The Trials of Rainbow Dash

Chapters

Prologue
Raging Guilt
Into the Storm
Snowed Under
Sonic Slingshot

Prologue

Rainbow shifted uncomfortably in her chair as she watched her friend Twilight ascend to the podium in the court room. She’s landing awkwardly. Rainbow thought to herself. And her center of balance in flight is all off. She mentally kicked herself. Stop bagging on her, Rainbow. She couldn’t stop. She knew she couldn’t and wouldn’t stop. It was one of the only things she could focus on other than the tension of the courtroom and the utter disdain and malice of the prosecutor scowling at her from across the court.

The prosecutor was fixing her with a cold, unnerving stare. It made Rainbow shudder. She tried to look down to avoid the shame and guilt it projected onto her, but she could feel it being drilled in. Rainbow gulped. This is all my own fault. I deserve this. Twilight, please don’t do it. I deserve a harsh sentence. As this thought crossed her mind, she heard Twilight clear her throat on top of the podium.

“I, Princess Twilight Sparkle, hereby do declare that the princesses of Equestria have met and discussed the crime of the accused, Miss Rainbow Dash, and we have concluded that she, on account of her not being of sound mind due to grief, should be pardoned from any jail sentences here in Cloudsdale. Due to this decision, she is hereby exempt from any further trials. Miss Rainbow Dash shall be required to make a public apology and pay for the damages that her vandalism caused. These will be her only punishments. This decision is finalized, and this decree is effective immediately.”

The entire courtroom erupted into protest. The entire jury seemed to be in a frenzy. The spectators groaned and stamped their hooves in disapproval. The prosecutor knocked her chair over as she marched forward to protest.

“This is a violation of rights!” The prosecutor cried. “Cloudsdale should have the right to punish her for her damage to the weather factory!”

“Yeah, we deserve to have her put on trial at least; even if she isn’t found guilty!” One of the spectators added.

The jury stamped their hooves in agreement and raved about the inherent unfairness of the court case's cancellation. All the while, the prosecutor bitterly raved about the weather factory, the damage to the machinery, the inherent danger the workers were in, the danger the citizens of Ponyville had been in, and the complete and total rashness and irresponsibility of one mare. Rainbow winced at every protest the ponies made to Twilight’s proclamation. Twilight herself seemed startled by the sudden outburst of resistance, but after several minutes of shock, she regained her composure.

“Everypony, please, remain-” she was interrupted by a jury member walking up to the podium to protest the decision. Many others followed. Trying to listen and respond to them all at once was practically impossible.

“This is insanity!” one screamed.

“Yes! A complete and utter abuse of the legal systems in place!” another agreed.

“Now, I understand you’re upset, but-” Twilight was once again cut off.

The prosecutor had flown up to give Twilight a piece of her mind, saying, “You are a sorry excuse for a ruler. How dare you use your influence to excuse a friend when you know that she is guilty!”

“ I beg your pardon,” Twilight responded. “There’s no reason to go insulting my leader-”

She was interrupted by a spectator who screamed, “She endangered lives! You can’t just excuse her for that!”

“And she has saved many more as an Equestrian hero!” Twilight argued as she began to get annoyed with constantly getting cut off. “This is-”

“I’ll tell you what it is, a disgrace!” a pony from the jury yelled.

“This is-”

“This is ridiculous!” another concurred.

“It’s none of your concern, quite-”

“She should be brought to justice!” !” another concurred.

“ Well, I-”

“Agreed! She needs to be brought to justice!” the prosecutor yelled.

“ENOUGH!”

The entire courtroom fell into silence as Twilight burst into white, hot flames in her anger and commanded everyone’s attention using the Royal Canterlot voice.

“Did you not here my proclamation? The decision is FINAL! By order of the Equestria’s princesses, I declare this case DISMISSED! Any further objections are INCONSEQUENTIAL and shall be dismissed accordingly!”

No one dared speak after the outburst. Spectators began to file out of the courtroom, shaking their heads in disappointment as they went. The judge dismissed himself. Anyone left in the courtroom gathered their things and voiced their opinions in the form of low grumbles to one another. Rainbow Dash, who was inwardly shaken from the experience, kept her composure on the outside with an emotionless, flat mouthed expression. As she rose to go meet Twilight, she was met with the angry face of the prosecutor and her companions.

Bitter contempt was evident on the prosecutor’s face as she said, “You, Rainbow Dash, are a DISGRACE! How dare you use your connections and your heroic status to wiggle out of affairs when you are at fault! How can you even live with yourself? You betrayed Cloudsdale, Rainbow Dash!”

A flash of an expression crossed Rainbow’s face as she struggled to hide her emotions. She’s right. I betrayed Cloudsdale and everyone in it. I deserve the trial. She took a step back from the prosecutor, but fought with every fiber to stare her calmly in the eye without cowering.

“Well, go on! What do you have to say for your actions, Miss Rainbow Dash?” The prosecutor exclaimed mockingly as she advanced toward Rainbow. “What do you have to say for yourself, TRAITOR?!”

“That’s enough!” Twilight exclaimed.

She flew down from the podium and landed directly between the prosecutor and Rainbow. She stood protectively in front of Rainbow Dash while glaring down the prosecutor with an intensity that could only be rivaled by the Stare,

“You have no right to talk to Rainbow Dash like this. No one has the right to call this loyal mare, who has risked her life for Equestria on multiple occasions, a traitor. I kindly suggest that you remove yourself from the premise." Twilight said coldly. “Now.”

The prosecutor’s companions moved to leave, but the prosecutor herself stayed put. When she did move, she managed to shoot a glare past Twilight and directly at Rainbow Dash, who was now visibly shaken.

“This isn’t over,” she spat coldly.

“On the contrary,” Twilight spat back with a note of disdain in her voice. “I believe this is over indefinitely.”

The prosecutor huffed and trotted out the doors of the court building with her companions. Twilight relaxed as she watched her leave. She turned and faced Rainbow Dash, a look of concern on her face.

“Are you okay, Rainbow?”

The look of concern bothered Rainbow, and she fought to control her emotions inwardly as she lied, “I’m just fine, Twilight.”

Twilight sighed and gave a sympathetic smile. She had known Rainbow long enough to see right through the tough act she was putting on. She stepped forward and raised her wing.

“Come on. Let’s go,” she beckoned.

Rainbow moved to walk alongside Twilight. Twilight placed her wing over Rainbow comfortingly as they exited the court building. As they walked, Rainbow Dash mentally kicked herself over and over again.

Traitor. The word echoed in Rainbow’s skull. She’s right. I am a traitor. She sighed and lowered her head as she walked. Even after leaving Cloudsdale to join her friends down in Ponyville, the guilt of what she had done ate at her. I deserved the trial, I deserved the court case, and I deserve the guilt. She sighed inwardly as she faked content among her friends at Sugar Cube Corners. I’m a sorry excuse for the element of loyalty…

Raging Guilt

Rainbow grimaced as she touched down on the freezing snow coating the streets of Ponyville. Her public apology had been today in Canterlot, and she was mentally and physically exhausted from her journey. Despite this, she had errands to run in Ponyville, so she couldn’t go home just yet.

The snow crunched beneath her hooves as she made her way to Daisy’s flower shop to pick up a watering can. She stopped by Quill & Sofa for some ink before setting off for home. This time, she flew over the streets of Ponyville. Rainbow hesitated as she passed over Sugar Cube Corners.

Rainbow Dash hadn’t talked to her friends in awhile. She had met them at the small bakery after the trial, but since then she’d been avoiding them. She had even flown to Canterlot in freezing winter weather just to avoid a possible train ride with them. They had come to her public apology earlier that day. She had seen them in the crowd from the podium they had erected for the occasion. While it had seemed that the apology had been mostly accepted, she had seen the grim faces of those in the crowd who were not quite satisfied with her apology speech. How can I blame them? It probably sucked anyway. She hovered over the bakery and sighed. Twilight had, of course, offered to help Rainbow Dash, but she had refused the help and holed herself up in her house for days working on it. Her friends had come to visit multiple times, but she had made up some excuse not to let them in every single visit.

She landed near the bakery window and looked inside. The girls were all talking inside; without her. She sighed again. Of course without you, Rainbow. Why would they want some pony who can't be trusted around? The thoughts struck a sour chord, and she found that her eyes were watering. Rainbow shook her head back and forth vigorously. Stop that! No crying. Still too cool for that Rainbow. She looked up and watched her five friends talking again. If your definition of cool is sitting alone on a cold night wishing you deserved good friends.

Rainbow shook the thought off and focused on watching her friends' conversation. She cocked her head as she noticed that the conversation didn't seem to be an enjoyable one. Her friends' faces were grim, and everyone seemed tense. What could they be talking about that's so serious? Rainbow squinted and saw, to her surprise, that Pinkie's hair was almost completely deflated.

Ok, now I have to know what's going on. She searched for a way inside the building and saw Pinkie's window on the second floor. Before she could lift off, her conscious stopped her. Rainbow, this is crazy. You can't just go breaking into Pinkie Pie's room! Look, they're your friends. Just go in the door and ask them what's going on. She looked back in the window. She grimaced, and started to fly up to the window. No, if they wanted me to know, they would have told me. She hovered in front of the window and pried it open with her front hooves. Time to take matters into my own hands.

Once inside, Rainbow Dash quietly closed the window and crept silently through Pinkie's room. She carefully avoided a board game on the ground as she stealthily made her way out of the room and to the staircase. Careful, to stay out of sight, Rainbow listened to the conversation.

"You're sure she wasn't home?" Applejack asked, a worried note in her voice.

"Yes, I'm sure." Fluttershy responded. " I even had some of my bird friends check around the back of the house. No one's there."

Who are they talking about? Rainbow leaned forward, eager to hear more of the conversation.

"You-you don't think she's already heard do you?" Pinkie asked. Her tone worried Rainbow Dash. It didn't even sound like Pinkie Pie.

"I hope not, sugar cube. there's no telling what that crazy pegasus will do if she finds out what's happening in Cloudsdale."

Rainbow Dash froze. What's happening in Cloudsdale? She had figured out by this point that the five ponies were talking about her. Why are they afraid of me knowing?

"We have to be the ones to tell her, girls." Twilight said. "She'll be devastated. She'll need us."

"The poor dear is already devastated." Rarity exclaimed in her normal dramatic fashion.

Rainbow rolled her eyes. I'm not devastated. A pang of guilt returned to her as she thought of her irresponsible behavior in the Cloudsdale Weather Factory. Shame filled her. You're in denial. Rainbow's conscious stubbornly chastised her. You're ashamed, and you should be too after what you've done. The thought made Rainbow's mood go sour, but once again, she shook it off and listened to her friends talking.

"But is it even her fault at all?" Fluttershy questioned.

"There's no way to know, Fluttershy. It was a major equipment malfunction. A chain reaction of them, in fact. It was all just repaired, and there is no way to know whether some unfixed damage of Rainbow's doing had any affect."

Rainbow Dash had heard enough. The pegasus slowly turned and crept back into Pinkie's room. She turned toward the window, but in her haste, she stepped on the board game pieces and fell with a loud thud.

"What was that?" She heard Pinkie's voice echo from downstairs.

Rainbow got up and bolted toward the window, shaking her head to knock out a couple game pieces that had gotten stuck in her short mane. She pried the window open and dived out head first into a snowbank underneath it. She shook off the snow quickly and took to the air, flying as fast as she

The five mares raced up the stairs in Sugar Cube Corners. They all burst into Pinkie's room, ready to face whoever had broken in.

"Hey!' Pinkie yelled. "My board game that I was playing with Gummy!" She looked distraught at the sight of the ruined game, exclaiming, "I was winning!"

The pieces were scattered all across the floor. A few cards were being blown around by the wind coming through the only window in the room, which had been pried wide open. One piece in particular caught Twilight's eye. Her horn glowed as she used her magic to lift and investigate the game piece. She gasped as a very familiar lock of rainbow colored mane met her eyes.

"Girls..." she said despairingly, wide eyed as she turned to show them her discovery.

"SPIKE!"

The small dragon jumped at Rainbow's startling scream. Recognizing the voice, he jumped to his feet an ran through the doors of his bedroom. He spotted the cyan mare in the conference room containing the Cutie Map.

"Rainbow Dash!" he called excitedly, racing toward her. "Thank goodness! Everyone's been worried! The girls were looking for you. Did they tell-"

Spike stopped short. Rainbow was clearly not in a good mood. She was stamping her front hooves, and there was an angry glint in her eyes. The dragon backed away cautiously.

"Rainbow Dash, are you-"

"Spike, what happened in Cloudsdale?" Rainbow cut him off curtly. Her calm tone scared Spike even more than her angry body language.

"Rainbow, the others should be here to tell you. They didn't want you to be told any other way."

"And why is that?!" Rainbow demanded, her anger running through.

'It-it's something you shouldn't be alone to hear-"

"It was from a letter, right? A letter from Princess Celestia?"

"What?"

"That's how the others found out. Isn't that right, Spike?" The angry pegasus slowly advanced toward the small dragon.

Spike backed up quickly, stammering, "W-w-well I-"

"Answer the question!" Rainbow screamed.

"Yes! Yes, that's how they know, but Rainbow-"

Before he could finish, Rainbow lunged forward and pinned Spike to the ground. She looked him in the eyes menacingly, but Spike could see glints of hurt and confusion as well.

"Rainbow, stop!" Spike commanded as he struggled to free himself.

"Where's the letter, Spike?"

"Rainbow, you shouldn't-"

"Tell me where it is!"

"No, Rainbow Dash, you have to calm down. This is-"

"So you won't help me?!" Rainbow exclaimed menacingly. "Fine by me! You want something done right, then do it yourself!"

"Wait, Rainbow!" Spike called frantically. "He scrambled to his feet and pursued the lightning fast pegasus.

She took to the air and proceeded to zoom around the castle as fast as lightning. She checked every room she came upon for the letter. She came to a large locked door near the end of one hallway. Frustrated she turned to face away from the door. Time to kick it like Applejack. She reared up on her front legs and kicked the door with all her might. The door flew open, and Rainbow Dash bolted inside.

Rainbow could tell that this was Twilight's room. Her bed and some salvageable items from the Golden Oak Library decorated the room. Rainbow Dash noticed an open letter resting on a dresser near Twilight's bed. She snatched it up and read it to herself:

My dearest Princess Twilight,

I hate to be a bearer of such bad news, but the city of Cloudsdale is currently in great peril. There has been some great malfunction with the weather equipment. The making of winter weather has gone terribly wrong. The malfunction has caused a chain reaction which has resulted in Cloudsdale becoming the epicenter of an increasing dangerous winter storm vortex. Cloudsdale and the area around it is currently being bombarded by sequential snowstorms, blizzards, hail, and heavy snow. Luckily, no other city was caught up in it's wake, because the situation became critical over a far-off mountain range. However, the citizens of Cloudsdale and the city itself are in great danger. It is impossible for anyone to get through the thick layer of storm clouds and high winds at the edge of the vortex. Wind speed levels are rapidly rising, and if the situation escalates, Cloudsdale could be torn apart.

Cadence and I are going to go ahead to Cloudsdale with some troops to try to rescue the citizens of Cloudsdale before the situation hits critical levels. I would like you and you're friends in Canterlot tomorrow morning by sunrise, for that is when Cadence and I shall depart. We will send word to you on the situation as soon as we see that Luna has risen the moon. Expect to be called into action. I fear this situation will become much worse before it gets better.

Sincerely,

Princess Celestia

"Rainbow Dash!" Spike called as he finally caught up to the speedy pegasus.

Spike found Rainbow Dash sitting on the ground hunched over a piece of paper. He could just barely see the ribbon for the letter sticking out from behind the cyan mare. Rainbow's back was to the door. Her body lurched slightly with silent sobs.

"Rainbow..?"

The pegasus continued to cry silently, but bitterly, over the parchment. Spike, now deeply concerned, crept toward Rainbow Dash.

"Rainbow..? Rainbow, I know it's hard. Please, just listen to me. It isn't your fault."

Spike was now only inches from the crying mare. He reached out his claw to comfort her, but she suddenly got up before he could. Rainbow was airborne in no time at all. She took a lap around the room to pick up speed before zipping past Spike and out of the room at breakneck speed. Spike was knocked over by the sheer force of the air Rainbow displaced. By the time he had hopped to his feet again, Rainbow Dash was long gone from the castle.

"Spike? Spike, where are you?" Twilight called as she and her friends burst into the conference room.

"Here, Twilight!"

Spike slowly walked out of Twilight's bedroom.

"Spike!" Twilight exclaimed as she and her other friends raced toward him. "Thank goodness! Spike have you see-"

Twilight cut herself off. Spike seemed utterly defeated. His shoulders were slumped, and tears streamed down his face.

"Oh, Spike." Twilight said as she went up and hugged the baby dragon.

'I'm s-s-sorry, Twilight. I'm s-sorry everyp-pony." Spike said through tears. "I tried to stop her."

"Twilight, look." Fluttershy called.

Twilight looked up to see Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy coming out of her room. Pinkie had a soggy paper in her mouth. she dropped it at Twilight's feet, tears welling in her eyes. Twilight recognized the paper. It was Celestia's letter, now tear stained from its first words to its last. Everypony gathered around the paper, sullen expressions on their faces.

Applejack removed her hat from her head and pressed it to her chest as she gazed at the letter and remorsefully sighed, " Oh, sugar cube..."

Into the Storm

Tears blinded Rainbow Dash as she landed on the front steps of her cloud home. Cloudsdale could be ripped apart. The thought brought fresh tears to her eyes. She didn't bother trying to stop them. This is all my fault. If it wasn't for me, nothing in Cloudsdale would have needed fixing. If it wasn't for me, nothing would have had a chance to malfunction. Her tears didn't matter. Nothing mattered but saving Cloudsdale. I have to get there.

The pegasus raced into the house. She galloped up a flight of stairs and burst into her bedroom. She pulled out her Wonderbolt Academy Uniform and slipped it on. This'll have to do in terms of warmth. I have to travel light. With this in mind, Rainbow Dash grabbed her flight goggles and started heading out of her room, but something stopped her.

Out of the corner of her eye, Rainbow had caught a glimpse of a flash of light. She turned to see Spitfire's pin. It was fastened to an Equestria Games medal hanging on her wall. She looked at it for one, small moment before gritting her teeth and walking off. I don't deserve to wear that pin. That pin is supposed be a sign that I understand what it means to be loyal. Obviously, I don't. She stepped outside and wiped away the last remnants of tears from her face. But today I'll learn. Rainbow Dash took to the air and positioned herself so that she had a straight shot to Canterlot. And I won't come back until I deserve to wear that pin.

"Hurry, girls!" Twilight called from above the group. The girls were making a mad dash for Rainbow's house.

Fluttershy flew in next to Twilight, saying, "I don't think we can catch her, Twilight. She had a head start. She's too fast!"

"Doesn't *huff* matter!" Twilight huffed. She strained her wings as she struggled to gain more speed without losing control. "We have to try!"

BOOM!

The explosion came suddenly and shook all of Ponyville. The force sent Twilight and Fluttershy spiraling backwards. The others didn't fair much better on the ground. They were rattled right off of their hooves. Spike, who had been riding on Twilight's back, fell off and landed on top of Rarity.

Twilight, who had managed to stay airborne using her magic, landed shakily on her hooves and asked, "Is everypony okay?"

"I'm good." Pinkie replied.

"I'm so sorry, Rarity!" Spike exclaimed as he hopped off of the unicorn and helped her to her hooves.

"Oh, no, it's fine, Spike. I'm glad I could break your fall," Rarity muttered.

"What'n tar'nation was that?" Applejack exclaimed.

"I think it was a sonic rainboom," Fluttershy spoke up as she dusted herself off from her crash landing.

"I don't see no rainbow, Shy," Applejack said.

"That's because it's night time," Twilight explained, "No light, no rainbow."

"And now there's no Rainbow Dash, either," Pinkie Pie said sadly.

The freezing air whipped past Rainbow Dash as she hurtled forward. Canterlot was coming up fast, and she was coming in hot; too hot. She angled her wings expertly and aimed for an empty street on the outskirts of the city; or at least, she hoped it was a street. It was hard to distinguish at this speed when everything was covered in a layer of snow. She hit the ground hard and skidded for a second before performing her signature rolling crash into the side of a building.

After blacking out for several seconds, Rainbow awoke in a pile of snow. Whew! It was a street. With a snow bank too, thankfully. Rainbow got up and shook herself off. She could see the skidding trail she'd left in the snow and ice coating the street. She stretched her wings and legs. Good, no injuries other than the normal cuts and bruises. She had quite a few cuts and bruises, and as a result, her suit was ripped in many places.

No time to worry about a suit, Rainbow. You have to get going. Rainbow took off galloping over the icy streets of Canterlot. The street conditions got better as she approached the castle, but the the streets also became more populated. Rainbow was forced to slow her gallop to a brisk trot to avoid attracting attention. Luckily for her, the number of ponies out enjoying the Canterlot night life made it easy for to blend in as she approached the castle.

Rainbow Dash trotted along the roads closest to the perimeter of the castle. Can't just waltz in. I don't want to risk being questioned by any guards. Besides, I don't have time to waste as it is. The Pegasus slowed as she spotted her destination; The Canterlot Gardens. Finally! Got to move fast. The chances of anyone standing guard in the gardens is unlikely, but definitely possible. Rainbow took to the air and cautiously propelled herself forward. The garden, which was protected by a large glass dome, wasn't too far, but Canterlot civilians and castle guards certainly weren't either. Unlike her normal flying, Rainbow was careful to make sure that the sound of her flapping wings was minimal. She noted two guards passing underneath her on their patrol. Without any shadow to give her away, Rainbow was easily missed as she glided over to the only outer door of the glass dome.

The pegasus grunted with frustration as she tried the door only to realize that it was locked. I can't kick it in. It'll be way too much noise and... Her ears perked up as she lost her train of thought. She could hear the synchronized footsteps of the guards marching back around. Rainbow quickly flew to the top of the dome, landing on one of the upper glass panels making it up. She held her breath as the guards passed by below her. Rainbow let out a sigh of relief and took a step forward on the glass panel. She froze as she felt it move underneath her. The pegasus looked down and inspected the panel to find that it was a swiveling panel that could have it's angle adjusted. With a sly grin, Rainbow Dash hovered over the panel and adjusted it so that it would leave enough room for her to slip inside. She slipped through the hole in the dome, fixed the panel back, and dropped down into the garden.

Rainbow crept through the garden slowly, careful to make sure that there were no other ponies around. Rainbow found the entrance into the castle that Fluttershy had burst through during the gala. The room it lead into was dark, but Rainbow could see light coming from the other room as she entered. As she got closer, she could see the shadows of ponies moving around on the other side of the door. Rainbow leaned in and put her ear to the crack in the door.

"I want all the reserves ready to deploy and take up the castle watch by twenty-three hundred. All available night guards need to be assembled and combat ready by twelve hundred hours tomorrow. All the day guards need to be woken now and be ready for deployment by o'three hundred hours; effective immediately. Do you understand me, Sergeant?" Rainbow heard Twilight's older brother, Shining Armor, order.

"Sir! Yes, sir!"

Rainbow listened to the Sergeant march off. She listened hard for the sounds of any other ponies in the room, but it sounded as if Shining Armor was alone. Rainbow heard the stallion's sigh and the clopping of his hooves. It was in that moment that Rainbow Dash decided to take a risk.

"Hey Shining Armor!" Rainbow called out as she opened the door and trotted into the room.

Shining Armor turned in surprise, responding, "Rainbow Dash, how did you get in here?" Shining Armor cocked his head to the side, "And why are you wearing that Wonderbolt reserve uniform?"

"Not important," Rainbow dismissed the questions, "but if you must know about the suit, I had a crash landing when I got here. I just wore the suit because it's cool."

Shining Armor rolled his eyes at Rainbow's last comment, asking, "Well, what are you doing here alone? Where are the others?"

"The girls sent me ahead to tell the princesses that they are on their way here, but there are some difficulties with the train. The conductor told us that the crew are trying their best to make sure that the train will arrive by sunrise."

"Well, if you need to talk to the princesses, come with me. They're in the throne room."

"Wait," Rainbow stopped him, "how are they sure that there are no other kingdoms caught up in the blizzard? Just because there aren't any pony cities caught up in it doesn't mean other kingdoms couldn't be." Not that I need more endangered lives on my head.

"I don't know how they know Rainbow Dash. The storm is too far north to have caught another pony city in it. Any other information on the situation I'm sure the princesses will want to brief you on themselves; along with your friends, of course."

Shining Armor turned and started walking toward the door leading into the castle corridor. Rainbow Dash raced in front of Shining Armor, forcing him to stop.

"Wait! If it's to the north, wouldn't that mean the Crystal Empire is caught up in it?"

"No, the storm isn't large enough for that," Shining Armor said, annoyance starting to leak into his tone. "I'm sure the princesses will brief you on everything else you need to know once your friends arrive."

Shining Armor tried to move around Rainbow Dash, but she stopped him again, saying, "If the storm isn't large, then why can't it just be contained? Why are my friends and I needed?"

"That's the point, Rainbow Dash. The storm is enlarging, so it needs to be contained! Luckily, the problems with the weather machinery were detected before Cloudsdale made it to the Crystal Empire, but the storm is expanding dangerously fast. The princesses will want to see you to explain other details, but if you excuse me, I need to go perform my duties!"

The stallion walked off with an annoyed huff, donning his helmet as he left the room. As soon as he was gone, Rainbow allowed a sly grin to show on her face. That's all I needed to hear. Rainbow turned tail and bolted back out of the room the way she'd come in. She didn't even bother to wait for the guards to march by when she flew back out of the garden dome. She could barely hear them yell after her as she rocketed into the sky. Rainbow Dash searched for the train tracks below her and aligned herself with them in order to ensure that she continued north as she left Canterlot behind her. She unleashed another sonic boom as she flew off into the cold night once again.

Twilight paced back and forth on the train platform in Ponyville. Spike and Applejack were loading food (almost all of which was made from apples) and other provisions into the private train car they were riding to Canterlot in. Rarity stood next to Pinkie Pie on the train platform and packed scarves and hats into each person's saddle bags, just in case the princesses did need their help dealing with the storm. Twilight's eyes were fixed on the night sky above her.

"We have to leave soon," Twilight said aloud as she paused to scan the sky for the tenth time in the last twenty-five minutes. "Where is Fluttershy?"

"Why, I'm sure she's on her way back right now," Rarity assured the impatient alicorn. "It can't be easy for the darling to fly the distance from Rainbow's house with two sets of saddlebags in tow."

"You're right," Twilight sighed. "I'm sure she's going as fast she can."

Sure enough, after five more minutes of pacing, Fluttershy landed on the platform. She was carrying both her own saddle bag and Rainbow Dash's. Rarity and Twilight immediately moved to help Fluttershy. They used their magic to lift the saddlebags off of the obviously tired pegasus' back.

"Sorry I took so long, girls." Fluttershy said softly.

Pinkie Pie cocked her head, " Are you alright, Fluttershy? That was pretty quiet, even for you."

"Oh, I'm fine Pinkie Pie."

Twilight, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie exchanged looks. It was pretty clear Fluttershy was not fine. None of them had noticed it right away, but it was plain to see that Fluttershy's eyes were tinted slightly red. It was so light, that it was hard to spot in the darkness. Upon realizing Fluttershy had been crying, Pinkie Pie walked over and gave Fluttershy a hug. The pink pony helped the pegasus to her feet and walked with her onto the train. Rarity and Twilight followed close behind, with Twilight only pausing quickly to check the estimated time of their arrival with the conductor. By the time the alicorn entered the private train car, Fluttershy was surrounded by the others. She was fighting back small tears forming in the corners of her eyes.

"I"m just so worried about her," Fluttershy whimpered. "The storm is so dangerous."

"Don't you worry none about Rainbow, sugar cube," Applejack assured Fluttershy. "She can take care of herself."

"Yeah, don't worry, Fluttershy." Pinkie added in. "We'll find Rainbow Dash and everything will be okie-dokie-lokie!"

"You're right," Fluttershy said, perking up a bit. "We'll find her safe and sound, I'm sure."

"Besides Fluttershy, Princess Celestia didn't tell me anything about the location in the letter other than that the city is over a mountain range," Twilight chimed in. "The princesses would never tell Rainbow Dash everything without waiting for us. She doesn't even know where to go to find Cloudsdale."

Rainbow Dash had been flying for over two hours. The fatigue was beginning to wear down the determined pegasus, as well as the frigid air surrounding her. The temperature was dropping rapidly around her as she advanced further north, and the wind chill Rainbow was experiencing due to her flight speed caused the temperature to feel much colder. On top of this, snow was falling down around Rainbow, making visibility a challenge. It only got heavier as she continued to fly.

Rainbow began wavering in mid-air. She couldn't hold herself steady with her cold, numbing limbs and wings. She slowed down to avoid the brutal wind chill, but she still found that her body was reaching its limit. Rainbow Dash flew down closer to the ground in order to see what was below her through the snow. After circling a small area a couple of times, she spotted a small cave that appeared to be made of ice. The pegasus touched down in front of the cave. She hobbled inside on her numbing legs, before practically collapsing against the side of the cave.

Shivering, she leaned back against the cave walls for support and looked outside. I'm off course. The pegasus' wavering flight path had caused her to stray from the train tracks, as well as her search for a place to take shelter. I wonder how far off I am from the tracks. The snow makes it hard to judge. A cold wind blew into the cave and chilled Rainbow Dash. She started shivering badly. I have to keep moving, or I'll go numb in the wings. I won't be able to get to the storm without flying. If I can't make it there, I'll never make it to Cloudsdale. Rainbow forced herself to stand and stretch out her cold limbs. Another cold wind blew in, causing Rainbow to fall back into a sitting position and look outside. Something caught her eye. Through the snow, Rainbow Dash saw what looked to be a large gray mass of swirling clouds. Better go check it out. The pegasus stood shakily and forced herself to lift off into the cold snowstorm outside.

Spike pushed open the doors of the castle as he, Twilight, and the other ponies strode in. Royal guards immediately escorted the group into the throne room. Inside, Princess Celestia, Princess Luna, and Princess Cadence looked up from what seemed to be a deep and troubling debate between the three taking place over a map suspended in mid air.

"Princess Celestia!" Twilight cried, running up to greet her former mentor.

"Hello, Twilight," Celestia smiled before turning to the guards and directing them in a much more serious tone. "Close the doors and make sure that all reserves are ready. Once that has happened, I want Shining Armor to report here immediately. He will deliver all further orders. Is that clear, Privates?"

"Yes, Princess," the guards responded in unison as the bowed in respect for the princess.

As the door closed behind the two guards, Princess Luna walked toward the group and began to speak, "I do believe that we requested all of your friends to come to this royal meeting, did we not?"

"You did, Princess Luna, but my friend Rainbow Dash, well, you see, she sort of.." Twilight nervously started trying to explain.

After a huge breath, Pinkie Pie cut off Twilight and broke into a long, high pitched monologue, "Rainbow Dash had her trial and she was really, really, sad so she started avoiding us and coming up with all these excuses and kept working on her apology speech ALL DAY LONG which sounds like no fun at at all, but that's not the point because Rainbow went missing after her public apology and we got the note and couldn't find her, and we were all like 'Oh no, does she know?' and she went all super spy and eavesdropped on us and found out and flew off to Twilight's castle to read Princess Celestia's letter and, *huff*," Pinkie paused for a breath, giving Applejack just enough time to cover her mouth.

"Our apologies Princess," Applejack said sheepishly as Pinkie continued trying to speak despite the hoof placed across her mouth.

"You're pardoned, Applejack," Princess Celestia said, "but allow me to see if I understand Pinkie Pie correctly. Do you mean to tell me that Rainbow has blamed herself for this situation due to her prior machinery damage?"

"Unfortunately so, Princess," Twilight spoke up. "Your letter didn't include the actual location of the storm, so we were hoping she would have been held up here trying to get that information."

"Except she did get the information," Shining Armor said as he walked toward the group. "I'm sorry Twilly, but I had no idea."

"Shining Armor? What do you know about this?" Twilight asked worriedly as her older brother began to explain what had unfolded earlier that night.

Rainbow fought against high speed winds as she approached the large black mass of clouds. This is definitely it. The dark mass was producing a brutal storm which was affecting the area around it just as much as the area within it. Extremely heavy snow forced Rainbow to land. The pegasus squinted, attempting to see through the heavy snow and cloud mass. You can't even see Cloudsdale in there! An amazingly strong wind sent Rainbow Dash flying backwards into the thick snow behind her. She struggled to use her numbing legs to stand and dig herself out as she lost more and more feeling in them.

Falling to her knees, Rainbow Dash tucked her wings in tightly to try prevent further numbness. I can not give up. This is my fault. This is my doing. Rainbow Dash forced herself to her feet, her legs shaking underneath her. The pegasus unfurled her wings to their widest span. I'm giving it everything I've got left. Despite the overall lack of feeling plaguing almost her entire body, Rainbow gave a mighty flap and lifted off into the air. Snow and ice whipped past her as she fought against the wind. As she entered an area only five yards from the black cloud mass, all visibility was lost in a blinding amount of ice and snow. Rainbow closed her eyes as her body was engulfed in the black clouds.

Rainbow could feel the difference as she pierced the black wall. The sudden temperature drop off was enough to cause shudders that made it momentarily impossible for her to flap her wings. In that moment, the wind swirling inside the storm vortex overtook her. Rainbow Dash found herself being thrown around by the high winds. Can't give up! Rainbow managed to force her wings to open in a desperate attempt to stabilize her haphazard flight. The pegasus flailed helplessly as her body was thrown in every direction. She felt her wing muscles over extending. Please don't let that tendon snap. I've got to land. I'll be ripped apart up here!

Rainbow suddenly felt her body being pelted by something. Ow! What the heck is... Oh no! Hail! The wind suddenly dropped off as Rainbow miraculously emerged from the wall of storm clouds, though alarmingly close to the mountains. The wind around her was just enough to catch her outstretched wings and keep her airborne, but the pegasus was still mercilessly pounded by hail. Rainbow Dash was too numb and fatigued to dodge the incoming chunks of ice. She fought to try to angle her wings so that she would land on a nearby mountain peak. Just then, a large piece of hail hit Rainbow squarely on the head. The weakened pegasus' vision blurred as she fought to shake off the hard hit. When Rainbow's vision came back into focus, she was met with the sight of the rocky mountain side only feet away. Flew to close in! Can't pull... Rainbow Dash slammed into the mountain side and blacked out.

Snowed Under

Author's Note

I'm so sorry this took so long. I've been incredibly busy this last year. However, I plan to be writing regularly for the duration of this summer. With any luck, my schedule in September will allow for me to be just as productive. I hope you enjoy this new chapter, and I'd appreciate any feedback you'd be willing to give me, even if it's negative. As I said, I haven't written in awhile, so I wouldn't be surprised if I had a few pitfalls in my writing. Thanks for reading!

Snowed Under

YOU TOLD HER WHAT?" Twilight screamed at her brother.

At this point, Twilight was in full freak-out mode. The group had just come to the realization that Rainbow Dash had received the location of the vortex through manipulating Shining Armor. Furthering Twilight's panic was the background commotion of the rest of the main six. Rarity had fainted on a couch upon hearing the news, and Spike was curled up next to her doing his best to maintain composure. Fluttershy sobbed quietly in the background, while Pinkie was gushing with tears that sprang out of her eyes like the spray from one of the castle fountains, both being practically inconsolable. Not knowing how to handle the situation, even the normally calm and level-headed Applejack had tears bubbling in the corners of her eyes.

"Twilly, relax, we'll-"

"We'll what?" Twilight interrupted. "This is Rainbow Dash we're talking about! She could literally be there already if she flew her fastest, which I'm more than sure that she did! It's been so long that she could be bleeding out, badly injured, or freezing to death while we are too far away to even attempt to save her!"

"Please, Twilly. Just calm down. Calm down and take a deep breath."

"Yeah, I can take a deep breath Shining Armor! See look!" Twilight said as she began to hyperventilate out of fear and frustration. "I can take a deep breath, but you know who might not be able to right now? Hmm? Rainbow Dash! Because she could be out there DYING!"

"That's enough!" Luna interrupted, taking control of the conversation. "Yelling and being frantic isn't going to save Rainbow Dash or any of the people trapped in Cloudsdale right now."

"Well, said, my dearest sister," Celestia concurred. "What we need to do is regroup and stick with the plan we have at hand. We will do our best to make sure everyone comes out of this safe and sound, including Rainbow Dash."

"Y-yes, Princess." Twilight's lip quivered and her eyes filled with tears. Her ears drooping, she failed to keep herself from sobbing into her supportive brother's shoulder as he went to comfort her.

"In the meantime, however," Celestia said more gently, "I think it would be best if you and your friends took the next two hours before the people of Canterlot wake up and expect news and leadership to recover from this situation's implications."

"I'll make sure that it’s taken care of Celestia," Cadence promised, stepping forward with a worried glance toward Twilight and her brother.

"Please do," Celestia said in a hushed voice. "None of them are in any condition to lead anypony at the moment. Make sure they are given ample opportunity to relax, convene, and compose themselves, especially since there is a high probability that they will all be needed later."

Celestia approached Twilight, still in the arms of her brother, who made one final attempt to wipe away her tears before backing away to let the Princess address her pupil.

"Twilight, please listen to me. I know how hard it is to go on when you're being weighed down by the thought of the people closest to you suffering, but the people of Equestria need you to be strong for them to remain strong. Rainbow Dash needs you to remain strong so that she'll have a stable home to come back to once she's found, and she'll need you to be strong for her in the time of weakness after this, during which she'll be recovering, mentally and physically."

"I understand, Princess Celestia."

"I know," Celestia stated quietly, daring to brush her head against Twilight's neck to briefly comfort her star pupil.

"Sister, we must deploy with our troops." Luna said.

"I'm aware," sighed Celestia. "Come, Shining Armor. We will need you for the entirety of this mission."

"Yes, Princess."

Shining Armor donned his helmet, and gave Twilight a final worried glance before exiting the room to perform his duties. Luna and Celestia left together in silence, gathering themselves internally as the weight of the situation became ever heavier. Cadence approached Twilight and her friends, who had gone silent after Princess Luna’s statement. Even Pinkie Pie was left tear-less with a completely deflated mane that hung limply off the side of her head. Without saying a word, Cadence hugged Twilight tightly before extending a comforting wing and leading Twilight and her friends into the main dining hall.

Where there should have been a sharp pain in Rainbow's head, she felt nothing. All the pegasus saw was the white of the snow that she lay prone on. She had no feeling left anywhere in her body. Instinctively, she tried to move, but nothing happened. Her limbs stayed stiff and frozen, unmoving as they were continually whipped by the blizzard winds speeding over them. Robbed of more warmth by the second, Rainbow struggled to think clearly as her thoughts became foggy. It's not over. I breached the vortex. Almost there. The pegasus tried to move again, once again receiving no response from her limbs. Panic began to take over, giving her a small burst of adrenaline along with a slightly faster heart rate.

The next wind that blew over Rainbow Dash caused her body to lurch violently in it's final attempt at a shudder. I can still shiver. I can still move. I've got to move. At that moment, Rainbow realized that her body was slanted. She was resting near the bottom of the mountain on the incline right above the mountain base. Miraculously, Rainbow managed to lurch just enough to dislodge her body from its place in the snow, causing the pegasus to roll sideways down the rest of the mountain and land on her stomach in a snow drift at the base.

Barely, able to lift her head, Rainbow strained to try to check the condition of her wings. She vaguely remembered the strain that breaking through the black wall of clouds had put on them. She tried to move her wings. No response. Her pair of cyan wings were just as worse off as her body, if not even worse due to the heavy icing they had endured upon making contact with the vortex's outer wall. Rainbow Dash strained to pull herself out of the snowbank. I have to get to shelter. Finding a place where she could prevent freezing further was imperative, although possibly a futile effort in Rainbow's current condition.

The winds began swirling much faster, drowning out the drone of machinery gone haywire at the source of the chaos in Cloudsdale. All Rainbow Dash knew was that the storm was getting harsher, and she was in no shape to handle even the previous temperatures. Move, Rainbow. Move. She couldn't move, and she knew that she couldn't move. She continued hopeless attempts to will her body into motion. Rainbow couldn't think straight anymore. Her mind was just as exhausted as her body, and as less and less oxygen managed to reach her brain due to decreased blood flow, Rainbow began to blackout. The last bit of Rainbow's strength was put into keeping herself conscious, making the situation even more dire as hypothermia began slowly shutting her body down.

Celestia, Luna, and Shining Armor had began the journey to the northern mountains over an hour ago, deploying the troops by way of commandeering the Friendship Express. In the time they had been gone, Twilight had calculated that it would be an approximately six hour journey for the princess and the troops to get to the storm despite the train moving at its top speed and the removal of all stops. That would surely be too late, not only for Rainbow Dash, but for the other people in Cloudsdale. Another scroll came in detailing Cloudsdale’s poor condition for Celestia, telling of how the storm may be capable of doubling in size and intensity by the end of the day.

Twilight sighed as she sat staring out the window on the third floor of the castle at the sunlit streets of Canterlot as the citizens began to gather for a speech to be given. The speech to be given by herself and Cadence declaring the situation in Cloudsdale a national emergency was in fifteen minutes, but Twilight felt as if she was too weighed down from emotional fatigue to stand, let alone give a coherent speech.

“Hey, Twilight,” Spike called,”I forwarded that letter to Princess Celestia.”

“Good job, Spike.” Twilight didn’t even bother to turn her head in response.

“It’s almost time for your speech.”

“I’m aware.” Twilight continued to stare disinterestedly out the window.

Spike sat down next to Twilight. “I know you’re worried about her, Twilight. Everypony is.”

“I should’ve stopped her. I should’ve searched more and flown faster. I should’ve told Princess Celestia she’d run off before we got here. Then she wouldn’t have made it past Canterlot.”

“You can’t blame yourself, Twilight!”

“And why not?”

“Because then you’d be talking just like Rainbow Dash! Guilt is how we got into this mess, and more of it isn’t going to get us out!”

After a long pause, Twilight responded, “You’re right, Spike. I just hope…”

“We all do, Twilight,” Spike said, hugging her. “Come on, your speech is starting soon.” Spike stood up and reached out his claw to Twilight.

Sighing, but managing a small grin at her dragon assistant, Twilight stood and walked beside Spike out of the corridor. The pair walked briskly down two flights of stairs and into the open doors of the main dining hall. The remainder of the main six were waiting there for Twilight along with Princess Cadence.

“Are you ready, Twilight?” Cadence asked.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” Twilight said, again managing a small grin.

Cadence flew over and walked with Twilight out of the main dining hall. Spike stayed behind with the rest of the main six, who, while not actually part of the speech, would be required to stand on the balcony behind Twilight and Cadence while the speech was taking place. The little dragon took his seat next to Rarity and shoved another two pancakes in his mouth, enjoying the fact that Twilight wasn’t there to tell him he was over-eating while he could.

“You ready to go, too?” he asked, pushing his plate away from him and grabbing a napkin.

“I reckon we ought to be,” Applejack said sadly.

“Poor Twilight,” Fluttershy chimed in, “having to make a speech at a time like this.”

“I’m sure Twilight is more than up to the challenge, even under the pressing circumstances,” Rarity replied. “Although, I can’t imagine she’s happy about the situation.”

“Well, it’s her royal duty,” Spike said as he hopped down from his chair and started walking out. “Right now, ours is just supporting her and Cadence on stage.”

The rest of the main six followed him out. The silence among the group was awkward and tense. Pinkie Pie’s mane was still completely deflated; she walked at the back of the group in complete silence. Rarity and Fluttershy chatted quietly about the stitching of the castle curtains in an effort to distract themselves. Applejack offered Spike a ride on her back, her reasoning being that it made her feel better to “do some sorta labor,” not that carrying Spike was that laborious at all. She really just needed to feel like she was doing something, anything right now.

By the time the group reached the balcony where the speech was taking place, Cadence and Twilight were already standing at the railing and calling for the crowd’s attention. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy stood to the left side of the balcony behind the two princesses, while Applejack and Rarity stood to the right. Spike slipped off of Applejack’s back and stood between her and Rarity, straining to try and see Twilight’s face.

“Attention, everypony!” Cadence called.

Silence came over the crowd as Cadence continued, “I, Princess Mia Amore Cadenza of the Crystal Empire…”

“...and I, Princess of Friendship Twilight Sparkle…”

“...are here today to address the situation of Cloudsdale city. For those who may be unaware, Cloudsdale’s weather equipment has malfunctioned causing a series of catastrophic machinery failures that lead to large scale damage. The Weather Factory is in lock down, and the staff are doing their best to keep the damage contained.”

“However,” Twilight took over, “the result of the failures was the creation of a powerful polar vortex that has trapped the entire city of Cloudsdale inside a harsh blizzard. The conditions of the polar vortex and the damage done to different machinery has caused the storm to take on characteristics of multiple different weather phenomena. The storm is structured like that of a hurricane, and therefore has an eye where the city of Cloudsdale is located. The storm itself is blizzard-like with heavy snow, fierce winds, sleet, and hail.”

“The storm continues to expand, and as it does so, the eye in the middle of the storm has shown to be slowly decreasing in size. I the eye becomes too small, Cloudsdale will have the face the fiercest weather the storm has to offer in the wall of the eye.”

“The citizens of Cloudsdale are mostly safe as of the present, only having to deal with cold temperatures. However, there is no way to enter or exit the storm as of ye. To counter the storms expansion and mount a rescue mission to save all the people of Cloudsdale, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are traveling to the vortex alongside a deployment of one hundred troops led by Captain Shining Armor.”

“We are confident that the situation can be handled; however, as of this moment, the nation of Equestria is in a state of national emergency.”

There were murmurs and gasps from the crowd. Wide-eyed stares and whimpers of fear reached the Princess’ ears as they continued speaking.

Twilight continued over the commotion in the crowd below. “We have more troops ready for deployment if necessary, who will be lead by the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony, including myself. If I am sent to help Princess Celestia and Princess Luna along with the element bearers…”

“...I will take over as the temporary leader of Equestria until the situation has been contained.” Cadence spoke. “Due to the disorder this will cause not only in Canterlot, but for the rest of Equestria as well, until the storm has been taken care of, Canterlot’s citizens are asked to stay home and stay off the streets. The other cities in Equestria will be receiving similar news shortly.”

“While we are aware that this may cause disruption in many of Equestria’s citizens’ lives, we ask that we have your full cooperation and patience. There’s no need to worry about the safety of the rest of Equestria, The storm is very far north, and is hundreds of miles from any other Equestrian cities, so we request that you stay in your home and allow us to handle the situation. Thank-you.”

Almost immediately, there was barrage of questions. Cadence could see Twilight’s worry starting to wear on her, and did her best to answer all of the questions herself in order to give the Princess of Friendship a small break. Unfortunately, the inevitable question was finally asked.

A reporter called out, “Princess Twilight Sparkle, I notice that there are only five element bearers present for this meeting. Where is the Bearer of the Element of Loyalty?”

Silence was Twilight’s only response. She opened her mouth, and then she clamped it shut again. This hesitation lasted for several seconds, before a chorus of civilians’ voices urging for an answer.

“Yeah, where is she?”

“Where’s Rainbow Dash?”

“Has she gone ahead with the troops?”

“Where’d she go?”

Rainbow Dash wasn’t aware of any declaration. She had no idea that the troops had been deployed, or that the storm was worsening around her. She didn’t even have awareness of her own freezing body. The pegasus couldn’t think. Her eyelids, heavy with ice, kept her eyes closed. She was just barely conscious, internally fighting for her life with everything she had left, which wasn’t very much.

If she could see her wings, Rainbow Dash would note how brittle her feathers had become due to icing. If she could feel her legs, she’d feel the painful stinging of frostbite settling in, threatening to render her permanently immobile if she were so fortunate as to make it out of this situation alive. I she could find the energy to open her eyes, she’d know that the storm had worsened to the point that a pony could barely see one foot in front of him/her.

Rainbow knew of none of these things. All she knew of was the blackness that was threatening to swallow her up. Her body, which was now completely limp, had been buried underneath about a foot of snow. Her face, along with a tuft of her mane, and her rainbow colored tail were the only two visible parts of her body. Another fierce wind blew past Rainbow, momentarily making her aware of the torturous cold that had her freezing down to her core. She tried to hold, but she couldn’t hold onto consciousness forever. She felt herself slip into the darkness, leaving her unconscious and completely at the storms mercy.

“Ahem!” Cadence stepped in. “As of right now, Rainbow Dash is in the field taking steps to control the storm due to her skillful flight abilities. That being said, Princess Twilight and I have many duties to attend to, so this will be the end of the declaration.”

The ponies standing below the balcony began to scatter as Princess Cadence and Princess Twilight turned and headed into the building. Twilight’s outward calm was beginning to crumble. The rest of the maine six were waiting in the corridor leading to the balcony. Princesses Cadence entered the hall, but Twilight stopped in the doorway.

“Twilight,” Fluttershy began to ask, “are you oka-”

“Spike.” Twilight said curtly, interrupting Fluttershy.

The little dragon walked to Twilight and, at her beckoning, climbed onto her back. Twilight lifted her head to look at the rest of her friends, but her eyes seemed unfocused and far away.

“I’ll be in the throne room to discuss any further measures in fifteen minutes, Cadence. Spike, hold on.”

There was a flash of purple light, and with that, Twilight teleported out of sight. The alicorn was very tired, and couldn’t find the energy to teleport back to the spot she’d been staring out the window all in one go. After three separate teleports, she was standing in the same spot she had been previous to the speech. Spike hopped off, and the two sat down without a word. Twilight choked first, a single tear escaping her eye and sliding down her muzzle. Thankful for one another's company, the two life-long friends sat together and cried.

Sonic Slingshot

“Ready, aim, fire!”

A huge discharge of magical energy burst forth from the horns of legions of guardsmen. The sheer force of the concentrated magic sent the stallions sliding whole yards backward on the snow and ice directly outside the wall of the vortex. A blinding white light engulfed the entire military unit as the energy and the wall met, but despite the momentary lack of visibility, a large number of armored stallions charged at the impact point following the firing of the blast. Their horns were engulfed by a magical aura that turned them into miniature spears. For an instant, the storm wall weakened at the impact point, and the spear-headed guardsmen charging in pushed into the barrier surrounding the deadly storm, but suddenly, as if reinforced by its own invisible forcefield, the wall repaired itself and pushed against the intrusion. The entire military company was blown off of their feet and flung backward several yards by a sudden burst of wind.

Celestia and Luna, who had been flying above the firing squad of guardsmen and contributing to the burst of magical energy, were brought down to the ground by the heavy winds. Celestia managed a shaky landing on three hooves, the fourth slipping on the ice. Luna fell with a thud about a yard behind her older sister. Celestia turned her back to the fierce vortex and offered Luna a hoof.

“Are you alright, sister?”

“Barely,” Luna muttered, taking Celestia’s hoof and standing. “This is not working, Celestia.”

“But what other strategy is there?”

“I do not know, but piercing the wall from the outside is proving nearly impossible.”

“We aren’t sure how many guardsmen managed to make it through the wall. If even two of them manage to weaken the vortex from the inside, we could still have a chance.”

“We aren’t sure if any guardsmen have made it through, and further-”

The conversation was interrupted by another fierce wind that whipped past the two princesses and through ranks of soldiers struggling to stand and get back into formation. Celestia, though firmly planted in her place, bended to the wind with a shudder. Luna, who was still younger, and therefore lighter, than her older sister was pushed back almost a foot, despite her sister blocking her from the worst of the wind.

“We can not continue this failing strategy!” Luna practically screamed over the wind, fighting her way back to her sister’s side.

“I have no other ideas,” Celestia replied. “Have you?”

The only sound between the two for a moment was a second fierce gust. Finally, Luna relented with a sigh. The two sisters rose and helped Shining Armor rally the troops.
The proud, blue-maned stallion gritted his teeth and stamped his hoof on the ground in frustration. Celestia sent blue sparks of magic flying from her horn, the signal for another barrage.

“Company ready!” Shining Armor yelled. “Ready, aim, fire!”

Spike held his stomach to muffle it’s growling as he and Twilight made their way to the mess hall. She and Cadence had spoken for hours about the various strategies and plans for containing-and ultimately stopping-the storm. Spike had dutifully recorded the entire session in writing, which was a tedious but necessary job, and sent everything to the temporary base that Shining Armor had established about fifty miles from the vortex. Researchers appointed by the crown were currently rushing around the complex trying to figure out how to penetrate the wall of the storm, and while the information from the session would yield no direct help, the hope was that the notes would at least give them some ideas.

The rest of the main six was moping around in the dining hall again, anxiously waiting for Twilight and Princess Cadence to return, hopefully with news that they were being deployed to the front lines. An awkward silence rested over the group, broken only by the galloping of guards preparing for departure as they sprinted past the closed doors. Pinkie Pie had treated herself to a cake from the castle’s kitchen, but had barely managed to eat the equivalent of a slice in over thirty minutes.

Releasing a sigh, the pink earth pony relented and asked, with her eyes still directed down at the cake, “Do you guys want any?”

“Oh, no. I- I’m not really hungry,” Fluttershy responded.

“Really, it’s all yours, darling,” Rarity concurred.

“I reckon I could use a slice, Pinkie Pie,” Applejack accepted, trotting over to the dejected looking mare’s side.

With a sigh Pinkie Pie pushed the cake toward Applejack, who was seconds from taking a bite when Twilight walked into the mess. All eyes looked up at her, but Twilight’s eyes remained cemented on the floor.

“Eh-hem!” Rarity tried to discreetly clear her throat.

Twilight did not respond.

“Twilight, dear, did you-”

“We’re still waiting on orders,” the alicorn replied curtly.

Spike hopped off of Twilight’s back and pulled out a chair for her. Managing a small smile of thanks, the exhausted alicorn took a seat with the rest of the group.

Applejack sighed. “Nevermind, Pinkie.”

The earth pony returned to her chair, and Spike took his own. Dead silence descended on the group, a morose feeling taking hold of everypony present. The quiet hung over the room for almost a half hour, before suddenly being interrupted by a pop and a puff of smoke that startled everypony back to attention. A scroll had materialized in mid-air at a height slightly above the table. No pony moved. Eventually, Spike gained the nerve to hop onto the table and roll open the parchment.

“Ahem! To the Princess of Friendship and Her Trusted Advisors…”

“Ouch,” Rainbow moaned.

A dull pain that she had failed to notice previously was coursing through her entire skull. Her mind was fogged, but the realization of anything at all- pain, fogginess, even cold- was a miracle in itself after the pegasus’ crash-landing. Wait. How am I awake after that crash-landing? And why am I not freezing and covered in snow? Without opening her eyes, Rainbow could feel the absence of the biting wind and the chilling snow bank.

Not understanding the severity of her condition, without thinking twice, Rainbow attempted to move her limbs and wings. Sharp pains from all of her frostbitten muscle hit her simultaneously, the excruciating pain making her dizzy and nauseous.

A gruff grunt came from beside her, followed by an impatient order, “Hold still!”

“Wh-who is that?” Rainbow stammered, her mind still processing slowly.

“Private Cobalt Shield at your service, miss. Now please, hold still. You aren’t in very good shape.”

“Who are you?” Rainbow asked, her brain snapping into awareness. “Did someone send you?”

“I’m a royal guardsmen for Princess Luna, assigned a mission to weaken the storm system wall from the inside. Now stop talking while I defrost you.”

“Where are we?”

“Some sort of ice cavern. Not sure if the storm caused it or if it’s always been here, but in either case, you are one lucky mare, miss.”

“Bu-”

“Hup! No more questions, miss. It’s hard enough producing any sort of heat at this temperature as is. I need to concentrate. You’ll just have to trust me for now.”

Rainbow weighed her options. So he’s in the royal guard. Ok, that could work to my advantage. He may know a bit more about this storm than I do. I could get some useful info out of him. Then again, he’ll probably want to detain me here. I know I’m not in good shape. Certainly not good enough to fight him off. I’ll just let him help me until I have enough strength to get away.

If there was one thing Rainbow hated, it was being still. Even with the knowledge of the painful frostbite overtaking her limbs, she itched to flex her muscles and at least attempt movement. Still, she didn’t want to interrupt the guardsman, so she patiently waited for what felt like hours until he spoke again.

“I think you should be alright to move now. May want to take it slow and gentle.”

Rainbow cautiously rose to a sitting position. Every part of her hurt, no longer from cold, but from soreness. You’ve finally done it, Rainbow. You’ve sprained or strained just about every muscle at this point. She focused her blurry vision on the strong gusts of snow-carrying wind. The world outside the cavern appeared more like a shifting white wall than a landscape in the fierce blizzard. Carefully flexing her wings, Rainbow forced herself not to wince at the pain from her frost-damaged wings.

“You’re wings are in bad shape. Not quite too bad to fly, but in these winds, it’d be a miracle.”

Rainbow gave a pained chuckle, “You must not know who I am, do you?”

“Pardon me, miss?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. Thank you for the defrosting, Private Shield, but trust me, these wings will fly.”

“With all do respect, I disagree. The amount of ice that was on those wings will have them too weak for a regular take off for about a week. You’d need quite the powerful updraft.”

“Speaking of updrafts, what about the vortex?” Rainbow interjected. “I’m surprised you were even able to get in here on your own. This storm’s got a pretty thick wall.”

“It wasn’t just me ma’am. An entire company of guardsmen and the Princesses themselves had to combine their magic to get even a single soldier through that wall.”

“Oh really?” Rainbow answered as she rotated her weakened wings and stretched her forehooves.

“I assume you must be a citizen of Cloudsdale, miss?”

Rainbow grimaced, “You could say that.”

“This is no time to be cryptic. A simple yes or no would suffice.”

“There’s no time to talk. Thank you for your help, Private Shield, but as you know, someone has to penetrate the eye of the storm to get into Cloudsdale. There isn’t enough time to explain.”

“You can’t possibly be suggesting going back out into the storm in your condition! You are a civilian, miss! I suggest that you leave this to the trained guardsmen and Equestria’s Princesses.”

“I’m a bit more than your average civilian, and I’ve really got to fly.”

Rainbow unfurled her wings and began to trot forward, but was tugged backward by a magical force gripping the end of her tail.

“I’m afraid that for your own safety, I can’t let you do that.”

Rainbow sighed, “I’m warning you. Let me go.”

The stallion began pulling Rainbow Dash backwards on the frozen cavern floor. Rainbow allowed him to pull her back until he was within reach of her hooves. Without warning, she bucked the guardsmen in the jaw.

“Oof!” the guardsmen grunted as he was forced to release her from his spell.

Rainbow sprinted forward, only to be grabbed by her hind legs and flipped upside down. She flapped her wings and propelled herself forward another foot before the guardsman got a good grip on her with his magic.

“Stand down, miss!” the private ordered sternly, straining to keep her held in place.

The strength in Rainbow’s wings was fleeting. She could feel herself being dragged backwards and downwards. She was just about to abandon her attempt at flight and fight the guard hoof to hoof, but then a statement Private Shield had made earlier echoed in her mind. The amount of ice that was on those wings will have them too weak for a regular take off for about a week. You’d need quite the powerful updraft. The pegasus pushed herself to gain even one more millimeter of distance before suddenly cementing her wings to her side and allowing herself to be flung backward toward the private. She tucked herself into a ball and performed a backwards roll midflight, twisting her body so that she was facing towards Private Shield in under a second. While she still had the momentum from him yanking her backwards, she fired up her wings and shot forward, tackling the unsuspecting private to the ground. The two landed with a thud, cracking the icy floor beneath them.

“Sorry!” Rainbow called as she pushed off the fallen soldier’s armor and continued moving at a gallop.

Adrenaline kicked in, warding off the worst of her pain. She kept her pace, turning and sprinting to the open cave mouths. The pegasus unfurled her wings and kept her running speed to force a take off despite the fleeting resilience of her wings’ muscle fibers. She shot out from the mouth of the cave and into the storm.

The howling winds swept her up and tossed her around as if she were limp. Rainbow gritted her teeth. Not this time. She angled her wings, allowing them to work with the winds, letting herself be swept up into the storm’s swirling motion. If the Princesses need to get in and I need to get through to Cloudsdale, I can solve two problems with one flight. Rainbow felt herself being pulled to the outside of the storm as she gained more altitude. Spotting the black wall of clouds coming closer in her peripheral vision, she braced herself for the frigid shock of entering the outer wall. As soon as she was engulfed, Rainbow pumped her wings fiercely, flying along the path of the vortex’s winds. She picked up speed, ice coating her muzzle as she was whipped by sub-zero temperatures and a deadly amount of wind chill. She pushed herself to increase her speed until she was moving faster than the storm winds themselves, using the force of the wind gave her the ability to accelerate forward at an alarming speed. Cloudsdale is at the center. Rainbow reminded herself as she hurtled forward at a seemingly uncontrollable velocity. I’ve got one shot at this. Focus, Rainbow. At the critical moment she squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for what would be her hardest impact yet. For Cloudsdale.

“What is that?” Shining Armor gasped aloud.

Streaks of colored light licked the wall of the vortex, growing brighter and harsher in hue by the second. An entire company of soldiers stood gaping in awe at the rainbow wrapping its way around the entirety of the storm.

“Could it be?” Celestia questioned, thunderstruck.

“All company brace yourselves!” Luna cried, coming to her sister’s realization.

Just three seconds after the order, a sonic rainboom exploded outwards from the storm. As if someone had broken the seal on a glass bottle, a pocket of air burst and expanded rapidly outwards. The explosion of air sent everypony within a ten mile radius flying backwards and continued spreading to the point that it shook the temporary base miles away. The storm wall was broken, fragmented in a way that made it impossible for it to quickly repair itself as it had previously.

Shining Armor stood shakily, shocked at the collateral damage that the sonic rainboom had caused to the vortex. Refocusing, the Captain of the Royal Guard helped up the troops nearest him and began shouting at the top of his lungs.

“Company! On your feet! All injured stay down! All able bodied men into formation and prepare to penetrate the storm! On the double!”

The fearful citizens of Cloudsdale cautiously peered out from their homes. A sound resembling a bomb going off had echoed throughout the entire city. Despite being trapped inside the storm, the city had been relatively quiet inside the peaceful eye. Now every citizen was cowering in fear, wondering if the awful storm was collapsing in on them, ready to rip the entirety of Cloudsdale apart.

After several tense minutes of waiting, the bravest citizens ventured out from their homes to investigate. Most were unrewarded for their boldness, but in the city’s western region, pegasi peaking out of their front doors were met with the sight of skid marks so large that they suggested the crash landing of something as large as a building. The marks ran deep, penetrating into the city’s cloud base by several feet. It was as if a knife had made a deep gash into one side of the airborne city, and most disturbingly of all, were the streaks of red snaking down the already striking crevice.