Flash Flood

Chapters

Prologue: The Flood
Chapter One: Aftermath
Chapter Two: Athena

Prologue: The Flood

The Flood
Prologue

The sheriff was making his rounds, and naturally that meant that sometimes he had to check on the status of the Ponyville dam. At night It has only ever been staffed with one employee at a time, the ever-vigilant dam watch ...who was currently napping underneath the visitors desk. These damn colts wouldn't know hard work if it hit them in the face. Jack-wagon probably wouldn't even notice if I did happen to hit him in the face with a little "hard work"... The sheriff thought as he eyed a large board sitting in the far corner, a remnant of the renovations the building had undergone recently. Then, a shadow passed over the wall. The sheriff turned to glance behind him, but only ended up with a brick to the face...

Through the loud booms of the lightning storm above the alarms of Ponyville blared! The Elements of Harmony gathered in the streets to confront the agitator that had put the town of Ponyville in such a state of unrest. "My eyes kept circling so bad I had vertigo, and my arms are still shaking, and my hooves were like 'Where are you putting me!?', and my tail kept flailing all over the place, is it still? I mean, I could barely get here without falling all over myself.. and!" The pink mare squealed in frustration.

"What does 'at all mean, Pinkie!?" Applejack yelled, cutting her off.

"I don't even know! But whatever it is, it's an even bigger doozy than when Twilight believed in my Pinkie sense!" All of the mares gasped!

"Wait... I feel something coming!" Twilight exclaimed.

"I'll see what it is!" Rainbow Dash soared above to get a better view. She instantly dove back down and grabbed onto Twilight in a vice-like grip. "Twi-t-t... F-ff-f..." Rainbow spluttered.

"Wha-?"

"Flood!"

Wind whipped through the trees, lightning cracked the sky, and the dam over Ponyville burst forth in a sea of swirling debris. Ponies screamed in horror as a tidal wave of turmoil flooded Ponyville, leaving destruction in its wake. The sickening screeches of furry creatures that had inhabited the nearby forests could barely be heard over the thunder of the flash flood that forced its way through the small town, buckling houses under its massive weight. Half the town was already engulfed when a wall of purple magic smashed into the blur of swirling, icy-cold water. "I-I can't hold it!" Twilight heaved. "Let me help!" Rarity used her magic to push into the surf. Both Ponies struggled to stop the water, but to no avail, it continued to push into Ponyville! Just as it was about to engulf the two mares, their magical essences were joined by a bright veil of fair gold as vibrant as the sun, and a dark haze of blue as deep and unnerving as the water behind it. The barrier slowly pushed the water back to the edges of Ponyville, pulling drowning ponies inside of it's sheltering glow as it passed. The flood ceased and pooled around the sides of the barrier that had formed around all of Ponyville.
There was a deathly silence inside the barrier. No birds sang, no ponies spoke, and the storm that had flung itself upon Ponyville, causing so much devastation, quietly brewed in the distance.

As she came to, Twilight could hear three authoritative voices yelling out commands to the Ponyville citizens that clambered about the town. Two of the voices had a booming, but silken quality to them. The third voice sounded all to familiarly bewildered. Suddenly one of the voices stopped and sweetly woke Twilight from her slumber. "Twilight, we need your help. I know you're tired, but I know you're strong. You can do this, you need to help your fellow ponies." Celestia spoke in a very reasonable tone that appealed to Twilight's bewildered mind. She tried to get up, and succeeded on the second attempt, albeit groggily.

"What's happening?" Twilight finally managed to mutter. Celestia answered in a more urgent tone now.

"Half of the town was submerged in the flood created by the disjunction of the Ponyville dam. Twilight, Mayor Mare is overwhelmed with the number of crises that need attending to. We need you to sort out priorities, I have ponies already dealing with the most important details, but I need you to help remedy the smaller ones. Do you understand?" Celestia's commanding tone bolstered Twilight's brain into action.

"Okay, what needs doing?" Twilight asked.

"Mayor Mare will tell you all you need to know." Was all Celestia said.

Behind her beloved teacher Twilight could see Luna lifting rubble and debris with her magic, carefully placing it in a pile nearby. Twilight remembered the cold embrace she'd felt as their magical essences entwined in the wall of energy that pushed against the tidal wave that threatened the rest of Ponyville. Then, Twilight's attention focused back on Celestia, whom she'd noticed wasn't moving. Rather, she was concentrating very deeply. Then Twilight saw the fair golden magic's glow out of the corner of her vision. Celestia was currently focusing on keeping the wave and subsequent river out of Ponyville, the water rushing around her arc of magic and meandering toward what looked like the direction of Foggy Bottom Bog...

"Mayor Mare, what's the status of Ponyville?" Twilight asked calmly.

"Oh! Oh, Twilight... You scared me." The Mayor had been standing on a small pile of rubble, but had fallen off in her anxiety. Twilight would have felt awkward if it hadn't been for their situation.

"Sorry, Mayor." Twilight responded apologetically.

"Well then..." Mayor Mare continued. "Yes, well, okay. I sent the Wonderbolts to ward off the storm, so that's a non-issue, and I have Rainbow Dash surveying the area for injured ponies for the rescue teams. Now what we need are ponies to start building levees at the sides of the river and to direct the river around Ponyville. We also need to gather ponies to help rescue any trapped ponies in the rubble. Those are the two major issues right now. So, I need you to organize the levee teams while I direct the rescue teams. The hospital is being directed by Dr. Polio, so no need to worry about that..." Mayor Mare looked extremely frazzled. "So, just get the levees built so Celestia can focus on helping the rescue teams and we can relieve the hospital teams, okay?"

Twilight immediately set to work.

I have to find Applejack... She thought.

Meanwhile...
The Wonderbolts were leading the storm away from Ponyville and into Foggy Bottom Bog. The plan was to get it away from civilization and to try to rip it apart cloud by cloud. The storm raged, and lightning arced across the sky, accenting the heavy rainfall that tore at the Wonderbolts' feathers. The lightning lit up the bog and gave life to the dark shadows aimlessly sprinting below; animals scurrying away to their dens. But unbeknownst to the Wonderbolts, the lightning hadn't been what scared them. As the flash receded back to oblivion, the swamp's surface started to bulge and ripple. Two red eyes breached the water, then six, and then ten. With the booming of the thunder and the darkness of the night, it felt like the Wonderbolts surely stood at the threshold of Tartarus. And unfortunately for them, they had managed to awaken something worse than even Cerberus himself.

Twilight carefully maneuvered her way through the street, which was riddled with detritus. "Twilight! You have to 'elp, Sweet Apple Acres is flooded and Granny Smith and Apple Bloom are trapped in the second floor of the 'ouse!" Applejack had found Twilight instead.

"Applejack!" Twilight rushed to her. "Twilight please! I wasn't there to 'elp and now they're not gonna make it unless we hurry!"

"What about Big Mac, what happened to him?" Twilight asked.

"He was with me when we was passing through town. We was gettin' the family some take out, then the flood hit. Then I asked RD to check on Sweet Apple Acres, and she told me what 'appened!" Applejack whimpered.

Twilight thought for a second... "Tell Rainbow Dash to get some other pegasi to help Granny Smith and Apple Bloom. But afterwards come back, I need your help stopping the river."

"Okay!" Applejack ran off to find Rainbow Dash again.

"Twilight, 'ave you seen Applejack?" Big Mac yelled after Twilight, who was currently flagging down a very large stallion.

"Big Mac! I need you to get the strongest stallions you can find to meet me at the edge of the wreckage. Oh, and Applejack is fine, I sent her to find Rainbow Dash. Don't worry about Granny Smith and Apple Bloom, they'll be fine." With that said Big Mac galloped away. The stallion Twilight was flagging down trotted up just then.

"Howdy miss, whatcha need?" "I need your help to build levees beside the river to direct it away from Ponyville, Celestia can't hold the barrier forever." Twilight said quickly and to the point.

"Sure thing miss, I wasn't sure what I was supposed to be doing, so I was jus' wanderin' the rubble. Name's Tex."

"Twilight."

He held out his hoof and Twilight quickly bumped it with hers, hurrying in the direction of the area where she came-to.

Big Mac had arrived with the strongest stallions he could find a few hours ago, and the construction of the levees was in full force. Luckily, Tex happened to work for Ponyville Construction, so the struggle was a bit easier than it initially could have been. Twilight floated rubble and dirt from the pile Luna had created earlier over to help create the crude hills. Celestia remained unfazed, but continued to concentrate only on the barrier surrounding Ponyville. The Ponyville news crew pleaded at their cameras in the background, begging anypony watching to send aid. They were on emergency channels, but almost nopony would be awake this late at night... By the time the Ponies from nearby towns and cities had finally arrived, the makeshift levees had been built and Twilight Sparkle lay in her bed, completely exhausted.
Applejack's family had been saved by "Your friendly neighborhood Rainbow Dash", and RD swelled with pride. The news crews from Fillydelphia had interviewed her and praised her heroism. But beneath her bragging facade lay a pony who had just lost half of her home, and who was heartbroken. And really, they didn't know the half of what she'd been through tonight.. But knowing that telling them anything more would keep her from precious sleep, she bit her tongue. The news crew finally let her go when the Wonderbolts came back from warding off the storm and slowly degenerating it once it was out of the way of any form of civilization. But it wasn't just their uniforms that had caught the reporters' eyes, it was their wounded teammates. Spitfire, under the arms of Soarin', waved to Rainbow with a sad expression on her face, but Dash was too tired to join the interview...

RRRRAAAAaaagghghghh! The Wonderbolts clasped their heads at the earsplitting screech. Unfortunately for them, the sound hadn't come from the lightning... but from the very agitated hydra that the storm had perturbed during its sleep. The monster lashed at the Wonderbolts, who could barely see the hooves in front of their faces without light from the storm, and Blaze and High Winds fell to the darkness below. The rest of the Wonderbolts didn't know what hit them. The screams of the ponies that had faced a dragon, one of the fiercest monsters in all Equestria, told their fellow Wonderbolts that whatever it was, it wasn't good! It was Fleetfoot who first noticed the unnerving red glow moving towards her and the remaining Wonderbolts. Quickly, she shouted for them to scramble high into the storm. The other Wonderbolts shot into the sky, some more reluctant than others. The reluctant pegasi found all too late the importance of trusting your comrades. As Lightning Streak, Silver Lining and Surprise fell to the invisible aggressor there was a burst of lightning. The ponies gasped at the horror that faced them- a hydra, the most dangerous monster in all Equestria and beyond. Its body was plated with scales like shields, teeth like swords, claws like spears, and a tail that shook with tremendous power! And as if that weren't enough, it had five heads! Rapidfire shat his jumpsuit. The pegasi rounded the hydra, trying to make it disoriented by having to fight more than one opponent, and although they were fast, the hydra had five heads and easily managed to keep up with their movements. Luckily, none of them were gnashed by the enormous mouths that shot at them. They rounded again, this time flying in circles and doing aerial acrobatics that the hydra couldn't keep up with. Instead, the monster's heads wrapped around each other and in a sort of knot. The two heads that didn't get stuck looked at the others in disgust at their stupidity. Before they could finish their sluggish thoughts, the Wonderbolts had rounded again. But the last two heads had expected that and moved their claws in front of the fliers. Spears ripped away at Wonderbolt armor, and Firestreak and Wave Chill fell to the great beast, gravely wounded. Spitfire thought of circling around the hydra again, but remembering the monster's interception before, thought better of it. Besides, the other heads are too far apart to knot them up like the others... But before she could figure out what to do, one of the knotted up heads broke free and swatted at Spitfire and the Wonderbolts scattered.

Rainbow Dash was on her way to Sweet Apple Acres when she heard a loud roaring in the distance above the lighting which streamed towards her. Oh no! The Wonderbolts must be in trouble! Rainbow zoomed towards the lightning-lit brawl in the distance, gaining speed. Then she saw the hydra. Only one thought came to her, but she wasn't sure it was a good one. She continued to zoom toward the beast, a mach cone forming around her head, and burst into a Sonic Rainboom! The explosion knocked the Wonderbolts out of the sky, out of the swooping of the hydra's heads. The after-wave knocked the beast to the ground, stunned. The last of the Wonderbolts lay on the ground below, some unconscious, others fighting the pain welling up in their bodies. Rainbow flew down to Spitfire, the captain of the Wonderbolts, and held her head in her arms. Spitfire looked up to her. "I- where am I?"

"Spitfire, are you okay? Can you walk?" Dash whispered.

"Rainbow? Y-you saved us, thank you.. Tell Fleetfoot that sh-she's team captain now, I can't get us out of here, and I didn't do anything in the battle. I'm useless now, I-I can't go on.."

"Don't say that Fire!" Dash shouted. Soarin' galloped nearby, yelling for Spitfire who was invisible in the dark fray that surrounded her and Rainbow.

"Hey, I never told you this, but you're a really good flier. You're too good. I didn't accept you into the Wonderbolts because I didn't want you outshining me. I'm sorry for that."

"No.. shut up! You're my hero and you're going to be fine!"

"Spitfire!" Soarin' was getting close, following the sound of Dash's shouting.

"I don't deserve to be your hero, and I don't deserve to be team captain, I can't do it anymore. I can feel my wing, it's broken.." Spitfire stopped, one of Dash's tears streaking down her face and into her ear. She looked irritated, and at first Rainbow thought she was only reacting to the uncomfortable position of her tear. But then she looked at Dash with an expression that held pain, confusion, and... something else. Looking deep into Rainbow's puffy eyes, Spitfire mustered the courage, and kissed her.

Soarin' finally made it to Spitfire, but Rainbow was nowhere to be found...

That kiss had stunned Rainbow, but she had a job to do, saving Applejack's family was her number one priority. She arrived at Sweet Apple Acres and found Granny Smith and Apple Bloom on the roof of the house where Applejack said they would be. Picking them up, she flew back to Ponyville, arriving safely at Applejack's grateful hooves.

Chapter One: Aftermath

Chapter One
Aftermath

The aftermath of the tragedy that had entered Ponyville had left the town with several badly, or even severely hurt ponies - homeless, but lucky to be alive. Twilight Sparkle lay exhausted inside the Ponyville library while the Princesses continued to sort through rubble. The levee teams were still busy finishing directing the river away from Ponyville, and Mayor Mare was trying not to puke as wounded ponies were pushed into Ponyville Hospital's emergency care. Almost everypony was helping, others lethargically ambled through the town, trying to locate friends and family beneath toppled buildings or among the wounded. Some ponies completely lost it. The Ponyville police swarmed the town, stopping ponies that were looting shops and wailing like animals. Granite Smash later gave an account of the madness.

"It was as if every foul thing inside of them had come out. I think some ponies are convinced this is the end, but this is only a new beginning. I know there's loss, I've seen it all across the board. I lost a lieutenant, a friend, but I can't fixate my mind on it, and the ponies of Ponyville can't focus on their loss either, it'll consume them. We all have to deal with this tragedy and keep moving forward... No more questions."

"Chief of Ponyville Police, Granite Smash. I'm Fuchsia Mare, and this is Manehattan news."

"I'm Fuchsia Mare and I'm here with a member of one of the rescue teams. Is it true that your team has been the most active since the beginning of the flood?"

"Yes, we were ordering some cakes from Sugarcube corner -at least, that's what I was doin'- when the door was flung open by the wind that was bein' rushed up by the flood. I didn't know what was happenin', and I stepped outside to have a look. Then I saw this glowing, and there was the princesses, and this huge wall. I didn't know what it was, but it was probably the scariest thing I've ever seen in my life! Then, it shot back and Luna was shouting for the mayor, and then she pointed at me and the others who had come out by now. I was terrified, then she told me to come to her. As soon as I started moving, she pulled up this huge sheet of stuff in her magic, sortin' out what was big from what was small. Then, she told me to look in the other piles of wood, and to look for anypony that hadn't made it out of their houses before the flood had happened."

"So you were asked by princess Luna herself to search the debris?" Fuchsia asked, impressed.

"Yes, and I can tell you that she is a real mare of action! She isn't what I expected at all."

"What was it like searching the debris?" Fuchsia continued.

"Well, we had just started on that first pile when I heard somepony yelling from somewhere nearby. I figured that I should start with places that I knew ponies were trapped at. So, me and the others, we went into this hole that I guess was once a basement. There, we found this one pony floating in the water right off. I fished him out and told Caramel to check on him while I looked for the pony callin' for help, but she found me. She was limpin' over to me and her mane was soaked. I picked her up in my muzzle by her mane and flung her on my back, then I took her to Nurse Sweetheart's house because she had the night off from the hospital."

"Very heroic, did you catch the name of the mare you rescued?" Fuchsia asked, dramatically leaning in.

"Oh of course! I've gotten a lot of names over the night, but you don't forget a mare as pre- um, I mean, her name was Berry Frost, heh.."

"Well, that's all the time we have and besides you have some well-earned rest coming to you Baritone! I'm Fuchsia Mare, reporting live from the disaster area in Ponyville."

When Rainbow finally made it back to her house in the clouds, it was nearly three a.m. After groggily crossing the room, she collapsed into her bed.

Outside of Rainbow's cloud home, Soarin' was landing softly on the fluffy lawn outside her front door. Spitfire was on his back, unable to fly due to her broken wing. She carefully slid off of Soarin's back, using his mane as a hoof-hold to guide her to the cushiony ground below.

"Are you sure this is her house?" Spitfire couldn't see anything during the flight from her position on Soarin's back.

"I'm absolutely positive, I followed her here when she left earlier like you told me to. Hey, why do you want to see her so badly anyway?" Soarin' queried.

"She saved us from the hydra, didn't you see the sonic rainboom? Nopony but Rainbow Dash could pull off something like that." Spitfire bit her lip, she had said that last part too dreamily and Soarin' had noticed her change in attitude. But before he could question it, Spitfire sent him off.

"Go talk to the reporters from Manehattan, they'll want to hear all about the battle with the hydra."

"But what about you? You're the team captain, you should be representing us." Soarin' said plaintively, he didn't want to leave without Spitfire.

"Look, I'm not the team captain anymore, Fleetfoot is team captain and she's with the reporters, so go." This was something Spitfire had to do alone. She needed to know what Rainbow was thinking.

"Well, if you're not team captain, then I don't have to listen to your orders." Soarin' was going to be stubborn about this.

"Fine, I'll be your damn captain, but I want you to leave! This is something I have to do alone..." Soarin' didn't look too convinced, but the way Spitfire was looking at him told him that this wasn't negotiable. Grudgingly, he left Spitfire alone.

Spitfire knocked on Rainbow's door, but Dash didn't answer. Pushing open the cracked entrance, she made her way into the dark room. From the moonlight, Spitfire was guessing that this was Rainbow's living room. It was a mess, but Fire was cool with that. Finding the rails, she slowly moved up the stairs towards Dash's room.

Rainbow Dash was tossing and turning in her sleep. That kiss was unexpected, and she didn't know what to do. Thinking that a good nights rest would help she had gradually fallen asleep, but now she was being haunted by dreams of Spitfire.

Fire was slowly removing her Wonderbolts costume that had become slick with sweet-smelling sweat from training. As she took off her goggles, her mane fell slowly down her face and neck, and she looked expectantly at Rainbow Dash, who stood paralyzed in the corner of the Wonderbolts' private locker room. Dash cleared her throat, she hadn't ever really thought about how attractive Fire was before. Circling, Dash eyed her long legs and tight flank, how her hair landed perfectly across her gorgeous eyes... Then she noticed Spitfire's quivering wings and tail...

"Come on Dash, don't make me wait..." Spitfire pleaded longingly.

"Wow Spitfire, I never noticed how sexy you are." Dash said, playing it cool, hehe.

"What? Dash, wake up!"

"Huh!?" Dash shot up from her bed, eliciting a scream from Fire. It had all been a dream, an awesome dream, and somepony had woken her up! "Alright who..!?" She started, but then realized just who had awakened her. "Fire!?"

"I'm sorry Dash! I shouldn't have come here, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you I just -whaaAA!." Fire fell down the stairs before she could finish her sentence.

"Fire!" Dash was up in a second, her primal instincts taking over. However, Fire hadn't gotten more than a few steps down the stairs before stopping - and subsequently getting knocked over again by Rainbow Dash.

They rolled down the stairs, which didn't hurt all that bad due to the steps being made of clouds, finally stopping at the foot of the staircase after their grueling fall. Dash was on top of Spitfire, who was groaning in pain. Fortunately, the bandages and splint on her wing kept the injury from worsening, but that didn't mean it hurt any less. Unfortunately, Dash was still hot under the belt from her dream, and was reluctant to get off of Spitfire. "Get off of me!" Fire pleaded in pain.

"Sorry!" Dash came to her senses and carefully lifted off of Spitfire with her wings.

Fire slowly got up, minding her injured wing, and sat down on the couch across the room. Rainbow Dash landed on the floor of her living room, still confused about what had just happened. She finally managed the question "What are you doing here?"

Spitfire didn't answer for a while, looking down at her hooves or in any other direction than that of Rainbow Dash. "I... I came to thank you for your help with the hydra." Had she already done that? She couldn't even remember. The night had progressed so quickly, hardly anything wasn't a total blur. She was starting to regret coming here...

Rainbow, on the other hoof, was trying not to freak out and play things cool. Spitfire was in her house. She had broken into her house... This. Was. Awesome! "Umm, yeah, no biggie." Keep it chill, don't scare her off, just talk. "Sorry about the stairs, is your wing okay?"

"Yeah, it's okay." A mare of many words, come on Spitfire, just tell her! "Listen, I..." But she didn't know how to say it. Just do it!

"What is it?" Dash thought Spitfire looked even more pained now than when she had fallen down the stairs.

"I... you look tired, maybe I should just wait until you've slept then tell you.." Spitfire, you cowardly piece of-

"Hey, if you need to talk then lets talk." Dash had sat down on the cluttered couch beside Fire, blushing slightly. She's right there, and she's SOOO much cuter in person. Dash thought, murmuring dreamily under her breath.

"Look, about that kiss..." You can do this. "I mean, if you don't want to do anything, that's fine. I mean, I must have caught you off guard. It's just... I'm interested, if you're interested." Shit, what's she gonna say?

"Totally! I mean, uhh." She told you, don't be so nervous! "Totally."

"Good" Fire sighed with relief. "I wasn't thinking straight, then you flew off and I wasn't sure, and then I broke into your house, and now I'm babbling." Man am I nervous...

"You weren't thinking straight? Are you saying that you're not interested?"

"No, I'm interested! I just, what you told me after the hydra. I've been dealing with depression, being captain of the Wonderbolts is seriously stressful and I don't have time for a special somepony. And I'm always treated like a Wonderbolt, not a mare. For the longest time I thought nopony cared, but then that tear, and I wasn't thinking and I kissed you. But I'm glad I did it." She was looking directly at Rainbow Dash now, unloading all the baggage that had held her down for so long. Then Rainbow leaned in, slowly, and kissed her.

"This is Fuchsia Mare, and it is 3 o'clock AM in Ponyville. We're here with Herald on the other end in Manehattan. It has been three hours since the initial disaster and paramedics won't arrive for another hour. Herald, what is taking them so long?"

"Well Fuchsia pegasi from the REA are already hauling supplies via air-drops, they left about twenty minutes ago, luckily as you know flying is much faster than travel by land. Unfortunately the unicorns and earth ponies, making the vast majority of doctors and construction workers, are now underway in emergency Manehattan vehicles. Supplies had to be gathered short-notice, and hauling them and the ponies is no easy task. But rest assured Ponyville, you are not alone." Herald replied with a grimace.

"And how have the Manehattan authorities responded to the disaster?" Fuchsia asked.

"Well, they were the ponies that gathered the supplies for Ponyville. They're also headed into Ponyville with the trucks that left with the volunteers. Other than that, all Police Chief Blackjack would say was that the police force is doing everything they can to help, and so are the communities of Manehattan."

"Thank you, that's comforting to hear. Up next, an exclusive interview with the Wonderbolts!"

Soarin' was making his way back to the other Wonderbolts, flying through the darkness that was illuminated by the full moon in the sky. He could see the floodlights lighting up Ponyville in the distance. The stars in the sky were barely visible, overshadowed by the activity both above and below. It was all too bright in his opinion. There was a wink of magical fluorescence in the direction of Foggy Bottom Bog. Soarin' wondered what that could have been. He started in the direction of the Bog.

"Hey, watch it!" An unnamed voice called out in the sky.

Soarin' hadn't been paying attention and had bumped into a pegasus from the REA who was carrying supplies to relieve Ponyville. One of the crates on his chariot shook and started to fall. "No, my crates!"

Soarin' acted quickly, diving to reach the crate, barely missing several pegasi flying below the pegasus he had just bumped into. Finally, he retrieved the crate and returned it to the grateful pegasus unscathed. But now he couldn't remember just where the magical flicker had been. Groaning, he decided it didn't matter and headed for Ponyville with the REA pegasi instead. As he and the others closed in, Soarin could see the other Wonderbolts being interviewed. He quickly sped up to join them.

"I'm Fuchsia Mare and this is Manehattan news. I'm here with the Wonderbolts, who tell me they just faced a hydra in Foggy Bottom Bog. For ponies who don't know, a hydra is one of the most dangerous creatures in all of Equestria! Some dragons even turn tail if they know a hydra is on their path! So tell me, what was it like fighting such a ferocious beast!?"

"Well" Fleetfoot began. "it was an impossible endeavor. Mostly, we just avoided its attacks. Most of the squad was down, including Spitfire, when Rainbow Dash showed up and saved us all."

"Yes about that, where is Spitfire now?"

"I'm not sure, she left with Soarin' a while ago to see Rainbow Dash, but I'm not really sure where Dash even is. Fire left me in charge in the meantime. I'm not saying that I'm permanent captain or anything, but Spitfire is going through something right now and I'm willing to take on the responsibility of the team until she figures it out."

"So Spitfire has abandoned the team?"

"No, she was just a little shook up after the fight with the hydra. She also broke her wing, and I guess she just needs some time to cope with what's happened is all."

"And how did Rainbow Dash defeat the hydra?" Fuchsia continued.

"Well, there was this huge flash of light, and then the rest of the team and myself fell from the shock-wave of what I'm pretty sure was a sonic rainboom. I seriously wish I'd gotten a better view of it.." Fleetfoot trailed off, remembering the glistening trails of rainbow-colored light that had covered the sky at Foggy Bottom Bog.

Just then, Soarin' flew into the interview, without Spitfire.

"Excuse me Fleetfoot. Soarin', where is Spitfire?"

"Oh um, she's with Rainbow Dash, thanking her for helping us with the hydra I guess."

"Did she leave you with any comments regarding her status as captain of the Wonderbolts?" Fuchsia was actually genuinely interested in that question.

"Well, she said that she's still officially team captain, but Fleetfoot has to take on as temporary captain in her absence." He lied. He knew that when she had yelled at him it had only been to get rid of him. He just needed to convince himself that good ol' fun-loving, confident Spitfire would be back soon and that she'd be captain again.

"Well there you have it, Fleetfoot is the new captain of the Wonderbolts! That's all the time we have I'm afraid, I'm Fuchsia Mare and this is Manehattan News."

The Ponyville hospital rarely saw patients and was incredibly understaffed. Emergency volunteers were immediately sent to the hospital under the supervision of hospital staff. Despite these volunteers the facility still lacked medical staff, let alone experienced medical staff. Many ponies who had come in with severe injuries didn't last the night.

"Nurse Redheart, we need to get these patients to sector B!" Doctor Polio shouted. Across the room Nurse Redheart was trying to get the janitorial staff to move the patients to sector C, much to Polio's dismay.

"We can't! Nurse Hope just moved five patients to that area, it's full!" But Polio cut her off. "They'll lose some limbs if we do otherwise!" Then he considered something... "How badly were the other patients injured?" Nurse Redheart stopped moving, trying to remember, trying to not break down. "Badly enough to not be able to survive a relocation to sector C!" Nurse Redheart was becoming more frantic by the second, these ponies were beyond injuries she knew how to treat... The only ponies qualified enough to help any of them now were Doctor Polio and Nurse Hope. She felt useless... Suddenly Doctor Polio shouted behind her, tossing reports into the air and giving up on even general documentation. "Damn it!" Doctor Polio didn't want to see anypony die, but if the ponies in sector B couldn't manage a trip to sector C... "Take these ponies to sector B!"

"B-but there isn't room, I already told you!" Nurse Redheart cried.

"Get a hold of yourself! Tell Nurse Hope to put the most badly hurt ponies in sector B on morphine and to put them on gurneys. She needs to make room for new patients!"

"But Polio, you can't-"

"Triage Redheart! I'll not see these ponies lose their legs for ghosts!"

In the morning, the obituaries were swamped with names of ponies. Mothers cried, fathers drowned themselves in alcohol... It was a dark day for Ponyville.

"Local PHD Doctor Polio is now suffering charges for the medical murders of several ponies that were being treated in the Ponyville hospital, and is being held in the local prison until a proper hearing can be procured. Paramedics from nearby towns and cities arrived this morning in droves and were horrified by the number of dead patients the hospital housed. Nurse Redheart, Doctor Polio's assistant, reportedly broke down upon the sight of the emergency paramedics. The only words she could say at the time were apparently 'triage'. All reports on her current condition are being withheld by local authorities for now, and several pony workers and volunteers that helped at the hospital in the aftermath of the tragedy are now heading home to get some rest after a long night of some of the worst medical happenings in the history of Equestria. I'm Fuchsia Mare, and this is Manehattan news."

Chapter Two: Athena

The deserts and tundras of Hyperborea were treacherous and barren. Spike now realized he would never have made it this far without his guide, Athena. Especially now, at night, in a darkness that never seemed to end. "Where are we going, exactly and why is it so dark?" Spike asked, fright evident in his speech. He wasn't so sure that he wanted to be here anymore, but Twilight needed the information that he was here to gather. As Twilight put it, there was the question of what monsters lurked in Hyperborea, what ingredients were there to sample, what secrets lay beneath the frozen surface and desert-filled landscape. Personally, Spike didn't want to know.

"We are going to the dragon den you seek. It is only natural that you feel scared and meek." Athena said, aware of Spike's inner turmoil.

"Why do zebras talk like that?" Spike was happy to let anything distract him from the mission at hand. Besides, he was genuinely curious.

"Talk like what? Have I said something?" Athena asked obliviously.

Confused, Spike decided to let it go. "Nevermind... so, what kind of dragons will we see at this... den?"

"Many different kinds, some of them yellow, some orange, bright reds, deep blues. They come in all manners of various colors, shapes and hues."

Spike would've sighed in exasperation, if not for the overcoming fascination he now held for the dragons Athena spoke of. In the distance, he could just make out a dim red glow that was likely the marker of a den.

"Fire and lava are common things inside of dragon dens." Athena said, practically reading Spike's mind. "They provide warmth and protection for the inhabitants. This far north you would need the warmth, especially now, for it is the time of year that the darkness lasts. As for protection, the lava is necessary for safety from dragonslayers that frequent Hyperborea." Athena noted casually.

In his earlier excitement, Spike had calmed down about being in a treacherous new land. But after hearing that, he was in a cold sweat. "Dragonslayers!?" He whispered.

Athena nodded. "Indeed, dragons are a plague to the zebra lands. They cover the area with ash, burn forests down, and consume entire lakes with thirst. For these reasons, they are not welcomed in these lands and are routinely rooted out. But do not worry, we are far north enough that these dragons are usually not bothered by dragonslayers, I simply noted lava's protective properties as a fun fact."

Spike settled, and a frown formed on his face. "Well you didn't have to scare me like that if dragonslayers don't even come up this far!"

"I said they don't usually come up this far. You might want to keep your voice down." Athena stated calmly.

They continued to roam the tundra laid out before them, unaware of the dangers that now slinked between the pathetic bits of foliage behind them. A silent argument had broken out between the beings following the two adventurers. Small gestures of unspoken words littered the night, the only evidence of them being a slight glimmer of scales.

May we attack? Grayeyes asked, becoming impatient.

No, the little one is with Athena, we cannot. Yellowtail said with a glaring gesture of pain towards anyone thick enough to question his or Redwing's will.

Why do you defend her, she matters not. Grayeyes continued, ignoring Redwing's right hand.

Redwing stopped, noticing the change in Athena's hoofsteps. They were swifter now, more desperate to achieve their goal. Grayeyes unwisely spoke again, and Redwing struck him down. Because, she is not dragon-born, I will slay only dragon-born! I will not let our clan fall into chaos again! Redwing was tired, and Grayeyes was grating on his nerves.

Redwing gestured towards Grayeyes who then suffered more abuse, this time from his peers. Redwing was aware of his packs' hunger for violence, and so he decided to take the opportunity to unleash them upon the blubbering fool. He continued to watch as Athena and the little one scurried away, listening to the musical beat of scales ringing against his impetuous deputy.

Yellowtail slowly approached him. Redwing, we must kill this dragon-born, if we do not the pack will grow more restless.

But Redwing stopped him there. I am aware of this, but are you aware of why these foreigners have come here?

Yellowtail stopped and thought. He was not aware, but now he questioned the possibilities.

Redwing could see his right hand's mind at work, and took the moment to return his gaze upon Athena. He did not know why they had come here, but he would soon find out.

Yellowtail had since forgotten the two, now exchanging movements with a courier. The conversation didn't last long, and Yellowtail bore a glimmer in his eyes. Good news, rare news, had just arrived that would surely cheer his commander up.

Word from Hazeheart has just arrived sir. Yellowtail said, moving excitedly to Redwing. He says that the relic snatcher has been caught and is trapped within the ruins. Her sanity wont last long, and once they're through with her she'll be more than willing to tell us the location of the other artifacts.

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Twilight Sparkle was still sleeping in her bed. It had been a few hours since the initial disaster and she was getting some needed sleep. Snoring loudly, she dreamt of happier times in Ponyville; the day Rainbow Dash got her first pet, how happy her brother Shining Armour was the day he married Cadance... A smile grew on her tired face. But it wouldn't last.

A glow expanded quickly throughout the night and lit up her room. Twilight awoke groggily to the sight of Celestia and the sun.

"Twilight I don't have time to explain, Spike sent me a message to give to you. I haven't had a chance to get it to you till now, I'm sorry for that." Celestia laid the message down on Twilight's bedside table and, with a flash, disappeared as quickly as she had come.

Twilight's dilated eyes struggled to focus as she enveloped the scroll from Spike in her magic and read the words it contained.

A letter to Twilight Sparkle

Dear Twilight,

I have made it to one of the dragons' dens of Hyperborea with the help of Celestia's contact Athena. Surprisingly, she doesn't really remind me of Zecora. Athena, I mean. I haven't yet gotten the information you wanted, I just wanted to tell you how far I'd gotten and that if I don't get a letter to you again soon then something's gone wrong. I'm not sure what will happen, but I don't think the dragons here will be friendly. You remember the dragon colony, right? I don't think these guys will be much better. Anyway, nothing has really been easy this far anyway. I hope everything is going well where you are.

Sincerely,
Spike

Twilight put the letter on her desk to read again later. She missed her number one assistant... But she couldn't focus too much on that now. She struggled to go back to sleep, but couldn't. Hesitantly, she got up from her bed and trotted to the window. Ponyville was still a wreck, but the debris that had cluttered the once magically lit village was mostly cleared and the river was now fully pushed to the side of Ponyville. The only areas that had been hit were Sweet Apple Acres, parts of the Everfree Forest, and Ghastly Gorge, though the trees that were torn up from the Everfree forest caused considerable damage to the houses on the outskirts of town, including Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie would have to stay with Fluttershy for a while... Mr. and Mrs. Cake and the other homeless ponies will have to stay in the Ponyville Inn, if they're not already in the hospital, until their houses are repaired.

Twilight bore a large grimace on her face, as lucky as they'd been with saving most of the town, and as great as all of the progress they'd made was, it saddened her that the poor place had been so misshapen and that her friend Applejack's home was destroyed. Taking a deep breath she made her way downstairs to make herself some breakfast, trying to calm down all the while.

Applejack stopped by Twilight's house to talk about sorting the new arrivals of volunteers. Twilight knew she was perfect for the job, so she agreed. Now she was compiling a list of names and details of volunteers. The huge number of volunteers that were at the hospital had dwindled now, a fact that chilled Twilight to the bone. So many lives lost, if she had only done something sooner...

Since then Twilight had gotten another letter from Spike. In this one he had mentioned a pony that he described as a valiant crusader after a relic in some ruins near the dragons' den he had explored. Upon escaping through some underground caves she met up with him and Athena accidentally. Together, they escaped a band of tomb raiders and dragon slayers that had apparently been following them both for some time. Now, he was on a steam boat headed for Equestria. Twilight wasn't sure what to think of that, but she was glad to hear that Spike was at least okay and headed home.

Twilight returned to her list. Organizing kept her mind off of what had happened to Ponyville.

______________________________________________________________

Rainbow Dash was confused, she wanted to be sure that this new -relationship- would work, whatever it was. But she wasn't sure whether to be bold or subtle. Spitfire was the kind of mare who took charge, it wouldn't be fun competing for the right of stallion. She paced through her living room. The events of last night spun through her mind, the sex had been especially great. But, was that it? Not that there was anything wrong with that, a casual relationship would be easier than a serious one. But was that what she wanted? She didn't usually take the easy route, and neither did Spitfire. So, was this the real deal? Or did Spitfire have lots of flings like this? She paced faster now. Was that all she was? A booty call? She hadn't had many relationships in flight school and the thing with Spitfire had been only the third time she'd ever actually had sex. What if she tells everypony that I'm easy? Calm down, you were tired - and she's seriously hot.

There was a knock at the door. Rainbow answered swiftly and without thinking. Fluttershy jumped, she thought Raindbow would be asleep...

"Oh, um.. hi." Fluttershy squeaked.

Rainbow was a little taken aback, she wasn't sure whom she was expecting, but it wasn't Fluttershy.

"Hi. What are you doing here?" Rainbow said.

"Oh, well, um, I was just wondering if you could help me with, um... You see, it's not really me that needs the help, it's Applejack. She said that she needed some kind of help with some seeds, you should ask her." Fluttershy finished, clearly uncomfortable with the whole situation.

"Well tell her I'll be there soon, I didn't sleep much last night anyway." Rainbow fell short of a smile or a grimace, her face formed more of a blank expression than anything else.

"Oh, um, okay. Bye." Fluttershy left then, head down.

She needs to be more confident. Haha, listen to me, I'm one to talk.. Rainbow thought. Rainbow's stomach growled. Heh, good thing I'm going to AJ's... Rainbow left her cloud and headed for Sweet Apple Acres.

______________________________________________________________

Fluttershy worked her way back to the Everfree Forest, grabbing two large bags of feed from her house. The familiar forest was greatly defined by the rising sun which tinted the leaves that fell silently onto the forest floor in a bright red tint. Animals hopped, crawled and walked all over the place, looking distraught. "Come here little ones, I brought you some food." The animals gathered near Fluttershy, gradually eating the entire first bag of food she'd laid out hungrily. At first Fluttershy made sure to monitor the amount of food each animal got, but eventually settled her eyes on a peculiar flash in the distance. The bag of food finished, some of the animals pushed at her legs, begging for more, but Fluttershy was surprisingly too distracted to notice. In the distance she could still see the dimmed flashes of blue light, pulsing in an almost rhythmic pattern through the brush. But she had little time to stare before the larger animals started pushing against her, forcing her attention. "Okay." She gave in, dumping the second bag on the ground. "Now I know you're all hungry, but you need to eat more slowly darlings." Forgetting the light, Fluttershy went back to taking care of the misplaced animals.

______________________________________________________________

Rainbow Dash arrived at Sweet Apple Acres where the farm had been hit hard. Some trees were missing - pulled up from the roots - and the fields were completely drowned. Rainbow stopped gawking and started to look for Applejack. AJ was currently dragging a large sack from out of the old water-logged barn that was still somewhat standing. Rainbow flew down to assist her. AJ wasn't even fazed when Rainbow swooped into her view. AJ stopped tugging on the sack, which was far too heavy for her to carry while RD sat directly on top of it. "RD what are ya doin'?" AJ asked in a n agitated tone.

"Oh, you know, just hangin' out." Rainbow said with a wry smile.

"Look I don't have time for funny business I need to get the ol' barn emptied so it can be torn down, then I have to organize the volunteers that are coming in with Twilight." Applejack huffed, removing the sack from underneath Rainbow Dash who gracefully flew off of it.

"Well Fluttershy told me that you had a job for me, something about seeds." Rainbow looked expectantly at Applejack.

"Well I can't have ya do that until I get the fields un-flooded. But what ya can help me with is demolishing ma barn. Whattaya say?"

"Alright, some action!" Rainbow swiftly flew higher in the air, rubbing her tired eyes all the while. I need to get higher,. She did an immediate u-turn once she cleared the cloud cover, but faltered. The sun was strong today, heat radiated off the sun with the intensity of a Fluttershy stare. The clouds glowed with a golden layer of pure energy. RD flew in place for a few moments, taking it all in, letting the vibrant waves recharge her as they lit her fur and mane in a warm sheen. At this altitude the air was much colder than on the ground and each foggy breath she took froze her nostrils and cleared her mind. Steeling herself, Rainbow Dash swooped below the clouds and flew like the violent shock of a lightning bolt. Her eyes teared up quickly and it became harder to see. But she couldn't clear them without moving her arms and losing speed, so she pressed on. The sound of air rushing past her was like a thousand drums, and the mach cone formed around her tiny cyan body. Bright colors sparked behind her as she entered the first stages of the sonic rainboom. There was a flash of white and an enormous thunder of noise. Streaks of rainbow colors zoomed through the early morning sky. The ground sped quickly to Rainbow's view, and the soggy barn became a small bulls-eye on the limitless map of Equestria. With the explosive power of a small meteor, Dash ran headlong into her target. The barn shattered and the mare trotted out of the crated she left in her wake, relatively unharmed.

Applejack viewed the carnage from a nearby trench, thoroughly impressed.

"Excellent work RD! Now you should probably go home, you look awful tired after that."

"I'm fine, I think" Rainbow Dash replied, rubbing her head. "Hey, maybe I could get a bunch of pegasi to remove that water from your fields, we could funnel it like we did when we were getting water for Cloudsdale."

"That'd be great RD, I'll tell Twilight to send a bunch of 'em over to Sweet Apple Acres when she finally gets everything organized. In the meantime, you really should get some rest, you look plum tuckered out." AJ said, concerned for her friend.

"I guess so, see ya later AJ" Rainbow resigned, liking the idea of some wholesome sleep. She thanked Applejack and trotted away, saving her flying energy for when she was closer to home.

______________________________________________________________

"So, what do you think? Can you do it? Maybe I should get Twilight..." Mayor Mare said with a bit of skepticism.

"Of course I can, I have moved on from my childish antics of before. I know real magic now, I'll get rid of this beast single-hoofedly for I am the Great and Powerful Trixie and I need no help from the likes of Twilight Sparkle." Trixie exclaimed loudly.

"Well, you've been doing that flashing for hours now without results, why isn't it working!?" Mayor Mare asked impatiently, though it was good to get away from the crisis in town.

"It's a very complicated spell that is supposed to take a long time! Do you know how hard it is to shrink something this large!?" Trixie asked, pointing at the still-unconscious hydra.

"Okay, fine, just don't wake it up, we have enough problems as it is." Mayor Mare sighed.

"Just, go back to Ponyville, I can handle this." Trixie confidently stated.

With that, the Mayor left for Ponyville, leaving Trixie to her work.