The Devastation of a Lifetime

“FOR CELESTIA’S SAKE, HELP ME!” Rainbow Dash screamed as she felt her hoof hold begin to loosen. What was supposed to be a beautiful experience with her beloved mate had turned into a complete disaster. Not even Nightmare Moon herself could have concocted the insane situation that the blue Pegasus found herself in. Her life flashed before her eyes as she hung from the side of the tallest cliff in all Equestria. It covered everything, from the time she was born, to the time she met and fell in love with the pony who was doing all in her power to save her: Pinkie Pie. It also covered the tragic accident that had left both of her wings useless and forced an early retirement from the Wonderbolts.

Crossing the streets of Ponyville was normally a very simple task. Then again, there weren’t normally three carts filled with wanted ponies on the run from the police. They crashed right into Rainbow, and the resulting injuries had forced the amputation of both of her beloved pinions. She found herself flightless, and had to turn in her resignation. She had done so with many tears, and the team had surrounded her, wishing her luck and telling her that she would always be a Wonderbolt.

But even with all of the support, she fell into an incredibly deep depression. She would sulk around the home she shared with Pinkie, and the party planner became worried for her wife’s life. Even though she constantly catered to every whim and need Dash had, the former flyer fell still deeper. Sometimes, Pinkie would simply walk in the room and her mate would begin crying. Her embrace seemed to ebb the pain a little bit, but as soon as she let go, Dash would begin weeping all over again. It was truly a terrible time for the once very happy couple.

Dash had asked Pinkie to marry her via a grand Wonderbolts display, so the fact that she would never be able to fly again seemed to grind Pinkie’s spirit into dust. She used to be jovial and bouncy, but now she found that Dash’s sadness was eating her alive. So, she turned to her other friends for their help in this crisis. She got a mixture of responses, but Rarity’s was the most heartbreaking: divorce.

“You can’t change Dash, darling,” the fashionista had told her, “for your own sake, you should leave her.”

“But I can’t do that!” Pinkie squeaked defiantly, “I love Dash, and I wanna help her!”

“I know, sweetness, and I do as well,” Rarity said, “but let’s face the facts: you aren’t happy with her anymore. All she does is sulk and mope, and you need to get out of that environment. For Celestia’s sake, Pinkie, you can’t even get that silly frizz back in your mane! It’s flat all the time, and I, for one, cannot stand to see you like this!”

Pinkie pondered Rarity’s statement for a moment, then put on a determined face. “No,” she said, “I’m not gonna leave her. I don’t care about the frizz in my mane, or even if I never get to plan another party again. Dash isn’t just my mate, she’s my best friend, and I’m not gonna leave her in this time of hardship. We’ll get through it.”

“I hope you know what you’re doing…” Rarity said.

“Oh, Dashie…” Pinkie sang out when she arrived home that evening.

“What do you want?” Dash grumbled. She seemed to be in an even worse attitude than before, and Pinkie’s newfound joviality certainly didn’t help matters. The one bright eyed and tomboyish Pegasus sat in her typical chair with a red blanket wrapped around her. On one side of her sat a pitcher of Sweet Apple Acres Cider. On the other, a cup of coffee. Her mane was unkempt, and she had not bathed in a couple of days.

“Oh, nothing…just to show you this!”

Pinkie produced a flyer declaring that the Canterlot Zeppelin Corporation was offering airborne cruises at a very low rate. With the money that Pinkie had saved up working two jobs, they could take one of them. “Dash, our anniversary is coming up, and I wanted to give you the experience of flying again! Maybe that would take your mind off things! Look, it says it goes by all the major Equestrian landmarks: Neighagra Falls, Pony Peaks, the Hoofalayan Mountains, and even Catastrophic Cliff!”

At the mention of the final location, Dash’s ears perked up. “You mean, the tallest cliff in all of Equestria?”

“Yeah! Won’t that be fun?”

Dash suddenly rose to her hooves and turned to face her wife. “Pinkie,” she said, “it sounds like an absolute blast. Count me in!”

“Wow,” Pinkie said, “you sure came around quickly. I thought I was gonna have to beg and plead with you to go.”

“Beg and plead? To go to Catastrophic Cliff?” Dash asked rhetorically, “are you kidding, Pink? Listen, baby, I’m gonna be the first pony ever to climb that summitt!”

“WHAT?!” Pinkie shouted, “but…it’s Catastrophic Cliff! Everypony who’s ever tried to scale it has suffered a horrific death! There’s no way you’re doing that!”

Rainbow gave her mate a look. “Oh, yes, I am, and there’s nothing you, or anypony else can do to stop me! I’ll finally have my mojo back! I’ll be put on the front page of every newspaper from Canterlot to Applewood! I’ll finally be back in my spotlight! YES!”

There was nothing Pinkie could say that would change her mate’s mind, and though neither of them knew it, her words would ring devastatingly true. They would pack their things, leave on their trip, and only one of them would make a return. The trip itself was a wonderful experience, but when they got to Catastrophic Cliff, Dash was insistent on climbing the entire thing.

Pinkie begged and pled with her to reconsider her decision, but she stood firm. She managed to borrow some climbing equipment from another pony and began her ascent while the rest of the zeppelin’s crew and passengers watched with baited breath. She had bragged to everypony about her attempt, and they were all nervous on her behalf. They had never wanted a pony to successfully scale a rock face so badly. Hour after hour passed, and still they waited and watched as the tiny blue speck got closer and closer to their position on the top of the cliff.

Their pensive faces soon broke into smiles as Dash edged ever closer to her goal. She carefully placed each hoof, looking for solidified areas where she might keep them. Her muscles screamed at her, but she pressed forward. Finally, fate itself intervened and some of the rocks that she thought were safe tumbled away, crashing thousands of feet into the Luna Ocean below. She was hanging by a hoof, on a part of the cliff where there were no other holds to grab onto. To make matters worse, the equipment she had borrowed was old and unstable, and the rope was beginning to fray. With time running out, she screamed bloody murder and the ponies of the cruise rushed to help her.

“DAMN IT, HELP ME!” Dash shrieked as the rope holding her on began to snap. Every single second felt like an eternity as the Pegasus screamed for assistance. The ponies on top of the cliff were trying desperately to find something to haul her up, but time was not on their side. In fact, the clock was their mortal enemy, and the sword with which to slay this mighty dragon was not so easily found.

“We’re doing our best, Dash!” Pinkie shouted, “please, hang on! We’ll get you up!”

“I can’t, Pinkie!” Dash cried as unimaginable fear overtook her mind, “I’m gonna fall!”

“No, you’re not!” Pinkie said, “you’re gonna live! We’re gonna make it through this! We’ve always made it through everything! DAMN IT, WILL SOMEPONY FIND ME A CELESTIA DAMNED ROPE?!”

Suddenly, a devastating snap was heard as the old rope holding Dash in place finally gave way, leaving her hanging by her hooves. Her muscles were aching, and she knew that her time was very short. So, she made peace with the inevitable. She began breathing deeply, and found comfort in the memory of her friends and of Pinkie. She looked up at the desperate blue eyes that brimmed with tears.

“Pinkie,” she said, “the rope’s gone, and they’re not gonna find another one in time. I’m going to die today.”

“NO!” Pinkie screamed, “YOU’RE NOT!”

“Yes, I am, my love,” Dash said calmly, “but I’m okay with it. I’ve had a wonderful life, and I’ve gotten to spend so much of it with you. All I ask is that you let me go.”

“No!” Pinkie shouted, “I’ll never let you go! I’ll fall with you!”

“No, Pinkie!” Dash said sharply, “you’ve got your entire life to live back in Ponyville. Please, just let me go…and tell the others I love them.”

Pinkie’s mouth shook. “I…love you, Rainbow Dash.”

“I love you too, Pinkie Pie,” Dash responded, a smile forming amidst the pain.

With those words, Dash’s muscles gave out and she fell thousands of feet into the ocean below.