On Feathered Wings

Chapters

Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5

Chapter 1

Alighting herself upon the fluffy white surface of the cloud, a lone pegasus flexed her wings and trotted to it's edge. Casting her gaze across the ocean blue before her. Admiring her work like anypony would if they held pride in what they did.

It was days like today that the pegasus loved her job.

The skies were open and tame, stretched out for hundreds of miles-- across the mountains far across the horizon that housed the great capital city of Canterlot to the endless stretch of green that was the Everfree forest. The town of Ponyville-- her home-- was far below. Bursting with activity of a busy midweek day, the ponies appearing as just specks from this altitude.

The lone, spared cloud that remained in the otherwise spotless sky was her perch, perfectly sized for her to stand upon and gaze upon the wide expanse of farmland and country the stretched across the hills as far as the eyes could see. She could make out the large red farmhouse of Sweet Apple Acres and the homely little cottage surrounded by dens that was one of her foalhood friend's home. Even the library built into the thickest of trees could be made out. As well as the lavish and decorated dressmaking shop not terribly far away from the town's center-- which almost hid the local favorite Sugarcube Corner from her eyes. But she'd looked down upon this town too many times not to know what was what.

Looking down on them, one could feel a lot of things-- but her? She felt pity. Pity, that almost all the ponies in this town were but mere earth or unicorn ponies. They'd never feel the wind like she did. Or stand upon the clouds like she did. They were stuck there from the moment they were born. Trapped on the earth. The boring, lame, ground.

To a pony like her, the sky was all she needed. The rush of the wind flowing through her mane, ruffling at her feathers, lifting her higher and higher into the blue ocean and snow white clouds. It made life worth living. Made the mundane and repetitive tasks she performed every day completely bearable. Not many could say that almost everything they did revolved around their biggest passion...

Rainbow Dash was truly one lucky pony.

The fastest-- the bravest-- the most daring-- the most skilled. One could go on, but suffice to say-- Rainbow was the best flier in Equestria. Most ponies just didn't know that yet. Not that she didn't have her name out there. Being the winner of the Best Young Flier Competition in Cloudsdale had earned her a lot of praise from many-a-pony. She'd saved one of her best friends. Saved the Wonderbolts, her heroes she'd looked up to since she was but a foal. Oh, some ponies recognized her alright.

Her wings wilted, however. Dropping right along with her smug grin.

But.. where it counted? Among the name-makers and the hoof-shakers of Canterlot? In the busy streets of Manehatten where dreams were made? No. It was here. In the small village of Ponyville. Seemingly a stones throw in distance from the most marvelous city built by ponykind, but at the same time a million miles away.

Why would they care about a cloud clearing speedster? She wasn't born under some famous and prestigious name. No riches in the family. No relation to royalty. She wasn't Twilight Sparkle, the famous and talented student of -the- Princess of Equestria. Heck, she wasn't even Rarity, who was busy getting her latest fashion showcased in places she hadn't even heard of. Compliments of that fashion pony who'd made -Ponyville- of all places one of his stops.

How could she blame a pony for not knowing who she was? Equestria didn't come to a standstill for Cloudsdale's competition. It didn't even come to a standstill for the Summer Sun Celebration where her and her friends saved the world. -And-, if you could believe it, most ponies didn't even know about what happened on that day! As if the sun refusing to rise in the sky is something some pony could misinterpret as natural. Sheesh.

She was Ponyville's sky clearer. Their rain bringer. Their simple boring weather pony and, except for the more seasonal work times, the only one under the town's employment. In laments terms, she was without a doubt, a speck. A nopony in a nopony town. At least, that's how ponies would see this place. She knew the magic and wonder that resided here better than anypony! But you try telling that to a snooty hoofer fresh out of Canterlot or Fillydelphia.

In this town, nothing would change. In this dump, her life-- albeit exciting-- was trapped like those ponies down below. There would be no recognition or Wonderbolts or fame. There would just be... this.

A flock of birds fluttered far below her, snapping her attention away from the ground she'd been focusing on-- lost in the marching of her thoughts as she came to be more often these days. It was enough to make her snort, shaking her head. A chastising look flashing across her face.

“Listen to yourself Rainbow. You sound like Rarity did when she first moved here.” The thought was enough to make her skin crawl. “Ponyville isn't good enough for you, huh?”

What was so bad about this place? Sure, things got boring. Things got slow. And boy did Rainbow hate everything and anything that could be called 'slow'. But honestly? Where else would she rather be?

“Nowhere.”, she said flatly. Letting that grin creep back into place. “This is where I belong. Not in snooty-dooty Canterlot, or even back in Cloudsdale. I'm happy here.”

A weight lifted from her wings, and Rainbow let out a sigh-- lifting her head up from the ground and into the mid-morning sky. “I'm happy here.”, she repeated. As if to solidify it to any being that was listening.

The fame, the notoriety, the amazingly-awesome-spectacular Wonderbolts. Those things would come in their own time. Rainbow was young. She was fit. Her wings here capable and weren't going anywhere without her. She had all the time in the world to make it for herself. She had come closer than she ever had in the past year alone. Since the day Twilight and the others had formed their friendship.

Her confidence was restored, and without a thought she outstretched her wings and jumped forward-- using a burst of wind to loop about and burst through the same cloud she was standing on moments before. Shattering it into fluffy white pieces that quickly dissipated on the wind. The skies of Ponyville cleared in.. uh.. two hours, flat.

… It was a bit more cloudy today than normal.

Her job was finished for the day-- but she knew the others had their own business to take care of. She took a quick glance down at the small town. Twas pretty busy looking-- at least in the square.. No reason to bother them until later.

Her wings carried her in another loop as she turned towards home-- her floating villa in the sky just near the Everfree forest's border. But something caught her eye. Canterlot glistened in the bright sun, same as always, but up above it, twirling and growing all the more noticeable.. were clouds?

“Strange.. I could of sworn it was supposed to be clear across Equestria today..”

She hovered, watching a moment more before filing it off with a shrug-- swooping off in a blur of that rainbow mane. Ponyville-- at least-- was enjoying a cloudless sunny day. Thanks to her. The best darn weather pony they'd ever had.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Applejack's back hooves hit the tree so hard bark went flying. The tree itself seemed to shudder for a moment before group of nearly a dozen red apples fell from the branches above and landed on the grass in a series of quick thuds.

“What 'bout these apples?” The voice of her sister pitched up from behind her-- the young filly bounding over to the nearest red fruit to pluck it up in her mouth. Quickly bringing it to her older sibling. “D'ey rweady fah pickn'?”

Applejack could only roll her green eyes before leaning down to pluck the apple from Apple Bloom's full mouth-- biting into the pearly red skin with a nice and loud -crunch-. Chewing the fruit slowly. Real slowly.

“Hmmm...” She mused, swishing the juicy remains from one side of her mouth to the other. Like a wine taste tester savoring a bottle's flavor. Before she swallowed with a loud gulp. “Nah! Not quite yet.”

“P'wah!” Apple Bloom flopped upon her flank with a look of extreme frustration across her face. “How can you know fer sure!? They look ready ta' me!”

Applejack just shook her head. “It's not just about how they look, sugarcube.” She tried to give her sister a soft smile-- despite her own rising agitation. “Now how're we supposed to sell apples if we ain't got the taste to back up the presentation?”

“Forget about tha presentation!” Apple Bloom was on her hooves, looking positively determined as she ran at the tree-- spun about-- and kicked with all her might. Barely earning a loud enough thunk to be heard. “How am I supposed to get my cutie mark for pickin' apples if'n we ain't got no apples ready to be picked!?”

Her older sister just sighed, rubbing a hoof against her temple. “You can't just wait a week?”

Of course she was quick to answer, “A week!?” Before kicking the tree again with about the same result. “You've got ta be kiddin' me!”

“Well I ain't.” Applejack trotted over and put a hoof between her sister and the tree-- scooting the latter across the ground, away from the soon to be ready harvest. “And the less apples we waste to test the more we have to sell when they're all ready.”

Apple Bloom's pout was unmistakable. “It's all 'bout the bits with you, inn't!” She was on her hooves in seconds-- staring her big sister down. “Yer cutie mark shoulda' been a pile of bits instead of apples with how quick you think of business instead of yer own sister's cutie mark!”

“I almost wish it was. Between this year's harvest and supporting the farm since Granny Smith passed away, we haven't had two bits to rub together to spark a fire with!” Applejack was clearly not amused. She'd followed her sister around enough the past -several- hours on this... crusade of hers. All it'd done was give her a headache and a good basketful or two of wasted crop. “Maybe you should take a gander at our books for the month and see if you can get your cutie mark by figurin' how we're gonna make it through till apple-buck season!”

The battle was clearly won between the two sisters, but that didn't stop Apple Bloom from shuddering with rage, gritting her teeth together in a look that could've ignited a weaker pony in flames. On Applejack, however, it just made her droop.

“'N maybe I should!” The red maned filly turned on a dime, stuck her nose in the air in a much too Rarity-like fashion for Applejack's taste, and stomped her front hooves in the dirt. “S'not like I'm gonna get any help from you! I'm just gonna have to take care of this by myself!”

“Oh sure. Sure you will!” Applejack scowled, watching her sister trot off all indignant-like. Headed for their large farm house at the center of Sweet Apple Acres. “Let Big Mac' deal with you for the rest of the afternoon! I've had it up to here with your.. apple-wastin' nonsense!”

She did her own huff, though it was much less melodramatic and mature. Sweeping her gaze across the rolling hills of apple trees. Spotting less red and plump apples than ever upon the branches. All this fussin' about cutie marks and foalish drama when their very livelihood was at stake? No -wonder- her little sister didn't have her cutie mark yet.

Now it was her turn to stomp off, hitting the dirt trail that led away from their farm house and towards the barn. Muttering under her breath while she went. It wasn't easy this year, that was for sure. First Granny Smith passed on and now the farm's crop was doing about as well as expected. As grown up as Applejack and Big Macintosh were, their Granny had always known when it was the best time to pick the apples and how to run an economically sound farm.

Without her, they were struggling. Not terribly so, but it was enough that it added more stress on their every day lives. A couple more seasons like this and they were going to hit some real hard times. Apple bucking season was just around the bend, though. After this harvest, as poor as it was, the apples would.. or, were supposed to, grow in faster than ever. The boost in profits would make things around the farm much less tense.

And did Apple Bloom care? Not one bit! All she wanted was her cutie mark. Her personal quest had been put on hold after Granny's passing, but once the mourning was done, she'd gone right back into full crusader mode. Applejack was just surprised (and incredibly grateful) that the other two hadn't joined her in apple bucking today-- or she'd surely done something mighty terrible to those fillies.

“Applejack!”

A soft call from not terribly far away snapped the earth pony out of her muttering haze-- and she turned to see Fluttershy trotting through the front gate of the farm. A basket hung around her neck and a smile spread across her gentle face.

“Oh, hey there Fluttershy.” She smiled and quickly clopped over, quickly throwing on a smile. “Wasn't expectin' to see you out in these parts today. What can I do you for?”

The normally shy pegasus blushed and nodded accordingly, lowering her head and glancing off to the side. “I'm sorry.. Is this a bad time..?”

Applejack shook her head, wondering for a second if she'd over heard her and her sister's fight. But this was how Fluttershy always was. “It's fine. I'm just doin' the rounds right now. Checkin' on the harvest.”

“Oh..” Fluttershy perked back up, her head canting side to side as she scanned the apple trees in sight.. “It looks... good..”, she lied-- swallowing with nervousness at upsetting her friend.

Applejack took it well enough though, offering a forced smile. “Aw, thank ya Fluttershy-- but this harvest ain't fit for any hardworkin' pony. Just you wait till apple buck season!”

Fluttershy looked relieved that the conversation had avoided becoming awkward. She happily raised her head, showcasing her basket. “I picked some of these blueberries. I know how much you and Big Macintosh love blueberry pancakes. I just had to give you some.”

“Aw shucks.” She leaned forward to pluck the basket from her friend's neck-- lifting it up and slipping it over her own. “You're a good friend Fluttershy; thinkin' of us like that. You sure you don't want us to pay you for em'?”

As expected, the filly shook her head-- looking as determined about something as Fluttershy could. “Of course not. I'd never charge a friend just for some berries.” Her voice softened, however, as her head dipped lower. More put of respect than of shyness. “Besides.. I know how things have gotten for you and Big Macintosh after your Granny..”

Applejack saved her the awkwardness by waving a hoof, “Suppose you're right on that one. I ain't never been one for managing them types of affairs.” She put on a brave enough face. One that Fluttershy would see through-- being Fluttershy of all people. But she was far too polite to call a pony on something like that.. “We appreciate it though sugarcube.. You should come by tomorrow mornin'. We'd be happy to have ya over for breakfast!”

Fluttershy beamed. “Oh, oh of course. I'd love to come.” She looked like she was about to say something, but stopped as her eyes turned skyward. A look of surprise spreading across her face. “Oh my..”

Applejack blinked-- raising a brow at her friend. “What's wrong?”

“I didn't realize we were supposed to have a storm today.. I thought Rainbow said it was going to be clear.”

“She did.” Applejack glanced up, not seeing a single cloud. “It's been clear all mornin'.”

The pegasus nodded, but pointed behind the earth pony. Towards the mountains. “But.. what about that..?”

Applejack turned, and nearly gasped. Spreading across the sky was a wall of dark clouds that looked ready to drench the ground in torrents of rain. In fact, with how dark it was beneath them, it looked like a storm was already brewing miles and miles away. She could barely make out the white castle walls of Canterlot. That was until a far away lightning bolt illuminated the stonework in a flash of brilliant light. The echoes of thunder not even reaching them yet..

“Now.. I swear that wasn't there a bit ago..”

“I should go..” Fluttershy didn't like storms, and it showed in her voice-- that standard crack in tone that signaled just how frightened she was. “I need to get the animals at home in their dens before it reaches us.”

Applejack turned back to her friend, smiling at just how timid she was. “Of course. You run on home and take care of them animals of yours. I'll be seeing you tomorrow, right? For breakfast?”

Fluttershy nodded, turning her eyes back upon her for a moment. Forcing a smile. “Y-yeah. Of course. I wouldn't miss it for anything.”

“Good. We'll have a place at the table for ya!” She gave her friend a wave before turning about and headed for the farmhouse. It allowed her to turn her eyes back up to the approaching mass of blackness. A giant wall of dark, lightning infused storm clouds that looked like they were violently turning and twisting about. No doubt headed this way with how quickly it'd amassed on the horizon.

“Rainbow.. You lazy weather pony..” She grumbled, knowing she had to of heard her right earlier this week when she said there wouldn't be any “exciting” weather. Like it was such a bore keeping things pleasant and peaceful. “You think you could've warned your apple growin' friend that her whole day was going to be wasted by a thunderstorm.”

The thought of the blue furred pegasus hovered in her mind for a moment. Then another moment. And before long, the storm sorta.. faded to the back of her mind. At least for now. A soft burning in her cheeks making a smile spread across her face.

“Rainbow..”

She blinked, shaking her head. No. No! Don't do that Applejack. Now is so, so not the time for that.

A moment longer passed as she trotted up the hill...

… Maybe.. Maybe later.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

“Oh Twilight, when are you going to accept one of these proposals I'm giving you?” Rarity's eyes looked as sincere as ever-- her face every bit as sympathetic. “I swear, it seems like you're more interested in your books than you are in dating!”

Spike, balanced on top of the nearby steplatter-- in the middle of sliding a copy of Magical Melodies of Meddlesome Mockingbirds back upon the shelf (a recent read of Fluttershy's, no doubt)-- seemingly couldn't resist chiming in. “And this surprises you, -why-..?”

Twilight would chose to ignore Spike. Rarity wouldn't be so easy. “I don't have time to go on a date with whatever unicorn guy you have lined up for me.” It wasn't a complete lie... “As much as I appreciate the offer, I'm just going to have to pass.”

Rarity didn't look convinced. If anything, she looked more convinced of the opposite. Particularly in how her eyes narrowed. “Just what keeps you so busy Twilight Sparkle? You've already read almost all these books.” Her eyes flittered across the pile that was awaiting Spike on the nearby library table. “You've not accepted a single one of the handsome stallions I've come to you with, and do you -know- how many handsome ponies are in Ponyville!?”

She waited for Twilight to answer... who only raised her brow after a moment or two of silence.

“Not many!”

Spike, ever the opportunist, turned around and sat upon the top most rail of his ladder. “She's right Twilight. You could of at least humored her and gone out with that last unicorn she brought here.”

Rarity gasped, as if it was a shock-- even though she was there, just a week ago. “Oh I know! Dark Star is suuuch a catch!” Rarity looked personally offended even! Her voice as soft as an injured kitten.. “And you hardly even spoke to him when I brought him in here to see you..”

“Rarity..” Twilight began, rubbing her face with a hoof. “I.. didn't ask you to do that.”

“I know you didn't! Somepony had to try and break through that icy shell of yours!”

“Icy shell..? I don't have an icy shell.” She looked at Rarity. Who just stared back. Then she looked at Spike. Who quickly glanced back and forth between her and the other unicorn. “... I don't have an icy shell-- Okay, look Rarity, I really don't mean to make light of what you're trying to do for me but--”

“But you are!” She interjected, stepping up closer to her bookworm friend. “I didn't even set that one up for you. Dark Star came to me!”

For a second Twilight was still annoyed-- but then: “What? You didn't try to hook him up with me?”

The unicorn rolled her eyes, “Oh heavens no. You think I'd throw the most well mannered, proper, studly unicorn in Ponyville at you on a whim? I'm good darling, but even I have my limits.”

She stepped up to give Twilight's chest a push with her hoof-- smiling warmly. Showing off that generosity and kindness she actually held. “Dear, he came to me and asked if I could introduce you two. He's such a gentlecolt, but he rivals Fluttershy in the shy department. At least when it comes to the fillies.”

Twilight.. was actually at a loss for words. She knew the guy was a looker. Even seemed to know a thing or two about magic from the what she'd noticed in town, but she took his awkwardness for disinterest when Rarity came in with him in tow.

She hardly noticed the blush until Rarity pointed it out. “Ah-ha! Finally! I'm getting through to her!”

A shake of the head later and she was back at it. “I-It doesn't matter. I don't have time for dating and frilly-frollying about with suitors. I -am- actually here for a reason beyond just pleasure, you know?”

Rarity grinned, “Oh darling, if it was just pleasure you were after, I'm sure we could've found you some willing pony.”

Twilight's blush only doubled. Even Spike fumbled his book he was putting up. “R-Rarity!”

Of course, the purple maned unicorn just laughed-- shaking her head. “I was just kidding Twilight. I just want you to be happy, and I refuse to believe that these books are what you need most in your life. A fine colt could do wonders for you!”

Twilight could only groan. For almost a month now, Rarity had been pitching colts at her like a glorified dating service. It started with some random girl talk one afternoon, leading towards what the two found attractive in colts. She made the mistake of giving away her fondness for other unicorns, and since then, Rarity had taken on the role of match maker. Asking Twilight's opinions on this pony and that pony, narrowing the search down to only those Twilight had found -reasonably- close to her type.

Big mistake.

“I could try to talk to Dark Star again.” Rarity nodded at her, looking almost desperate. Like she needed this more than she did. “Tell him you were wrapped up in very important business with Princess Celestia. I'm sure it won't take much-- the boy seems completely taken with you!”

“Nggh.. Rarity.. I--” Her eyes looked into Rarity's, and instantly she felt the fight rush out of her. Something about Rarity's pleading look melted even her will power. How Spike would ever manage to say no to her was beyond Twilight's reasoning. “Fine fine. Do it.”

Rarity looked stunned. “W-What?”

Twilight looked unamused. “You heard me. Set it up. Drag him in. Plan the date. Shoot your magic arrow.” She made a show of it, moving her arms like she'd let loose cupid's arrow into some lonely mare's flank. “I'm done trying to fight it.”

“Oh Twilight..” That -was- not the tone Twilight was expecting.. “I'm.. sorry. Am I going too far with this? I honestly only wanted to help you. You sound like you want nothing of it.”

Twilight rolled her eyes-- thankfully having turned away from her friend to shut her book with a flare of her horn. “I finally say yes to a date and -now- you want to listen to my protests?”

Rarity giggled, raising a hoof to her chest. “It must have been the shock of having you finally agree with one of my choices... But, really. If I've crossed the line dear, I'll stop.”

Now it was Twilight's turn. The ball was in her court. Maybe that's what Rarity's plan was all along. Make her finally agree as if she's tired of dealing with Rarity's matchmaking only to leave it up to her to -really- decide on going through with it.

Oh. Oh this pony was good...

“Y-Yeah.” She began, before stuttering. “W-Wait. No no. I mean.. I don't mind going on a date with Dark Star.”

Spike turned, nearly gaping at her. It was enough to make Twilight regret her decision instantly.

“Oh Twilight..” Rarity looked like she was on the verge of tears.. “I'll speak with him as soon as I can track him down again. Oh, I tell you he'll be so happy you're interested!”

“But..!” Twilight countered, spinning abruptly and snapping her hooves together. “I want to pick the place, and the time. Believe it or not, I -do- have things I have to do.”

Rarity just nodded, too overjoyed to argue the details. “Of course of course! We can talk the small things over after I've spoken to him.” She.. still looked rather ecstatic as she pranced up and hugged Twilight tight. Making the bookworm blink. “I'm just.. so... proud...”

Spike still looked stunned. It was all Twilight could do to keep from flat out sighing. Was it really that shocking? Did all her friends think she was some sort of stick in the mud, incapable of talking to colts or something? She'd have them know that she had been on dates before! At least two of them! And one wasn't even a study date either.

“Oh, look at me.” Rarity leaned back, the hug over-- her hoof coming up to brush her mane. By Celestia, she did have tears in her eyes. “I've gone and spent all day here trying to get you to come around. I should get back to my shop. People will think I've closed down!”

“All day?” Spike finally snapped out of it-- but it had Twilight confused too. “It's barely two o'clock.”

Rarity looked surprised, glancing towards the windows. “Only two..? But it's so dark out.”

The sky outside was almost black. Twilight had failed to even notice the sun had stopped shining through the windows-- having the library lit up to the perfect reading light level like she did. There hadn't been much to give it away save for the dark view outside the glass windows..

“Is it.. supposed to rain today?” She had barely managed to ask before Spike coughed, clutching at his throat for a moment-- before beltching loudly. The unfurling green flame coiling through the air in a bright display before swirling rapidly into the shape of a scroll-- which popped into existence a moment later. Falling right into the hands of her assistant.

“Oh my.” Rarity murmured-- about the same time the shuddering of thunder shook the library. “Does Princess Celestia normally send you letters first..?”

No. No she didn't. “Spike?”

He was already unraveling the parchment-- unfolding it in a hurry, emerald eyes scanning the lines of text that was no doubt from her mentor. The moment his eyes widened and his fists clenched the scroll-- her horn flared to life and took it out of his hands, whisping it before her face.

“Twilight..” Rarity pipped up, stepping closer. “What's going on?”

Twilight Sparkle.

There is little time to adequately inform you of the details, but the storm you will no doubt be seeing is not natural or intended. Inform Ponyville's weather patrol to immediately take action. Tell the town ponies to seek shelter. I cannot stop it without leaving Canterlot to fall to ruins. Princess Luna will be there as soon as she can be spared.

Make haste my student. Lives are at stake.

- Princess Celestia

“Rarity.” The scroll fell to the floor. “Go home. Tell everypony you see to find cover, and tell them to tell every pony they see. Take Spike with you.”

Rarity blinked-- glancing to the scroll, then back to Twilight. Who's horn was flaring up even as she stared at her with the most serious expression she'd ever seen.

“T-Twilight..?”

But in a flash of white light, Twilight was gone.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Another rumble of thunder made her worry even more. In the distance, the approaching wall of dark clouds lit up like a fireworks display-- streaks of hot white lightning arching through it's dark core and upon the ground below. One look was all it took Rainbow to tell that this storm wasn't your average storm. There was something off. Even more off than how quick it'd spread from Canterlot today.

She'd been home all day. Some practice flying before slipping inside for a late lunch. Hardly had she finished that when the rumbling thunder brought her back outside-- and this was waiting for her. That small cloud system spreading to this massive monster. In fact, Canterlot was completely obscured by the distant haze of torrential rainfall. But even more disturbing, was the flare of lightning. Almost never ending. Seemingly centered where Canterlot should be. What's going on over there...?

The last vestiges of blue sky were beginning to recede. The clouds from this storm were rolling into Ponyville turf. Her turf. -That- never happened. Weather was restricted between areas unless otherwise agreed upon between towns to share a storm or cloudy sky. Even -if- Canterlot was supposed to be getting pounded by this monster storm, there was -no- way it was supposed to enter Ponyville.

Her eyes narrowed and her wings fluttered to life as she hopped off from her cloud based home, rain goggles (Wonderbolt imitations) in tow atop her head. Eager to get a closer look at what she was dealing with. But, before she could so much as float up higher, a flash of white snapped up from below. And it most assuredly wasn't lightning.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight called from the field below her sky home-- her voice carried over the building breeze. “Thank goodness I caught you!”

“Twilight?” Rainbow wasted no time in turning downward-- swooping in a quick spiral till she was hovering before her unicorn friend, who was wobbling on her hooves in the slightest. No doubt from the teleportation spell she'd just used. “You here about the storm? I was just about to go have a look to check--”

“Yes!” Twilight nearly shouted, a look in her eyes that Rainbow most assuredly didn't like. “It's bad Rainbow. Real bad. I don't know what caused it, but Princess Celestia herself sent me a letter to get everypony to shelter right away!”

Rainbow blinked. The Princess herself? “This thing came from Canterlot. I saw it earlier and it was nothing more than a squall!”

“I don't know what it can be, Rainbow. I just know it's bad. Celestia would never send me such a short letter asking for my help like she did unless she's wrapped up in the thick of it and it's seriously critical.”

Her mind drifted back to the flashes of lightning seemingly coming from Canterlot's mountain. Just how bad was it there if it was keeping the Princess from just whisking all this away in a blink of an eye?

“She told me to rouse the weather ponies.” Twilight continued on, looking up at her desperately.. “I don't think she knew that Ponyville only has one during the summer or if she just forgot in her hurry, but you were the first pony I thought needed to know what was going on.”

Rainbow looked from Twilight to the flashing wall of storm rolling their way.. “I'm.. not sure what I'm supposed to do about that-- exactly..” Reaching up with her hooves, she tugged the blue rimmed goggles down over her eyes. Making sure they fit nice and snug. “Not until I get a closer look anyways.”

“Of course. I'll head back into town and make sure everypony stays inside where it's safe. But before you go--” Her horn flared up, and she stepped forward till Rainbow could feel it's warmth flutter around her for a moment before it faded as quickly as it came. “There. Now I can speak to you over distance.”

Rainbow cocked her head to the side. Twilight noticed. “If you focus enough on me and think what you want to tell me, I'll hear it.” She spoke to her again a moment later, without moving her mouth-- her voice just an echo in Rainbow's head. “And I can do the same with you.”

Under any other circumstances, Rainbow would be wow'd by just how awesome that was. But the darkening sky and the rumble of rapidly approaching lightning clouds kind of kept things down to earth. “Alright. I'll let you know when I reach the storm front.”

Without waiting, Rainbow zoomed off in a blur-- flapping her feathered wings hard to gain altitude as she headed for Ponyville's north eastern farmland. “Sounds like a plan.” Twilight's voice echoed in her mind again. For a moment she felt her presence. Mostly when it faded suddenly, only to re-solidify a moment later. Her voice sounding a bit faint and weary, “I-I'm back in Ponyville now.”

Rainbow swallowed hard as the wind began to pick up-- feeling it in her wings before anything else. Sweet Apple Acres was on the front lines. The buffer zone between Ponyville and the coming storm. If she hurried, she could get there before the worse rolled in. Maybe she could pull something off to spare the Apple family any more misfortune this season.

Was this the excitement you wanted? The nervousness bit at her mind.

Making sure she would eat her words.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Pinky glanced up at the clinking pots and pans that hung from their racks in the kitchen of Sugar Cube Corner, the last reverbs of thunder rolling on by after a few more moments. It was only then that she released her breath. Turning her worried eyes back around to the front of the store.

“I don't know everypony.. This storm looks like it's just getting worse.” She trotted back out front, where Mr. and Mrs. Cake were busy talking to the family of customers that remained in the store. “You know I'd throw a party no matter what the weather was looking like, but I don't know how many other ponies would want to come with it looking this bad.”

The smallest, a magenta coated and violet maned little filly with a tiara cutie mark, stomped her hooves. “My birthday party cannot wait for any storm! Daddy!” She rounded about on the older gentlecolt beside her-- looking livid. “I. Want. A. Party!”

“Now now sweetums.” The girl's mother stepped in, speaking softly. Utterly whipped by her daughter. “What's the point of having a party if no one can make it? You know your father and I can give you a proper ceañera on our own until you can throw your party tomorrow.”

The little filly would have none of that-- and Pinky Pie had to admire her desire for parties with how shocked and appalled she looked at having to put it off for a whole day! “Tomorrow isn't going to be -my- birthday anymore! How do you think it'll look to have my party a day late!?”

Mr. and Mrs. Cake didn't look the least bit amused by this. In fact, they looked rather down. No doubt because bad weather drove away good business. And standing around listening to a spoiled little pony whine to her parents was certainly not a better alternative to good business.

“Perhaps tomorrow morning would be better.” Mrs. Cake began, putting on a sweet face for the belittled couple. “Mr. Cake and I can even bake a fresh birthday pie to--” A flash outside make all their breath's catch in their throats-- nevermind the sudden boom of thunder that quickly followed. “Oh dear.. It's really getting bad out there..”

Pinky politely slipped from around the counter and marched to the front of the store, peering out the front of the shop's large window at the dark streets where many-a-pony ran to and fro, securing their outside stalls against the surely coming rain.

“Tomorrow would be best.” Mr. Cake stepped in, his voice a bit more stern than that of his wife. “Even if this storm is unscheduled, it still seems like it'll be a doozy. Little miss Diamond Tiara wouldn't want all her presents to be blown away... I'm sure.” He was actually not well known for his patience...

“Of course not!” The mother didn't seem to notice, speaking with shock at the thought! “Then what would my poor baby get for her birthday?”

The little filly huffed, looking almost like she might be on the verge of tears. Thankfully, she didn't argue the issue further. Mr. Cake most certainly had made a valid point!

“Tomorrow it is then!” The colt shook Mr. Cake's hoof, turning towards the door-- Pinky Pie smiling broadly as she stepped out of their way. “I'll see you tomorrow then Miss Pinky Pie. Bright and early?”

The party pony gave him a salute, “Yessir! Bright and early!”

No sooner had the door opened did Rarity quickly run in with Spike clinging to her back-- nearly bowling over the foal's father in the process. “Pinky Pie! Mr. and Mrs. Cake!” She looked at the family who stood off to the door's side-- who blinked back at her, confused. “You... ponies! You all must take shelter immediately!”

“Rarity?” Pinky was happy to see her friends-- but not all panicky and strung out like the normally dapper unicorn looked at the moment. “It's just a rumbly stormy storm. There's no reason to be afraid of it!”

Spike hopped off Rarity's back. “This is different Pinky!” Even he looked shook up. “Twilight got a letter from Celestia! It was urgent! She told us to tell everypony we saw to get to cover before she ported off. Probably to Rainbow's.”

“Dashy's?” Pinky blinked, while the Cakes just exchanged worried glances. “Why there?”

“She's the only weather pony on duty.” Rarity quickly turned and glanced out the door-- ignoring the family beside her, who were too busy watching to complain at her blocking the door. “And she's going to have her worked cut out for her in this weather I'm afraid. Twilight looked absolutely serious when she read that letter.”

“I don't blame her.” Mrs. Cake cut in, crossing out from behind the counter herself. “If Princess Celestia says we should all take cover, then I suppose we should all be taking cover.”

Finally the gentlecolt father cleared his throat, stepping to the front of his family. “Then I think we'd best be getting home then, before the rain starts and my Diamond gets her mane ruined before the party tomorrow.”

“Nonsense!” Mrs. Cake was quick to jump in, looking adamant. “You can stay here. At least until the weather passes. That storm could hit any minute now.” Even as she spoke, the first droplets of rain splattered against the window. Making the young filly groan beside her consoling mother.

“Oh we couldn't do that..” The mother began, looking like she was searching for a way out of spending all day in the bakery rather than just being polite.. “We would never.. want to..” She trailed off, looking mightily confused..

There was a sound that nopony could rightly place. It started as a distant rumble, but slowly began to grow to a constant roar. Outside, it seemed as if it grew darker within seconds-- the wind suddenly picking up enough to topple over a nearby cart stand. Rolling whisps of rain water beating across the cobble stone square.

That sound.. wasn't rain, though.

“Everypony.” Mr. Cake took charge, opening up the divider of the counter-- a stern look on his face as he moved aside. “There's a cellar under the kitchen floor. I think we should move to it.”

Even the spoiled foal's family didn't seem to want to argue at this point-- the foal herself huddled close to her mother as they wordlessly trotted towards the kitchen. Pinky turned towards the door, glancing out the windows long enough to see that same overturned cart start to drag itself down the street..

“Pinky Pie. You too.”

She nodded, but took the time to flick the lock and turn their sign around to 'Sorry, We're Closed'. Before twirling about to Rarity and Spike, who were busy looking at each other in worry.

“Come on you two!” She bounced over, giving both nudges towards the kitchen. “It's not everyday you get to see the Cake's cellar! I'll give you the whole tour!”

She was glad they got moving and didn't question why her tone was slightly un-Pinkified. She had one of her trademarked bad feelings. And not one she'd ever had before. It was a burning in her gut that was still eating at her even as they descended into the dark basement. The sound of wind outside ripping around the house. Howling in fury.

Something bad was happening..

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

If the skies were rough a few minutes ago.. they were something else now. Rain was flooding her vision, beating against her goggles and her face till her cheeks were numb. She could make out the rushing buildings below, eying the occasional pony running for shelter, or closing their window shutters. Of course, this was all just for a moment or so. She was a blur across Ponyville's skyline. Before long, she was across the city and over rural fields and stretches of clearings that were completely void of life.

“Twilight?” She focused on the unicorn. “You still with me?”

“Of course.” The reply was instant, and Rainbow couldn't suppress the sigh of relief she gave. “I'm back at the library. The rain is getting rough here. So's the wind. Where are you?”

Rainbow glanced down again, watching a winding road-- half hidden in fog-- spread out before her. A good forty to fifty feet below. “On the road to Applejack's. Just outside of Ponyville.”

“Good. You're making good time.” She sounded worried. More than she was moments ago. “Do you... hear that?”

Rainbow listened, but over the rustle of the wind and rain, it was hard to hear anything other than Twilight-- and that was just because she was inside her head.

“I can't hear anything up here. What's it sound like?”

A pause.. “Must just be the wind.. I've never seen it this bad before..”

Neither had Rainbow, but she didn't let Twilight know that. She could handle these winds. Even if they buffeted against her wings to the point that Rainbow was constantly shifting from side to side. The rain made everything all the more difficult. Limiting her view distance and cutting against her body like little needles.

She barely made out the foggy outline of a massive apple tree before it was upon her-- causing her to suddenly curve up higher into the air, which caught the wind against her wings and caused a spin before she could even compensate.

“A-Alright..” She panted, struggling to stay still in these crazy crosswinds. “I -think- I'm at Sweet Apple Acres now..”

“Thank goodness..” Twilight's relief flooded into her mind. The feeling was eery. “What do you see? Can you see the storm clouds?”

Rainbow glanced around as best she could. Seeing nothing but the hazy sheets of rain guided by rolling winds. “Uh.. No.. But I can go higher.”

“-Only- if it's safe enough to, Dash.” Twilight's serious tone disturbed her enough back at her home. Through her mind? It did all the more. “If you're having trouble flying at this altitude, going higher is only going to be more diff--”

“Wait!” Rainbow watched as the winds struggled to continue their made swirl before they leveled into blowing in a single direction-- the rain that had been whipping about at random now falling in a single uniform direction. Stinging against her left side. “The weather is shifting!”

She hesitated in thinking that maybe the storm was passing. It was still far too dark. But for a bit, at least, the winds eased up in their crazy torment. And the rain lessened to the point that her view distance increased exponentially. The battered but sturdy apple trees spreading out across hills in front of her. She knew where she was now.

“I'm just north east of the farm! I must of overshot it.” She tested the winds further, pumping her wings to rise in altitude till she was a good fifty meters in the air. The wind was creepily calm up here. The air warm and humid. “Somethings not right...”

“R-Rainbow Dash..” Twilight was panicked. Disturbed. As if something must of dawned on her. “That noise..”

Now Rainbow could hear it. The sound was deep. Deep and howling. It reminded her of the train they rode to Applesoosa. Except louder. Ten fold. Even before she knew what it was, Rainbow's heart chilled at the sound. And that fear must of reached Twilight.

“What do you see Rainbow Dash?”

Her eyes darted back and forth, scanning the foggy distance for anything. Anything out of the ordinary in a storm like this. Would she even recognize it? Would she even see it in time? Could she be wrong?

“What do you see?”

A twisting, massive figure faded into view. A silhouette of black against the backdrop of grey. It's massive body bent and ever moving, dancing across the distance. The figures of trees, massive in size but dwarfed by this monster, disappeared within it's body. Consumed by the ravenous beast of nature's fury. A beast only seen in the Everfree forest. A beast of legend.

And on it's flanks came two more. Just as big. Just as powerful. Just as frightening.

By Celestia...

“Tornados...” She barely felt anything but her heart hammering in her chest. Feeling like it would burst. “Lots of them!”

Chapter 2

The dark clouds rolled overhead as she ushered the small raccoon family inside their den-- the rustling of the wind making her mane whip about her face as she quickly moved onto the next. Giving the family of opossums a solid nudge with her snout to get them moving.

“Oh please hurry.” She urged them as they hopped into the safety of their little woodland home. “There isn't much time!”

All about her wind chimes sounded, bird gourdes conked, and the occasional loose bag of depleted feed went spiraling off into the air. Not that Fluttershy noticed. She was too preoccupied. Her friends needed her.

“Oh, oh my, please get inside!” The wind was ripping past her, howling as it bent through the swaying trees-- showering her yard in green leaves. It didn't stop her from seeing a small fox kit quickly into it's hole. Having to resort to charging it-- scaring it into hiding. “P-Please forgive me..”

To say she was in a panic would be.. somewhat of an understatement. Any normal pony would be scared. Her? She was terrified. And the sight of all her critters, bounding about in confusion as the storm began to cross over her home upon her arrival was enough to drive her to tears.

“The birds..” She glanced up, scanning the branches of the tormented trees. The birdhouses on top of her posts. The swaying and clonking gourds she carved for them. All of them empty. Not a single panicked chirp to be heard. “W-What happened to the birds?”

There was a tug against her mane, and she almost shrugged it off as a stray limb flying through the air. But it persisted, which made her spin about in shock. “A-Angel Bunny..?”

The white furred rabbit let go of her pink mane-- looking at her with scared, pleading eyes before he turned towards her house. The cottage with the window shutters flapping noisily. Creaking against the building wind and sheets of heavy rain that was beginning to ripple across her disorderly yard.

“But.. the critters..” Her eyes scanned around the burrows. Seeing the frantic forms of skunks, rabbits, squirrels-- all running about in circles. Their wild scared eyes lost to reason. “I.. I can't leave them Angel Bunny..!”

He tugged again-- just as the crack of lightning shattered the sky, sending a tree no more than twenty yards away falling to the ground. The shock of which made her heart stop, and the scream she gave rivaled that of her animal friends. While deer jumped and bucked wildly, a badger broke from the clearing and into the woods. Disappearing inside the underbrush before Fluttershy could even mouth a protest.

Her knees were shaking, her wings were latched against her flanks. There was a mind numbing fear crawling through her core-- rooting her in place. Making her shrink against the wet grass as the wind and the rain threatening to send her tumbling.

All around her the animals screamed. They stormed about in frantic circles, knocking over lawn tools and feeders, each other, and even trampled Angel Bunny. Sending the white furred rabbit into the mud and muck with a squeak lost in the howling winds. Her body screamed to flee. To run inside the house and hide under the table. The animals were sure to die. They weren't meant for this weather-- spoiled as they were on Equestria's tamed nature.

But they were her friends. Every bit as much as Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rarity and the others. They trusted her, despite everything in their body probably telling them to do the opposite. She'd healed them, fed them, looked after them.. What was she if she couldn't do that now?

There wasn't enough time to think. She had to make a decision. She had to mare up and take charge. Something in Fluttershy snapped, and a familiar feeling rushed through her veins.

“EVERYONE LISTEN TO ME!”

Somehow, even over all the rain and wind, almost every critter within her cottage yard all came to a stop-- turning their scared and shocked eyes upon her in one motion. Even as she bolted for her home up the hill, kicking open the door with a mighty rear of her back hooves.

“Inside! NOW!”

There was a moment of dead silence before, as one once again, the woodland creatures in her care that were too afraid to find their respective dens stampeded up the grassy yard and through the wooden doorway of her house. Filing past her as she galloped over to the nearest window and slammed the wildly flailing shutters to a close. Latching them in earnest.

By the time she worked around the house and secured the ones that mattered, she was drenched and wind had swept her mane back with leaves and twigs sticking from it at odd angles. Forcing the door to a shut against the rushing wind, she caught sight of hundred year old oaks snapping at their bases. Bending to the will of the wind till they looked like they'd break clean in half. It was a relief when she got the door shut. Watching them fall and suffer was every bit as painful as knowing some of the creatures out there were abandoned. Abandoned by her.

Latching it securely, she spun about, sinking against it's frame with a shuddering gasp. Her living room was crowded with over a dozen animals. Deers, squirrels, that skunk family, even a snake or two. And they were all looking at her from their respective hiding places. Peering out with scared and wide eyes.

She imagined she looked pretty frightening right now.. “I-I'm sorry..” She wheezed, feeling sick all of the sudden. The adrenalin pumping through her was always short lived.

Angel Bunny bounced over and into her lap before she could manage to say anymore-- grabbing her neck with a fierce bunny hug as the splintering of wood outside echoed through the dark and eerily silent home.

Fluttershy's tears streaked down her already wet face.

“What's happening..?”

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Inside the library was a mess, her notes and books ruffling in the strong air current that flowed through the open door she swiftly kicked shut behind her. She was worried at first.. but then remembered that this was the mess she left it in. She really was a messy pony.

Messy pony or not, that didn't stop Twilight from raising her horn and cleansing her wet and matted coat of all the rain water that soaked her to the bone. Leaving her clean of the mud, dirt, and leaves that had pelted her since she sprinted from Rarity's empty beauty shop.

Now she was home, and nopony was here. No Spike. No link to Canterlot.

No link to Celestia..

There was a constant banging of her bedroom window slamming itself repeatedly against it's frame-- probably already shattered by how hard it was railing against the wood. A quick and simple spell fixed that problem-- her horn flaring up mid stride and shutting the unseen window, repairing any broken glass, and shuttering itself in mere seconds. Then the rest of the windows followed suit almost instantly. A series of dull thunks and mechanical latching sounds filling the empty building.

-Now- the library was almost completely silent.

“Twilight? You still with me?”

She didn't hesitate to answer, her horn already shifting through books on the shelves-- tossing those she didn't need down to the floor as if they were nothing. “Of course. I'm back at the library. The rain is getting rough here. So's the wind. Where are you?”

The pegasus' relief was felt instantly-- and a pang of worry flowed through the unicorn in turn. Rainbow was scared. ”On the road to Applejack's. Just outside of Ponyville.”

Sheesh.. Rainbow really was one fast flier. “Good. You're making good time.”

It was then that she heard a distant wailing. A distant churning thunder that didn't disappear, no matter how long she held her breath. “Do you... hear that?”

She held her breath again, a tingle of fear racing down her spine as she examined the sound in her scientific way-- trying to filter out the wind that was howling through the branches of her library home and pulling at her latched, secure shutters.

“I can't hear anything up here. What's it sound like?”

She wasn't imagining it.. it wasn't the wind. No storm should sound like that. No storm -she'd- been through before sounded like that. “Must just be the wind.. I've never seen it this bad before..”

She silently hoped Rainbow didn't detect her lie outright.

“Alright Twilight. Think.” She said this to herself, rather than to her linked friend. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine what book she was looking for. What tomb she needed to attract. What would have the answer that would put this new fear to rest.

A moment passed, and suddenly the knowledge came to her. With a burst of speed she galloped to the other side of her library-- horn already doing the work for her in chucking books from the desired shelf. Till one fit the right weight, look, and feel of the old dusty book she needed.

“A-Alright.. I -think- I'm at Sweet Apple Acres now.”

If she made it that far without seeing one.. “Thank goodness.. What do you see? Do you see the storm clouds?”

“Uh.. No.. But I can go higher.”

She retracted the book to her, holding it up and giving a hearty blow against it's cover. Sending dust floating from it's title.

“-Only- if it's safe enough to, Dash.” They weren't in the clear just yet. Just because Dash didn't see one didn't mean it wasn't out there. Those sounds weren't the wind's doing. “If you're having trouble flying at this altitude, going higher is only going to be more diff-”

“Wait!” There was a tone to her voice that made Twilight freeze-- before her mind snapped back into her current action. The book that was still hovering in the dimmed light of her horn's glow.

It was a tattered and old copy-- obviously an edition or two behind the one back in Canterlot-- but it was sure to have what she needed. It slapped itself upon the nearby table, and the wick candle lit itself almost in tandem. Twilight was lucky she was a unicorn.

“The weather is shifting!”

No..

Unnatural Natural Oddities and Phenomenon of the Everfree Forest

“Alright, lets see.” The title page flipped open-- followed by dozens of other pages written in older pony dialect-- all whirling past in a single blur. Years of dangerous study flowing across her gaze. She'd read this book before. Somewhat remembered what she expected she'd find.

The dusty old book stopped flipping through it's own pages-- a written description of the anomoly only witnessed by explorer ponies within the Everfree forest's untouched-by-magic borders. The physical description was paired with an artist's pen scribbled sketch. A whirling mass of pure wind, cloud and debris was depicted. With trees shown flying through the air. Ground and rock ripped from it's place and carried with ease into the sky.

“I'm just north east of the farm! I must of overshot it.”

Twilight's eyes were torn quickly from the image-- scanning the bullets of notes that lined the introductory page.

• It's unnatural arrival patterns are easy to spot even to the most unfamiliar of ponies. Proceeded in most documented cases by advancing natural “thunderstorm fronts”, the cyclone's approach is easily audible from several miles in any direction. Sounding by most accounts akin to the stampeding buffalo in the wild Southwestern lands of our fair country of Equestria, increased by incremental volumes.

“Somethings not right...”

This was it. The Princess was right. This was no ordinary storm. This was something.. something -natural-. Something magic could not control.

“R-Rainbow Dash..” And by Celestia.. it'd only grown louder. Burying it's terribly hum into Twilight's memory.

“That noise..”

She felt Rainbow's concentration waver. A brief feeling of understanding and confirmation registering to Twilight's subconscious before a numbing fear echoed through their link. It blended with Twilight's, and she had to blink her eyes to bite back tears.

“What do you see Rainbow Dash?”

Pivotal moments were spent with Twilight hovering over this book, her eyes unfocused on it's page-- flittering between the font and the crude drawing. Please be wrong. Please be wrong. Please be wrong.

A cold fear resonated through the link. “Tornadoes.. Lots of them!”

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

“Boy howdy. It sure is lookin' mighty rough out there.”

“Eeyup.” Big Macintosh barely looked up from the oats he was busy eating at the kitchen table. Apple Bloom didn't even acknowledge she was there.

The Apple family kitchen was cramped enough for the three of them, but even Applejack had to admit the place had taken a turn for the worse as of late. Dirty dishes were piled in the sink, the counters hadn't been wiped down in a good week, and the floor could go for a sweeping and a mop.

She briefly filed those chores onto the list of other things she had to do. Making a disgruntled moan as she slumped into a chair opposite her huffing little sister.

“I swear Rainbow told me we had clear skies all week. I reckon I ain't rememberin' it right or she's gon' and made a right mess of things on this one.”

“I'd say you're just not rememberin' it right.” Big Mac murmured, chewing on his oats nice and slowly. “Your friend does a fine job with the weather 'round 'ere, even if she's peculiar when goin' about gettin' the job done.”

The pride in Applejack took a wee bit of a sting at that, her voice dropping a little lower. “Darn straight she does, but my memory ain't -that- bad.” At least, she was pretty sure it wasn't.

“May I go to Sweetie Belle's after the storm?” Apple Bloom sounded every bit upset, with her front legs crossed across her chest and that scowl still on her face. “We've got business to be tendin' to.”

Before Applejack could answer, Big Mac took care of it. “Not 'til you finish them chores. And I don't want to hear no whinin' over it neither. You're the filly that wanted to go apple buckin' instead of taking care of what needed to be done this mornin'.”

So they were both getting fed up with this surge in attitude lately. Apple Bloom had always been a handful, but was a good filly at heart. Still was. But she was getting older. And getting older normally made the cutest foal into the most stubborn filly.

“Oh that would be great!” The maturing youngster threw her hooves in the air-- rolling her eyes. “Just what I want. A cutie mark of a freshly made bed. Or wait! Maybe a pretty feather duster would be better!”

Applejack's eyes narrowed, “Oh simmer down little Missy. No way no how is your special talent cleanin'.”

The filly's hoofs smacked upon the table-- eyes glaring daggers. “Yer darn right it's not! It's something not borin'! You wouldn't know nothin' about that, would ya AJ?”

“And what in tarnation is that supposed to mean?”

“We can't all be blessed with the dignified, ultra-rare talent of apple pickin'!” Apple Bloom waved her front hooves through the air in some silly fashion. “How fascinatin' and interestin'!”

“That fascinatin' and interestin' talent of mine is what puts bits in our wallets and food on this table.” She could feel her teeth grinding against one another. Her little sister was going over the line.

Outside, a flash of light and loud rumbling thunder shook the mugs on the countertop.

“Yeah, right. I guess that's why we're eatin' old oats and borrowin' berries from Fluttershy, isn't it?” Apple Bloom wasn't pulling any punches. “Maybe -I- should go stay with auntie and uncle Orange for a while. At least there I can eat fresh food.”

Her hooves slapped upon the table before she realized it-- the chair skidding out from under her. “Yeah!? Well maybe so, but I don't think you need to be goin' nowhere for a while! Why don't you just mosey on up to your room and see if being grounded is your special talent.”

Big Mac had long since rolled his eyes and just gone back to chewing on his oats-- while her sister had leaped to her hind legs in her chair with her front hooves planted against the table. Fury racking her shoulders.

“You can't ground me! You ain't ma', and you ain't Granny neither!”

Applejack would respond in kind, leaning over the table till she was nearly nose to nose with her younger sibling. “I may not be Granny but I'm older, smarter, and know what's best for you.” She lifted one front leg and pointed her hoof towards the hall leading to the stairs.

“Now go to your--!”

There was the sound of a loud smash-- and shattered glass sprinkled across the kitchen floor; instantly silencing Applejack and making both the fillies jump and move back from the kitchen window.. or what was left of it. A massive limb from what could only be an apple tree was stuffed through the porthole-- swinging about as the torrential wind outside yanked and snatched at it in a frenzy.

No sooner did Big Mac manage to spin around, dropping his bowl of oats on the floor, did it surrender to the wind's desire and sweep itself back outside. Disappearing in the twirling, dark sheets of rain that were whipping across the farm-- and filling the already disorganized and messy kitchen with a glistening sheen of rain water.

Nopony spoke for a few moments...

“What.. the hay.. was that?” Apple Bloom had fallen from her chair, but was staring at the ruined remains of the kitchen window-- remaining on the floor.

The roar of the storm was enough to make it hard to hear her little sister, but Applejack moved past the shock long enough to hear the whimper of Winona at her hooves. The little dog curled up and shivering in fear.

“I reckon this ain't no regular storm.” Big Mac turned upon his sisters-- looking Applejack dead in the eyes. “Think it's wise we move to the cellar.”

Applejack gaped towards the window a few more moments before she nodded. Eyes blinking back and forth between her brother and the fierce storm brewing outside..

“Yeah.. Yeah. Sounds good.” She brushed her toppled over chair out of the way, kneeling down to usher her sister over. “C'mon sugarcube.”

And without a single protest-- their fight either forgotten or on hold-- Apple Bloom scampered under the table and beside her sister. Clearly disturbed. “T-The cellar?”

“Eeyup.” Big Mac stepped around the two ladies-- moving towards the front door. “It's 'round the side of the house so we--”

“Gotta go outside?” Apple Bloom was shivering on one side of her and Winona on the other, and Applejack couldn't blame either of em. The sounds of this storm just weren't natural, and they could hear another window upstairs break and dull thuds as heavy objects battered against the roof.

“Just stay next to your sister!” No sooner did he undo the latch to the front door did it swing inwards and slam against the wall, making Winona yelp. “Let's go!”

Big Macintosh was first out the door, and he had to lean into the wind just to move against it. Applejack quickly moved in behind him, standing in the wash of the air that ripped against them as the Apple family moved out upon their porch, then down into the wet and flat grass.

Apple Bloom was at her back leg, pushing into her sister-- and she could feel Winona moving beneath her. Keeping up with her master.

The cellar doors were around the side of the barn house-- which creaked and shuddered against the strongest gales Applejack had ever see. No sooner did Big Mac undo the lock to the wide, thick wooden door did he yank it open by the knotted rope tied to it's handle. Exposing the stone steps leading down into the dark.

“Everypony inside!” He shouted at them over the wind, but Applejack only understood him by reading his lips. She looked down and gave her sister and push with her hoof before another with her snout. Watching her little filly run down the stairs with her dog on her flank.

Big Macintosh busied himself trying to haul the door back up-- pulling it against it's rusty hinges. The wind was making it difficult, but he dug his legs in and pulled with all his work horse might. Bringing the door to it's mid arch.

“Down you go!” He muffled at her, his teeth biting into the thick rope. She went to do as he said, before a flash in the distance caused her to pause.

A rainbow trail was cutting through distance clouds, diving out of sight before she could even affirm what she was seeing.

“Rainbow's out there!”

Her brother hadn't seen it. He was too busy staring her down. “Ya can't do anything about that! Get down the stairs now!”

She wanted to protest, but his eyes scared her as much as the storm had. Never had he been so serious, and the sounds of planks ripping themselves from their house above them tore into her conscious.

Applejack only glanced up into the dark sky one last time before ducking her head and entering the cellar. When the thick wooden door was pulled to a close behind her brother, there was an immediate rush of silence and pitch black dark that enveloped everything.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Weather ponies were prepared for everything. It was a mandate. A requirement set into being by the higher ups of Cloudsdale. A rigorous year long program that kept her from striking it out on her own for far longer than she would've liked. A constant, boring daily drill on what sort of clouds were best for whatever sort of days. Which ones needed to be bucked and which ones needed to be allowed to float on by. One couldn't count the number of times Rainbow had fallen asleep during those classes. The only times she could enjoy herself were during the in-the-field training days. There she showed just how capable she was in the air. Even if she had a lackluster drive for the “job” of cloud clearing. It was a stepping stone, she reasoned. She needed to get by with the bits so she could make a name for herself.

But there were breaks in the mundane lessons. Some of the pegasi found them distracting. Needless. But Rainbow welcomed them. Certain trainers would break out old books and point out moments in Equestrian history of particularly violent weather systems, or famous weather phenomenon that were tamed by their breed of pony. Some were small time. Odd dust storms in the rolling plains of the southwest. The occasional tropical storm that would blow in from untamed seas. Nothing particularly amazing by her standards. But there were others. Others that hadn't been touched by pegasi, out of caution or out of rarity. A large majority of these storms were just reported from other lands. From within the gryphon kingdom for instance. Only one place in Equestria offered these strangest and most deadly weather shows. The Everfree forest.

Magic was non-existent there for over a thousand years. Within the magically tended to lands of the kingdom, the weather was closely maintained and watched after. Through subtle magic or through less subtle weather ponies like herself. But tales crept out of the dark forests, where no such safety nets existed, of thunderstorms beyond imagining and squalls that flooded rivers and collapsed hillsides. She was most fascinated by one legend in particular. Of a system unlike any other. Where rolling cyclones of wind spread mile wide swaths of death and destruction in what was considered the most violent natural occurrences of weather.

Dreams of grandeur got to her even then, and she imagined herself wrangling in one of these storms. Flying into their centers and choking the wind out of them till they returned to the sky in shame. She asked her teacher all manners of questions. Drilled him on every eyewitness account. Every experiment that had been done to recreate one of these “tornadoes”. Her teacher, a retired pegasus mare herself, was not at all happy to see Rainbow only paying attention during these lessons. “You'll never seen a tornado in Equestria.”, she had said. “Not even if you fall asleep like you do in class and forget about the weather-- like I'm sure you will.” Time passed, and she graduated among the lowest of her class. That same teacher made sure she didn't get a chance at Canterlot's mostly non-existent weather team. Nor Manehatten's, which was reserved for the best of the best. By the time Dash blinked, all the big cities' rosters were full.

There were a few choices. A few small villages here and there, mostly in the middle of nowhere. She narrowed her decision down to two. Ponyville and Hoofington. A town north of here. Closer to the capitol and even a smidgen bit bigger than the one she settled on. The only thing that swayed her decision to chose this place was knowing that her childhood friend Fluttershy had moved here. That and the massive forest that was but a short flight away.

Her teacher seemed annoyed. Thinking Rainbow would no doubt fly into Everfree forest and try to be the first to topple some unnamed weather pattern. But by then Rainbow had lost the drive to gain fame through wrestling a tornado or whatever came out of those cursed woods. She was absolutely -sick- of weather. The pay was reasonable, the sky schedule seemed easy, and it wasn't terribly far from Canterlot or Cloudsdale.

Now where was that old crone? Rainbow Dash wished she was here. Hovering a hundred feet in the air over Sweet Apple Acres. Most certainly within Equestria's borders. Staring, horror struck, as three of the mythical beasts rolled their terrible masses towards her. Towards her home. Towards -her- town.

“Are you certain!?” Twilight sounded absolutely mortified. Apparently she had some idea what they were dealing with. How, Rainbow wasn't sure. But it made it easier to convey just how serious things were.

“Positive. I can see the funnels from here.” The two on either side of the center one were going in opposite directions-- curving around the orchards below her. “Twilight.. one's headed right through Sweet Apple Acres. It'll hit Ponyville!”

A dark object flew through the sky up ahead of her, and a second of focusing on it gave away it's form as that of an apple tree. Or at least part of one. There were leaves everywhere, Rainbow noticed. Slapping against her flanks and face along with the rain.

“I...” Twilight seemed to be struggling to think of anything. “I don't know what to do..”

Rainbow didn't have time to waste. She looked down, spotting the red house of the apple family. It was hard to tell through the haze, but it seemed to be losing most of it's roof from how hard the wind was blowing. It seems so much calmer up here..

“The other two will miss the town.. At least by a little bit. Do you know if any of the other farms were evacuated?”

“Probably a few, yes. I was able to send some fliers out to the farms to let them know to take cover.” Twilight was starting to calm down a little. Which was good. Her panic was getting to Rainbow. “I thought you could warn Applejack, but I didn't realize how little time we had. Or what we were dealing with.”

Applejack..?

Rainbow again looked upon the farmhouse. She couldn't see any lights in the windows, or movement for that matter. Were they down there?

“Alright Rainbow.. You know about these things, yes? Did they actually teach you how to stop them in Cloudsdale?”

Rainbow reached up to double check her goggles, making sure they were snug against her eyes. Then doubled their tightness till her eyes hurt. Didn't want them flying off during this..

“About them, sure. How to stop them? No.”

She didn't give Twilight more than a moment to respond before she arched up through the air before diving down towards the ground-- straining her wings to gain the needed speed. The wind rain and errant leaves rushing past her in a roar.

“Then I don't know what we can do..” She sounded desperate. Dash didn't blame her. But she wasn't a pony for giving up. Not to weather of all things.

“I'll think of something.” No she won't. She's just going to fly in there. She's going to do what she does best, and it'll work out in the end. “Just hang on!”

With a mighty flap of her wings, she angled out of her dive and went speeding across the apple tree tops-- holding her front hooves out before her face as she focused on the middle funnel. Watching it cross through the apple orchard like an unstoppable force. Sucking up trees, hay-bales, and picket fences like they were foal toys.

“Rainbow, what are you doing?”

… What in the hay -was- she doing?

She kept flapping her wings, struggling for more speed. The funnel in the distance came into focus. It's ugly dark spiraling body growing bigger the closer Rainbow got to it. The noise was deafening, but she could hear her heart pounding. Even as the world grew darker and darker and the wind began to batter her from all directions.

50 meters out.

The roof of the farmhouse rippled and buckled before exploding upward in a massive burst of timber-- retaining most of it's shape before the wind ripped it to sharp pointy shreds.

25 meters out.

One of the biggest trees on the farm went rolling across the grounds-- it's massive trunk shattered in half and split up the middle. It's branches crumpled against it's body like they were pressed against it by a mighty hoof. It rumbled and rolled like a disfigured log. Beneath and behind her in seconds.

10 meters..

A deep breath was all she had time for, and she felt the wind struggling to pull her out of her determined drive-- and she gave it no quarter. She angled her wings to take her up, and she turning into the swirling mass of pure wind. Disappearing inside it's body not as fast as she would've liked.

She was instantly thrust into the most chaotic scene she'd ever witnessed. Apples, wood, grass, leaves, farm posts, dirt-- everything this monster had consumed swirled about within it's body, following it's swirl in an almost awe inspiring display. It was within this debris field where Rainbow filed in tow-- going faster than the rest of the passengers. Which meant she had to struggle to avoid what she could as best she could.

She urged herself to fly faster, to keep ahead of these turbulent forces. That roof had resisted. It'd been destroyed quite viciously. So would she. She squinted her eyes even though they were safely behind the glass of their goggles. Pushed her wings to the extreme even as leaves and Celestia-knows-what-else pelted against her feathers and hide.

Faster, Rainbow! She bared her teeth, pushed forward-- felt her mane and her tail whipping against the wind. She wanted to breath, but her lungs felt compressed despite the deep breath she tried to hold on to. She couldn't get air in here. Give it your all or you're going to lose it!

She could barely see, but she felt the air pressure skyrocket. The cyclone's body was at it's widest. With the largest of the debris beginning to fly out of it's walls and back into the rest of the world. Probably tumbling through the air hundreds of feet about ground.

This was where she wanted to be.

She leveled out her spiraling ascent-- fighting against the natural uplift of the wind to keep on the proper trajectory. An amazingly hard feat, but nothing she couldn't handle. Updrafts were her specialty.

It was all about the speed now. She could see the trail of her rainbow circling the wall of the tornado. As her wings beat against the air, she managed to watch as it caught up to her. Flying into the multicolored wash of her own slipstream. From outside it would look like a lasso around the neck of a bucking bull-- struggling to keep the beast from ripping free of it's grasp, slowly tightening. Choking it of it's much needed air.

She felt something big whip past her-- followed by a torrent of leaves. No doubt another tree. But she was so close. So desperately close. The funnel was constricting upon it's widest point. Cutting itself off from the clouds above that helped fuel it's fury. All she had to do was hang in there.

But she needed air..

She struggled. She beat her wings like she'd never done before. She ached and felt everything beginning to grow numb. Dark spots bled through her vision, making even her bright rainbow wash lose much of it's color. She was losing consciousness.

With a sharp pitch of her wings, she altered her path so that she, too, was ripped from the funnel. Feeling all control of her flight painfully torn from her, she went spiraling out into the sky. Amongst the many planks of wood and tree limbs she'd flown beside for little more than a minute.

It was then that the pressure in her chest lessened, and a deep breath of air wracked her-- jolting her system and making the dark spots recede. The numbness faded into an uncomfortable tingle, and she felt her wings twitch before she could flap them helplessly for a few moments in her uncontrolled tumble. Within seconds, she righted herself, and slowed her descent-- still hundreds of feet above the earth. Panting for the life of her.

I'm alive..

Rainbow glanced down at herself, still struggling to take in air. Her front hoofs patted against her body. Checking for injuries. For gaping wounds. Anything.

She was okay.

Her attention turned to the tornado-- who continued to howl and rampage over the farm towards Ponyville. At first she was afraid she'd done nothing, but she saw around it's funnel's top was a tight ring of multicolored flight wash. Still spinning with the spiral's walls until.. miracoulously, the funnel began to lose it's darkened color. Starting from the ground, the tornado began to tear itself apart. It's choked inner core imploding upwards until it reached her lasso. Where it faded up into the overcast, quick moving sky. Her colors vanishing right along with it.

I did it.. I did it.. I did it! Despite the painful gasps for air, the soreness in her wings, the headache that was beginning to flood her oxygen starved mind with pain, Rainbow Dash was laughing. The first pony to take on a tornado, take it down, and live to tell the tale.

I can't believe that--“Rainbow!”

Twilight's voice was loud enough in her head that Dash was momentarily stunned-- reaching up to clutch at her skull with a sharp gasp of pain. The unicorn's presence reflooded through her head-- and it was in an absolute panic.

“I-I'm here! Geez!”

Twilight must of gasped-- because Rainbow somehow felt her do it. She had about decided that this spell was far creepier than she cared for.

“Oh thank Celestia! What did you just do!?” Now she sounded mad. That felt weird too. “One second you're there, telling me you're about to do something, and the next thing I know I completely lose you. I thought you were -dead-!”

Rainbow did too, but she wouldn't admit that. She let her wings slow in their flapping. Feeling her altitude begin to decrease. “I did it Twilight! I flew straight into the funnel and bucked the hay out of it!”

“Wha-!?” Twilight sounded stunned. It was enough to make the pegasus fill with pride. Surely that alone would reassure Twilight she'd managed to pull it off. “You.. You did..? Seriously? Rainbow, that's incredible!”

“Yeah. It was. Gosh Twilight I wish you could've seen it!” She reached up, pulling her goggles off her eyes-- feeling like they were about to bulge out of her sockets with how tight they'd gotten.. “The other two. I don't see them anymore.”

“Don't worry about them.” Twilight sounded more relieved than she'd ever heard her be in the year and a half they'd known one another. “The pegasus ponies I sent out to warn the other farms got back and told me they saw them crossing across the countryside. They're going around Ponyville as we speak.”

Now -she- was relieved, visibly slumping in the air as she shut her weary eyes. “Thank the Wonderbolts.. You should've seen em Twi..”

“I can.” She quickly replied, her voice sounding shaky but none-the-less happy. “They're literally -that- close. Hopefully everypony is alright out there.”

Everypony was going to be okay. Because of her. She'd done the impossible-- saved the town, no doubt. But..

Rainbow's eyes opened in a panic.“Twi.. Sweet Apple Acres is gone.”

There was a pause and a dark worry crossed the link between them. “I.. was afraid you'd say that..”

“I'm going to go back there. See what I can find. Maybe they had a cellar.. or-or a basement.” She was already fluttering her wings and turning to dive as the fear settled in. “I think I remember Applejack mentioning it once.”

“Alright. I've got the messenger ponies here still. I'll send them that way as soon as I can... But it's still so bad out..”

Rainbow glanced up at the sky as she soared above the ground. The sky was still dark. Filled with lancing arches of lightning and rolling clouds. Not to mention the pouring rain.

“Hold onto the fliers.. Let me see what I find first..”

She soared across countryside, beaten and ravaged with uprooted trees and torn, muddied ground. It took her a moment, but she realized that she'd rode that tornado for close to a mile. It probably was within viewing distance of Ponyville before it finally gave up the fight.

Nearly a minute later, the wide path of destruction opened up upon the outskirts of Applejack's farm-- with a massive gap missing from the normally orderly lined up apple trees. Not to mention the non-existent picket fence that had once marked the property. The ground was a sea of stumps, downed trees and tree limbs. Apples spread all about. She could only increase her speed, zooming above the remains of the farm as parts of their home began to jut out from beneath the mountains of trees.

She crested that final hill, overlooking the core of Sweet Apple Acres, and the cold reality set in. There was nothing spared. The tornado had cut a path clean through the center of the farm. The dirt road was all that was recognizable, and even it looked torn up and like it'd seen better days. The Carrot Top farm was in the distance. Mostly intact, with a bit of damage to their roof all she could see. The Apple family home however..

All that remained was the foundation. Spires of broken wood, painted red, stuck from all around it. Nothing but a facade of the building that had once been there. It looked like something from a nightmare, but it was real. If there was anypony inside that building before it was hit, Rainbow doubted any would still be alive.

They got out Rainbow. They got out. She swallowed, kicking off against the air with a sweep of her wings and headed for the home of one of her best friends. Unsure what she'd find.

But.. But then she saw them. A dark, winding figure in the distance quickly joined by another. Then another miles off to her left. Then two more further off to the right. They danced their wicked dance and roared their mighty roars. Looking every bit as dangerous and imposing as their siblings which had passed by earlier.

“No.. No no no!”

As if to answer, the family of twisters simply came into better focus. The wind picking up in kind-- rustling the leaves that remained on all the dead trees that surrounded her.

“It's more of them, isn't it Dash?”

Rainbow didn't have to ask how she knew that. The wave of crushing defeat that ran through her at their sighting surely crossed that link between them. She didn't have to say a word.

“Six.. Seven maybe.. They look smaller than the last group.” She strained her eyes, trying to ignore the rebuilding fear in her heart. “Twilight.. I can't take them all..”

She'd barely taken out one. As good as Rainbow was, this many-- even if she let those skirting around the town go-- would kill her. There wasn't any way..

“Unless...”

“The Sonic Rainboom?” Could Twilight read her mind? “With this wind? I don't know which option would be worse, Dash.”

“Then what Twilight?” She was already beating her wings, pushing herself up in the sky. Leaving the house of her best friend behind-- battered and in pieces. Possibly with her still in it. “If I don't do something, Ponyville will look like Sweet Apple Acres right now. I can't let that happen.”

Twilight seemed to give in through their connection, probably frantically looking over her books. Looking at whatever she had at her arsenal. “Alright... You just be careful Rainbow. You hear me?”

Rainbow flew higher and higher, spiriting herself up into the dark clouds and straight through them. The flashes of lightning were blinding up here, but she made it through without being fried. One stroke of luck to add upon the mountains of it she accumulated earlier.

“I will.”

The goggles went back on, and the straps wear tightened yet again. Up here the sky was bright. There was no storm. Just an endless see of clouds stretching out as far as she could see. Dark, flashing, and rolling like an upset ocean. But the sun made it all better.

Rainbow Dash looked up at the glowing orb for a few moments until she had to look away-- blinking at the dots that fluttered across her eyes. She almost forgot how pretty Celestia's gift was. After all this, she'd never take another clear sunny day for granted.

With a final half loop, she dived down into the clouds below her. Back into the dark. Pumping those wings, even as they screamed the protest against it. Never had she attempted her patented trick on anything but the most perfect of weather conditions, but she didn't have a say this time. Thems were the ropes.

The rush was familiar, even with the rain hitting her so painfully. She felt the pull of the air against her mane. The flapping her of tail in her wake. She stuck her front legs out like she was diving. Diving into water, but instead all she could see below her was the ruined farmland she left moments before. With four new funnels rolling across it's already destroyed orchard.

She narrowed her eyes behind the goggles she wore-- feeling the resistance in front of her build. She made the only adjustment she could-- pointing her dive towards the center of the group's path. She'd hit it just before they did. Giving them the full brunt of the shockwave that accompanied her best move.

It was the last thing she could do before that final burst of speed, pushing herself down as fast as her wings could carry her. Any moving now would ruin the dive. It'd be too late for the Apple family farm. Too late for her friend if she was still down there. And if she failed to do this, it'd be too late for so many ponies in Ponyville..

She focus hard. She had to. She pushed herself to her top speed. Feeling her cheeks pull back and her gums burn against the rushing air. The white barrier flickered across her vision. Just against her hooves. Pushing to stop her from this mad dive. Would she be able to pull out of it?

Don't worry about it. You gotta stay in the zone Rainbow. You have to.

The barrier expanded-- it coned around her and flickered about her body as she stared at the ground. The rapidly approaching ground. Littered with apples and a destroyed livelihood. It was now or never.

She tucked her legs close together and stretched them out, trying to flatten herself as much as she was able to-- feeling that white sheet pushing to keep her from breaking through. But she was relentless. She flapped her wings, she surged forward, she would not relent until her friends and family were safe.

The sky exploded into color.

Chapter 3

That dark and rather dank cellar underneath Sugarcube corner was not what Rarity at all imagined it would be. Above them was the most cheerful and cute little shops in all of Ponyville, complete with the most bouncy and cheerfully happy resident in all of Ponyville. The wet and dirty cobblestone basement was dark, depressing, and utterly repulsive. Not only were there spiderwebs on almost everything, but the heavy rain fall was seeping water through the cracks in the walls.

It was the last place Rarity would want to visit under regular circumstances, but at the moment? It didn't seem too bad. Not with how the wind outside was howling. Or with how the crash of what could only of been the front of the store's display shattering reached all of them moments after they got down here.

She was feeling rather at home, actually.

“Pinkie dear, are there any more candles?”

That very Earth pony trotted herself from around a row of soggy boxes, shaking her head towards the larger of the two owners of the store.

“No Mrs. Cake. All I found is streamers and confetti-- and I refuse to let Spike burn those!”

The Cakes smiled towards their sole employee-- while Spike, who was sitting relatively close to a dwindling pile of birthday candles, simply sent one jet of green flame against another candle's tip. Reaching out to place it carefully atop the box they'd mounted them on just as the previous wax stick flickered out.

“Mother..?” Diamond Tiara pipped up-- curled against her mother's side like a newborn foal. “I'm getting all wet down here...”

The mare didn't seem to care about getting wet. Not now. Not after the roar of the storm had surrounded the building and began to shake it's very foundations like they were in the middle of an earthquake.

“Sorry about the state of things down here..” Mr. Cake decided to step in at that precise moment, as if hoping the leaking walls would go unnoticed. “We've been meaning to get this place tidied up for a while. It's a good place to store some of Pinkie Pie's party supplies. Apparently not when it rains..”

Pinkie Pie didn't seem to mind her party materials getting a little soggy though. “Aww! No worries Mr. Cake! If we didn't put them down here, we'd have no room for a bakery upstairs. You simply cannot have enough party favors!”

Rarity was inclined to disagree, since she was currently sitting on a box of banners and deflated balloons, but she thought it best not to be snooty. That foal had been plenty snooty for the lot of them, as well as the ungrateful father-- who protested hastily at first before the storm had really settled in.

Spike sighed from his candlelight seat-- sitting on his butt, seemingly not caring about the water. In fact, he looked rather gloomy-- planting his chin in his palms. “I wish Twilight was here..”

“Oh Spike.” Rarity was up on her hooves in a flash. Thankful to be off that soggy box more than anything. “I'm sure she's just fine. Probably up there organizing and overseeing all the shelter efforts. As soon as the storm is over, I'll get you right back to her.”

He seemed to brighten up a little. If not at her words, than just at the sound of her voice. “I.. I know.. I'm just worried. I've never seen Twilight that.. that..”

“Frazzled?” Pinkie Pie hopped in. “Disturbed? Shocked? Confuzzled?”

Rarity gave her a face as Spike just sulked harder. Prompting the pink pony to zip her lips. Mrs. Cake took the initiative-- stepping forward to sit beside the baby dragon.

“Rarity is right little one. I've seen that Twilight Sparkle around enough times to know she's got a good head on her shoulders.”

Rarity nodded excitedly, “Of course she does! You don't get to be the Princess' student if you don't know how to handle yourself during some little bitty storm.”

Of course this storm was anything but little bitty. Not that it seemed to keep Spike from looking a little less down than before. Rarity was relieved, stepping up opposite him to sit within the candlelight. That also didn't harm things as a cute little blush spread across his cheeks..

“Y-Yeah.. You're right. I'm sure she's just fine!” But his face darkened a little bit as he glanced at the withering candle's flame-- reaching out for another one. “I just wish I could with her right now.. What if Celestia sends a letter and I'm not even there to give it to her?”

Rarity blinked. Honestly, she hadn't even thought of that. Spike was the only link between them and Canterlot, and Twilight was practically the Princess' instrument during all this. Separating the two of them had cut all of Ponyville off from the only alicorn that knew what to do no matter what.

“I'm sure Miss Sparkle will manage.” Mrs. Cake stepped in once again-- reaching over to lay a comforting hoof against Spike's back. “When the storm has passed I'm sure Miss Rarity and Pinkie Pie will get you safely back to her.”

Pinkie Pie was quick with a salute, flashing an uncharacteristically tame smile Spike's way. “You bet! I'm sure she'll be at the library. Or out there working that unicorn pony magic on those lightning clouds.”

“I just hope whatever she's doing is helping things..” Rarity muttered, glancing up at the roof of the cellar. She swore she could feel the ground shaking..

“If she's got Dashie with her, I'm sure they're taking care of business! I mean, have you ever seen how she bucks those clouds?” Pinkie Pie leaped into the air, kicking her back legs out in an admittedly good imitation of the pegasus. “She's all like, BAM! And BOOSH! And-!”

She suddenly stopped, landing on the ground-- giving a mighty twitch and a kick of her back left leg. Her tail frizzled up like she'd just been shocked-- and her eye bugged out in a most disturbing manner..

“Pinkie..?”

All at once, the weird mannerisms stopped-- and Pinkie blinked. Looking clueless as to what just happened. “Oh my..”

Before Rarity even had a chance to ask what the fuss was all about, the room shook and a loud boom filled the air. Everypony's head snapped up to glance at the floor above, which sprinkled them with dust for a few seconds as the explosion of sound faded into a distant rumble.

“W-What w-w-was t-that?” Diamond Tiara's father stuttered, shivering against his equally terrified family.

Rarity craned her head to listen.. but found that it was creepily quiet. No sounds of rain. Only distant sounds of thunder and the fading rumble of whatever had just passed over..

“The Sonic Rainboom.”

At once, all eyes turned to Pinkie Pie. Who was still staring almost blankly into space. Her mind seemingly processing untold masses of information at once.

“What?” Rarity raised her hoof to her chest in surprise-- cocking her head to the side. “How do you even know that?”

The pink earth pony just rolled her eyes, “Did you not see the twitchy brow, ear flicker, tail spazzer-- leg kicker, eyeball bulger, flank twitcher thingy-ma-jig I just did? Dashie just did a Rainboom!”

Spike was the first one to stop gaping.. “What does that mean..? Why would Rainbow do a Rainboom?”

Rarity glanced down, her eyes flicking side to side as she struggled to think of a reason. The only time she'd seen Rainbow do one was when she was plummeting to certain death. It was no small task. Sure, this storm was the worst she'd ever seen-- but what was a little rain and a little wind? There had to be safer ways for Dash to clear the skies.

Unless things were worse than she imagined.

“Alright. That's it.” Spike hopped up to his feet, and with a deep breath-- breathed his green fire upon one last candle before setting it down next to the almost depleted one from earlier. “I'm going to go find Twilight.”

Mrs. Cake looked shocked. “But.. Dear.. You can't! The storm, it--”

“Stopped.” Rarity said, stepping next to the baby dragon-- who glanced up at her curiously. “At least for the moment.. I can't hear anymore rain.”

The group listened for a few seconds, but sure enough. There was no sound other than the trickle of water upon the stone floor.

Pinkie Pie bounded over next to them-- her smile right back upon her face. “Sounds like just the break we needed! We can get to Twilight's in no time flat.”

Mrs. Cake did not look happy, but she bit her lip and said nothing more. Mr. Cake stepped over to give his wife a quick nuzzle, glancing to the three of them. “You all just be careful. I can still hear thunder out there. I don't think this is over us just yet.”

Rarity nodded, leaning down to let Spike eagerly jump and straddle her back-- his tiny hands gripping her mane. “We will Mr and Mrs. Cake. Thank you so much for letting us stay in your cellar.”

She glanced down at where the water had risen up her hoofs. The whole place was partially flooded by now.

She grit her teeth in the most awkward of smiles.. “It's been a most interesting experience..”

“I'll be back lickity split!” Pinkie Pie hopped forward to give her bosses and quick group hug-- before twirling about to the stairs and trotting her way up them happily.

Rarity followed, glancing towards the young filly cowering with her family across the cellar. Despite their reluctance at the shelter earlier, they certainly weren't coming now.

Quickly bounding up the stairs, the trio exited through the large and heavy wooden trap door and back into the kitchen-- closing it behind them. The Kitchen was still dark, and some of the pots and pans had fallen onto the floor. Bumping about as they moved through it.

The front of the store was not as lucky. The front glass display had, indeed, shattered. It's sharp field of glass glistening with water that had pooled across the store front. Leaves, twigs and other assortments of wind debris were scattered about everywhere. Clinging to any wet surface.

“Watch your step Pinkie Pie..” She circumvented her friend, who seemed.. almost sad at the sight. But she followed behind Rarity, careful to avoid the sharp glass as they exited through the front door. Letting it close behind them with a jingle, stepping out into the streets of Ponyville.

Rarity gasped at what she saw.. Carts were overturned, their produce littering the street. Large canvas tents that normally lined the square were either missing or flat against the ground, muddied and torn. Some were even streaked through tree limbs, who's owners were bent at odd angles. One near the store was even partially uprooted. Windows in buildings all around them were broken. Lining the street with dozens of glittering glass shards that were half submerged in the numerous large puddles that had accumulated.

But when her eyes turned upwards to the sky, she was at a loss for words.

For a good mile around them the faint glow of a rainbow was fading into the distance. Where the colored wave had crossed there were only scattered, mangled clouds. The glow of a blue sky was easy to see-- even without the sun illuminating them directly. It was an almost beautiful sight, but the dark wall of clouds that surrounded this eye of the storm were still tumbling about as menacing as she imagined them ever being. There were still flashes of lightning in the far distance..

As well as massive bodies of cyclones that were passing by Ponyville, swallowing up hills of trees and leaving indescribable carnage in their wake.

“What.. are those things..?” Spike was clinging to her neck almost painfully, but Rarity could hardly care. She was too busy staring at the rolling monsters. Each nearly identical to one another as they rode over hills and crossed the river outside of town. Never slowing..

“I don't know what they are, but I bet Twilight does.”

Pinkie Pie glanced over at Rarity, nodding in earnest. She didn't look like she had anything to say, which alone was enough to make Rarity gulp. The silence that surrounded them was bad, but not having Pinkie Pie to speak over the sound of the distant monsters ripping through their home was another thing entirely.

Almost instantly the two ponies broke out in a swift gallop-- dodging ominous mud puddles and debris as they left the town square behind them. Sprinting down a dirty and just as mangled street and towards the town library. Rarity spotted it easily, and was surprised at the lack of damage to the great tree. Besides a few broken limbs and some scuffs on the outside wood work, it looked unscathed. Not to mention shuttered up completely.

“Twilight must be home!” She shouted, pushing forward through a mud puddle that splashed dirt along her legs.

Just as they neared, the upper window of Twilight's bedroom opened and a pair pegasi flew out quickly. Rising up into the calm air and turning north. Flying higher and higher as they went. Rarity recognized one as the mail mare, but the other escaped her knowledge.

Pinkie Pie scoffed, “Where are those two going? Can't they tell that Ponyville is under attack by -monsters-!?”

They skidded up to the library's entry, with Spike practically launching himself from Rarity's back and taking to pounding his little fist against the wooden door. “Twi!? Twilight are you in there!?”

They waited a moment before a purple glow surrounded the door's handle and a dull click resonated from inside-- the door swung open immediately, and just within the dark building stood Twilight Sparkle. Looking every bit as frazzled as Rarity expected her to be.

“Spike! Rarity! Thank goodness--”

Spike launched up and wrapped his arms around the unicorns neck in the biggest hug Rarity had ever seen anypony.. or.. any dragon give.

“I-I'm sorry! We were going to Rarity's shop but got caught up telling everypony we saw to get inside! We-We were still in Sugarcube Corner when it came in! A-And--”

On cue, Twilight sat upon her flank and wrapped her front legs around her dragon-- squeezing him to her chest as she layed her chin upon his head. Shhing him gently as the reptile began to cry.

Rarity didn't even realize just how much Spike had been afraid. Not just for himself, but for Twilight too. It was hard for her not to smile as she watched the two embrace, but Pinkie was quick to dampen the mood with the urgency in her voice.

“Twilight.. Those things out there. They're tearing up the countryside. What are they?”

Rarity shook her head, mulling on an even more curious question. “And why haven't they hit the town?”

Twilight looked up from tending to Spike, who was shivering and sniffling against her neck. She leveled a glance at Rarity that made her heart sink.

“Tornadoes.. A rare and dangerous weather anomaly alien to Equestria save for the Everfree forest. I don't know why they're here, or why there's so many, but they came from Canterlot. Something happened.”

Pinkie Pie gasped, “Why would they come from Canterlot!? Better yet, why would Canterlot be making tornadoes!?” Her face twitched in horror. “What type of ponies are they!?”

Twilight's eyes narrowed, but she quickly shrugged off Pinkie's randomness. “I can only assume it's some sort of accident.. or attack.. I just don't know.. But as for why they haven't reached the town yet. That's been Rainbow's doing.”

Rarity's ears perked. “Rainbow? So the Rainboom. It was--”

“To stop these things, yes.” Twilight looked like she was nearly in tears, stroking the frills that ran down Spike's head and back softly.. “But.. I've lost contact with her.. I can't feel her anymore.”

Pinkie Pie's horrified face switched to one of surprise, then urgent concern. “Dashie? What do you mean you can't feel her anymore?”

Twilight sighed-- her voice quivering. “I cast a spell on her just before she left for Sweet Apple Acres-- where the storm was going to hit first. It let me speak with her from over distance. Through our minds.” She shook her head though.. suddenly squeezing Spike tighter. “B-But after the Rainboom..”

“Twilight Sparkle.” Rarity stepped forward, putting her hoof down. “We must go to Sweet Apple Acres and find her. We can't just sit here and mope. She most likely needs us right now!”

Pinkie seemed to agree, nodding frantically as she stepped up to the library duo. “And what about Fluttershy? Has anypony heard from her?”

Twilight visually suppressed a sob, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment before breaking the tight embrace she shared with Spike-- who seemed calmer now, even if he probably didn't want their hug to end.

“I sent two messenger ponies to fly to Canterlot above the storm. To see if they can tell what's happening. Anything at all.” She was on her hooves again now. Determination coming back to her voice. “Fluttershy is probably home.. I just hope it's still there.”

“We must check on them both then!” Rarity turned to the doorway and peered outside at the sky. The storm was still moving. The great expanse of open sky was beginning to drift away. Mr. Cake had been right. This wasn't over yet.

“Rarity. You and Pinkie make for Fluttershy's. Just be quick about it. Rainbow's Rainboom gave us a quickly closing window of time. I'm going to make for Sweet Apple Acres. To see what I can find.“ Rarity nodded, half expecting the unicorn to flash out of here right then, but she instead turned to Spike. Who was staring at her with tear filled eyes.

“Spike.. I want you to stay here.” She cut off his protest with a sweet, but commanding voice-- giving him a gentle smile. “I'll have to run to the farm, and my magic is weak from the teleporting I've done today. If I find Rainbow, she.. she may not be able to move. I'll use whatever reserves I still have to get her and me back here.”

Spike still had his hand up, and his mouth open, like he wanted so badly to protest-- but he dropped his arm back to his side and lowered his head. Nodding slowly. “A-Alright Twilight..”

Pinkie moved to step outside and Rarity decided to follow-- the clopping of hooves telling her Twilight was right behind her.

“Write a letter to the Princess. Tell her that tornadoes are hitting Ponyville. That we're not going to hold out much longer.”

Spike gripped the open door and nodded again, stronger this time-- swallowing his fear and giving the three ponies a determined stare. “I will..”

Twilight looked upon Rarity and Pinkie Pie with a smile, giving Rarity an almost thankful look. Rarity returned it, and she just knew Pinkie was beaming back behind her too.

“Everypony.. just be careful.”

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

From the sky she had tumbled, rolling and flailing about through the air with no grace at all. The explosion of light and color had blinded her, but that wasn't what surprised her. Instead of bursting through the barrier like always, she was almost instantly slapped in the face by wind. She'd pulled off the stunt, but there was no way she could prepare for that sort of resistance once she'd broken through.

Her wings had almost painfully been yanked back against her flank, and her dive was thrown into an angle she was not prepared for. Quickly she was losing speed, and she came out of her supersonic vortex and back into the regular world long enough to see trees and dirt before she went flying into them. The branches had stung her, ripped at her hide, tore at her mane and feathers, but what really hurt was the ground.

But.. it was mud. Deep mud. Deep enough mud that Rainbow had to dig her way out of it and gasp for air. Almost covered from head to hoof in the dark brown gooey muck that was surrounding the orchard like a new grass. By the time she wiped the dirt from her face, she could only catch the end of her rainboom's trail pushing clouds in the distance further and further way before it faded into nothing. Where there had been at least six tornadoes was nothing. Nothing but clear sky and drizzling rain.

At first she had sat there in shock. Eying the sky as if it was some illusion.. but with a sigh she fell back, landing in the mud she'd dug herself out of-- breathing heavily as the full weight of what she'd just done sank in.

I... am.. so... awesome...

She was almost content to just lay in the mud until some pony found her-- but the distant lightning was her ever present buzz kill. She eased herself up, shaking from the adrenalin rush flowing through her veins, the sky above still showcasing that dazzling blue.

But the clouds were still moving. The storm was pressing forward all the while she was laying there like it was over. She groaned, feeling her sore body protest at moving again, but she pushed herself to her hooves and sludged her way through the sea of mud till she reached a somewhat more solid ground to stand on. And that's when she realized her front left hoof was undoubtedly sprained. Or broken. Either way, it hurt. Really bad.

“Twilight...” She focused on the unicorn that was probably hyperventilating and clawing her eyes out back in Ponyville. “How many 'impossible' things have I done today, huh?”

She waited a moment, but received no response.

“Twilight..? Twi, can you hear me?”

She redoubled her efforts of focusing on her friend, but it didn't do any good. She didn't feel that itching feeling in the back of her mind, either. No waves of relief. No fear. Nothing.

Her eyes turned upwards at the sky, the glow of the sun evident on the whisps of clouds left in her rainboom's wake. Did the spell wear off?

Something else flashed across her mind after she spied a lone apple desperately clinging to it's battered tree-- her eyes widening as a wave of worry ran through her core. Applejack!

She took just a second to shake herself of any loose mud before leaping into the air and spreading her wings-- beating the sore blue feathered appendages until she was soaring across the farm. In seconds she was over the trees, and the expanse of destruction opened up before her eyes. In the sunlight the flowed from the open sky above, the destruction looked all the worse. No amount of sugar coating it would work. Sweet Apple Acres was gone.

It took her only a minute to reach the remains of the farm house, but all around it were mountains of timbers and at least three massive apple trees that had found their final resting place within the ruins of the house. Two stories of master craftsmanship were blown to bits, with personal affects scattered everywhere in between.

“Applejack!?” She yelled out, her voice hoarser than she expected. All that wind had dried out her throat. “Applejack!? Do you hear me!?”

Dash listened for a moment, lifting her head up high and swiveling an ear for any noise she could discern. She heard the running of water, the shuffling of boards beneath her hooves, and the rumble of distant thunder. Nothing more.

“Apple Bloom!?” She briefly wondered if the little filly had been off someplace with Rarity's sister-- or maybe with little Scootaloo. They both flashed through her mind, and instantly her worry was doubled. Was every -other- pony okay?

“Big Mac!? Buddy!?” Nothing. Nopony answered her call. Not even that big workhorse she'd seen plowing those fields dozens of times before. Surely he would've kept his sister's safe. Surely he would've gotten them to safety before the storm hit.

Applejack's face brushed through her mind so quick, that Rainbow Dash barely had time to suppress a heaving breath before she felt a tear run down her already wet face.

This is where she would be.. It's where they would all be..

She desperately looked down at the rubble under hoof, reaching down to dig-- pulling at a massive plank with all her worn out strength until it budged and allowed her to push it out of the way. Her hooves dug into splintered wood, broken glass, and broken memories.

“Oh Celestia no.. No no..!”

Applejack couldn't be here.. She wasn't under this rubble. She'd been in town. She and Twilight were just mistaken. There wasn't a chance that she was gone. That her family was buried beneath their crushed home. Dead. Dying. Hurt. Wanting to answer her but unable to.

Oh for Pete's sake Rainbow, pull yourself together! She's fine. She's a tough, capable mare. You know she is. She can handle herself. She -did- handle herself!

Rainbow took in a deep, painful breath. Her injuries were beginning to make themselves known. Her sides hurt more than her hoof did-- and her wings were surely just as bruised at the joints. How she managed to avoid more dire injury was completely beyond her. Pulling her hooves out of the rubble proved painful too-- cuts and scrapes the unsurprising outcome of digging into a pile of nail embedded wood of a broken home.

Twilight. Twilight can handle this job easy. She can make with the magic and dig through this pile of junk in ten seconds flat!

No sooner had Rainbow decided on flying back into town to grab up the librarian did she jump into the air and turn south towards home-- but something stopped her. Her skin crawled beneath her fur, and her ears twitched as they popped from a sudden drop in air pressure. She glanced up, seeing the sky darkening again as the sun drifted behind the moving clouds. The safety of her Rainboom beginning to drift away with the wind.

But as she turned around, glancing towards the coming storm. She could see no more tornadoes. None except for one. It's massive, larger than life funnel forming in the sky no more than two miles from where she hovered. Watching in horror as the biggest of the cyclones yet spurred to life and righted itself upon the earth. Lightning illuminated it's massive form just as the ground it alighted upon erupted into a massive dark cloud-- which only turned the otherwise gray twister into a black body of twisting death.

Rainbow could only watch. Waiting for what she knew, deep inside, was coming. The slow hum of the wind building back up gave into the steady and distant roar of destruction that followed the path the wind set for it. And, of course, of all the directions it could turn, it set it's course for Ponyville. Set it's course for the exact spot Rainbow stood upon.

“You've got to be kidding...”

She barely managed to whisper to herself before her determination flooded into her the way that Dash loved. The fear stung at her heart, but it was smothered by that rush of courage, and Rainbow even managed to glare. Glare at this approaching mass of monstrous rage that was coming to take all she ever loved from her.

“Not today..”

Her hooves came up to grasp at her goggles she thought were around her neck, but they weren't there. She'd lost them in the tumble from earlier, but no matter. She didn't need them! She'd taken on seven tornadoes and beat them all. Even wrestled one from within.

Her wings cramped as she glanced upwards. The sky was dark again, the warmth of the sun moving on. This one was fast. There was little time to gain the altitude she'd need for another Rainboom. Heck, she wasn't even sure her wings would manage one even if she did have time for it. Nope. She'd do this one like the first. She'd strangle the life out of it. Whoop it's flank and show it who the head mare was around here. Who -really- owned the sky.

“H-Hang on Applejack!” She yelled down to her friend without looked at her wrecked and mangled home. I'll be back for you..

She was off in a blast of rainbows-- her hooves held out before her as she soared up into the sky. She ignored the pain that flushed through her flanks-- doing a corkscrew spin before tucking her wings in tight and diving straight towards the earth.

Gain your speed..

She turned out of her dive at the last possible moment. She was already flying across the barnyard with the world a blur at the edge of her vision. Her wings pumped anew, and the familiar feel of the air whipping against her mane and tail felt all the better without that painful rain hitting her in the face.

Set your path..

She watched the twister turn and buck, it's body writing like it was trying to escape it's cycle. It was bigger than the one from earlier, but that didn't matter. Not now. This was it, Rainbow thought. This was the final obstacle. After this, the storm was done. After this, she can go and get Applejack and everything was going to be okay.

Take a deep breath..

Her hooves held out before her in their aerodynamic pose, Rainbow narrowed her goggle-less eyes and sucked in a deep breath of air just as the spin of the cyclone's wind began to rippled through her wings. She barely had time to avert a flying tree limb before she passed into the raging wall of nature and into the familiar chaos inside. It bit at her with ferocious intent, stinging her with all it could hurl at her. But Rainbow was determined. Determined to save her friends.

Her body twisted and her wings turned up, seeing the widest expanse of the twister's body. It was dozens of meters up and she didn't follow the wall like she had last time. She angled herself just right, steadily climbing in this death spin until she could once again see her trail. She had leveled off, and fell back into the race for speed this leg of the rodeo called for.

Tie.. Tie the noose..

Her muscles ached, her wings burned, everything was stinging as leaves, grass and hay struck her exposed flanks. But she pressed on. Her hooves in front of her, leading the way as her rainbow trail came into view. Just a few meters away. Welcoming it's master and dancing with the roll of the wind.

The dark spots returned, and the burn for air grew stronger and stronger. Rainbow pushed onward, tears burning against her eyes as her vision blurred and distorted. She was nearly there once again. Almost overtaking that multicolored wash of her own making. Just a few meters more!

She didn't see the dark figure rushing up from below until it quite literally slammed into her body.

There wasn't any real pain to speak of. Just shock. Sudden, unexpected, complete shock. There wasn't a sudden rush of air from her lungs. It'd all been depleted already. The roar of the of the tornado sounded hazy, blurring with a deafening ringing that filled her ears until her head felt like it would burst. But still. No pain. Just.. numbness.

Rainbow could register the sky, flying past her as she spiraled through the air. She faintly noticed she was no longer inside the funnel. The tornado was continuing without her. Unabated. Unslowed. She didn't feel the expected defeat. She was still so confused. Why was she numb?

Rainbow couldn't feel her wings, but she saw them as she leveled out of her rolling and flailing and just took to falling in an almost lazy spin. They fluttered against the wind like her loose fore legs, their blue feathers all moving independently. Some were flowing through the air in her wake-- disappearing against the rushing night sky far above that washed away the clouds like they were nothing but water.

How strange it was to see-- the sudden explosion of a night's sky overtaking the featureless grays of storms with the endless expanse of sparkling diamond stars and distant nebula. Even with this ringing, she knew it must be so loud. Flashy things like that always were.

Dash blinked. Or at least thought she did. She wasn't afraid. She knew she was falling, but she wasn't afraid.

The moon above was just too beautiful.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Fluttershy shivered beneath her table. She had long since stopped crying, but her sniffles had remained an ever constant sound amongst the skittering and whimpering of the multitudes of critters that-- in their own fear-- had taken to encircling her. She had welcomed their company-- squeezing the white rabbit she still held to her chest and whispered to him from time to time that everything was going to be okay.

The sounds of the storm had passed. Now, she only heard the occasional howl of wind around her tossed about home-- who's windows were all broken. Who's roof was most assuredly ripped away from the god-awful sounds that had come from upstairs. Fluttershy hadn't at any point opened her eyes since she crawled beneath this table. She may have tried at one point, but quickly found that she could not.

The eeriy silence that came from the boom from earlier didn't make her feel any better. It made her feel worse. Worse because, even though she knew that sound like the back of her hoof, she was still hiding here. Shaking. Sobbing. Holding onto Angel like he was the only thing keeping her from being sucked away by the rolling storm-- all while her best, oldest friend was out there. Protecting her. Protecting all of them.

Fluttershy was weak. So, so pitifully weak. She'd had her moments where her friend's lives depended on her and she came to their rescue with a burst of bravery she could never explain, but what of that now? The sounds, the feel, the power of this storm. It'd frozen her. It made her abandon all her friends. Abandon those animals outside that still needed her help earlier.

How.. pathetic..

Bang bang bang!

The three heavy knocks against her door made her curl up tighter with a loud whimper-- briefly feeling Angel give a squeeze in protest. The animals all around them jumped up and started making the most noise they could, some even running around the room.

“Fluttershy!” The voice of Pinkie yelled from outside her battered door. “Fluttershy please tell me you're in there!”

At once, her eyes opened-- her head shot up until it hit against the bottom of the table and knocked a family of squirrels from atop it. “P-P-Pinkie P-Pie..?”

No sound came from outside for a few moments..

“Hiiyah!”

The door burst in on itself-- kicked off it's hindges by the hoof of that crazy pink pony herself-- who looked downright vicious as she posed in her one legged kick. In she trotted, as multitudes of animals poured past her in a blitz to freedom-- causing none other than Rarity to shriek like a proper lady as she was no doubt trampled in their wake.

Pinkie's eyes fell on her after just a second of scanning the room, and a massive smile spread across her face, “Fluttershy!”

It took Fluttershy all but two or three seconds of staring at her friend before she scampered out from underneath her furniture (kicking it over in the process) and leaping through the air into the party pony's arms. Digging her snout into her friend's mane. And bawled like she'd never bawled before.

Pinkie managed to keep her footing, and wrapped her forearms around her tight. Squeezing her back and nuzzling against her cheek. Fluttershy felt everything flood from her in a wave of emotion that barely kept the shy pony from fainting.

“It's okay..” Pinkie soothed her, murmuring against her ear. Fluttershy didn't doubt her for a second.

Rarity appeared in her ruined doorway after a moment, covered in mud with her hair looking frazzled-- the occasional animal print stamped upon her flank. “D-Dear me.. That.. was not what I was expecting when you kicked in the door..”

Fluttershy shook from a sob, releasing Pinkie and dashing over to grab the dirty and mud coated priss pony up in just as tight a hug-- renewing her sobs with an impassioned vigor. Rarity was undoubtedly taken by surprise, but after receiving a simple smile from Pinkie Pie in answer of her confused look, she wrapped her dirty, disgusting forelegs around her friend and held her in much the same way.

“Y-You came for m-me..”

Rarity's sweet voice was against her ear without a moment's hesitation, “Of course we did..”

The feel of the earth pony behind her, wrapping her arms around the two of them only made Fluttershy feel even better..

“You're out friend, silly. Ain't no storm gonna keep us from coming to save you.”

Fluttershy could only smile, smile against Rarity's purple mane as she sniffled and gradually eased the tighter than tight hug she had around her friend. Her best of friends.

“We're taking you back to the library. It's safer there. Spike is waiting for us.”

“But..” Her timid voice came forward, and she instantly felt her cheeks warm because of it. “What about my animals..?”

Pinkie Pie hopped over to the door, glancing outside-- from left to right. “They've run off.. I'm sorry.. I didn't know you had them all inside.”

Rarity cut in before Fluttershy even had a moment to utter a gasp. “They'll be fine dear. It's you we're worried about. It looks like one of those tornadoes came right through this place.”

Fluttershy blinked, “Tornadoes..?” She'd never heard of such a thing..

“Don't worry about it. We'll fill you in when we get to the library.” Rarity leaned out of their hug after one last squeeze, stepping back over to the doorway to squeeze past Pinkie Pie.

Fluttershy swallowed, and nearly jumped out of her skin as the familiar weight of Angel Bunny landed upon her back, squeezing against her pink maned neck.

“Twilight send us to get you while she went to get Dashie and Applejack out at the farm!”

“Rainbow!” Fluttershy's eyes widened, glancing up at the sky-- the circle of clear blue expanse confirming what she thought. “Is she okay?”

Rarity glanced back, standing in the middle of the ruined yard. Cages, ripped up mesh fences, even the chicken coupes. Everything was torn to pieces and scattered everywhere. At the thought of Rainbow and Applejack being in danger though, it hardly phased her.

“We're sure she is, but we won't know until Twilight returns. But we have to hurry. The storm isn't over!”

Fluttershy finally stepped off her stoop-- taking light steps instead of flying. She didn't think her wings would work right now even if she tried.

“O-Okay..” She muttered, glancing down..

She felt Pinkie Pie brush against her side as she passed by, giggling softly. “The sooner we get there, the sooner we can find out what amazing thing Dash did to save the day!”

In the back of her mind, she didn't feel nearly as happy as Pinkie Pie sounded-- but Fluttershy looked up and forced a smile, feeling infinitely better in the company of her friends. She opened her mouth to say something, but it caught in the back of her throat as another boom-- this time multitudes louder-- rippled out through the trees. Nearly scaring all three ponies to death.

“W-What the hay was that!?” Rarity was glancing in all directions, looking like she was about to kick something.

Pinkie spotted it first. “The sky!”

They all looked up, and were greeted by the most amazing display of celestial magic they'd ever seen. Across the dark clouded sky, a single wave of twilight spread and wiped the gray away. It came from the north and spread over so fast that it only lasted a few moments-- but those moments took the breath out of Fluttershy. She found her voice only when the moon revealed itself. Bright and clear and full. Seemingly brighter than she'd ever seen it before.

The three of them stood there in shock for the next minute. It wasn't until Rarity snapped out of it long enough to mention the lack of the clouds. The lack of anything but a peaceful, calming wind.

The storm was gone.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Twilight nearly fell as she ran through another puddle-- the bright moonlight certainly not to blame. She was panting, and with every second that past she could only push herself to gallop faster. She left the town on the north road, and was following it ever since-- even to parts where the torrential rainwater had nearly washed out the road.

It wasn't until she was nearly three quarters of the way to Sweet Apple Acres before she stopped, but not because she needed to catch her breath. The sky had literally exploded into night. The change came so suddenly and so fast that Twilight had nearly screamed as darkness swarmed her-- instantly making her think of the dark monsters that were still appearing on the horizon.

But, she watched instead as this wave of magical nightfall washed over Ponyville's landscape and demolished the massive cloud formations, showering everything arguably the brightest full moon in recent history. In fact, the moon almost seemed close enough to touch. There was little to discern between the natural sunlight and this moonlight beyond the pale color.

The shock had only lasted long enough for Twilight to determine she was not about to die before she sprinted off again, spotting the hills of Sweet Apple Acres just beyond the next few bends. The closer she got, the more damage she saw. Trees were uprooted, fences were missing or in shambles, cobblestone bridges were collapsed in the river they spanned. It wasn't until she started finding apples-- dozens of them-- that the true extent of the farm's damage began to register in her mind.

She climbed to the top of one last hill, and froze in complete shock. Stretched out before her was the childhood home of one of her dearest friends. And there was little left of it to recognize. From one side of the valley to the other was covered in a sea of downed apple trees. Stretches of roots and debris from farm equipment and buildings filled in the gaps. But what shocked her the most was the farmhouse. Or lack there of.

It was nothing but a large pile of rubble that only partially reflected the once impressive frame of the Apple home. Twilight didn't spend too long studying it from afar. She took flight, running faster despite her lack of breath-- all knowledge of pacing oneself going out the window as she quickly ran through the non-existent entryway of the farm and up the hill to Applejack's former home.

“A-Applejack!? Rainbow!?” She called, her eyes glancing everywhere-- head turning this way and that. “Can anypony hear me!?”

She galloped around the frame of the house, looking for any signs of any life, her horn flaring up as she built magic. She carefully climbed up atop the side of the rubble aimed her horn downward. Sweeping it across the house from one end to the next.

There wasn't any sign of anything... until..

With a start, she canceled the magic and leaped down onto the ground. Spiriting herself around the opposite side of the house until she reached a modestly large pile of debris-- complete with a massive trunk from a fallen tree resting atop it.

“Hold on!” She yelled, before her horn flared to life. The tree, planks, and other assortments of damaged farmhouse pieces glowed and radiated a purple aura which only intensified as she lifted the nearly five hundred pound apple tree just enough to roll it off to the side. The rest of the debris followed in short order, much easier to throw across the yard in groups.

She was just about done when the massive cellar door thrust itself open, and the eldest Apple sibling emerged with a sharp whinnie. The family dog went leaping from inside too-- scampering off behind the house somewhere in a made barking dash.

“Big Macintosh!” Twilight nearly felt her body shudder with relief. “A-Are you--”

Quick behind him came Apple Bloom, safely atop her big sister Applejack who, despite sporting a small bump on the head and a bit of blood across her brow, looked perfectly alright.

“Twilight!” She nearly screamed, her face turning from shock to elation as she leaped down the hill towards her friend. “I don't know what the buckin' hay is goin' on but am I -ever- glad to see you of all ponies!”

Twilight nearly cried, but she laughed. She laughed happily. “You.. have no idea how happy I am to see you..”

But the smile was gone from Applejack's face by then-- instead, she was looking over Twilight's shoulder. At the downed trees. At the expanse of down trees. Then at her home. The apple family home that had been passed down to her from her Granny Smith.

“W-Wha... What.. Oh.. my word...”

Twilight could see her heart break. She could see that Big Mac's already had. He was standing up near the cellar door. Or, really, he'd sat back on his flank. Staring across the pastures and fields and orchard. At what used to be their farm.

“A-Applejack..” Apple Bloom was every bit as shocked, looking upon their home with the saddest eyes Twilight had ever seen curse her cute filly face. “What happened to our home..?”

The last thing in the world Twilight wanted to do was say anything during the family's time of grief-- but she brushed the uncomfortable feeling to the back of her mind. There was something more important than their farm.

“Applejack. I know this is a shock, but you need to tell me if you saw Rainbow Dash.”

At first she thought the earth pony didn't hear her, but with a blink of her tear filled green eyes, Applejack rounded on her in shock. “R-Rainbow?”

Twilight nodded, pointing up into the moonlit sky. “She came out here to warn you, and to stop the storm as best she could. I was in contact with her thanks to a mind link spell, but I lost her when she used her Rainboom to stop the tornadoes.”

Confusion was evident on Applejack's face-- no doubt she didn't know what in tarnation a tornado was-- but the concern dawned on her within seconds. If a storm could do this to her farm, what could it do to a pegasus?

“I-I saw her.. Just before we went inside.” She stammered, glancing about. “I.. I don't know where.. I can't recognize anything anymore--”

“The northeast.”

The two turned their gazes to Big Macintosh, who to their horror was... crying. He was staring across at his farm, and silently crying harder than Applejack would ever think capable of her brother.

“Applejack saw her to the northeast.”

Twilight swallowed. “T-Then that's where I'm going..” She stepped closer to the blond maned pony and gave her a soft nuzzle against the foreleg. Snapping her from a shaking, tear filled trance. “Applejack.. I need your help.. I don't know where Rainbow is, and I can't cover all of the farm on my own.”

Applejack stared at her for a moment, and Twilight almost had to write her off as in shock before she finally answered. Blinking her eyes of her tears as focus returned. “O-Of course.. Of course Twilight.” She glanced over her shoulder and plucked Apple Bloom and set her onto the ground. “I'll go north. Big Mac will take the northwest.”

Behind her, the work horse gave no indication he heard his sister. He was deaf to the world.

“Alright.” Twilight sighed, relieved she reached her friend. “If you find her, yell. I'll do the same. We'll meet her in ten minutes if we don't find anything.”

Applejack nodded, looking down at her sister. “Don't move from this spot, okay sugarcube?”

Her sister merely nodded, tears spilling down her cheeks..

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

They split up. Twilight went scampering off to the northeast while she went and muttered to her brother-- who only acknowledged her with a blink and a shaky sobbing sigh. She wanted to beg him to hang in there. At least until they found Rainbow. But he didn't budge-- and she didn't have it in her to try and make him.

She left her siblings at the ruins of their former home-- and stumbled her way northward. Towards where trees used to roam as far as the eye could see. Now? It was flat. Flat and covered in parts of her farm. Parts of her orchard. The lumps of trees blended together in the pale moonlight.. and she didn't even have enough sense in her to question just why it was full on dark at no later than five in the afternoon.

Everything was a blur at this point. She and her siblings cowered in their cellar until they felt like the world was about to collapse on them. The infernal wind and roar of what had to be a hundred dragons filled their ears and drove them to the point of screaming each others' names as the held on for dear life. She heard Apple Bloom begging for forgiveness for their earlier argument, heard Big Macintosh telling the two of them how much he loved them. She didn't even remember what she was saying. She briefly remembered asking Granny Smith to look after them.

She wasn't sure when she was hit in the head by something, but the cellar was full of unused and rusting tools. No doubt something walloped her good, but it barely hurt. She was stepping over limbs of her fallen trees, skirting around the lengths of her home that had been carried hundreds of yards from where it used to be. -That- hurt.

And to top it off.. Rainbow was out here.

“R-Rainbooow!” She yelled, briefly hearing Twilight do the same elsewhere. “Rainbow...! Darlin' are you out here!?” She was sobbing as she walked. She must of looked so pitiful.

What was going to happen now? They were homeless. Their livelihood was in pieces and she was struggling to keep walking across it as she searched for her possibly dead friend. A friend she valued so much more than just the mere friend label. She struggled to keep from thinking the worse, but every step and every sight she came across made her question the unthinkable.

She miss-stepped from a downed log and took a spill into the mud-- knocking the wind from her mid sob, which made it all the harder to stand. So she didn't. She laid there for almost a minute-- wheezing and coughing, sobbing and crying. Wanting nothing more than to curl into a ball.

But she couldn't. So she pushed herself to her hooves.

Visions of the past year flashed through her mind. Of the night at the Gala, of their return back to Ponyville. Of her Granny's health taking a turn for the worse. Of her confession to Rainbow. Of Rainbow's sweet and kind-hearted rejection. Their friendship stagnating until her Granny's passing. When they shared that one night she'd never forget.

“F-For Celestia's sake Rainbow-- Where are you!?”

She stopped atop a small hill, surrounded by a sea of fallen trees. From the left the right. It all looked the same. There were no defining features. Something had come through and flattened everything into the same featureless terrain for as far as the eye could see.

She was about to turn around, to return to her shell shocked brother and crying sister at their ruined home, when something caught her eye.

Nearly twenty yards straight ahead of her, one thing stood out against the pale light. From beneath a pile of shattered timber outstretched a blue wing. It's feathers marred and tussled, streaks of dark black running down it's length like rivers. It moved with the softest gust of wind, as if waving at her.

All at once, Applejack's world truly shattered.

Chapter 4

The panic in Applejack's voice disturbed her the most. Dropping the large pile of severed tree limbs by simply cutting the magic that flowed from her horn, Twilight turned and immediately dashed up and over the thick trunks of trees in mad gallop to an open area some fifty yards away from where she'd been searching. Coming up upon her apple gathering friend that was currently desperately digging into a pile of debris. A pile of debris with a single outstretched wing smeared with blood and tufts of missing feathers.

The unicorn froze in place, staring at the broken wing in stunned horror.

“Oh Celestia.. no..”

Applejack rounded on her at the sound of her voice, her pupils like dots in her tear filled eyes-- a look that would sear into Twilight's mind forever.

“D-Don't just stand there Twi-- Do something!”

The shock faded, and with a flare of her horn the top layer of limbs that were too heavy for Applejack to kick away on her own glowed that magical hue and lifted up quickly but carefully-- then tossed themselves feet away to expose more of the pegasus beneath them. Twilight had to move closer, skidding in beside AJ, who still dug around the mud encrusted, motionless body of their shared friend.

“D-Darnit n-no! No NO NO! Rainbow!” Her hooves shook the blue maned pony, Applejack's screams ringing into the otherwise silent wasteland.

Twilight had to do something. “Let me get her out!”

She had tried to keep herself calm, but her voice betrayed her as she wrapped her forelegs around the panicking and sobbing Applejack-- forcefully pushing her away. Inadvertently sending her falling back upon her flank, skidding down into a small pile of leaves and timber with nothing more than an interrupted sob of misery.

“O-Oh god..” Applejack just looked up at her, her face mirroring some sort of look of complete disbelief.

Twilight couldn't focus on that now. Or even apologize. Her attention spun back to Rainbow-- who was still half buried under wreckage-- propped upon her side with her one injured wing sticking nearly straight into the air. Held in place by.. by..

“Applejack..” She muttered, unable to look away.. “G-Go to Ponyville. Get Nurse Redheart or Tenderheart. Make sure they bring a unicorn doctor.” A sweep of her horn scattered away more debris, causing Rainbow's body to shift in the slightest. Her wing, bent at an... awkward angle, fell against her flank with a wet slap.

“I-Is.. Is she--”

“GO. Now!” Twilight screamed. She didn't mean to. She just did.

Applejack recoiled, her breath catching in her throat-- but she skidded back, crawling away from the pair before spinning around, kicking timber and dirt behind her as she took to her hooves and galloped faster than she ever had before back towards the farm. Back towards Ponyville.

Twilight was alone now. Alone with Rainbow Dash.

“R-Rainbow...?”

She knelt besides her broken friend, examining her closer in the pale light of the mood. Her coat was marred with mud, nearly from her head to her hooves, and her mane and tail had lost most all their color. Matted with dirt. Her face was laying against the ground-- pushed into the mud. Twilight felt sick-- but her horn flared and she gently cupped Rainbow's cheek as gently as she could. Lifting her face from the dirty muck.

Her eyes were closed. A dark mark was across the top of her muzzle, up beneath where her normally bright bangs hung over her face-- and something other than mud smeared itself down across her cheek. But there was more coming from her mouth. A dark black in this unnatural moonlight, setting itself apart from the dirt.

Rainbow didn't move on her own accord during any of this.. and for a moment, Twilight didn't think she was breathing.

Not like this Rainbow Dash. Don't let it be like this.

She moved till she was nearly right atop her friend, lowering her horn and sweeping it across her body in a lazy arch-- sending the wall of her magic coursing through her body in a single motion that flowed from her head to her flanks and back again. She stopped on her chest, focusing with intent. Listening and waiting.

There was a soft tha-thump. Weak, faint, and nearly inaudible. But with a sudden rush of relief, Twilight realized that-- somehow-- her friend was still alive.

“Hang in there sweetie..” She brushed Rainbow's face with the will of her magic-- even as she swung her horn down her body. Examining what lay beneath the surface.

Her lungs were inactive. One was filled with what Twilight could only assume was blood. The other..

“O-Oh my god Rainbow.” She focused, pulling her friend as carefully as she could up from the bed of wood she lay upon-- using her magic to grasp the thick branch that was stuck.. stuck between her ribs..

Swiftly, as carefully as she could manage, it was removed. Rainbow's heart skipped a beat-- Twilight felt the slightest twitch. Nothing else happened.

She ran her magical aura down her body once again. Looking for anything else. Nothing but surface wounds. Her underside was bleeding heavily, but what was endangering her more was on the inside. As nasty as things looked on the outer layer. Particularly with her wings..

“Rainbow..” She muttered, looking up to her friend's face. She looked like she was merely sleeping. Her mouth only parted. But oozing blood.

But Twilight couldn't lose herself on these things. She had to remain analytical. To keep her calm. To not lose herself to the pulls of her heart to just scream and beg for Rainbow to return, good as new. It all rested on her shoulders. She would do this.

Twilight focused, staring deeply into her friend.. “Dash.. I want you to stay with me now.”

She prayed silently that, in whatever state Rainbow was in, she could hear her thoughts. That their spell was still between them. A moment later, the briefest flicker of activity fluttered across Twilight's subconscious. Rainbow acknowledged her, whether she knew it or not.

“That'a girl Rainbow.. You hang on to my voice, you hear me?”

Her eyes fell back upon her chest, and her magic centered on it again-- fishing for her lungs. Encasing the one that had sustained the most damage. She felt it's perimeter. The ruptured and torn muscle.

Twilight's knowledge of healing arts were limited. She'd practiced on hurt animals before, in the royal gardens in Canterlot. When she got old enough and more experienced, she occasionally helped the rare injured foal that had fallen and scuffed a leg, or suffered a bruising from a bit of rough play. Never once had she gone this far-- or ever had to. She tried to remember the lessons Celestia had tutored her in. Telling her she hoped she never had face a situation in which these abilities would have to be used.

With a deep breath, Twilight began to case her magical spell. Her eyes shut, but she focused her sight through her magic. She watched through her mind's eye as her aura encased the organ within her friend's body. Forming a perfect cast in which to give Twilight an image of what she was working with. The damage was severe-- too severe for Twilight to reasonably fix before that faint heartbeat would beat it's last. She flowed her magic to the other, feeling it for damage. There was bruising-- and the lung was full of exactly what Twilight expected-- but it was a more reasonable fix.

She swallowed, pushing her magic through the thin walls and 'gripped' the fluid within. With a grimace, she did exactly what she had to do.

Rainbow's body shifted almost unnoticably as a trickle of thick crimson red poured from her mouth. Twilight couldn't see it, but she shuddered at the sound alone. It made her want to wrench-- and she was almost positive that the only reason she would not was the solid knot that had formed in her chest.

“Th-There we go..”

The lung drained, Twilight returned to it's lining-- feeling the bruised and battered walls until she was sure she'd found the bleeding. Her magic seeped into the tissue, and with a rush of power she felt the muscle respond. Warmth flooded through Rainbow's chest, and the dullest of glows radiated from under her blue fur as Twilight knitted her lung as best she knew how.

By the time she was finished, she nearly tottered over-- only catching herself by closing her mind's eye and opening her real ones. She looked down to see the glow fade, and turned her gaze to the pegasus' face.

Rainbow still wasn't breathing.

“Breath for me.”

There wasn't an answer. Just the feeling of something beneath the surface. It seemed to only acknowledge her presence. But for Twilight, that seemed like all she could expect of her, giving the circumstances. Rainbow wasn't there. At least not in whole.

But the soft beat of her heart had grown dimmer. There were more abnormal beats. Weak and faded, and Twilight's own heart responded by beating it's hardest in her life right within her own chest.

“Dash, don't you dare. Not now.”

She looked down, her magic searing through her horn and back into her filly friend's chest-- searching for her repaired lung. She seized upon it's functions with magic, feeling herself drained almost instantly. It took a lot just to control this one thing on a pony. Even she had her limits, she realized.

She -made- Rainbow Dash take a breath. Expanding the lung and forcing the unconscious filly to suck in air past her blood filled mouth. Rainbow made a sick noise, and Twilight winced in mental agony. The exhale was no better.

Still, her friend did not react. The heartbeats began to dwindle.

“Dash..”

Dash's spark was fading. That magical signature that represented life. Twilight watched as it flickered like a candle's flame in the breeze.

“Stay -with- me..”

The fluttered motions of her mind slowly stopped as well. It only pushed against her voice for a moment more before it, too, flickered.

Then Rainbow's heart stopped beating.

“Bucking hay Dash, no!”

Twilight leaped over her friend, her hooves all four spreading out till she was hovering over her whole crumpled body. There wasn't time to be subtle about it-- she pulled the lifeless pegasus over so she rolled upon her back. Upon those broken wings. Her head limply turning towards the sky.

“Come back!” She screamed it, both in her head and out loud-- her horn bursting with light as she flooded her with everything her magical abilities could give.

No longer did she focus on her lungs or her heart, she touched and melded into everything she could find. The tendrils of her being coiled around Dash's spine, seizing upon the shattered vertebrae and nerves that would've left her friend paralyzed for life. Her essence flowed through the puncture between her rib-- encasing the wound with an insulating casting that connected destroyed and ripped muscle and skin. The warm aura encircled that heart. That wonderful heart, which lay motionless within her chest-- slowly losing it's warmth.

Twilight Sparkle poured her all into this. She filled Rainbow with every fiber of her magic until her mind's eye simply reflected a brilliant shape of her friend back to her-- flowing with light and power that surprised even Twilight during her panic and desperation. She did not fear for herself. Of crossing her limit. Loyalty meant something to Dash. It meant something to Twilight too.

With only last breath, she cast her spell, and the light that burst from her horn could be seen from Sweet Apple Acres all the way across the hills halfway to Ponyville.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Applejack didn't slow even as her lungs burned and felt like they would burst within her body. She kept moving, her hooves beating against the battered earth as she left the road and passed through the gate of her former farm-- the trio of ponies behind her panting for breath. They crossed the house, where Apple Bloom was sat upon their front porch, watching with wide and painfully confused eyes as her big sister ran past with the nurse sisters and Docter Lighthorn behind her.

Even Big Macintosh, torn from his shock by the flash of light just minutes prior, turned and watched in confusion as they sprinted off across the remains of his farm. After a moment, he followed. Apple Bloom did not.

AJ was almost afraid she would be lost in this featureless range-- scampering as she was over logs and torn up earth. But above them the moon began to wane. It drifted across the sky faster than natural. It even faded in distance, moving back to give way to the coming of the sun. A second dawn.

Before the morning sky would even part the hills surrounding them, Applejack crested the mound of debris where her friends should be-- but what she found shocked her. The three other ponies stumbled to a stop next to her as well, eyes scanning around until they too found what Applejack's eyes were frozen on.

In the small pit of dug out timber laid the love of Applejack's eye-- upon her back with her wings blooded and marred beneath her like torn feathered blankets. Her front was covered in drying blood, but her chest rose and fell in strong, but struggling gasps for breath. Next to her lay Twilight Sparkle. Flopped upon her side like she'd just... keeled over. Unmoving.

Before Applejack could even react, the two nurses and the one doctor leaped into action. Moving swiftly to the two downed ponies. Even as they surrounded them, AJ just stood there. Unsure what had happened-- unmoving as even her brother stepped up beside her. Visibly shaken at the sight.

“Applejack..” He muttered, his eyes regaining their life as the sun finally shined upon them. “What did Twilight do?”

AJ didn't know. How could she? She watched as Lighthorn flashed a stretcher in from out of nowhere-- his assistant, Nurse Redheart, tenderly cupping Rainbow's head in her hooves. Checking her vitals with careful tenderness. The smile that blossomed across her face made Applejack's breath catch in her throat-- a shaky sob rocking her shoulders.

“S-She saved her.”

She watched as Nurse Tenderheart did the same to the unconcios unicorn. Who, besides from looking dirty and soaking wet, looked like she was sleeping as peaceful as anypony would be. Cradled in the earth pony's lap.

“She saved Rainbow Dash.”

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

“Oh my goodness-- Applejack!”

Applejack's eyes opened, her head snapping up from where she had dozed off to find Rarity upon her in an instant-- squeezing her in a tight hug that almost forced the air from her already sore lungs. Behind the unicorn stood the ever cheerful looking pony Pinkie Pie, and the smiling and just as happy looking Fluttershy.

“Girls..” AJ could feel the happiness bubble up inside her as well, seeing her friends all safe and sound. She didn't fight the smile that spread across her face as she returned the hug from Rarity ten fold. Squeezing that prissy uppity unicorn tight. “I can't tell y'all how glad I am to see ya..”

“We came as soon as we heard you and the others were here. The whole -town- is in a panic!” Rarity wheezed. “A-Almost everypony is gathered in the square, waiting on official word from the mayor.”

“Everypony except us, that is.” Pinkie Pie bounced over, taking over for Rarity the moment she finally pulled away. Actually returning the force of Applejack's hug. “Not like we'd leave you three sitting here all my yourselves!”

Applejack laughed. She never thought she'd be so happy to hear Pinkie Pie's voice again in her life.

“O-Oh Applejack..” Fluttershy stepped up, looking at her with those worried and caring eyes she always did. “Your head..”

AJ's eyes glanced up as if to look at her own forehead-- where a sizable bandage covered the scratch from earlier. “Sugarcube, this ain't a thing. It'd take much more than a little bump on the noggin' to do anything to this pony.”

Pinkie Pie giggled happily, “I'd say! This is Applejack we're talking about here, remember?”

Rarity smiled along with them, “Well, she most certainly has a hard head. That's nothing new.”

On other occasions Applejack would've been slightly insulted. For now, though, she just laughed. Leaning back into her seat. “I'm just glad to see everypony's okay.”

Fluttershy spoke up again, her smile never truly having returned. “But not Twilight and Rainbow.. right?”

“Oh.. Yes.. Are they still being seen to darling?”

“Yeah, where's Dashie? I need to know about that Sonic Rainboom she pulled off today!”

Applejack's eyes drifted to the side, towards the hallway leading further into the hospital. Where her friends were, no doubt.

“Twilight's alright. Sleepin', somethin' like a magical coma-- so the doctor says. S'what happens when--”

“Unicorns overuse their magic.” Rarity finished, breathing a sigh of relief. “Nothing serious-- except for cases with old mares. A unicorn of Twilight's caliber should be up and around in a few short hours!”

Applejack nodded.. still averting her gaze.

“Rainbow... Rainbow's pretty bad.”

She couldn't bring herself to look upon any of them right then. She could hear enough to know that Fluttershy had gasped-- and Pinkie Pie's smile cracked into a shocked expression of un-Pinkie-ness that would chill anypony's heart. Rarity was the only one that stayed composed.

“Is it.. life threatening?”

AJ blinked, twisting in her chair. Finally looking back at her friends. “I don't see how it couldn't be, sugarcube.. I don't rightly know what's happenin' back there. Twilight did somethin' after we found her. Big Macintosh said that a flash of light like you wouldn't believe shot up from the middle of the orchard just before I got back with the doctor. But before I left to get them..”

She looked down..

“... I thought Rainbow was dead.”

Rarity's comforting hoof lay upon her shoulder, and Applejack looked up sadly to meet those sympathetic eyes.

“But she's not.”

Pinkie Pie put both her front hooves down. “Of course Dashie's not dead. Can you imagine? Dash? Beaten by -weather-?”

Fluttershy nodded, moving to Applejack's side to give her cheek a soft nuzzle. One AJ returned graciously with a smile. “That doesn't sound like the Rainbow Dash I know...”

“When are we going to be able to see her?” Rarity turned and looked around for the doctor. “Just imagine the poor dear, waking up in some cold hospital room in such a state. All alone. She needs her friends with her!”

Applejack had to agree with her there, but there was nothin' doin' about that. Applejack had insisted on being with at least one of her two friends when they first arrived, but neither the nurses or the doctor budged an inch on that.

“I'm sure they'll let us in when they can.” Applejack slipped out of the chair and stretched her sore legs. She briefly wondered how long she'd been there. A glance outside proved it was night time. Natural night time.

She blinked, “Say.. Has anypony gotten word on what the hay happened today?”

Rarity turned back to her, looking similarly confused. “No.. I'd imagine that's why everypony is going to the mayor right now. Waiting on some sort of official decree.”

Pinkie rolled her eyes. “Some ponies were saying that it was Princess Luna coming back for round two.” Pinkie actually sounded angry, Applejack noted. “Can you believe that? Suspecting poor Luna just because of that whole 'Nightmare Moon' thing.”

“Well..” Fluttershy began, shuffling her front leg over the other.. “Can.. we really rule that out..? I mean, you all saw the night sky in the middle of the day..”

Applejack didn't even get a chance to weigh her opinion before Rarity stepped in.

“It wasn't that. At least, I don't think it was. Twilight Sparkle received that letter from the Princess, remember? Shortly before the storm arrived.” Applejack could only blink in confusion-- but Pinkie Pie nodded excitedly. “It said that Princess Luna would arrive 'as soon as she could be spared'. Her night sky disrupted the rest of the storm, too.”

Applejack hummed in thought, her eyes turning down to the white pale tile of the floor. That certainly made a little sense as to why there were two sunrises in a single day. And why the storm was so quick to end.

“Applejack.” Fluttershy caught her attention, and she had to wonder if maybe she had been speaking to her already. “Do you.. want to go to the meeting?”

She was quick to shake her head. “Nothin' doin'. I ain't goin' nowhere till we get some word on Twilight and Rainbow's wellbein'.”

As if on cue, a deep voice cleared it's throat-- and Applejack turned to find the same doctor that'd rushed with her out to the farm standing just behind her. “Perhaps I can put some of your fears to rest then.”

Instantly her friends and her formed a tightly packed semi-circle around the front of the auburn coated unicorn, several questions rounding on him at once.

“Oh doctor, how are they?”

“Is Dashie alright?”

“Please, doc, tell me they're both goin' to be okay.”

He raised a hoof, which calmed Applejack only slightly. “They're both in stable conditions. In fact, Miss Sparkle is awake and asking for you all already.”

Bright smiles erupted from each of them-- with Pinkie Pie doing a little cheerful bounce in place.

“W-What about Rainbow Dash?” Fluttershy stepped forward, her smile fading almost as soon as it sprouted. “Is she awake? Can we see her too?”

The doctor only shook his head, offering a sympathetic smile. “I'm afraid we're keeping Miss Dash under magical sedation for the time being.” The worried looks that flashed across their faces were not hard to miss. “I assure you that she's fine, however. It's simply a precaution..”

Rarity was the first to question him.. “A precaution for what..? I thought you said she was fine?”

The averting of his eyes, even for a second, made Applejack's heart flutter. “What's wrong? What's wrong with Dash?”

“Please.” He began again, lifting the hoof up for silence once more. “I believe it best if you would all follow me to Miss Sparkle's room. That way, I can tell you all at once.”

He didn't waste a moment before he turned, gracefully, down the hall and began trotting without a word otherwise. Applejack briefly felt offended, wanting to shout and demand the information, but realized that it would probably be best to just move on. Rainbow was safe. Twilight was safe. That's all that mattered.

It only took a minute for them to reach the small hospital room-- and the doctor politely held the door open with a soft glow of his horn. Inside, the four ponies found just enough room for all of them to stand around a single bed-- a chair off to the side taken by a single, drowzy but still happy looking dragon.

Twilight Sparkle smiled weakly atop her large pillow, tucked securely and snugly underneath the thick comfortable looking blankets. “Girls! I'm so glad to see you.”

Before anypony could say otherwise, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie nearly leaped upon the bed, wrapping their hooves around the unicorn in a tight-- squealing embrace. Rarity herself stood awfully close to the bedside, her happiness radiating across her smiling face. Applejack herself waited at the end of the bed. Happy and smiling, but restraining herself out of respect for Twilight's condition.

Twilight herself didn't seem to mind tight hug one bit.

“When we heard you three were in the hospital ward, we thought the worst!” Rarity fussed, leaning up against the side of the bed with her hooves on the sheets. Applejack felt compelled to do the same-- just at the foot of the bed still.

“Not me!” Pinkie Pie yelled, grinning wildly. “I knew a storm wouldn't be able to keep ole Twilight Sparkle down!”

Twilight only smiled, seemingly elated just to have her friends surrounding her again. “Oh, I'm just fine. A bit tired is all.”

She certainly looked it. Her body was clean and markless from what AJ could see-- but her eyes betrayed her exhaustion. The unicorn looked wilted and in dire need of rest.

“A 'bit' tired nothin'. You look plum beat!” It would be up to Applejack to see to her friend getting some of that much needed rest. “We can mosey on back another time. There's always tomorrow.”

Before the disappointed faces of her friends could even really turn to her, the doctor once again cleared his throat. Focusing the attention of the room on him again.

“I agree that Miss Sparkle needs her rest, but I thought it best to inform you all of your other friend's condition at the same time.” A clipboard and quill were floating in the air beside him. Seemingly having appeared from nowhere. “As well as ask Miss Sparkle some questions about what happened.”

Twilight raised a brow, looking confused. “You mean.. Dash? I thought you told me she was fine.”

“She is.” He stated simply. “Stable and recovering. Under magical sedation.”

Twilight's confusion moved towards surprise. “Sedation? Why?”

Applejack was getting angry. Perhaps she was just overly excited from the day's events. Or maybe she was just naturally impatient. Either way, the aloof nature of this doctor was not doing anypony any favors.

“Miss Sparkle, the extent of Rainbow Dash's injuries were very apparent the moment my nurses and I arrived at Sweet Apple Acres. Given that you yourself had succumbed to a magical coma, I can assume you played a good hoof at stabilizing her condition till we could arrive.”

Eyes rounded upon her now, and Twilight managed to give a slightly uncomfortable grimace at the attention. “Erm.. Yes.. I'd imagine so.”

The doctor simply stared at her expectantly.

“I can make a few.. educated guesses, as to what Miss Dash's condition was when you found her.” The tip of the quill tapped against paper. Testing the ink. “It would be a great help if we could get your account of the incident. The extent of the damage and the areas you gave the greatest care to heal first, for starters.”

Twilight frowned-- glancing down at the sheets tucked up to just beneath her forelegs. “Well.. Once we found Dash, we uncovered her from the trees.” She glanced up to Applejack, who felt sympathetic-- of course. She didn't want to recall the scene anymore than Twilight, she was sure. “That's when I sent Applejack to get--”

“Yes yes, this is known already.” The doctor's agitation was easy to hear, and it drew more than just Applejack's angry gaze. “After she left. When you took to caring for Miss Dash. Where did you begin and how?”

The silence stretched for a few moments longer than the doctor seemed to like-- his impatient sigh matched with a tapping of his quill against his board.

“Miss Sparkle.. You're obviously a very gifted unicorn. The pride of the Princess herself. Your abilities are certainly to be admired, but the quality of Miss Dash's recovery is.. well.. phenomenal. That a pony with no focused medical training could pull of such a feat is, quite frankly, astounding. Unheard of.”

That seemed to be just about all Fluttershy could take herself, though she hardly sounded angry when she raised her head and muttered, “I-I don't know if Twilight is feeling up to..”

Twilight headed her off, however. “I don't remember.”

That seemed to surprise the doctor, who glanced up with a blink of surprise. “You don't remember?”

Twilight shook her head, her eyes slightly narrowed. “I don't. The only thing I remember was sending Applejack away, examining Rainbow and pulling... her.. out of the tree limbs.”

There was something Twilight wasn't saying, however. Her eyes flickering over towards Fluttershy. Maybe the others didn't catch it, but Applejack did. And so did the doctor.

“I.. see. So you remember.. nothing?”

Twilight seemed to think for a moment. Or maybe make a show of it. Applejack wasn't sure. “I.. remember.. clearing Rainbow's lung. And I remember Rainbow wasn't breathing. Then.. her heart stopped..”

Applejack felt a lump in her throat. She wasn't the only one feeling the uncomfortable weight of this conversation either. Fluttershy had lowered her head to the bed, looking close to being in tears. The rest were silent, their eyes thoughtful and worried.

“I remember turning her over, trying to do something, but.. then I was here.” She looked back up to the doctor. Staring back at him pointedly. “I'm sorry I can't be of any more help than that.”

The doctor stared back, before his quill suddenly wrote a few quick lines upon the clipboard before disappearing with a quick magical pop.

“It's no problem Miss Sparkle. Whatever you did surely saved your friend's life.” He offered a smile-- an obviously fake one, but a smile never the less. “I suppose that is all that is truly important here.”

Spike spoke up then-- reminding AJ that he was even here. “But.. What about the sedation? What's that all about?”

“The sedation.” The doctor began, his forced smile fading instantly. “Regardless of whatever magical spells Miss Sparkle used, Miss Dash was still in a dire state upon her arrival. Blood loss being one of the more stressing issues, but there was still substantial internal injuries that had to be tended to.”

Twilight's ears drooped.. “B-But.. I thought that--”

“That you healed her?” The doctor didn't really offer much in the sense of understanding or sympathy. “Yes. Essentially, you did. You saved her life, but there were injuries that you missed or didn't have the magical power to reach before you, yourself, succumbed to your exhaustion.

“A few partial fractures, bruising, and lacerations were left for us to take care of. Her wings were healed until we could safely bandage them to heal on their own. What's concerning us the most is her spinal injuries.”

Applejack head tilted.. “Spinal.. injuries?”

The stallion nodded. “One would've expected worse, but I believe we can thank Miss Sparkle for that. Despite that, there is a chance Miss Dash could be paralyzed.”

The gasps from the other girls registered faintly to Applejack's ears. She just felt sick. Knowing Rainbow was going to live was the best news she'd heard all day. Knowing the fate that might be awaiting her doused it.

“Dash.. Paralyzed..?” Twilight looked the most shocked, her eyes watering with tears unshed. “But I -saved- her..”

The doctor's horn was already opening the door for him-- his eyes sweeping across those in the room one last time. “Saved, yes. But every pony has their limits Miss Sparkle. Even you, I'm afraid.

“We'll know more in short time. The sedation spell should be wearing out in the next several hours, and a more comprehensive examination can take place. Then you should all be able to visit her at your leisure.”

He gave a bow, and with that, stepped from the room. Before anypony could say anything, Nurse Redheart stepped through the still open door-- offering them a -true- look of sympathy.

“I'm sorry dears, but Twilight Sparkle could do for some rest now. Perhaps you should all get to the square with the rest of the ponies?” She smiled, which eased Applejack's aching heart almost instantly.. “I'm sure a night of rest for everypony would do a world of good. You can all come back first thing in the morning.”

Pinkie Pie was the only one that resisted the idea, but Twilight agreed. With minimal protest, the group of friends said their good byes and gave the unicorn different degrees of hugs. When it was Applejack's turn, she squeezed Twilight's weak frame tight. Whispering a soft farewell. Twilight just smiled, looking worse for wear. The news was rather hard for her to accept, one would imagine. Applejack knew that feeling well.

Upon leaving the care center, Applejack politely excused herself from following the others to the town hall meeting. They protested lightly, but she just gave the excuse that her head was hurting her and that she needed to get back to Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom at the Ponyville Inn. The protests were immediately silenced, and another round of hugs occurred.

Walking alone through the dark and damp streets, Applejack's mind wandered. She briefly debated on turning around and going back to the meeting. Celestia knows she was curious as to what had happened, but as she thought about it, she really didn't have it in her to deal with anymore trauma today. Bad news was sure to come from it, and it could wait until the bright and sunny morning.

Those thoughts drifted to Twilight. To Rainbow. The two ponies of the day. An undying gratitude flowed through Applejack's core towards the unicorn. She'd taken charge where she, in her shock, had allowed all sense to rush out of her mind. In an entirely uncharacteristic panic. Of course, she'd lost her farm. She nearly lost her life. There were reasons.

She'd nearly lost Rainbow.

The sight of the broken pegasus rushed to the front of her mind, and the urge to be sick built inside her gut, but Applejack resisted it. She dove into the thoughts of the wild blue pony. This wasn't a time to push those thoughts back. She was alone, she was upset, and she wanted to think of her. Not of her limp and muddied frame surrounded by the remains of her farm, but of her smiling cocky face. Her flash of rainbow colors as she streaked across Ponyville's skies. A sight Applejack often saw while working out in her orchard.

A hard reality had hit her a long time ago. These thoughts didn't shock, appall her, or shame her. Those days had come and gone. Applejack had close to a year to get accustomed to them, and now she'd long since accepted that she was madly in love with a mare. With Rainbow Dash herself. That competitive show boating pegasus that never backed down and was always there when her friends needed her. That attraction that had, at first, confused her to no end. Now it was obvious and as easy to see as the stars in the sky.

She paused, standing on the street corner just outside of the brightly lit Ponyville Inn. Inside was a room for three, offered to them by the owner herself after hearing about the destruction of Sweet Apple Acres. Big Mac and Apple Bloom were undoubtedly inside. Perhaps already asleep. It'd been a long day after all.

But Applejack couldn't see herself sleeping. She turned, looking towards the rest of the mostly deserted town. She could go for a walk.

The thoughts and memories of Rainbow Dash tagged along.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

A gracious amount of time had been spent preparing for that day. Applejack had spent the majority of her week thinking about it, mulling it over in her mind, losing her nerve and regaining it shortly afterward. It got to the point that she couldn't even hide her nervousness from her own family-- with Apple Bloom shooting her weird looks and even Granny Smith giving her a strange glance at the morning table. Applejack had come up with the convenient excuse or two, before bowing out to take care of chores. It worked, for the most part. There wasn't any uncomfortable sit downs or revealing slip ups.

The Gala had been a few months ago now. Life in Ponyville was mostly returning to normal. The preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration were beginning to fill the thoughts of most ponies and the town was more than happy to accept the honor of hosting the festivities a second year in a row. The banners and fliers were being placed and arranged, the royal invitations were being sent out, and the businesses had all been preparing for the influx of traffic through the otherwise normally peaceful and quiet village.

So of course, this meant there was much to do for the Apple family as well. Princess Celestia had requested that Sweet Apple Acres single-hoofedly cater the entire official event. There was no end to the apple fritters, apple dumplings, apple pies and apple cake that had to be made. It was certainly not easy, especially with Granny Smith's declining health, but the pay was enough to see them through for the rest of the year, and Applejack was certainly all for earning good pay with good hard work. It also served as a fine distraction.

Applejack had come to the realization that she had long since fallen for somepony. Somepony that she'd been friends with for a while now, and only recently admitted to herself that they'd found their way into her heart. It was doable at first, to ignore and put these feelings aside while chastising herself over the presumed wrong or rightness of the situation, but in time these feelings expanded. These feelings grew to more than just the minor irritation on a lonely day or the pang of longing on an equally lonely night. What was just a crush had blossomed into much more than that, and Applejack was smart enough to know that it would never rightly go away until it was dealt with and dealt with properly. She was the Element of Honesty, after all.

So after a long day of baking, preparing all different manners of apple-delicious goods for the next days festival, Applejack took to wandering through the rows of her trees as the sky drifted into shades of violet that would normally of grabbed her attention and wowed her with it's beautiful show. But she was too busy in her own world. Too busy trying to talk herself out of this, of turning tail and running back home, swallowing her feelings for her like she always did.

But when Rainbow Dash descended from the sky, no less than a few meters from her, with that cheerful smile across her face that made Applejack's pride heart skip a beat-- it washed those worries away. It made her melt in place, staring at her friend who answered her impromptu message to meet her here at this precise hour for a not-so-precise reason.

“Applejack?” Rainbow's concern was genuine. “You wanted to meet me for something?”

“A-Ayep.” She would admit that she started out rocky. It wasn't easy for a gal like her to do something like this. “It's-- uh.. nothing too.. um.. important or nothin'. I didn't mean to worry you..”

Rainbow had brightened instantly, her smile redoubling across her face. “Oh, good. I was afraid you were upset or something.”

Upset at what, Applejack wouldn't be able to say. Upset that the pegasus had missed the weekly rain across the farm? Perhaps. But Rainbow could forget to coax rain across her crops for a month and it wouldn't change how she felt about her.

“Rainbow.. I just wanted you out here for a talk.” She felt herself smile, stepping up closer to the pegasus. Smelling the sky and rain that seemed to always be present about her. Then she moved along her side. “... Would you like to walk with me?”

There was a brief moment of hesitation in Rainbow, and her wings fluttered undoubtedly from the waver in Applejack's voice. But she had nodded, and turned closely beside her to walk in tow.

Sweet Apple Acres spread out before the both of them, and for a few minutes they simply trotted in silence. Rainbow stepped up beside her, keeping pace-- her eyes trained upwards at the few clouds in the sky that were painted arrays of blue and purple by the setting sun. Reminding Applejack of the colors in the filly's eyes.

“I always.. loved this time of day..” She found herself staring at her, but Rainbow's gaze didn't falter from the sky. “The sky's just seems to stretch forever..”

Dash nodded, and her eyes turned to her's now-- her smile never once wavering. “You should see it from up above sometime. Then it really does stretch forever.”

Applejack broke the stare before anything could come of it, clearing her throat with a shaky laugh, “Of course.. I think I'd rather just keep my hooves on the ground though. Much more at home here.”

“Hah. Of course you would be.” Rainbow's wings fluttered, and Applejack truly realized that there was so much different between them. “Maybe next time you guys come to Cloudsdale you can take a minute to appreciate the sunset.”

“Why in tarnation would I ever wanna go back up there?” She said it lightheartedly, with her head held high and a playful grin. “S'not like you need our support to win this year's Best Flier Competition. You can probably pull those Rainbooms of yours off in your sleep.”

Though Dash's wings flared with pride, her face betrayed her unease.. “Well.. It's nice, you know..? Having you girls there to cheer me on. I mean, Fluttershy is great and all-- like I said. But she's Fluttershy.”

She gave a nod, “Fluttershy is most definitely Fluttershy.”

“So, you gotta be there!” Back to that bold and cocky tune. “Not like you'd want to miss the show!”

Applejack laughed-- and it spread even to Rainbow, as the two leaned against one another as they moved on along. The sun was nearly below the hills by the time they slowed their pace. Before the last rays had disappeared, Applejack glanced up-- letting Rainbow speak while she just simply listened. But her mind atunned to a different train of thought, and she let herself fall behind in a complete stop.

“So then I told Pinkie Pie about how they make cloud topped muffins in Cloudsdale and she just would not--” Rainbow halted a short distance ahead, eyes not on the sky-- but on her. “Applejack?”

This was it..

“Have you ever been in love, Rainbow?”

She didn't have to look to see the confusion on Rainbow's face. It echoed in her voice a short moment later, and made the foundations of her nerves tremble.

“Uh.. Once.. Maybe twice..” She turned around, trotting back closer. Voice growing louder. “Why?”

She still couldn't bring herself to look away from the darkening sky. “What would you do if you loved somepony that you just... didn't feel like you had a shot at?”

Dash sat down upon her flank not far away, a sense of understanding coming to her voice.. “I guess this is what you really wanted to talk about, huh?” A short pause with no reply later, “I don't really know.. I guess I'd pony-up. Tell them how I felt--”

“And if it ruined your friendship?” She looked upon her now, at those confused but thoughtful violet eyes. “And you lost that pony forever?”

Rainbow blinked.. before allowing a sympathetic smile to cross her face. “Then they weren't really your friend to begin with, and never deserved the feelings you had for them.”

Applejack felt the tears coming. She didn't want to fight them, but she did. For now. It made her eyes burned, and had to look away from Rainbow in fear that the weariness would show.

“I-I wish I could be as brave as you sometimes sugarcube..”

There wasn't any boasting. Rainbow Dash just shook her head, casting her with that friendly and sympathetic gaze till the first of those held back tears ran down her cheek.

“Who's the lucky stallion, AJ?”

A sad smile spread across her lips-- and Applejack actually managed to chuckle. Just by closing her eyes, some more tears surfaced. She didn't care. She didn't want to hide her tears from anypony anymore.

“It ain't no stallion.” She looked dead into Rainbow Dash's eyes-- even as a confused look twisted at her smiling features.

“It's you.”

There was a moment of silence as Rainbow's face fell from confused to just plain.. shocked. Her eyes stared into Applejack's-- as if expecting her to suddenly break face and laugh. But she wasn't laughing. In fact, the tears began to build up as Dash just stood there. Staring at her. Like she was suddenly so different.

It didn't take much soul searching to see that Dash's mind was racing. Racing for the easiest way to smooth this situation over. The easiest way to spare Applejack the hurt feelings that were bubbling to the surface. The easiest way to tell her “no”.

“... W-Well.” Applejack couldn't keep her voice from breaking, turning to avoid that stare. “I think I messed up..”

Without a word further she turned to leave, wanting nothing more than to run back to the house and throw herself in bed and cry her eyes out. She barely got a step.

“A-Applejack, wait!”

She halted, but couldn't bring herself to turn around. Not to that.

“I'm sorry Rainbow.” She tried to make herself sound chipper, not as beaten as she felt, but it was difficult. “I should have known better than to just pile this all on you like it ain't a thing.”

She heard Rainbow approach, felt her brush against her flank-- and as she turned around, fully ready to fake a smile to mask her pain-- the blue pegasus had wrapped her forelegs around her neck, and pulled her tight.

“I'm sorry.”

Applejack blinked, her hot tears dripping upon Rainbow's shoulder. She felt her back legs go out, and her body slump against the ground-- pulled in tight against her friend's chest.. and she cried. Her arms came up, wrapped around her just as tight. She clung for dear life and sobbed.

“I'm so sorry..” Rainbow Dash rocked her sweetly, running her hooves up and down her back in the most soothing way she could-- and still AJ cried. She sobbed against that rainbow mane-- pouring it out in one long wail that made her shoulders heave and her body shudder. Her tears matted against her friend's coat-- but she didn't mind.

It wasn't until her crying began to subside that Rainbow dared speak beyond a soft whisper of comfort, her forelegs still cradling the sniffing, shaking earth pony delicately.

“I never knew you were..” She felt Rainbow tense-- obviously catching herself from saying something unintentionally insensitive. “.. attracted to fillies..”

Applejack sniffled, unwilling to let go yet. “No one does.. Not until now..”

The revelation made Rainbow squeeze her tighter-- and Applejack silently melted more into her arms. Just feeling how close Rainbow held her gave her hope that, even if she did not gain a lover, she did not lose a friend. A small silver lining.

“I.. just don't know what to say..” Rainbow whispered in her ear-- still softly stroking along her back.. “It doesn't make me think any less of you. You know that, right?”

Shaking, Applejack nodded-- but on the inside, she was aflame with uncertainty.

“I don't even want to know how hard it must have been for you to keep this a secret all this time..”

“So hard, Dash.” She allowed herself a grim smile-- burying her snout into her friend's mane for one last squeeze. “I-I can't even begin to tell you..”

The moment came where Dash finally pulled out of the hug-- her arms sliding between the two of them, but in a manner that was as gentle as she could be. Her sad smile met Applejack's tear smeared face, and Applejack was forced to look away. A hard blush already forming at her cheeks.

“I-I'm sorry.. I'm bawlin' like a little school filly, aren't I?” She cleared her throat, lifting a hoof to brush some of those tears away. “It.. was kind of hard to make m'self go through with all this..”

“I can imagine.” Dash attempted to inject some humor into her voice-- which didn't go unnoticed or unappreciated.

“AJ.. I'm not good with this sort of stuff.. I don't want to hurt you, even though I know it will..” Rainbow's voice oozed with guilt, and that alone was enough to make Applejack's eyes squeeze closed..

“I love you, but.. but I can't love you like that..”

It wasn't unexpected, so it didn't shatter her heart into a million pieces-- but Applejack still felt the pain course through her like a sudden electric shock. Rainbow's voice was so soft and tender that even she knew that she was trying to put as much into sensitizing this for her as possible. It helped the pain, but it certainly didn't stop it from coming.

“I know that you're probably regretting telling me now... I don't want you to.” Her hooves fell upon her shoulders, and Applejack opened her eyes to look into Rainbow's as they stared deep into her. “I'm happy that you would think of me like that.. You're one of the only ponies I know that I really worry about when it comes to how you think of me..”

Applejack blinked, and it was her turn to look confused. “W-What do you mean?”

Rainbow smiled in the middle of a sigh, shaking her head. “You're the only pony around that's even close to my level-- competitively. We like a lot of the same things, love to get our hooves dirty, and don't do all that frilly-froo-froo stuff all those other fillies do.”

Applejack realized that some of those were reasons why she, herself, had fallen for Dash in particular-- but her embarrassment told her it was best not to interrupt.

“A lot of the times I've wondered if you liked me at all.. I know we've butted heads once or twice, and I can be..” Rainbow hesitated. “.. kind of a jerk, sometimes.. But I've always wanted you to like me. More than most the other ponies..”

Applejack was surprised-- needless to say. She'd always felt the two had a lot in common, and were fitting rivals for each other, but she'd never noticed Dash's compulsive need to have her like her. That always just.. was.

“Sugarcube..”

Rainbow interrupted, “And all this time.. I never noticed you were hurting so bad.. I guess I was so afraid of losing you as a friend because of the way I act that I wasn't really paying attention to you at all.”

Now Rainbow looked like she was close to tears, and her hooves slipped from her shoulders slowly.. There was nothing but guilt etched across her face. Mixed in with her voice. A greater guilt than Applejack could have imagined.“I guess.. I've been a bad friend for you..”

Applejack wouldn't have that. “Now hold up.” Her hooves took one of Rainbows between them, holding it tight. “You've been a mighty fine friend Rainbow. It was me and my foolishness that kept somethin' like this from bein' dealt with a long time ago.”

“But--”

“But nothin'!” If there was any trace of that crying Applejack left in her, one wouldn't be able to see it. “It was how you acted that made you stand out to me. You don't take no for an answer, you don't back down, and you never give up-- least of all on your friends, and if that ain't something to be admired, I don't reckon I know what is.”

She continued, staring deep into those horizon colored eyes. Which stared right back, as lovingly as she would imagine Rainbow could. “You never had to push yourself on me to get me to like you, because.. Rainbow, I've loved you since plum near the first time I met you. It's embarrassin' to admit it like this, but it's true. And I'd know a thing or two about that, even if my track record speaks ill of me.”

“I'm glad I told you, and I feel all the more like a foal for believin' for a second you'd stop wantin' to be my friend just because I'm not into stallions and have a little crush on you.” Hardly little, but that wasn't the point.. “You're the Element of Loyalty for Pete's sake.. and the best friend a pony like me could ever ask for..”

Rainbow looked stunned, but her soft smile returned after a few seconds, and her other hoof laid upon the two the clutched it's twin.

“It don't matter one bit that you don't feel the same way I do or that you ain't into fillies. You needed to know the truth, and I done went and told you. I feel all kinds of better just knowin' you ain't offended. The last thing I would ever of wanted was to lose you, Rainbow Dash.”

“And you won't.” Rainbow sniffled herself-- a tear running from her eyes. “I swear, Applejack. You never will.”

Applejack couldn't help it. She surged forward and wrapped her forelegs around Dash in another hug-- one that she initiated and controlled. Squeezing the filly till she gave a laugh. Wrapping her arms around her in turn.

The two would stay there well into the night, relaxing against the trunk of one of the farm's largest apple trees. They talked about themselves, their secrets and their worries. In the end, Rainbow only left when sleep began calling for them both. With a warm goodbye, Rainbow took off with several beats of her wings and Applejack only watched her leave.

It wasn't the out come she would've wanted, but her tears had been shed-- and though her heart was aching, she renewed her hope that, one day, she'd be able to share with the others her secret. Regardless, she was glad she'd still have that particular pegasus to call a friend.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

You still love her, after all.

The inn was before her again, and it confused Applejack to no end for a few moments before she realized she had walked all the way around Ponyville and back. For a second, she wondered if the town was actually that small that she didn't notice or if she'd simply lost track of time. A glance up to the sky told her it was the latter.

She sighed, glancing over the multiple windows that had been lit up before-- but were now dimmed or completely devoid of light. No doubt Apple Bloom and Big Mac would be asleep by this point, writing her off as staying at the hospital or going to the town meeting. She'd simply tell them that she stayed with Twilight longer than she'd meant to. If they even bothered to ask. Something told her that they'd all be in foul moods over the next few days. Particularly her brother.

Never the less, the morning promised to be emotional. The thought of seeing Rainbow made her happy, but to see her potentially crippled for life? It was heartbreaking enough just to know what she went through.

A yawn interrupted her fretting, and she shook her head of her troubled thoughts. A nap at the hospital earlier had been all the rest she'd had that day. It was about time some real sleep was allowed to work it's magic. Celestia knows she could use it.

She crossed the street and went inside-- trying and ultimately failing to leave her worried thoughts at the door.

Chapter 5

“I don't want to."

"I know you don't, but I'm afraid 'not wanting to' doesn't get you off the hook that easy, hunny."

The pegasus filly stomped her front hooves down in defiance-- her face doing its best to look determined, unyielding, and angry all in one. But the flustered blush on her cheeks and the tears welling in her eyes gave away her pain and childish stubbornness with ease.

"W-Why do I even have to go!? I already know how to fly!"

"Of course you do!" The older, pink coated pegasus mare smiled at her daughter-- clopping closer despite the youngster's glare that was quickly falling apart. "But a mother knows what's best, don't you know? You have so much talent. You're not going to waste it here doing chores."

A look of horror crossed the little filly's face-- her little blue wings flaring out. "But.. I don't mind doing those things! I never have!"

"I know you don't." The mother's smile never wavered, but it was a sad smile all the same. "You've been a wonderful help for your mother these past few months. Cooking and cleaning and making my bed for me every morning. I don't know what I would've done without you."

"Then why..?" The fight was gone-- the young pony slipping down upon her flank, eyes wide and brimming with tears. Looking guilty, not betrayed. "Why are you sending me away..?"

The smile faded then, and the mare knelt down to pull her daughter into a tight hug-- which was returned with a fierce and passionate squeeze. A tender sob from the cyan coated filly muffled by her mother's equally cyan mane.

"I would never.. ever.. send you away.." She whispered, nuzzling into the little shaking filly's ear-- her eyes, closed as they were, let their own tears trail silently down her cheek. "I only want the world for my baby girl.. I want you to spread those wings and fly-- and not like just some pony, but like your mother did back in her day. Back when I still could."

The sobs didn't stop, but the mother remained strong. Cradling her filly. "You're an amazing young girl, and you're going to grow and become even more amazing every day. I'd never forgive myself if I didn't give you every opportunity to be the best filly you can be.."

"W-What are you going to do while I'm gone?" She still clung to her cyan mane, digging her muzzle in deeper. Refusing to let go. For as long as she could. "H-How are you--"

"Shh.. shh.." The soothing strokes along her back began-- and her wings shivered at the touch. Her whole body did. It instantly silenced the sobs wracking her speech. Made her grow limper in her mother's gentle embrace. "I'll manage.. your mother still has her legs and don't count these old wings out just yet."

The hug unraveled-- and one look into her daughter's eyes told the elder that the argument hadn't been won. Not even slightly.

"You have to grow up and become your own pony. Your own mare." A hoof cupped her cheek, and the filly only sniffled and leaned against it. Her cheek swelling as still fresh tears trickled down. "Your mother will always be here. Ready to make you a home cooked meal when you're hungry and give you a warm bed when you're cold and tired.. but you know what else?"

She shook her head slowly, while the mother only smiled brighter than ever.

"I'm always with you. Right here." Her hoof traced down to the filly's chest-- pressing gently against the cyan fur. "And whenever you need me, you can always talk to me. Tell me all you need to tell me, whenever you need to tell me, no matter how much it hurts or how far away you might think I am."

A warmth flowed back through the filly's face, and a spark ignited in her eyes. There was the briefest hint of wonder in her young expression, and a glance down to where the hoof was pressed to her chest seemed to be all the proof the filly needed to believe her mother's soft words without question.

"W-Whenever I need you..?"

A smile and a nod. "-Whenever- you need me."

Her young hooves reached up, holding the large hoof that was so softly pressed against her-- and the warmth of her tears tickled along her face. But the young pegasus, with one final sniffle, allowed a grin to take over. Her violet eyes returning to her mother.

"... I love you mommy.."

"I love you too Rainbow. So very much..."

There was so much sadness in her eyes as she looked down upon her filly, but years of practice made hiding it from her so distressingly easy. A gentle smile and a soft gaze were all that were required, but even now with withering strength, she could see the facade starting to crack to her ever growing baby girl.

The mother's eyes turned, glancing out the open door-- to the evening sun that lit up the clouds that formed their walls, their ceiling, their floor-- even their furniture.

Then her gaze fell back upon her daughter. Her beautiful, wonderful daughter. Who's smile slowly faded..

"But... it's time for you to go now."

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

The warmth on her cheeks would be the first thing she'd slowly wake up to.

The second thing she felt was a smothering warmth that squeezed at her chest, making every breath a laboring effort that grew from mildly irritating to painful as feeling slowly made its way through her limbs. All this happened before she truly even awoke-- her mind slowly restarting from its restless slumber. A slumber that was, for lack of a better term, not slumber. She didn't feel rested and restored. She just felt drained.

Rainbow Dash's eyes creaked open, a flurry of blurred images filtering through her senses. Almost instantly she winced, squeezing her barely cracked eyes shut. There was very little brightness in the room, but it was enough to sting and make her hiss in reply. She moved her hoof up to her face to rub the sleepiness away.

Or, well, she tried to anyways.

Her leg hadn't moved. She barely recognized the faint feel of her foreleg tingling as if it'd long since fallen asleep from some uncomfortable position, but it was most assuredly not because of that. The confusion that dawned on her made her breath catch. It wasn't until then that she even noticed that she had no idea where she was or how she got here.

She turned her head, feeling a warm pillow brush against her cheek-- pulling on her pinned mane. Try as she might, her foreleg would not rise. Nor would her wings flare. Or her hind legs kick. Her caught breath began to turn into a panicked pant-- and a weak whimper was all she could mutter instead of a frustrated scream.

Where am I?

She felt the exhaustion tighten, and her struggles ceased-- a shaky breath giving away her fear-- and on cue there was a foggy noise from across the room. Rainbow's eyes cracked open once again, and the light was still blinding-- but all at once that faded. A darkness surrounded her, and a brief relief was interrupted by confusion within seconds.

"Rainbow Dash?"

The voice sounded so distant, but all the same so close. Like someone was speaking to her from behind a thick door. Their voice muffled and distorted, but deep and baritone.

"It's alright Miss Dash. You're safe. Safe and in good hooves."

A small glimmer of light illuminated a face in the dark-- a pony's face complete with a horn atop his head. The obvious source of the glow. The image danced for a moment, fading in and out of focus, but it gradually retained its solidity. Till she could properly make out the cyan maned stallion's features.

"Much better, yes..?"

She swallowed, attempting to speak, but all she could give a a muttered groan in reply.

"Good.. Don't worry yourself.. You just need some water."

Another thing floated into her vision-- a glass complete with sloshing cool water-- which magically lifted from the glass and snaked towards her in a slow arch. It was almost beautiful to watch, even now.

"Open your mouth for me?"

She complied after just a moment, closing her eyes. She felt the refreshing drink lose its magical suspension within her jaws-- splashing upon her tongue. A few mouthfuls later, she felt an instant relief. She'd been incredibly thirsty.

"There we go." She opened her eyes again and found that floating head a bit further away-- a smile stretched across his face. "I'm going to turn the light back on now Miss Dash. Are you ready?"

She fought with her sore throat and her uncooperative tongue. "N-Not.. r-really.."

Regardless, the light flooded the room-- and she instantly hissed and snapped her eyes back to a close. Wondering why anypony would even ask such a question if they were just going to bucking do it anyways!

"I'm sure you're probably very confused right now.” The voice was closer, and she felt compelled to open her eyes again-- even as tears blurred at her hardly perfectly focused vision. The brighter than bright room beginning to take shape. “I'm doctor Lighthorn. You're in Ponyville Emergency Care.”

Wha-.. What?

She blinked away stinging tears, her eyes flittering about the plain white room for a few moments before centering on the unicorn-- a doctor alright, by the looks of him-- scribbling about on a clipboard Rainbow hadn't noticed him carrying before.

“H-How..?”

“You were out in the storm, remember?” His eyes were on whatever it was he was writing, but he quickly finished and flashed her the smallest of fake smiles. “You do remember the storm, don't you Miss Dash?”

For a moment, she was beyond confused. But the memories of the day-- which seemed so long ago to her now-- began to surface. Cold and painful rain swirling around her thanks to an equally unforgiving wind. Howling, monstrous vortexes eating land, trees and farms. Sweet Apple Acres.

“I... I do..”

“Good to hear.” His quill made a swift stroke against the page. “Tell me more about what happened to you Rainbow Dash.”

She blinked, her eyes dropping back to the bed. To the thick cotton sheets tucked almost painfully tight around her body. It was difficult to breath.

“There.. There were... tornadoes..” She swallowed, no longer thirsty-- but finding the words hard to grasp all the same. “I was.. I tried to.. to stop them..?”

Another stroke. “Yes, and you did... Please, don't worry yourself. This is common.” He must of noticed the panicked look on her face. She was faintly aware that she was beginning to pant.

She coughed, wanting to push herself up from the bed-- but once again felt like she was restrained. Her eyes scanned for her legs, for whatever was holding her down, but she couldn't see anything thanks to her choking bedspread.

“W-Why can't I move..?”

He trotted up to her side-- his paperwork hovering up above the two of them. “It's just a spell. We needed you to be still while you rested. Give me just a moment and we can work on removing it properly.” He paused, after resting a hoof on the lump where her arm was beneath the covers. Rainbow couldn't feel it. “Alright?”

She didn't like this. Not one bit. Her mind swam with what she wanted to yell.. but she merely nodded, dropping her head back against the warm and comfortable pillow. It took too much effort to yell.

“Now.. Can you tell me more about what happened?” Down came the quill and clipboard. “What was one of the last things you can remember?”

She closed her eyes from the bright light above her-- struggling inside her mind to recall just what happened to her. What brought her here.

“I was flying.. inside the funnel..” She heard the doctor actually pause in his writing, but she didn't know why. “S-Something.. Something must of hit me.. I remember falling..”

“Do you remember where you were Miss Dash?”

It took her a few seconds before her eyes snapped open-- the light forgotten. “A-Applejack..!”

Lighthorn was quick to intervene. “--Is fine. All of your friends are fine.”

Rainbow blinked, staring at the unicorn for a few uncomfortable seconds. “S-She's okay..?” Her eyes watered, and not from the light. “They all are..?”

He nodded, that hollow sympathetic smile back on his face. “Indeed. Your friend Twilight Sparkle had to be admitted to the hospital as well, but merely due to exhaustion. She's already awake and most likely ready to be out of bed by now.”

Rainbow felt... light headed. She moved her lips, but didn't form any words. The images of Sweet Apple Acres in shambles ran through her head, then the outlines of those twisters making their way across the countryside for Ponyville-- full of unready and unprepared friends and neighbors.

“B-But the storm.. How did.. I don't..” She blinked, tears breaking down her face as she realized a happy ending just wasn't possible.. -Shouldn't- be possible. “I don't understand..”

“The storm is gone Miss Dash. The princesses saw to that, so I've heard.” He patted her numb leg with that hoof before scribbling something quickly onto his seemingly important paper. “Ponyville is safe, you're safe, and all your friends are safe. Please, try to relax..”

She attempted to-- Celestia knows she did-- but her heart still hammered in her chest. She could still feel -that- at least.

“What happened..?” An even better question came to mind.. “How did I end up here..?”

“Your friends Twilight Sparkle and Applejack found you out in the Sweet Apple Acres' orchard..” He seemed to hesitate there, as if unsure of the story himself. “I'm.. admittedly having trouble piecing together what happened after that. Your friend Miss Sparkle doesn't seem to be very cooperative on her account of your rescue.”

My rescue..?

Her confusion didn't go unnoticed. “Seems you were in quite the bad way when they found you.. I believe Miss Sparkle put her tutoring to good use.” The last part was said with barely contained snootiness-- which even now brought annoyance to poor Rainbow Dash.

“I was hopeful that you would remember something-- anything at all-- of the spells cast upon you. Even unconscious, the caliber of spells Miss Sparkle must of used on you would leave quite an impression.”

Rainbow Dash looked down at her bed again, processing the information given to her.. Twilight Sparkle had saved her? Found her beaten body out in the middle of some field and used her egghead knowledge of magic to bring her back from the dead? Even for Twilight, that seemed like something beyond her abilities. Or maybe it was because of it being -her- that was saved. Inches away from death only to be brought back and... seemingly unscathed.

Or.. well.. so she thought.

“Miss Dash..?” Her doctor lowered his head into her vision-- making her snap her eyes back upon him. “Is there.. anything at all you can remember? An image? A dream? Anything?”

A dream...

“Why the hay does it even matter..?”

A look of surprise crossed his face, and that fake smile of his dropped almost instantly. Rainbow was glaring, and she didn't care. She may not be the Element of Honesty, but she could tell when a pony was lying through his teeth-- or poking somewhere he didn't belong.

“Twilight Sparkle will tell you... Whatever you need to know.”

A few more seconds passed before the quill suddenly stroked across another section of the page it'd been scribbling upon-- and the paper suddenly flipped to an entirely different page.

“Of course.” Fake smile. “My apologies.”

A small flare of his horn later and she felt a tingle run up her legs-- starting from her hooves and ending all at once when they centered on her chest. Slowly, her body awoke from its restrained numbness-- and with a shaky breath she felt her hoof move.

“Please refrain from moving too much Miss Dash.” Lighthorn moved to the other side of her bed-- not even watching his paper as his quill filled out lines of text. “I need you to work with me for just a moment, then we can see about completely removing the spell and letting you sit up. Okay?”

Again, she just nodded. Actually nodded this time. She was glad to find she could breath easier now. There was a flash as a glittering aura surrounded the sheets of her bed, and slowly peeled it back. At first, her breath caught in her throat-- afraid at the state of what she might find her body in.. but released that breath when she found herself almost completely fine.

Around her hooves were clean, even white bandages-- as well as around her midsection-- pulled tight, but not seemingly so tight as to be unbearable. She'd probably be able to tell better when she could better feel exactly what her limbs were telling her, but she could already breath better; testing it by taking a deep breath.

Besides the bandages.. she didn't see anything wrong. Her coat was clean and seemed evenly brushed, if a bit rough from being in bed. Even her tail seemed in order. Clean of tangles or mud or anything. Had Twilight really done all that?

“We cleaned and dressed your injuries after you arrived.” Could all unicorns read her mind now? “Minor cuts and some bruises under that coat of yours, but you've mostly got a clean bill of health. There were just.. concerns.”

Rainbow blinked, -turning- her head to him. “Concerns..?”

He just nodded, tilting his head-- his horn-- towards her hind legs. “A great deal of your injuries had been internal.” She felt a sudden jolt-- and the muscles in her right hind leg tightened. Then another in her left hind leg-- which earned the same reaction. Whether that was a good sign or not, Lighthorn wrote quickly upon his paper. “Miss Sparkle did most of our work for us it seems, but we cleaned up after her a bit. Our main concern after that was focused on your spine.”

She twitched, another jolt making her legs nearly kick. It wasn't the most comfortable sensation-- but she recognized it as reflex testing-- unicorn style. “My spine?”

“Your spine.” He answered dully, passing over her hind legs and towards her front. She felt the magical pressure build in her right foreleg-- eliciting a similar reaction. Making her stretch it out. “There was some potential bruising along your spinal column that was seemingly overlooked. Not outright life threatening, but there's always the risk of paralysis.”

Rainbow's heart skipped a beat. “Paralysis...”

Another jolt, this time to the opposite foreleg-- and again Rainbow stretched the leg out on reflex. “Not to worry though..” He spoke quietly, his eyes on her. “You seem to be recovering fine.. The magical science of spinal repair is an.. iffy one. An unexplored field, one might say. Hold still please?”

She felt the awkward feeling of something brushing through her body-- like a wind blown rope lazily rolling with the wind, only this moved with a purpose. For some reason, she felt compelled to shudder, but managed to hold herself stable until the alien feeling retreated to where it came from.

“Doing alright Miss Dash?” He went back to writing again-- seemingly uninterested in her answer. And she really didn't feel interested in giving him one either. “No jarring muscle pains? Awkward numbness?”

She shook her head, wondering if she was safe to sit up yet.. “Not that I can really tell..”

As if on cue, the bed itself seemed to move. Or at least half of it. The top half tilted upwards-- lifting her slowly into a sitting position. Two pillows quickly levitating from the other side of the room and filling in the gap to keep her nice and comfortable.

He checked another section off on his paper. “Now we come to your wings~”

Rainbow froze. My wings..

She glanced over her shoulder slowly, unsure what to expect.. but found her wing bound by the same white bandages that were wrapped around her hooves. Tuffs of feathers were squeezed around the tightly pulled white bands-- but it seemed mostly intact. A quick glance over her other shoulder confirmed that it was exactly the same as its twin.

She couldn't contain a sigh of relief..

“A few missing feathers and some scrapes..” The doctor was unwrapping her right wing gently-- the straps unraveling like one giant ribbon. “Imagine Miss Sparkle is to thank for that too.”

Twilight.. Rainbow's eyes softened as she looked down at her hooves, rubbing them across her bandaged midsection.. Just how much do I owe that bookworm..

The doctor finished with removing the thick cotton bandages and seized her wing within his magical grasp-- stretching it out in a slow and careful manner. Sure enough, plumes of her flight feathers were missing. The occasional spot of bare flesh visible-- but all things considered, Dash should be counting her blessings. She'd almost seen her wings in worse conditions... Trick flying was a hazardous hobby.

“How was that?” The doctor muttered, still looking down at his paper.

Rainbow blinked, torn from her thoughts. “Hmm?”

The unicorn looked up from his clipboard at her, before glancing to her wing again. A second or two passed. “How was that?”

Rainbow.. didn't follow. “How was what?”

The doctor's eyes widened the slightest bit.. and Dash's followed suite-- except on a grander scale. His paper levitated away from him as he moved up to the head of her bed, and this time she watched him. Her wing was still outstretched, surrounded by the magical aura of Lighthorn's manipulation-- but his horn sent a small strand of purple lightning right into the base of her wing.

… Nothing happened.

“Alright..” He murmured, but Rainbow's body was already freezing. “Do you feel anything at all?”

She wanted to say she did, but another jolt from his horn and it confirmed that she didn't feel a single thing coming from her unwrapped wing. In fact, her whole body was tingling-- save for her two feathered appendages, who refused to answer her calls for action. Refused to twitch, to flare, to do anything.

“N-No..”

All at once, the magical energy surrounding her wing flickered out-- and it simply dropped, anything but graceful, into the awaiting hooves of the doctor. His horn sweeping over the blue feathers in one long lazy arch. Rainbow felt nothing but a faint pressure where his hooves tugged the wing against its socket.

“Well.. No need to panic, Miss Dash.” The magical glow returned, flexing the wing before retracting back into its dormant state-- fresh bandages floating from across the room to wrap around her... unresponsive appendage. “We'll give you some time to rest and try again later. Perhaps there's some... residual swelling.”

Rainbow could only nod, staring down at her hooves. Her tears bristling in her eyes unwilling to fall just yet.. “Are.. you sure..?”

He stepped back, and Rainbow felt her wing brush along her flank. She eased against the bed, feeling the warm pillows contour against her back in just the right ways, but offered little in the realm of actual comfort. Not now, at least.

“Honestly Miss Dash..?” He leveled his gaze with her's, scribbling away on his paper once again. “Only time will tell.”

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

It had been roughly two hours after her friends left the hospital that Twilight Sparkle woke up once again. By that time, even Spike had taken his leave-- returning to the Library, no doubt. It had been a little depressing to wake up to a cold, dark, and empty hospital room, but Twilight found it gave her ample time to just lay there and think. She thought about Celestia, about Luna, about the storm, about Applejack. About Rainbow Dash..

She should have been happy; ecstatic even. Her friends were all safe, even if they weren't all unscathed by this. Applejack's farm was almost completely destroyed, and Rainbow Dash's state was mostly unknown but at least stable. The fear of her lively pegasus friend being paralyzed had dampened most of that happiness-- but she couldn't deny that she would rather have her friend alive than dead.

But at the same time, why did she feel so guilty?

When the nurse came in to check on her and found her to be wide awake, the light was turned on-- removing the darkness of the night sky and painting the plain, boring room its stark white colors. Few words were exchanged between the nurse and her, but she learned that Rainbow was going to wake within another hour or two. She chose to politely decline the advice to get more rest. She was tired of sleeping.

Before she left, the nurse opened one of the drawers to the bedside table and produced a single scroll. When Twilight asked what it was, the nurse informed her that the little dragon that had been in here before had “burped it up” just before he left the lobby. She had kindly promised to deliver it once the unicorn finally woke up again.

After that, Twilight was left alone. She stared at the letter for a long moment or two, absentmindedly examining the royal wax seal that kept the scroll in its bound shape. When she finally decided to break it and unwrap the parchment across her lap, she was a bit surprised to find there were actually two other pages amongst the bundle. The writing was the first thing that stood out to her-- elegant and smooth, perfect in every detail and without comparison to anypony in Equestria.

“To my dearest student, Twilight Sparkle..”

She released the breath she didn't realize she was holding..

*** *** ** * ** *** ***

As the dawn began to rise from outside her window, Twilight still didn't feel tired. Her briefest attempts to levitate her glass of cool refreshing water from her bedside to her lips were met with a pounding headache and wet covers-- so she had, by then, figured her magic was (temporarily, she hoped) unusable. She'd never pushed herself as far as she had the day before, so she had very little experience with magical exhaustion of this scale first hoof. She'd just a book on the subject. A bunch of books on the subject. Typical Twilight.

The musings of her exhaustion were really among the last things on her mind, however. Her eyes were still going over the three pages that were still splayed out in front of her. The first page had been a heartfelt and touching letter from Celestia, explaining that she was alright and that she'd heard word of Twilight's hospitalization (somehow) and was relieved to know she was okay. If it hadn't requested for her not to send a letter straight away and to conserve her strength till later that afternoon, she would've penned one that instant and insisted someone wake Spike to mail it.

The second two pages? They were hardly personal. They detailed the start of the disaster to its very end. How Princess Celestia was interrupted in the middle of her court by the rumbling the likes she'd never heard before, followed by hell on Equestria as the sky itself opened up to unleash terror upon Canterlot. The only thing that spared Canterlot from collapsing down the mountain side within those first surprising minutes were the sheer number of enchantments Celestia herself had in place to protect the capital, but even those gave way within the first hour.

It explained how the most magically gifted unicorns ponykind had banded together to shield and protect the city in one massive effort, as others sought the correct counter spell that would stop the disaster at its source. It took almost two and a half hours before it was ready, but by then Celestia was mostly the only one holding the enchantments in place. It fell upon Luna, the only other pony capable of disrupting the storm. The rest of the story had been pretty much broadcast to every Equestrian citizen.

But what they didn't know was that the storm wasn't -just- your average accident. While most in Canterlot were still searching for clues, a royal investigation had already uncovered enough within that first day to make an arrest with more pending. “It will not be publicly announced for some time.”, Celestia had wrote. “Eventually, they will be told, but not until all the facts are found.”

But Twilight's privileged close access to the Princess earned her a sort of trust. She gave her the name of the pony responsible, and the only request the Princess had made was that Twilight keep this information from her friends. It was no small request, but Celestia knew that. She also knew that the pony in question was one Twilight had first hoof experience with before.

And it made her sick to her stomach to think about him for more than a few seconds at a time..

She was midway through her third rereading of the letter when nurse Redheart tenderly knocked on her door and entered only when Twilight gave the go ahead. The scroll safely wrapped up and tucked beneath the pillow she'd laid it out upon.

“Excuse me Miss Sparkle. I was just checking on you.”, she grinned-- making Twilight wander how a pony who'd been up all night could possibly look so chipper. “You seem to be up and about already!”

Twilight returned the smile without even thinking, “Ah, yes. Mostly, anyways.”

“Is there anything I can get for you dear? I see you could use some more water.”

Twilight glanced over to the glass, then back at the nurse with a more sheepish smile than before..

“That's.. alright.. I was actually hoping to hear if there was any news on Rainbow Dash.”

At that, the nurse looked even more happy-- her smile widening even further. “Oh! Yes! She's been awake for nearly a hour now. Undergoing an examination by Doctor Lighthorn, I would guess.”

That pony? Twilight's scowl must of caught nurse Redheart's eye, as she gave the smallest of nervous chuckles..

“He's.. an interesting character, I know. Just came here from Canterlot himself. His heart is in the right place... He just takes some getting used to.”

Twilight knew the unicorn's type. It didn't take much for her to guess he was from Canterlot either. The way he carried himself, spoke to her last night, fished for info on a spell taught to her by Princess Celestia herself-- it easily reminded her of the old professors at the academy. The bitter ones who treated her with ill contempt simply because she was in a position they'd give their two front hooves for in a heartbeat. Doubly so to of been her age when she was signed on as the alicorn's star apprentice.

And considering the letter she'd just received, that sort of Canterlot pony was the last thing she wanted to deal with right now.

“I'd imagine so..” Twilight was dismissive about it-- even as she wiggled out of the covers and dropped off the bed and onto her hooves. “Anyways, I'd like to see Rainbow, if it's possible.”

The mare smiled and gave a nod-- trotting to the side of the door to allow Twilight to leave. She only cast one look back at her pillow where the scrolls were safely tucked underneath. She didn't plan on being long.

The trip through the hospital was mostly uneventful. The few staff that were on duty were mostly speaking of the storm in a hushed whisper, casting glances her way as she trotted along. She hardly paid anypony any mind. She just wanted to see her friend. To say it was nerve racking to imagine what sort of state Rainbow could be in after what Twilight saw of her would be an understatement.

Before she even knew it, she was at her hospital door. Miss Redheart had led her here, so she once again tenderly knocked on the door and waited for an answer from inside-- but instead the door swiveled open and Twilight came face to face with the somewhat surprised Doctor Lighthorn himself.

“Ah, Miss Sparkle. I wasn't expecting to see you up so soon.” He looked a bit more haggard than the nurse standing beside her-- but still managed to act polite. “I'm not sure you should--”

“Oh don't worry about me~” She didn't pay much mind to his tone as he looked her over-- choosing instead to give him a fake smile of her own and move to step right on inside. “I'm quite alright, but I'll be better after I see--”

“Twi..”

She turned her head, halfway through the door-- finding a lone bed with a lone cyan pony reclined against a small mountain of pillows, her multicolored mane as perfect and even as it'd ever been. And she was smiling at her, tears already in her eyes and on her cheeks.

“Rainbow..”

Twilight whispered her name, blinking as a smile spread across her face. Her friend.. was fine. Bandages were crossed over her chest and along her two forelegs, as well as wrapped around both her wings, but Rainbow was right there. Quite alive.

“Doctor.. Could you.. um..” Nurse Redheart piped in from just outside the door-- clearing her throat after a moment.

He thankfully got the hint, and stepped wordlessly from the room-- bringing the door to a close behind him. Leaving the two of them alone with one another.

It only took a moment for Twilight's own tears to roll down her face, as she sprinted across the floor and up to the side of the bed-- pushing herself to wrap her forelegs around her friend in a careful embrace, but Rainbow Dash didn't hesitate to squeeze her till she could barely breath.

Twilight couldn't believe it. She almost didn't think this was real, but the soft sobbing of Rainbow over her shoulder brought about her own soft crying-- and she realized it wasn't a dream at all. Rainbow was alive and well, more than she could even hope for, and was hugging her tight. As tight as she ever could.

“Oh Twilight..” Rainbow sniffled, still not letting go. “You have no idea how happy I am to see you..”

“Ditto..” Twilight squeezed back.

She held onto Rainbow for as long as the pegasus wanted her to, which was a mere minute or so, but felt like eternity to Twilight. By the time Rainbow did let go, Twilight's shoulder felt wet with tears, and Rainbow's cheeks were red.

“I-I'm sorry..” She brushed her cheek with a hoof, flashing a smile amidst a shaky laugh. “It's.. been an interesting morning.”

Twilight couldn't help but smile back, giggling at her friend in a similar manner-- wondering if she was in nearly as bad a shape, tear wise. “No kidding?”

It wasn't particularly funny, but Rainbow laughed anyways-- wrapping her forelegs around herself as she flopped back against the pillow seat she had going on. Twilight got a chance to steal a look at her hooves all wrapped in tight white linen. Same as those around her waist and her wings. No trace of blood, which amazed her. There had been so much of it.

“The doctor.. The doctor said that.. that you saved me..” Rainbow fumbled for breath, groaning as she slumped back into her bed. Twilight felt the oddest impulse to grab the covers and slip them over Rainbow's legs and torso-- so she did just that, earning a small thankful nod from her bedridden friend.

“I guess I did..” Twilight felt her own cheeks warm up-- prompting her to finally wipe them clean. “I wouldn't of imagined it being this... perfect, though. I've never gotten a chance to try my hoof at magic that advanced before..”

Rainbow tugged the covers up a bit higher, clearing her throat. “I must have been pretty roughed up..”

“Y-Yeah..” Twilight swallowed.. “You weren't in the best shape.”

Rainbow merely blinked, obviously getting some of the hint. “Was I.. awake at all..?”

“No.. Thank Celestia..” Twilight hauled herself up onto the bed, staying near the bottom. It was big enough for her to curl up and sit comfortably at its foot. “You don't remember anything?”

Rainbow shook her head, her face taking on something akin to a scowl. “I had to let that snooty doctor know that too. He seemed really interested in whatever happened out there.”

Why am I not surprised?

“You don't remember anything though? Not even when I was talking to you?”

“Talking to me?” Rainbow tilted her head, “I thought I wasn't awake?”

Twilight nodded, shifting in the slightest. “Well.. My spell was still active. I was trying to keep you calm while..” She faded off, eying some unease in Rainbow's stare. “It.. wasn't anything terribly important. I was just curious if you heard me.”

“That spell? But, I thought it canceled out after my rainboom..” Rainbow glanced down, searching her mind for an answer, but could only offer up a light shrug of her shoulders. “I just remember falling.. then uh.. dreaming some.. then I was here.”

“Maybe the rainboom distorted it or caused some interference.. It was still there when I found you, though weak..” Twilight had managed to see a hint of pain in Rainbow's eyes, but it went unmentioned.

“If it's all the same to you Twi.. I think I'll keep my mind to myself from. That spell was kind of creepy.”

Twilight's smile dimmed, “What? Mind syncing? It's the most efficient means of communicating over distance. Even more than dragon mail!”

“Yeah, and the whole sharing emotions thing is awesome and all, but.. uh..” She shivered, but couldn't bring herself to elaborate any further-- just fixing Twilight with a playful stare. “No.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and relented the argument there and then. No reason to banter about the spells usefulness. It.. was the tiniest bit unnerving.

“Are all the others really alright?”

“Yes. The others are all fine. Applejack got a little knock on the head, but she's as good as ever.” Twilight paused for a second. “Well.. Maybe not as good as ever, considering the farm, but she's coming around.”

Rainbow breathed a deep sigh of relief, her eyes even going so far as to drift closed. “I thought.. After what I saw.. I thought she must've been -in there- Twi..”

“Who knew Sweet Apple Acres had a cellar, huh?” She had to resist the urge to hold the pegasus again. “I dug them out and got Applejack to help me look for you. Hay, she's the one that actually tracked you down out there.”

Rainbow looked up at her in surprise. “S-She was?”

Twilight nodded in affirmation, carefully deciding what she should mention on this for now.. “Yeah.. We split up to go find you. I think it was just us.. Big Macintosh had to take care of Applebloom.. When Applejack found you I took over and she ran back to Ponyville for the doctor.”

Rainbow Dash sat there, looking a little stunned. She eventually blinked, gazing down to her bandaged hooves deep in thought. Before Twilight could ask what was wrong, she looked back into her eyes.

“How... bad was I?”

Twilight stared at her for a moment, her mind running a million miles a hour before she mentally told herself to stop.

“I don't think you really want to know Rainbow..”

Rainbow opened her mouth like she was going to argue, but seemed to think better of it. She settled back into the bed, glancing away..

“Yeah.. Maybe not..”

Twilight found her eyes wandering a little too, glancing towards the bright window off to the side of the bed. Dawn was in full swing by now..

“The others should be here soon, I imagine.. They really wanted to see you last night too, but you were still under sedation.”

A gentle scoff later and Rainbow was staring back at her again-- and smile returned to her face. “Good. I've got to let em all know I haven't bit the dust just yet.”

Twilight found herself smirking, imagining how their friends would probably react. The others would be fine, she was sure. Applejack? Applejack would possibly faint.

“I don't think Pinkie Pie doubted you'd be okay for a second.”

“Ahah.. Yeah.” Rainbow leaned back into her pillow seat with a soft snort, a wide grin across her face. “That's Pinkie Pie for you though. I don't think we'll ever understand that pony.”

“I'm still in shock myself..” Twilight grinned, squirming atop the bed where she sat. “I heard what the doctor said.. but.. wow..”

Rainbow seemed to shrink against the bed again, glancing off to the side.. “Yeah.. Sounds like I'm pretty lucky.”

“Pretty lucky?”

The voice surprised them both; Twilight and Rainbow Dash both turning their wide eyed faces to find Applejack herself standing just past the door-- minus her stetson. Her hair undone and mildly unkempt, falling partially over her big green eyes absolutely brimming with tears.

“Y-You've got to be the dumbest.. most reckless.. most foalish fool of a pony I-I've ever met.”

And in much the same fashion as Twilight had earlier (only much quicker), Applejack sprinted to Rainbow Dash and latched herself on for dear life-- instantly erupting into a fit of tears like Twilight had never seen before. The moment of shock on Rainbow's face melted away as the cycle began anew, and Twilight could only watch the two friends cry together.

•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•·•

Celestia's morning was almost routine, but even the Princess herself couldn't shake the unease that permeated through the castle as she trotted through the long, wide corridors that bristled with shaken and exhausted aides that all still somehow managed to bow as she passed. All she could manage was a sympathetic nod here and there. Smiling, however, was a bit beyond even her means with the godly headache that was pounding just behind her eyes.

Yesterday's events had taken their toll on just about everypony-- and she was no exception. She could hardly remember a time where she exhausted so much of her magical power, save for one painful night a little over one thousand and one years ago. Had she not been the ever-prepared and benevolent ruler she prided herself on being.. she imagined the storm would still be brewing and spreading across her lands. Across her ponies' lands.

The thought actually infuriated her.

“Princess Celestia.” One of her assistants before her, a tan coated mare with a vibrant pink mane, spoke before bowing in respect-- kneeling to the floor. “The court is assembled and ready to begin at your earliest convenience.”

“Good.” She stated simply, albeit politely. “There are other matters that need attending to first. If you'd be so kind as to let the nobles know to reconvene in a hour's time.”

Not surprisingly, the mare blinked-- glancing up from her bow with a look of shock, before nodding quickly and standing to her hooves. “O-Of course, your majesty.”

Celestia didn't doubt it unnerved the mare. There had not been a delay in the near daily court Celestia held in hundreds of years-- never in her lifetime alone. This time she was able to flash a quick and painful sympathetic smile before allowing her to leave.

She turned to the two guards standing at attention by the large ornate doors leading to the thrown room. They didn't even blink. “Bring him to me now.”

With respectful nods, the two moved off without a moment's hesitation-- and Celestia's magic opened the heavy stone doors wide, stepping through with her head held high. The expansive throne hall was lit up by the dawn outside the stain glass windows far above and lined against the walls. The marble floor reflected this perfectly, and the entire room radiated with every bit of sunlight that broke the horizon.

More guards stood at attention around the sides of the room, and no less than two dozen nobles were spread about-- their posh manes and expensive formal attire hastily arranged, no doubt. This was supposed to be a busy day, and she doubted many of them got much sleep either.

All at once, their (slightly argumentative) conversations died as all eyes turned to her-- shock evident on their faces before they dropped low to bow their respects to their princess of the sun. Unlike before, Celestia wasted no time.

“Please clear the hall.” Her voice was soft, but carried an authority that these ponies knew all too well. “Return in a hour's time-- but not a moment sooner.”

Not even a murmur came from them as they, one by one, rose from their kneeling to quietly and quickly trot from the room en mass. The guards, of course, remained-- with only the less experienced allowing their eyes to follow the procession with uneasy glances.

With her magnificent hall clear, and with her throne-- a wide platform of cushions that still didn't compare to the comfort of her bed-- beneath her hooves, Celestia allowed herself to slump down upon her belly, curling her legs beneath herself. A tired and weary sigh escaped. Sometimes it hurt being such a morning pony.

The doors were left open, and for the next few minutes she waited in silence-- letting her thoughts take up her attention. She recalled her letter to Twilight Sparkle, sent just before she left her chambers before the dawn, detailing what she knew at the moment. Word had reached her (as it always managed to) of her student's ordeals the day before and she was relieved to hear that she was alright. Worrying about her prized student had been difficult during Luna's impromptu night, but upon the rise of her sun, she'd felt her student's life was safe.

She knew little else beyond that however. Luna had been quick to take up the control of the night's affairs shortly after the natural day ended, and Celestia thanked the stars she was able to retreat to her quarters to promptly fall into a slumber unlike any other. It hadn't lasted long, but it saved her from probably feinting before her subjects. Not something she'd ever be keen on doing.

Thinking of her sister only reminded her, painfully, that she had yet to manage to speak to her. Despite waking up earlier than needed in order to send Twilight a letter, Celestia had only managed to speak with one of the night's aides-- who detailed their findings from the afternoon till then. It confused her, but Luna had chosen to send one of her dignitaries-- who she rather despised in private-- than come see her personally. Perhaps she was as exhausted as her older sister, which Celestia could certainly understand..

The noises outside her doors grew louder, shocked gasps of aides still in the hall and servants who dropped their carried wares in surprise. Celestia steeled herself, her eyes narrowing and her horn raised high-- taking a moment to enforce the glow that surrounded the ivory instrument.

Her guards turned the corner and proceeded into the hall, and between them trotted a single unicorn stallion-- his light blue coat and golden laurel wreath cutie mark shining against the light from the floor. She noted that his graying mane seemed even more so than she last remembered it-- even with it being as unkempt as it was. She could understand why, she hadn't spoken to him personally in almost a year and a half.

Around his forelegs were a single pair of shackles that rattled with the chain that clinked and slid across the throne's red carpet. Even with the sudden clang of the door behind him closing, he still did not lower his head from staring straight at her-- eyes equally narrowed. His horn, she noticed, bore a single ring around its base. No doubt enchanted to disrupt his admittedly impressive magical powers.

The trio stopped just shy of the stairs that led up to her throne platform, and Celestia glowered her gaze down at the stallion as her two guards respectfully bowed and stepped away. Leaving the lone pony to give a bow of his own-- finally breaking eye contact with Equestria's most powerful alicorn for one show of false respect and dignity.

“Princess.”

Celestia felt a pang of anger. She remembered this pony quite well. He had never been one to be even the slightest bit intimidated by her presence, which was something she usually admired in ponies. However, he seemed to treat her more with contempt and distrust. Very few managed to do that in the several thousand years she'd ruled. It never did sit right with her.

Of course, she didn't want him to know that. “Please, Bastion. Rise.”

Bastion Yorsets, former administrator of Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, rose from the floor. Elegantly so, despite the clatter of his hoof chains. Try as the unicorn might, his forced smile betrayed his true feelings.

“I'm rather surprised you decided to do this before your court.” He glanced around dismissively, “You've never been one to delay royal duties for anything.”

“I'd like to say that this matter is rather important.” She kept her malice in check-- right along with him. “I'm sure that you.. considering your past stations.. would understand the severity of the situation.”

The small spark of remorse at the mentioning of his now former standing resonated in his eyes, and Celestia admittedly felt the slightest bit of guilt for the blow.

“Ah.. I suppose I would.”

She turned her gaze down to the shackles around his forelegs.. “I trust you were treated fairly during your arrest, yes?”

He looked down at his hooves before nodding. “After assisting in shielding Canterlot from the storm, I would hardly say I was in any condition to resist. Not that I would have regardless.”

She nodded, crossing her front hooves over one another. “So I've heard from my captain--”

“And-- give him my regards, would you? I'm glad it wasn't made into a larger spectacle than it had to be.”

Celestia raised a brow, “I think the ponies here in Canterlot were a bit preoccupied to notice.”

He gave an exasperated sigh, but said nothing for a few moments, before pipping up again-- “Did he deliver my letters to you?”

Celestia's horn angled to the side with a nod, and a swirl of magical aura glowed for but a second before a large scroll materialized out of thin air; stretching itself out to reveal its contents.

“A signed letter of resignation dated just yesterday. As well as a complete and detailed confession for your crimes against the kingdom.” She only allowed her eyes to trace over a few select lines. She'd already read the letter more than once before now. “If I didn't know any better, Bastion, I'd say you wrote this in advance.”

He barely tried to contain his scoff, his eyes glancing away from hers when she glanced down at him again. “The spell was not crafted in a day, Princess. I've had a great deal of time to prepare what I would say upon its discovery.”

Celestia allowed herself to frown, turning her eyes back to the letter for a moment. “Yet I don't see a reason written here.”

“I'm a pony of magical science, your majesty.” He made a move to raise his hoof to his chest, but was stopped by the lack of slack in his chain. “I don't believe a reason is needed to explore and test the boundaries of magic as it's understood. The potential benefit from the experiment, I believed, far outweighed the potential consequences of the act.”

“The consequences, Bastion?” Celestia's tone turned the slightest bit sour. Her brow furrowing. “For yourself or for Equestria? Did you not see the havoc you unleashed yesterday? Or the danger you put my subjects in?”

He hesitated in answering. “It.. was an unintentional accident. An error on my part, that I'm willing to take full responsibility for.”

“How noble.” She allowed the letter to roll back into its scroll and disappear in a flash-- safely tucked away back in her quarters. “I expected so much better of you.”

She could tell the words stung, but he did a valiant enough job in keeping it hidden from plain view. A mere twitch that would go unnoticed by most anypony else but her. “Is there anything else required of me, your majesty?”

“Yes, actually.” She made sure to watch his every telling move. Something he most likely knew she was doing. “I've opened a royal inquiry into your department, Bastion. Just what should I be prepared to find?”

“Nothing, Princess Celestia.” He was quick to answer. “This has been my only project for the past year and a half.” It didn't look to be a lie.

Celestia stared him down a few more moments while he indignantly stared back, then shook her head. Motioning to the guards with a single hoof. “You may take Bastion back to his quarters now.”

The two guards gave their customary bows-- and so did Bastion, who turned afterward without so much as a single glance up to her thrown. With only the rattle and clink of his shackles, the three ponies left as quickly as they entered. This time the doors shut behind them.

Celestia slumped just as they left, bringing one hoof up to rub against her pounding head. This was going to be a long day of listening to damage claims from nobles and reports from elsewhere in the kingdom on just how bad the storm had struck. All in all, nothing she was in the mood to listen to.

Bastion Yorsets was a stubborn, but clever pony. She'd even go as far to say that the stallion was brilliant. She wouldn't of left her school in the hooves of your average pony, after all. The thought that he'd do something like this wasn't a completely surprising turn of events, but the power of that storm hinted to something more..

Bastion had a talent for lying to her and nearly getting away with it, but she was determined to get to the bottom of this. One way or another.