Rainbow Dash had to back out.
Every fiber in her body either ached or shivered to an uncontrollable extent. She couldn’t breathe without hearing every vibration and bounce in her voice, which only made her shake more. Outside was undoubtedly the single largest crowd she had ever laid eyes on. She estimated the crowd size to be somewhere between twenty-five to fifty thousand pegasai, of course, the only three she cared about could be spotted with ease. They had been given their own separate perch from which to spectate the event, away from the common rabble. Simply put, they were in the perfect position to watch the mare end up flat on her face.
No. She couldn’t and wouldn’t back down from this. This was her chance; at least, that’s what she found herself saying again and again. ‘This’ll be it,’ she had always reassured herself. ‘Just one more try and they’ll let me in!’ It was after the seventh or eighth try that she began to have her doubts. She had exhausted nearly every trick in her book to date in an attempt to gather the attention of her idols and join the ranks of the elite flyers. Obviously, she had yet to succeed.
Rainbow Dash had one final trick up sleeve. She extended her wings and peered at the white steel caps on the end of each outside feather as well as across the limb of the wing itself. They had been constructed by an old friend of hers that she became acquainted with back in flight school. After an accident rendered him grounded for life, he took up a job forging armor and weaponry for the Canterlot Royal Guards. It was a lucrative and hard working business that, over the years, had become as second nature as breathing. When Rainbow Dash had approached him with her idea, he was at first reluctant to help. He couldn’t imagine what she could possibly want the caps for, not to mention that they could present a hazard to both herself and others if something went wrong. A dozen puppy dog faces and pleas later, he had agreed to bring the idea into reality.
Dash flicked her wings in the light, allowing the bladed edges of the caps to display themselves. The razor sharp blades had been modified to be angled way from her body, so as to not injure herself if she banked or pressed her wings against her body. She was aware that the wings could very seriously injure somepony should they step into her flight path. Luckily, the grounds on which to perform were exceptionally spacious, so the risk of something going wrong was fairly minimal.
Her new trick was, without question, the most dangerous stunt she had ever concocted. A Sonic Rainboom was not beginners move, sure, but the consequences of failing to do one usually just resulted in a catapult toss back into the sky. Rarely did somepony get seriously hurt trying to replicate her artwork, and it was usually do to that fact that they hadn’t put enough distance between them and the ground, which never ended well.
But the Sonic Rainboom was not on her agenda today. It wasn’t that she couldn’t do one, because she had no problem proving anypony wrong on that matter, but it was too dangerous to attempt while she had the caps on. The explosion could cause them to shoot off her wings, turning the spectacular display into a razor blade shower. Instead, two parallel rows of four thick wooden columns would be erected on the field and held in place by a spell similar to the cloudwalking spell that could be used on ponies, which would allow the columns to rest on the clouds as if it was solid ground. After performing her usual routine of a corkscrew here and a barrel roll there, she would build up enough speed and fly directly between the columns, wings extended, with the intent of slicing straight through the wood. Precision was absolutely crucial in this trick. If she didn’t maintain a perfectly straight line all the way through, the blades could stick in the wood. At that speed, embarrassment would be the least of her problems; she could potentially shred the entire wing straight from her body, or at least mangle it beyond further use. After seemingly endless practicing for months on end, she had finally nailed the routine in a controlled environment, which now had to be brought into the untamed elements. She had christened the feat, “The Fleeting Angel”.
“Contestant number twelve, please step forward!”
Every piece of Dash’s body seized up.
She didn’t have to peak at her flank to know her number was up. She was the only one who had yet to participate. They might as well have said, “Rainbow Dash, please line up in front of the firing squad.” Her breaths became rapid and shallow and her pulse went on a steady incline. There really was no turning back. She mentally extinguished the fire of doubt that had been burning in her head, gritted her teeth, and began a nervous yet hasty trot forward.
The crowds roared to life as Rainbow Dash took center stage. In one seismic explosion, the pegasai cheered, some just yelling while others actually cheered her name. Many jumped out of their seats and hovered in an attempt to be seen, much to the dismay of those seated behind them.
Dash drew in a deep, cooled breath and scanned the area. The columns were up and judging from what she could tell, they were aligned to her specifications. The area was clear and open, giving her room to perform pretty much any stunt without fear of crashing into something. As she continued to scan, she spotted her idols resting on a cloud to the far left. The added pressure of seeing them made her swallow the lump that had built up in her throat.
Rainbow Dash slid down the goggles that had been resting on her multicolored mane. The goggles had been with her since she was a filly. They originally belong to Spitfire’s father, Mustang, who had been her predecessor. She was lucky enough to catch them after he had tossed them into the crowd during one of his shows. After he retired, Spitfire rose to follow in her father’s hoofsteps, leaving Dash with the souvenir.
The bell gave a loud ring and Dash sailed off into the sky. She took advantage of the clouds littered throughout the area. A tight barrel roll through one of them left an impressive spiral shape going straight through the center. She banked left and extended her right wing, slicing another large tuff of cloud in half at a clean diagonal angle. She continued to swerve left and right, chopping decent sized clouds down to bite sized pieces. The crowd erupted into cheers and wild hoots as she gradually gained altitude by spiraling up in the form a tornado. She looked back down and adjusted herself so that she was centered in the middle of the rows of wooden columns. She extended her wings, letting the reflection of the light dance off of the slick white caps and dazzle the crowd. With a concentrated breath, she stared down her target and dove.
The wind became increasing more powerful, which made her thankful for her goggles. As she approached, she could feel the cold pang of doubt ringing in the back of her head. She forced herself to overcome it, and to focus on what mattered. At the moment, it wasn’t about getting praise from the crowd, or even joining the Wonderbolts. It was about proving to herself that she wasn’t a coward, and that she wasn’t going to back down and spoil every chance she got because she had stage fright. She was not a coward. She was Rainbow Danger Dash!
She soared straight at the columns and extended wings. She pushed herself to go as fast as she could possibly muster as she felt the slight drag of her bladed wings passing through the first set of wooden columns, then the second, then the third. Finally her wings passed through the final columns and emerged from the other side. She decreased her speed and gave herself a swivel so she could see the results. Dash couldn’t help but sigh in relief. Even if she had some how messed the stunt up, her wings were still perfectly intact.
The tension in the crowd thickened as everyone stared down at the pillars in anticipation. Nothing seemed to be happening; the pillars remained as stable and secure as they had been from the beginning of the show. Many spectators grunt or sighed in frustration while others remained fixated on the columns. Slowly, one by one, deep cuts came visible. One after another, the top halves of the columns slid off of the bases and toppled onto the clouds they were situated upon. The crowd exploded into hysterical shouts and yells as everyone screamed for their favorite multicolored pegasus. Dash lifted the goggles off of her face and triumphantly threw her hoof in the air.
“Who’s your mare?!” she bellowed at the top of her lungs.
“Rainbow Dash! Rainbow Dash!” the stadium repeatedly cried in unison.
Dash could feel every worry slip away as she basked in the glory of her fellow pegasai. From the corner of her eye she could see a stallion approaching her. She swiveled her head to see the mayor of Cloudsdale, Easy Wing, gliding himself toward her. He stopped just a few feet shy of her and turned back to the crowd.
“Ladies and gentlecolts, it is with great pleasure that I award this year’s Cloudsdale Annual Acrobatics Competition ribbon to Miss Rainbow Dash!”
Praise for the young mare’s incredible feat reverberated throughout the Cloudsdale stadium. Dash could feel a bit of heat rise to her cheeks as she waved back and forth to the adoring crowd. She happily accepted the ribbon and raised it as well. A large grin remained printed on her face. Eventually, she flew back behind the curtain with her ribbon clutched in her hoof. She giggled and tossed it back and forth between her hooves.
“Tooooo easy.” She remarked coolly.
After stripping her wings of the caps and placing them safely inside the large metal container that had been provided for her, Dash peered back around the curtain in hopes of finding her heroes on their way to over to grant the mare the title she had dreamed about for years. Too her absolute shock and dismay she saw the three ponies flying in the complete opposite direction, towards the stadium’s open exit. Dash fell to her knees in pure disbelief. She had failed yet again. Even after slicing eight wooden columns in half with her wings, she still went unrecognized by the only ponies she truly cared to be recognized by. Every muscle in her body screamed at her to chase after them and yell in their faces for just leaving without a word. Wasn’t she good enough for them? Could they really take that happiness away from her that quickly? Had she not worked herself to the bone for months on end for the few simple words, “Would you like to be a Wonderbolt”? She felt herself choking back a sob as she sailed out of Cloudsdale as fast as her not-good-enough wings could carry her. She just wanted refuge from the brutish storm that not even the weather pony herself could stop.
Twilight sat quietly on the couch; her book on “Advanced Steps for Communicating with Interstellar Species” sprawled out in front of her. Spike lay at the opposite end, curled up in a warm ball happily enjoying a much needed nap. A quiet knocking at the library’s door brought Twilight out of her focus on the book while Spike simply shifted his weight. Upon opening the door, Twilight found herself staring at the face of an impossibly tired looking pegasus. Her rainbow mane lay frail and flattened on her head. Her bloodshot eyes looked weak from over exhaustion. This was not the energetic mare Twilight was used to seeing.
“Come on inside,” she beckoned with a motherly voice and a wave of her hoof.
Dash hesitantly stepped inside with her head aimed at the floor. Twilight guided her over to the kitchen and offered her a seat at the table while she pulled up a chair for herself. The blue mare buried her face into her hooves and sighed loudly, her voice obviously trembling. Twilight rubbed her hoof across her friend’s back to help give her some form of piece of mind. After a few minutes, Dash finally composed herself and raised her head.
“I blew it Twi. I messed up. Again.”
“Messed up how?”
“The Wonderbolts!” she exclaimed. “No matter how hard I try, no matter how crazy and dangerous my stunt is they never so much as bring up the possibility of me being with them. I’ve broken the sound barrier, cut through big wooden posts with my wings. What more do they want?”
Twilight blinked. “Wooden posts?”
“It’s a long story,” Dash waved her hoof dismissively. “You would think after everything I’ve pulled off that they would have at least mentioned it. I’ve even hung out with them for Celestia’s sake!”
Twilight rested her head on her hoof and thought momentarily before turning back to her friend. “Have you tried asking them to join?” she questioned.
It took absolutely every ounce of Rainbow Dash’s self control to avoid putting the mare in a head lock with a bicycle chain.
“Twilight Sparkle,” she began with a thick sigh, “You don’t just ask to join the most elite group of flyers in Equestria. You are SELECTED to join. Kapeesh?”
“Well I don’t see why not. I think you should have a go at it.” she smiled.
Dash dragged her hoof down her face and grunted loudly. “Twi, how many ponies do you think ask to join the Wonderbolts per day?
“Probably lots.” Twilight stated flatly.
“Then why would it be a good idea to go ask them?!”
“Well, because lots of ponies aren’t the greatest flyer in Equestria.” she stated matter-of-factly.
This caught Dash off guard. She lowered her hooves and gave a little chuckle. “Yeah, I suppose I am pretty darn awesome ain’t I?” she said with a little flare sprinkled in her voice.
“There’s the Rainbow Dash we know and love!” Twilight beamed.
Rainbow Dash gave a tired smile and stood up. “Alright Twi, we’ll play it your way, but if I come back to Ponyville a laughing stock don’t expect me to talk to you for quite a long time, like ever.” she stated firmly as she made her way to the door.
“And Twi?”
“Hmm?”
“Please don’t tell anyone about this. The last thing I need is word getting out that I went all softy on ya.” she said.
The purple mare giggled for a second at her friend’s silly concern but displayed a genuine smile immediately afterward. “You have my word.”
Finding three ponies in a clouded city full of pegasai was as about as simple as it sounded. The moist atmosphere and busy bodied ponies scrambling throughout both the clouds and the city itself made her constantly shift her eyes back and forth in an investigative search. Many of the ponies were still discussing the day’s events at the competition, while others flew straight up to Rainbow Dash, hoping to get a signature from the brilliant athlete. She eventually took to sticking to the clouds, and keeping her goggles around her face which would let her continue her search without being bombarded by fans.
After a half an hour search, she located the jumpsuit ponies outside of city hall with a large crowd circled around them.
‘No doubt getting medals just for existing,’ she thought, accompanied by a sigh. She dove down and made her way into the crowd and with enough ducking and slick maneuvering, made her way to the front. Not 5 feet from her, her idols were discussing their thoughts on the contestants. She couldn’t help but notice how calm and collected these guys were when it came to crowds. It took everything and then some to just get herself to move out on stage, but these guys played it off like it was nothing. She was deep in thought, which is probably why Soarin’s voice jumped her back into reality.
“Hey hey there! Rainbow Dash!”
“Wh-who me?” Dash asked as if she wasn’t the only Rainbow Dash in Equestria.
“Yeah, come on over here!” he beckoned.
She quickly filled the gap between her and the Wonderbolts and was surprised when Soarin grabbed her hoof and shot it in the air.
“Let’s give it up for Rainbow Dash everypony!”
The crowd gave the loudest cheered they could, which thankfully was nowhere near as deafening as the crowd at the stadium. The crowd loved the idea of the big time heroes giving recognition to the little guy. Everypony likes an underdog.
Dash retracted her hoof from the air and turned to the Wonderbolts. She swallowed her fears or maybe it was pride, lifted the goggles off of her head completely and stared them straight in the eye with a look of pure one hundred percent Rainbow Dash Determination. It was now or never, and frankly, Dash was getting sick of the latter.
“Listen guys. I really appreciate that you came out to see me and everypony else at the competition today. It really meant a lot, but the only reason I even do that stuff is to impress you guys,” she huffed out a breath and continued, “But it seems like you guys would never approach me with the offer. I figured that maybe I just wasn’t trying hard enough, so I practiced my flank off to do whatever I could to show you guys that I would be a great addition to team. I waited and waited and still, nothing. Well I’m done with waiting. Guys, I want to join the Wonderbolts.”
Blaze, Spitfire, and Soarin exchanged glances with each other and then with Rainbow Dash herself. She was still very much the embodiment of determination, but if one looked hard enough, they would be able to see the shaking in her legs. It was a long moment of silence before Spitfire made the first noise, an audible chuckle. She placed a hoof on Rainbow Dash’s shoulder and smiled.
“Well it’s about time.”
Dash couldn’t believe the words entering her ears. Her jaw could have performed its own Sonic Rainboom as it flew to the ground.
“Whoa whoa whoa. What do you mean, ‘it’s about time’?
“I mean it’s about time you asked. Listen Dash, I’m gonna let you in on a secret. There hasn’t been a single pony in the Wonderbolts that has ever been chosen to join. Every single member has come up to somepony and said what you just did at some point.”
“Well, what about everypony asking you to join? Doesn’t that irritate you after awhile?” she asked.
“I won’t lie, it can be hard dealing with all of the requests to join, but you’ve proven yourself over and over again,” she stated simply. “We determine if you’re good enough to join, sure, but being a Wonderbolt is all about taking the initiative being in charge of your own life. I may be the Captain of this fine team, but you have to know how to lead as well, and the best pony to start leading is yourself.” she poked Dash’s chest with her hoof.
Dash looked up at Spitfire in bewilderment. She had gone from stuntpony to philosophical mother figure in almost nothing flat. Dash had an all new respect for her heroes, no, her squadmates. She had finally been inducted into the family that she had craved to be in since she was a filly. Rainbow Danger Dash was a Wonderbolt.
Blaze, who had remained quiet through the ordeal, placed himself next to the mare and threw his arm around her. He turned to the crowd and bellowed, “Everypony, I want you to say hello to our newest Wonderbolt, Rainbow Dash!”
Everypony hollered and threw up hats that had previously sat upon heads. Celebratory whistles echoed throughout the streets. Dash turned back to the others and smiled. Blaze gave her body a light tug with his arm, indicating for her to follow them. She did so, and Spitfire turned to her as they walked.
“We’ll get you a quarters set up at the bunkhouse on the eastern part of town. We’ll also get you fitted for your suit, but we’ll worry about all of that tomorrow. For now just go home and enjoy the day. You’ve earned it kiddo.”
Dash nodded and flapped her wings just enough to get her hovering in the air. As she began to fly she turned back to her comrades and saluted before taking off. She let the cool air dig into her windblown mane and take her worries with it. For now, she was just going to relax, maybe take a well deserved nap. After all, not only had she proven to the Wonderbolts that she was worthy enough, but she proved it to the most important pony of all.
Herself.
