"Try another one, Aj!" I snorted. I was having way too much fun at her expense, but I couldn't stop myself. She'd just bucked my wings as hard as she could -- to test their durability -- and at the moment, there wasn't a single scratch on them.

"Y'know ah ain't really tryin' yet. Right, Dash?" she smirked confidently, pulling her hat down tighter onto her head.

"One second, girls," Starlight stepped in between us. "I want to show you something else, Rainbow."

"Oh come on, Star! Can't I just learn through doing?" I was itching for more action, not for talking.

"Learn while you can, Dash," Twilight warned. She was still the same old worrywart, even after all these years.

"Okay, okay," I lifted my forelegs submissively. "What is it, Star?"

"You're putting out a lot of light," she touched one of my wings with a hoof, looking closely at the multi-colored material. "Proooobably a little too much, if you ask me. That's why these are so big," she gently shook my appendage. "As they are now, I'm pretty sure nothing can break them, though. Not even Applejack."

"Ya willin' tuh bet on that?" Aj clearly took Starlight's statement as a challenge. The orange mare was looking pretty pissed off at the moment.

"I'd rather not take your bits, Applejack," she shrugged with a shake of her head. "Just trust me on this one."

"Tch! Fine." Aj didn't put up much of a fight, but that was probably for the best.

It is Starlight's tech, after all.

"So what did you want me to do then, Star?" I asked, pulling the unicorn's attention back to myself.

"First off, I want Applejack to destroy your wings," she moved over to the earth pony, putting a foreleg around her neck and moving her directly in front of me.

"Now just hold on one second, Starlight!" Aj shoved her away, an annoyed scowl on her face. "Ya just said ah couldn't even do that!"

"You can't," Starlight grinned back. "Not yet, at least," she looked at me expectantly. "I'm gonna need you to cut back on the amount of light you're using, Rainbow."

"Sure!" I beamed.

...

"How?" my smile remained despite my lack of know-how. Twilight's snickering drew a wrathful gaze from me, robbing me of my mirth.

"Don't mind me," she managed to get out between laughs. "You really should be focusing on getting this stuff right."

"Well I'm trying, but a particular purple alicorn is being just a tiny bit annoying," I huffed, crossing my forelegs.

"Just let it go, Dash," Aj sighed. "Y'know if Twilight were in yer position, ya'd be rollin' on thuh floor."

"I-" I moved to protest, but then actually thought about what she'd said for more than a second. "FINE!" I roared, turning my attention back to Starlight. "I don't know how to do that, Starlight," I glowered at the mare who'd done nothing wrong.

"It's okay, Dash," she laid her hooves on my shoulders, a comforting smile coming to her lips. "It's simple. Just close your eyes."

"AGAIN!?" I groaned, rolling them instead.

"I'm just trying to be cautious, Dash," she whispered to me, her smile gone. "I really wasn't joking when I said we could all die if you make a mistake."

"Can't you just... do it for me?" I groaned, the fear of making such an error crawling through my veins. "Your tech lets you hack things, right? Why not just take control of my chip and... fix.. it..."

Starlight refused to look at me any longer, her gaze instead, settling on the alicorn. "Your Hard-light is fused to your mind, Rainbow." The lilac unicorn smiled sadly. "Don't you think I'm the last pony you'd want tampering with something like that?"

"Star..." Twilight was already in motion, rushing to the side of the unicorn. She threw her forelegs around the stunned mare, holding her close. "You're not that pony anymore."

"She's right ya know," Aj trotted up next to us, a sympathetic smile on her face. "Yer one of us. Yuh have been fer years," my orange friend joined in on the hug. "We ain't gonna mind if yuh finally start actin' like it."

"Girls..." Starlight sniffled, embracing them back. I kind of just stood back, letting them have their sappy moment. There was something important I wanted to add though.

"Starlight," I drew her attention. "How many times have you and Twilight worked on me?"

She looked confused. "A lot, Dash. Why?"

Twilight giggled, knowing exactly where I was going with it.

"Because each and every time you have, I've put my life in your hooves." I tried to stifle my blush as I looked away. "I think I've trusted you enough times with my body..." I raised a playful brow as I smiled at the crying mare. "To trust you with everything else."

"R-Rainbow..." she lifted her forelegs my way, waving both hooves toward herself.

"I'm good," I blushed even harder, turning my body away from the group.

"Awww, lil' Dashie's gettin' all flustered," Aj snickered. "C'mon y'all let's take thuh party over tuh her."

Surprisingly, -- or, I guess, not surprisingly at all -- Aj lifted the grunting pair with ease, carrying them over and setting them down right next to me. Twilight grabbed me, pulling me in as the others joined her in hugging me too.

"UGGGGH! Don't forget, I can blow up any moment." I may have groaned uncomfortably, but I couldn't have been any happier.

"That's uh risk we're all willin' tuh take," Aj chuckled.

"Never change, Dash," Twilight remarked before her and Starlight laughed as well. I couldn't help but join my friends... my sisters.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"COMIN' AT YA, DASH!" the buck that Applejack delivered to my wings felt like I'd been standing in front of a runaway freight train. It's a good thing the Lights had suggested we move outside the walls cause the impact of her strike sent me sailing right past them.

"RAINBOW!" I vaguely heard the two of them shout as I zipped by. My wings were dust, both obliterated by Aj's assault. I had to think fast or I was gonna have a nice long trip skidding along the unforgiving ground.

Think Rainbow, THINK!

I had to shift my weight so that I could reorient myself and land on my hooves. That was much easier said than done, especially with no wings to help me. I forced my back-hooves to clip against the ground, using the momentum of them bouncing upwards to adjust my body. I did my best to shift myself, flipping backwards and landing on my hooves, but not halting my momentum.

I slid a couple meters before I came to a stop, a relieved breath escaping my mouth.

"DASH, AH'M SORRY! AH TOL-"

"It's alright, Aj. I'm fine," I did my best to calm the orange earth pony down. She'd caught up to me in no time at all, her speed on the ground unmatched due to her enhanced legs. While the panic in her eyes was a little concerning, I really was okay.

At least, I think I am.

I had to catch my breath and I was a little dizzy, but everything seemed to be normal as I carefully examined my body.

"But... yer wings..." She wasn't even winded after running so far. It was impressive, if a little irritating. "Ah felt em-"

"Dash!" Twilight called out as the Lights finally trotted up to us. "Nice... recovery!" the purple alicorn was even more out of breath than I was.

"STARLIGHT! WHAT THUH HECK!?" Aj was in front of the lilac mare in a flash, lifting the unicorn by her collar. "YA SAID TUH GIVE IT MAH ALL!"

"APPLEJACK!?" Twilight grabbed the farm pony's shoulder, the look on her face a mixture of anger and worry. To her credit, Starlight just stared back at Aj, her own face betraying no emotions.

"Aj," I tried to take a reasonable approach, but she was way too mad to hear me, her grip not weakening at all. "APPLEJACK!" I shouted, drawing all of their gazes to me. "Let her go, I'm fine!" I ordered.

...

She let go of the unicorn, growling in irritation. Aj trotted away from the duo, Twilight mad-dogging our friend the entire way.

"You okay?" The violet alicorn asked Starlight. Her only response was a quick nod of her head before she trotted up to me, Twilight trailing right behind her.

"They worked, didn't they?" Starlight asked, though it was more like she already knew and just wanted to confirm for herself.

"Like a charm," I nodded. "Didn't feel a thing... except the motion, of course." I looked back at the small lenses on my withers. Both were intact, but there was no longer anything emanating from them.

"Anything less than that much force and they wouldn't have broken," Starlight announced, obviously wanting Aj to hear what she'd said. "That's why I showed you how to retract some of the light from them back into your body."

"What now?" I asked, looking back at her. I still wasn't sure why she'd want them to be destroyed, but she was teaching me, so I didn't say any more.

"You make new ones," she chuckled, slapping me lightly on the shoulder with a hoof.

"Can she... can she do that?" Aj was back to her normal self, joining the three of us again.

"Duh," Twilight giggled. "Did you honestly think we were just gonna get rid of her wings right after giving them to her?"

AJ couldn't hide the fierce blush that came to her cheeks. "Course not! Ah just... Ah was..." Her head drooped. "Ah'm real sorry, Starlight. Ah shouldn't've-"

"It's alright, Aj," Star placed a hoof on the regretful mare's shoulder, drawing her gaze. "I'd never fault you for being concerned for a friend."

"Wait..." I shook my head in disbelief, really needing some clarification. "Are you saying I can just-"

"Reform your wings?" Twilight was smiling, the fact that our friends had already reconciled pleasing her. "That's exactly what we're saying."

"H-how!?" I thought something like that would have to be done in the lab.

"Same as before," Starlight returned her attention to me. "Just gotta think it," she smirked. "This time, try to keep your light usage to a more reasonable limit," she lifted a hoof towards the large lights that illuminated the area along the outside of the wall. "You're taking in a decent amount from those and the moon, but it's better to be safe than sorry. You never know when you'll need more light than you have."

"Right!" I looked up at the silvery moon before sucking in a deep breath.

Makes sense.

In an effort to block out any distractions that might influence my thoughts I closed my eyes, just like the first time. I exhaled the breath I held before reopening my eyes.

"Much better, Dash," Starlight approved as she moved behind me to examine my new wings. "These are pretty much perfect."

"Wait uh sec," Aj turned to Twilight. "Does this mean she can't lose her wings?"

"Essentially... no," the alicorn replied, her answer sending adrenaline through me.

"Is that... Is that true!?" I grabbed Starlight with trembling hooves.

She giggled, nodding enthusiastically. "As long as you have enough light stored inside your body, you can form new wings at any time."

I covered my mouth with a hoof, the reality of her statement slowly sinking in. "S-Starlight..." I sniffled, rubbing my eyes roughly before looking back at my Light. "Thank you. Thank you so much!" Without thinking I pecked her on the cheek, my excitement overriding my better judgement. Her eyes went wide as they locked first on me before darting to Twilight, a slight blush on her cheeks. "SORRY!" I spun around to apologize to Twilight as well, but the alicorn was just grinning with delight.

"It's fine, Rainbow," she lifted a hoof, stopping me in my tracks. "I know how excited you are." I let out the breath I was holding in, but as I turned to face Starlight again, Twilight grabbed my shoulder, stopping me. She inched closer, her narrowed eyes making me shiver. "Just don't let it happen again." She moved her mouth right next to my ear. "She's mine," she whispered, sending a jolt of fear through me before she let me go.

"O-of course!" I nodded almost mechanically as I turned back to face Starlight.

"A-anyway!" the lilac mare cleared her throat. "It wasn't just me. It was all of us," she smiled brightly, the thought clearly bringing her joy. "All of our friends. Without you girls... I'd still be that same horrible mare I was all those years ago," she chuckled. "I'd be lost without you girls."

"Errrr, now let's not go gettin' all sappy again," Aj's baffled eyes were stuck on Twilight until she shook the stupor off and focused on me and Starlight. "We'll never get nothin' done if we just stand around huggin' each other all day."

"True!" I agreed, but mostly, I just wanted to get back to testing out my new capabilities. "I wanted to ask you a question, Star."

"Sure thing, Dash. What's up?" she replied as she moved to stand next to her partner.

"If I can make new wings whenever I want," I stretched them out to their limit, but they gradually kept expanding. I had to consciously stop them from growing by thinking it or I was certain they'd never stop.

Thaaaat's gonna take some getting used to.

"Then... does that mean I can get rid of them whenever I want, too?" I carefully folded them back in at my sides.

"Err... what?" Starlight's face screwed up in confusion. "Why would you want t-" her face lit up in realization. "Theoretically... yes, you can!" she was bubbling with excitement as she trotted over to Aj. "Can you help me out again, Applejack?" she bridged her hooves in a "please" gesture.

Aj lifted a doubtful brow. "Ah'm not sure. Ya gonna make me hurt my best friend again?"

I laughed. "You didn't hurt me, Applejack," I cracked my neck. "You're welcome to try, though." Her green eyes narrowed on me.

"No, Aj," Starlight giggled as she dragged the orange mare over to me. "No bucking needed."

"You sure we can waste light for something like that?" Twilight trotted up to us as well. The purple alicorn stood in front of me, Aj to my left, and Starlight to my right.

"To be certain," Starlight smirked. "I think it'll be fine," she tapped my wing. "Come on, spread em," she chuckled.

I carefully unfurled my wings again, making sure not to hit either of my friends with them.

"So what am a-"

"Just grab onto them, Aj," Twilight cut the farm mare off.

Both of them clamped their hooves onto a respective appendage.

"If you just withdraw the light back into yourself, it'll slowly trickle away and that won't work," Starlight explained. "You're gonna need to just-"

Wings... shatter!

Both of them instantly exploded in a rainbow of falling shards. The remnants of Hard-light swiftly disintegrated before they'd even touched the ground. Star was grinning like a fool and Aj was completely stupefied.

"Was... was that suppose' tuh happen?" Aj's eyes darted between each of us, her hooves still where they'd been when she was holding onto my wings.

"Yes, Applejack," Twilight answered the worried mare. "That was exactly what was supposed to happen."

"Okay, good." Applejack let out a sigh of relief. "... Why was that suppose' tuh happen?" She was relieved, but now thoroughly bewildered.

"Because now we know that Rainbow's wings can never be a liability to her," Starlight was positively glowing. "You've just gotta be sure you're properly charged, Dash."

"Will do!" I saluted the lilac pony. I wanted to jump into the air, my giddiness threatening to make me burst.

Wings are a pegasus' life. We relied on them to do so many things, but they were also a major weakness. I couldn't count the number of times one of mine had been pinned under something heavy. Half the time, they were the prime target for grappling or grabbing too. While I could struggle with my hooves or legs, pegasus wings weren't generally built for doing stuff like that.

Now I didn't have to worry about stuff like that at all. If a wing got trapped in or under something and I couldn't get it out, I could just destroy it. If I got into trouble and some creep got a hold of one, I could do the same.

I wonder what else I can do with them.

"Do you..." I dropped my hoof, not wanting to look at any of them. "Do you... do you think I can fly?" I didn't ask anyone in particular, I just sort of said it out loud.

Starlight was, of course, the one to reply. "It might be a little bit early, but..." she looked at a Twilight who nodded back in approval. "I guess there's really only one way to find out," she grinned as she backed away from me.

"Give her a wide berth, Aj," Twilight used a foreleg to force the farm mare backwards as well. "We're not really sure how this might go, so we should be cautious."

Once all three of them were at a "safe" distance I widened my stance, digging my hooves into the dirt. I was too thrilled to "take it easy". I was gonna go as high into the sky as I could manage... and stay up there for a while.

Just as I was about to make my first attempt, -- my muscles tense and ready to go -- Starlight's shout killed my momentum, nearly causing me to fall over.

"Rainbow!"

I glared at the lilac mare, recovering almost immediately. "Geez, Star! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Just..." she was worried. "take it easy, okay? The Hard-light wings are A LOT more powerful than your old ones."

"Come on, Star," I smirked. If there was anything I knew how to do better than anyone else, it was fly. "You've got nothing to worry about. It's m-"

I didn't think the force was going to be as great as it was. I'd flapped a single time and I was sent rocketing into the sky faster than when Aj had bucked me.

S-STOP! STOP!!!

I panicked, nearly traveling all the way into the atmosphere before I had the wherewithal to rotate my body and flap once again, though this time I did so with much less force. My breathing was ragged, the fact that I could've just died putting me on edge.

Starlight wasn't kidding.

As I slowly began to fall I very gently -- VERY GENTLY -- flapped my wings, trying more to glide than trying to keep myself aloft. It worked like a charm. It was just like having my old wings, except these ones were a lot more powerful.

I glanced in the direction of Canterlot, a devious idea infecting my mind. With how fast I'd flown into the sky, I might be able to reach the city in a matter of seconds. I looked down at my friends, the trio staring up at me.

In awe, obviously.

The Lights would be pissed... but I wanted to see if I could and I was never one to let myself down. With a single weak flap of my wings I was already halfway to the old capital. With a second, I was flying above it. I hadn't been this far from Ponyville in years, but that didn't matter to me right now.

It's... dead.

Canterlot looked even worse than it had in my dream. I didn't want to get too close to the castle, so I stayed high above it, but even from such a great distance I could tell just how much the city had suffered. Sure most of the buildings were still standing, but they looked completely abandoned.

Pretty sure that's not the case either.

I descended slightly, my curiosity getting the better of me. A sharp screech in my ear nearly caused me to plummet to my doom and also almost gave me a second heart attack this morning.

"Dash?" The quiet voice of my yellow friend was a stark contrast to the grating sound of the radio sparking to life.

"Hey Flutters! What's up?" I replied to the pegasus as I settled myself in the air before climbing to a higher elevation.

"I'm so glad you're doing well, Rainbow! I've been watching everything!"

Well, duh.

"Congratulations!" she almost sounded like she had all those years ago.

"Thanks, Fluttershy," I banked, avoiding a cloud.

That's weird.

I didn't want to get back too fast so I slowed my speed. I was in no hurry to get yelled at by the Lights. "I really appreciate it."

"I'm sorry to bother, but... are you... are you okay to receive travelers?" she asked meekly.

"Sure thing,'" I chuckled. She was still that same awkward pony too, just a whole lot sadder now. "Where do I need to go?"

"It looks like they're coming in from Canterlot," I could hear her scrutinizing one of the cameras.

"No kidding? Me too!" I looked down, scanning the ground for any creatures.

"Uhm, Applejack?" Fluttershy added the orange mare to the frequency with another loud screech.

"Yes, ma'am?" Aj instantly chimed in.

"You... you might want to join Rainbow Dash," Fluttershy recommended.

"That big of uh problem, Shy?"

"Not exactly..." she replied.

"N-no way..." I blurted out on accident. What had caught my attention on the ground made me dizzy.

"What is it, Dash?" Aj sounded just a little concerned. If she could see what I was looking at, she'd have been a whole lot more frantic.

"A-Aj," I hadn't seen her in years... and she wasn't looking too good. "You're gonna wanna see this..."

Author's Note

Who could it be?