Sunrise and a new day was breaking through the remnants of the night. The crickets quieted and any other nocturnal animals scurried their way into various hiding places. As the sun continued its ascent the world grew heavier.
Rainbow Dash couldn't explain why that was. She just knew that throughout the course of the day an unseen force pressed itself behind her wings. Sometimes it pressed lightly while other times was all she could do to steady herself under its force. But steady herself she did and at the appointed time she exercised her true passion.
Rainbow Dash loved to fly. She couldn't remember a time when her hooves touched the ground. Not that it really mattered. In her opinion being airborne with her friends was, in her words, 'So awesome.'
She loved dipping down low and letting the cool air close to the ground gust past her rainbow hued mane and caress the underside of her barrel. She beamed as she then pulled up reaching as high into the air as she could before hurtling back down at such a rate of speed that the first time she thought her ears would pop. Nothing could beat the sensation of flight, not even the weight of the sun. In spite of the joy she felt while flying however, there were temptations.
To her west the smell of freshly baked pizza awaited her every time she flew by. She could reasonably ignore the scent of buttery crust, tomatoes paste and cheese combined with various other savory scents beckoned to her much like a siren's call. Yet, when the smell of those cherry or apple phosphates combined with the pizza it took every ounce of her resolve to not break formation. The east side however, wasn't any easier.
Over there the smell of fried doughnuts was almost enough to make her stop mid flight and dive bomb whoever was cooking them. The powdered sugar, syrup and or possibly a fruit topping almost made Rainbow Dash drool. She once asked Spitfire if it were possible for them to get some pizza or doughnuts sometime.
"Are you hungry," asked Spitfire.
"Well no," replied Rainbow Dash, "I just thought they would taste good. There's nothing wrong with a little snack now and then right?"
"We have a lot of flying to do today Dash. If we stopped for snacks, especially when we're not hungry, we'd cramp up. Besides this is what we do. Not snacking."
After a period of grousing Rainbow Dash put the thoughts of tasty snacks out of her mind and focused solely on her flying. She climbed and swooped the same as always. She convinced herself that the joys of flight were more than enough for any pegasus. Even when those familiar tempting scents drifted her way she kept her focus. That was until one fateful Saturday.
It was near the end of the day when the sun's force became unbearable for Rainbow Dash. While her comrades in flight were easily swooping about she struggled. She inaudibly grunted as every muscle strained to push her higher into the sky. Slowly a low whine escaped Rainbow Dash and she shuddered violently. Then she felt something crack deep within.
She whined louder and bucked upward harder and with more force than she'd ever ascended before plunging downward toward the ground. The wind whipped past her mane and barrel as she watched the smooth earth come rush closer and closer. She tried to pull up but every part of her was in free fall. She strained and shuddered trying to pull up. Every part of her shrieked as she strained against the force that bore her down. She braced for the impact.
Much to her surprise it was an impact that never registered. No sooner had she braced herself for the hit that her descent ceased. Once again she was back hovering in midair as if nothing had happened. Yet, she felt looser than she ever had before. There was no pressure at all. In fact it was as if the world had stopped moving entirely. "What in the world," asked Rainbow Dash.
"Dash. Hey Dash," asked Soarin from behind and to the side of her, "What happened there? Are you okay?"
"I don't know. I was hurtling to the ground and then... nothing."
"What do you mean nothing?"
"I mean that there was a ton of shaking and I felt more pressure than ever before but now... I feel looser more ... I don't know ... free than I ever have. It's kind of awesome if ... weird."
"I've heard of that," said Soarin, "How fast were you going?"
"I don't know. Faster than I've ever gone before."
"You know I've heard of that. Like when you go really fast like super fast and the sun's pressure really has you in a fix that you can get to a point where... well... you just go so fast that all of the rattling and pressure and all just disappears. You can go farther faster than any pony ever."
"Woah. I don't think I made it quite there but...."
"Okay you two pipe down," interrupted Spitfire from in front of them, "We're done for the day. Let's get some shut eye. We've got a long day ahead of us tomorrow."
"But Spitfire," countered Soarin, "We're discussing some heavy stuff right now. We think that it might be possible for Rainbow Dash to fly farther and faster than..."
"Now you two put those thoughts out of your minds right now," growled Spitfire, "We fly at a safe rate of speed and in a way that keeps us safe and able to continue flying for years to come. If you ever fly out of formation or in a way that is entirely unsafe you'll never fly again! Am I clear?"
Soarin and Rainbow Dash grumbled to themselves but said nothing to Spitfire. Rainbow Dash continued to mutter quietly into the night as the chirping crickets blotted out any noises she might make. She was on the verge of something big. Deep inside she knew it and cursed the Wonderbolts' leader for cutting their conversation off.
How far and fast could she go Rainbow Dash wondered. Was it true that if everything would even out if she went really fast and defied the pressure of the sun? If she went that fast would it be possible for her to sneak eat some doughnuts and pizza and return to the formation without any of the other pegusi knowing? There was only one way to find out and not even Spitfire was going to fly in her way.
Flight time was at the same time as any other day. Yet, unlike any other day Rainbow Dash didn't feel the pressure of the sun on her. That loose feeling was new and she liked it. However it wasn't just that she felt loose, she felt strong too. Strong enough that she could fly away and leave the world behind. Then she felt that familiar pressure that she'd known all her life.
Today much to her surprise it wasn't as great as before but it rested in the same place it always had. Rainbow Dash smirked internally. Not even the pressure of the sun had the impact it used to have anymore. She was a supermare, the greatest flier that any living creature had ever seen.
On the first time around Rainbow Dash felt the familiar tremors from the night before. She shook them off and pressed onward. The second lap she began to feel that grinding and a tightness build about her. It was that invisible force that had tried to force her into the ground before. Rainbow Dash whined and strained against it.
She'd come too far. Spitfire thought she knew everything but Rainbow Dash was going to prove her wrong. The sun wouldn't hold her back. No creature would.
Then it happened. On the third go-round Rainbow Dash launched higher into the sky than she'd ever been. It was glorious. The pressure was gone. The air was crisp and as she swooped back to earth she knew she had this in the bag. Today she wasn't just a Wonderbolt she was Rainbow Dash Snack Savior! Following her nose she quickly descended for her first slice.
Lou Cassini was a portly man who smelled of menthols. His Mustache had flecks of gray in it as did his thinning hairline. Yet, when he wanted to he could get his three hundred pounds moving in the right direction at a pace that was both impressive and terrifying. "What the heck's going on Mick," he shouted to the rat faced man in tweed.
Mick hurried over to Lou from where he'd been standing near the carousel. "Well it could have been a lot worse than it was that's for sure."
"How's the little girl?"
"Fine."
"You've refunded the family's money right? Called the paramedics? Got them to sign the release papers?"
"Yes on all counts ... after some convincing. The girl was more startled than anything. A cone of soft serve quieted her down."
The two men walked over to the battered blue carousel horse that laid in the grass by the pizza concession. Lou looked at the horse then over at the carousel some forty feet away. "Stupid horse probably cost me hungry patrons as well," said Lou who cracked a slight smile, "What do you think Mick? Think the pony wanted a slice?"
"I honestly don't know sir. I do know that some of these marks and cracks are older than today though. You can tell by the way some of them are stained with grime. It looks like it initially broke last night.
"What did the the operator say?"
"He said things were working fine but that there was this really fat kid ... I think what ultimately happened...."
Lou raised his pudgy hand. "I don't care what happened. This is what's going to happen. Whoever was running the carousel the past two days is done here. We don't let kids from the junior Hindenburg line on the 'kiddie rides.' Second, and most obvious keep the ride shut down and get the maintenance guy over to check the rest of the horses for any damage and fix what's broken. Then put in an order for a new blue horse and make sure that all the parts fit. I don't want any ghetto-rigging here."
"What about this one? Do you think it can be refurbished and be used as a spare?"
Lou looked at the broken carousel horse and tapped it with his shoe. "Chuck it in the dumpster," he snorted, "We don't need any further potential liability claims here."
"Understood sir."
