What is life without risks? What is death without freedom? For one to truly know, limits must be pushed, barriers must be broken, and beauty must spread its wings.
Shadows danced in the edges of her vision, shadows of life, of freedom, of love. Shadows of who she was. These shadows had been haunting her mind for years, taunting her, as she could no longer achieve what she wanted most. And yet, tonight, something felt different, something deep within her told her this was true, but she could not figure out what.
Though it was the middle of the night, Rainbow Dash lay awake in her bed, staring at the same wall she had been for the past few hours. The memories would not stop reminding her of her greatest wish, no matter how hard she tried to push them away, they kept coming back. She may not have been a young mare any longer, but she could still dream. It was all she had seemed to do lately. Dream. Dream and be disappointed when she faced the reality that her dreams were no longer possible.
But not tonight. Tonight, she refused to accept that she couldn't make her dreams a reality. Just once more, that was all she asked. One more time, one more chance to prove, to show that she was, truly, the best flier Equestria had ever known. It had been years, she knew, since she had flown anywhere close to what she would need for this, but she had to try.
Stiffly, the rainbow-maned pegasus climbed out of her bed and walked slowly to the door of her cloud home. She paused at the door and, for the first time in years, ran through the usual warm-up stretches that she did before stunt flying. Once she felt the stiffness in her muscles had abated, at least for the most part, Rainbow Dash opened the door and flew out into the cool night air. She immediately began to fly straight up into the sky, so that she could make sure she would have enough space and time to achieve her goal.
The feeling of the wind rushing past her body as she picked up speed heightened the cyan pegasus' senses, driving her to push harder and faster. She felt parts of herself that she had buried years ago starting to reignite their fires within her. Her magenta eyes began to sparkle as her memories took control of her thoughts and, by extension, her body. Longing for it's deepest desire, the old mare's heart beat faster and faster only serving to make her strain her wings and push her limits even farther. Reaching the height that she needed Rainbow Dash hung in place, spreading her wings as wide as they would go. She looked down towards the ground and a determined grin spread across her face.
What is achievement without struggle? What is failure without recovery? How hard can one fall, before there is nothing to lift them back up?
Thrusting away the memories of the difficulty of her task and of how many times she had failed even when she was in her prime, Rainbow Dash dove towards the ground, pumping her wings rapidly. Determined not to lose focus, the rainbow-maned pegasus was putting every last bit of her attention into what was going on around her. Not one single detail could be overlooked elsewise she knew she'd wind up fighting a losing battle.
Narrowing her eyes, the cyan mare forced her muscles to go faster, knowing she was already well beyond what her limits had been for the past couple years. And yet, though she knew she was straining herself this much, Rainbow Dash felt no pain, only the fever of her desire and determination. She wanted, no, she had to prove that, no matter her age, she was still the best flier in Equestria. The only pegasus capable of this feat. Somewhere, deep within her heart, she knew it was true, she just had to show it to the ponies of Equestria once more.
Reckless as this was, Rainbow Dash didn't care. Without flying, without truly being free, life held no meaning for her. Every flap of her wings took away her life, even as it renewed her will to live. But, in the grand scheme of things, death was a small price to pay for her life, if it even came to that tonight.
The wind blowing her mane and tail back, the bite of the night air against her exposed face as it whipped past her, the ache in her muscles, all of these things made the cyan pegasus feel young once again. Flying was everything to her, especially flying such as this. Nopony else had ever been able to understand, but, then again, nopony else could fly like this, so, how would they have been able to relate at all?
At last, she felt the air take the shape of a cone around her body. Gritting her teeth determinedly, Rainbow Dash forced her wings to push even faster, ignoring their screaming protests. Her eyes were narrowed to slits so small they were practically closed, yet she could still barely see what was just in front of her. She could see just enough to watch as the cone around her body became streaked with the colors of rainbows and glowed brightly.
Doing everything she could to push past the intense agony she felt in her wings, the old pegasus mare opened her mouth in a soundless cry of dismay. She wasn't going to make it. There was no possible way she could. She was too slow, too weak, too old. She was a failure.
What is it that truly determines failure or success? Not the result, not the start, and not the journey. Everyone must determine such a thing for oneself. There is no other way, and such is the beauty of it.
Her eyes snapped open, burning with a raging inferno from deep within herself. Somehow, she found just enough strength for one, final push. One last drive that thrust her through the barrier. And, for the last time ever, Rainbow Dash shot through the rainbows that had exploded around her, flying far away from all her sorrows and instead, heading for a better tomorrow.
