last free chair in the room. Twilight sat in much the same position as Rarity, laying Pinkie’s head across her lap, and started to run her hoof through her friend’s pink mane.

Applejack coughed and shuffled on the spot, her eyes jumping everywhere but at the bed. “I’ll um, go, uh, get something for us to eat,” Applejack said, running out of the room and down the hall. Twilight didn’t bother to stop her friend, knowing nopony in the room was hungry.

They were used to fighting. Fighting was easy. They had stood side by side and faced down numerous terrors – from monsters in the Everfree, vicious dragons, or even twisted demigods – there was nothing they couldn't face if they were together. It was a simple thing, standing up for your friends or yourself, but when faced with something you couldn’t fight? Couldn’t change? It was a hopeless feeling. Twilight had never been as scared in her life as she was at that moment. She was doing everything she could to hold herself together, she was the leader, the one everyone else looked up to. To break down now would throw everyone to despair, and they had to be strong for Rainbow’s sake. If she woke up—no, when—when she woke up, she would need to be surrounded by love and not tears.

Twilight turned back to Rarity friend and looked her in the eyes. Trying to hold in her tears, she said, “I don't know what we are going to do, Rarity, I really don't know.”

Applejack was the first to leave. She left the morning after Rainbow was admitted, citing her duties on the farm carrying too much weight to be put on hold for long, but made them promise to come get her the moment there was any news. Twilight didn't try to stop her even when seeing through her flimsy excuse. Applejack had been away from the farm for much longer periods when faced with any other crisis, but at least in those there was action to be taken. While not as impatient as Dash herself was prone to be, and not half as vocal about it, Applejack was still not known for her patient temperament.

Twilight watched her friend leave followed closely by Rarity. When given the opportunity to leave without making a social faux pas she jumped on it right away. Rarity apologized to her friends but left quickly and, Twilight noted, kept her eyes firmly away from the injured pony in the room.

The rest of them were there most of the night and Twilight, tired as she was, started to doze. She was jolted awake as the pink mare in her lap suddenly jumped into the air. Her hair returning to its usual buoyancy as Pinkie quickly explained to them that she needed to go get the 'Welcome back from your coma' party ready for their friend. Twilight sighed and nodded as the party pony sped out the door.

Twilight shuffled over in her seat to put a foreleg around Fluttershy, half in comfort for her friend, and half for herself. She looked over at her friend, who had barely stopped crying the entire night. Her eyes were red and raw and her cheeks were not much better. When she finally spoke, her voice had a gravelly texture.

“Will you stay?” Fluttershy asked.

“Of course I will, did you need to go too?” Twilight said, smiling sadly at her friend.

“I really don't want to, but I think I need to. The animals will fight and go hungry if I'm not there to sort them out. I'm so sorry, Twilight, you shouldn't have to take this responsibility.”

Twilight smiled at her friend. “Don't worry about me, Fluttershy. I wouldn't have left this room even if all of you girls were still here.”

Fluttershy looked at her friend with concern. “What makes you say that? You have just as many responsibilities as the rest of us. Maybe even more with your duties to the princess.”

“It's not a matter of duties: it is a matter of friendship. Rainbow is, like yourself, one of the first friends I have ever had. I wouldn't be who I was today without you girls. There is no way, when in a time of need, I would be anywhere but here.”

Fluttershy nodded her head sadly and wrapped her forelegs around her friend. That sat for a while in the comfort of one another before Fluttershy stood from her chair. After giving Twilight a small nuzzle, she walked toward the door, stopping at the foot of the bed. Staring at Rainbow for a few moments she sighed, and said, “I love you Rainbow, please, be okay.” She turned her head and left the room as Twilight followed her passage. The second she entered the hall, Twilight heard her start to sob again, the sound quickly receding, as Fluttershy left the hospital ward.

Twilight was not sure how much more time passed before she began talking to Rainbow. She talked of nothing, small town gossip, books she was reading, a play coming up soon she wanted to go see. She caught herself laughing as she talked about Spike tripping on a dead mouse Owlowiscious had left for her on the floor. She had to stop the story to catch her breath and prevent her sides from hurting. She laughed so she wouldn't cry.

Eventually she ran out of things to say and at some point she fell asleep. Her dreams were horrible as she watched her friend plow into the ground. She screamed at Rainbow, begging her to slow down, but the pegasus could not hear her as she hit the ground with a sickening crack only to leap back into the air and repeat the process. Each time she came away more broken yet somehow kept coming back up for more. Twilight's voice was long since dead from the screaming as nothing but a raspy wheeze was coming out when she tried to get her friends attention.

She awoke with a start and fell from her chair hitting the ground hard. Twilight shook her head as she slowly lifted herself back onto her hooves. Using her magic, she floated a glass of water to her lips and gulped it greedily, trying to get rid of the feeling of screaming herself raw.

She returned the water to its place and walked up to her friend's bedside. The purple mare lifted a hoof and ran it through what was left of the prismatic hair she had always envied. She was surprised at how soft it was, given Rainbow's attitude toward self-grooming whenever Rarity was around. She smiled at the thought to them bickering. She was about to sit back down when the pegasus made an odd choking sound and moved her head slightly. Twilight was about to run to get a doctor, thinking there was something wrong with the breathing tube, when the best and worst possible thing happened.

Rainbow Dash opened her eyes.

The first thing Rainbow realized was that she couldn't breathe. Something large was forced down her throat, choking her, and for some reason she couldn't lift her arms to get it out. Panic set in as she started thrashing about on the bed attempting to dislodge whatever was in her throat. She saw somepony standing above her but could not make out who they were through her blurry vision.

Suddenly she felt the thing slide up and out of her neck triggering her gag reflex. She tilted her head to the side as she vomited bile off the side of her bed and onto the floor. Her throat felt on fire as she gasped for air and a shooting pain tore up her chest. Her vision blacked out again as she tried and failed to ignore the hot, wet, sticky substance pushing itself out of her torso. She heard somepony screaming and tried to concentrate on it to clear the pain from her mind. It was a few seconds for her to realize she was the one screaming.

She stopped and took a few ragged breaths. Her vision returned to her as she took in the sight before her. She was in a hospital room and there were ponies in white uniforms everywhere. One of them was working his hooves over her chest and she felt the pain die down and a numbness sink in. She looked over to the door to see one of the nurses trying to push a purple mare out of the room.

“No!” she cried, suddenly. Everypony stopped and looked at her. “Twilight!” she shouted again, and her friend was at her side in an instant.

“Rainbow, are you okay? Can you hear me?” Twilight said, gripping onto the side of the bed as if for life. Rainbow nodded at her friend and tried to look down at what the doctor was doing to her chest.

“Rainbow, stop! Look at me.”

The pegasus stopped struggling to see the doctor and looked up at her friend. Twilight's eyes were staring at Dash and her mouth was a sharp line. Business mode Twilight.

“You have been in an accident. These doctors are helping you but you need to stop moving. Can you do that for me?” her friend asked, tilting her head to the side to punctuate her question. Rainbow nodded with wide eyes and immediately ceased all movement of her body. “I’ll tell you everything as soon as the doctors are finished, is that okay?”

Rainbow nodded again. She calmed down and let the doctors do their work as she tried to ignore the throbbing from her body. Her eyes never left Twilight's. After what could have been a minute or an hour the doctors stepped back from Rainbow and talked quietly amongst themselves before turning to the pegasus.

“Ms. Dash, how do you feel?” the closest doctor asked.

Rainbow stared at him like he had grown two heads. “Like crap, doc,” she said, voice rasping with the effort. She coughed and Twilight quickly lifted a glass of water for her friend which she took a sip of. After the fire had settled in her throat, she turned to the doctor and waited. The doctor turned to Twilight with an unspoken question. She nodded.

“What is it, what is going on?” Rainbow asked, panic starting to rise again.

The doctor sighed and let her know her injuries. Two broken legs, multiple cracked ribs, severe internal bleeding, and a cracked skull. The technical terms flew over Dash's head but she knew one thing for sure: she was hurt bad. The doctor continued talking before she interrupted him.

“Twilight, what happened?” Rainbow asked.

Twilight shook her head and sighed. “We were hoping you could tell us that Dash. Do you remember anything about the accident?”

Rainbow looked at her with confusion across her face. “All I remember is going to sleep,” Rainbow said. “After that I woke up here.” The doctor sighed. Rainbow looked into his eyes and noticed something: fear. She could see that he was keeping something from her. Her heart rate increased.

“What is it? What aren't you telling me?” she demanded. The doctor grimaced and looked up at Twilight. Rainbow flushed with anger. “Don't look at her, damn it, look at me!” she shouted, wincing from the fresh pain it brought to her chest.

“Rainbow,” her friend said, drawing her attention away from the doctor. “You've been out for almost a whole day. We weren't even sure you were going to wake and you need to rest. We don't want to put any pressure on you.”

Rainbow glared at her friend. “Tell me,” she said.

Twilight's eyes shone with unshed tears as she looked at Rainbow Dash. She took a deep breath and said, “Rainbow, there was damage to your wing. They tried everything they could, but it was too far gone. They had to amputate. Your left wing is gone, Rainbow. I'm sorry.”

Rainbow sat stunned. She smiled and looked up at Twilight, waiting for the punchline, but the look on her friend’s face quickly shot her hopes down. She shook her head slowly at first before picking up in speed. “No, no, no, no, no, no,” she repeated, unable to comprehend what they were telling her.

She twisted head to the side to get a look at her back, but when she saw the lump where her wing used to be her mind went blank. Twilight jumped forward as the pegasus started thrashing and screaming on the bed, her working wing flapping violently, to help the doctors push her down and restrain her. Shock was plastered across Twilight's face as she watched her friend shake and scream underneath her. Her screams were raw, filled with pain, somehow reminding Twilight of a dying animal.

Blood was once again pouring from the various wounds across Rainbow Dash's body as the mare thrashed about trying to throw everyone off. The doctor across from Twilight screamed something to the ponies behind him but she could barely make it out over the noise of Rainbow Dash.

Another doctor quickly ran in from the hallway and pumped a thick syringe into the bag linked to Rainbow via her IV. Within seconds Rainbow was asleep again and the doctor and Twilight stepped back off the pegasus. The hospital staff did what they could to fix the tearing in the stitches for the third time that day before leaving Twilight with strict orders to get someone the moment she woke again. She nodded dumbly, numb from her friend's reaction, and went to sit back down on her chair.

For the first time since coming to the hospital, Twilight cried.