Fire and Lightning
By: MidnightConcerto
The sun had barely finished crossing above the horizon when Spitfire woke from her slumber. Years of academy and Wonderbolt schedules had trained her to rise at such an early hour, negating the need for an alarm clock. The Captain rolled out of bed and began her morning stretch routine, taking extra care to work on her wings and back. The beds in the small town she had stayed overnight in were much too soft for her liking, and she could feel the tightness from her night's sleep. Still, it was better than roughing it in the forest, so she couldn't complain too much. Taking the brief time to make the bed, she then turned to the desk beside it and examined the items placed upon it.
Last night before sleeping, she had unpacked her saddlebags to check over the equipment she had brought along. It wasn’t much, considering she was only planning to be gone for a day, but it never hurt to be prepared. She picked up a canteen and shook it gently, nodding as the swish of water confirmed that it was full. Stowing it carefully into her bag, it was followed by several nutritious, if tasteless, emergency ration bars. A lantern joined the contents, a pack of waterproof matches being slipped into one of the smaller outer pockets, making it easier to find. A length of rope, a compass, an emergency blanket, and a small folding knife finished off her hiking pack. Realizing she had forgotten the first aid kit she cursed softly, but shook the thought from her head. It was only for an afternoon in the relatively calm White Tail Woods, she’d be fine without it. Slinging them across her back, she slipped out of the room and down the hall, making her way to the kitchen of her host.
“Good morning Captain.” A large brown earth pony stallion greeted her, gesturing to the table near her. “Feel free to help yourself, plenty of fruit to go around."
“Morning Hack Saw.” She replied, rolling her neck slowly to finish loosening up. She sat at the table, grabbing an apple from the bowl in the center and began to eat.
“What do ya think of Pinegrove so far? I know it probably don’t compare to your usual Canterlot amenities, but I do hope you felt welcome all the same.”
The pegasus nodded, finishing the apple and grabbing an orange. “It’s a really nice town, Hack, always nice to get somewhere a little quieter than the noise and bustle of the city. I never actually realized there was a town in this part of Equestria.”
Nodding proudly, he rested a leg on the counter. “Aye, we’re a long way from what most other ponies consider home. But the White Tail Woods has some of the tallest trees in Equestria, so it was well worth the Princess’ money to set up a place out here. We’ve been loggin’ since my grandpappy was half your age, and we’ll be out here long after my own grandfoals have grown up and started choppin’ em down.”
Her hunger sated, Spitfire stood up and tossed on her saddlebags, ready to head out. “You have a really homey little town here, and I’m thankful you let me be a part of it even if it was just a single night. Sorry to eat and run, but the Princess is expecting me to make it back as quick as I can. You sure I can’t reimburse you for the trouble?”
With a single, piercing laugh, the stallion shook his head. “Was no trouble at all, Captain. No pony has used that spare room in months, and it was a pleasure to host such fine company in our little town. Good luck to ya!” With a final wave of thanks, the pegasus stepped out the door and into the morning light.
The air was quite cool, a soft breeze causing her to pull her wings a little closer to her body. Even though it was still so early in the morning, the light chill in her feathers told her the day wouldn’t be getting much warmer. Feeling her saddlebags shifting against her back, she paused to tighten the strap around her barrel before she set off at a brisk trot through the small town. Several large earth ponies waved as she passed by, some of them carrying large saws across their backs. She waves back in kind, exchanging brief greetings and well-wishes as they all headed off into the trees to work.
It didn’t take her long to reach the edge of the village, coming to a stop at the end of the treeline. As much as she would have preferred to fly to her objective, the thick canopy of the forest she was heading into would have made finding her destination difficult, and trying to land likely impossible. Instead, she would be traversing on hoof the entire way.
“Well look what we have here, far away from the Academy ain't ya, Captain?” The amount of sarcasm in the title alone was enough to make Spitfire pause and turn, before she even realized how familiar the voice was. Her gaze was met by the golden eyes of a turquoise pegasus, the mare's mane a brilliant amber with lighter stripes racing through it. Gritting her teeth, she nodded stiffly at the sudden company.
“Lightning Dust. Long way from the wash-ups, aren't you?” She quipped.
“Washouts, not that I'd expect you to acknowledge a bunch of top fliers you booted out.” Hopping down from the low branch she had been laying on, Lightning ran a hoof through her unkempt mane. “So, what brings the infallible Wonderbolt Captain all the way out to the humble village of Pinegrove?”
“Business. Orders from the Princess. What are you doing all the way out here?” She retorted.
With a snort, Dust smirked at the Wonderbolt. “That's none of your business.” She straightened herself up, chest puffing out proudly. “Pretty sure I'm allowed to go...”
“LIGHTNING?” A voice yelled from across the distance. Turning to look, Spitfire saw a sky-blue pegasus in the distance, sitting in a rocking chair on her porch.“Lightning did you make your bed today?” Cheeks turning slightly red, the mare lowered her head slightly and sighed.
“Yes grandma!” She yelled back, flicking her mane slightly. “And I told you I had stuff to do today, so I gotta go!”
“Oh is that a friend of yours?” The pegasus shouted over, still perfectly audible despite the house being over forty meters away. “You didn't tell me you had plans with a friend. I would have made more of your favorite waffles for her!”
“Ugh, GRANDMA, she isn't my friend! I just know her from the Academy.” Dust's entire body was slowly sinking lower, as if hoping the ground might offer salvation by swallowing her.
“Well you be sure to make it home for dinner! And your friend can come too if she wants! I'm always happy to take care of my little grandbaby!” Waving to them, she pulled out what appeared to be a book and cracked it open.
Spitfire bit her lip to quit from laughing out loud, looking down at the embarrassed mare beside her. “Well that's just adorable. Were the waffles in cute character shapes, or did she just cut them up for you?”
With an angry huff, Lightning turned away from her and stomped up the path. “Shove your head into a thundercloud, I've got better things to do.” With a raised eyebrow, the Wonderbolt fell in step behind her into the forest ahead of them. It only took a few steps before the mare in front of her snorted, throwing a glare back her way. “What, now you're just going to follow me around? Don't you have Princess orders or something?”
“Funny enough, it happens to be in this direction. So if you were hoping to get away from me, you might as well go back to town.” Spitfire retorted.
Pausing, Lightning turned back to look at her, squinting suspiciously. “But there's nothing out this way. It's just a regular forest. All the logging is due south of our town. Why would the Princess send you all the way here if not that?” She questioned.
Spitfire leaned against a tree, knowing she was getting under the other pegasus' skin making her smirk. “I suppose she technically got the news from Discord, but I don't see how it concerns you.”
Without thinking, Dust blurted out “Discord told you something was out here too?” Eyes widening, Dust cursed quietly at her choice of words.
Squinting back at the mare she took a step closer, nearly pressing her nose to Lightning's. “Are you saying... OOF!” A pair of hooves slammed into her chest, shoving her backwards and causing her to trip over a tree root. As she hopped back to her hooves, she saw Lightning take off at a sprint deeper into the forest. “HEY, GET BACK HERE!” She yelled, taking off after.
“BACK OFF, THAT PAGE IS MINE!” She shouted back over her shoulder. The pair tore through the trees with reckless abandon, Lightning not only staying ahead of the Wonderbolt but actually slowly gaining ground. As upset as she was by the turn of events, Spitfire had to admit the other mare was incredibly dexterous. In the air Spitfire would have pulled ahead and left the Washout trailing, but she was nowhere near as graceful trying to hop over roots and dodge around various plants and animals. Clearly the mare had practice in the environment, and if it weren't for the current race, she would actually be quite impressed. Gritting her teeth, she pushed herself as fast as she dared without risking serious injury.
The race continued for nearly twenty minutes, both mares now panting for breath as they continued to push themselves to the limit against each other. Spitfire's endurance was beginning to win out as she slowly closed the gap between them, now only about two pony-lengths behind. Bursting through the treeline into a small clearing, a cave ahead of them caught her eye. Crossing the short opening quickly, Dust dove into the cave first with a triumphant cry of victory, only to stop a few lengths in and lean against the wall, trying to catch her breath. Spitfire was about to continue on, but the sudden shift from light to dark made it impossible to see anything in front of her, causing her to also stop and catch her breath.
Pant. “I-I beat you. Admit it, I-I was better than you.” she grinned broadly, sticking her tongue out at the Captain.
Her constant workout routines with the Wonderbolts leaving her in slightly better shape after the race, Spitfire was slightly less winded as she enjoyed the moments reprieve to allow her eyes to adjust to the dim cave. “Fine, you got here first. But now the second leg is about to start, and I wonder if a dropout from my Academy really expects to win.”
So out of breath and focused on each other, the pair didn’t notice tendrils of light yellow magic appear, seeping into the stones around and above them. They did, however, take notice as a familiar, slithering voice echoed around them, making their fur stand on end. “A pair of enemies, seeking a promised Page, blindly led onto my play stage. If they were to fall, no one is around to hear their call. So far from home, only to be buried under stone, doomed to be trapped alone.” The ground beneath them began to quake, large piles of boulder and dirt dislodging from the ceiling and falling across the entrance.
“DISCORD!” On instinct, Spitfire dove for the entrance and source of the voice. A hoof wrapped around her barrel and dragged her back, a boulder larger than them both smashing into the spot she had been standing in an instant before. Looking up at Lightning, Spitfire tilted her head. “You saved me?”
“Yeah well, if you get squashed I can't kick your flank later, can I!” As the rocks continued to block the entrance, she focused on trying to regain her balance in hopes of finding a path through the falling debris. Another violent shake caused more rubble to fall around the pair, and without thought, Spitfire dove at Lightning.
“Look out!” Tackling her out of harm's way, the pair rolled a few meters deeper into the cave. Going to stand back up, a rock struck the Captain on the side of the head, and her world went dark.
Pain. Throbbing pain was what awoke Spitfire on the floor of that cave, every inch of her feeling bruised and battered. With a long moan, the Wonderbolt squirmed against the cold stone beneath her as she attempted to sit up. Hissing as the throbbing intensified she fell backward against the ground, surprised as her head landed on something softer than the rest of her body did. Her ears flicked as a voice spoke beside her.
“Easy there Cap, pretty nasty blow you took to the head.”
With a grimace, Spitfire did her best to let the tension out of her body. “How bad is it?” She felt movement next to her, and the glow of a lantern caught the corner of her eye, revealing Dust sitting nearby.
“You, or the cave?” Lightning responded with a grumble of annoyance. “You took a pretty nasty hit to the head, I’m guessing you’re dealing with a concussion. Not a medical expert, but I’ve seen enough of the Washouts get ‘em, and I’ve had plenty myself, so I know what to look for. The entrance itself is completely blocked by the collapse Discord caused. I can't say for sure how deep it is, but based on how far we got inside, I'm guessing at least a couple meters of rock and stone.”
With a heavy sigh, the Wonderbolt turned her head slightly in the mare's direction. “And what about you?”
The mare shrugged at her. “Broke my left wing, definitely won't be flying any time soon.” Spitfire felt a hoof gently raise her head, the pain flaring a bit as something was pressed to her lips. “Here, it's not much but it'll help.” Taking a cautionary sip, she was met with a refreshing drink of water. “Lucky you decided to pack for the trip, I don't think any of it was wrecked by the collapse. One canteen of water won't go far, but it's better than nothing. Your head is resting on the saddlebag, and the lantern you brought is going to give us enough light to get out of here.”
“Oh my,” the slithering voice returned, dripping with fake concern, “what terrible accident has befallen you two!” The pair looked over at the pile of rubble now covering their way out, a very recognizable draconequus laying across them sipping on what appeared to be a glass of lemonade, though it was only the comically large ice cubes that were traveling up the straw.
“DISCORD!” Lightning yelled. She hurled a rock at the offending creature, but his body merely contorted into a ring and it passed him by. “Come over here and I’ll give you a piece of my mind!”
Taking a long, obnoxious sip of his drink, Discord smirked over at them. “Really? I wasn’t aware you had any extra pieces to hoof out.”
Struggling to prop herself up, Spitfire gritted her teeth and glared daggers the god’s way. “The hell is the point of this?” She growled. “Why all the trouble of leading us in here?”
“To get you out of the way, of course.” Sitting up on his perch, Discord scowled. “These magic Pages you’ve discovered have been ruining my fun, you know. Changing around the mortal world is a job for chaos, not dreams and misguided wishes. There’s no entertainment, no zest, no finesse with this Book of All Stories! It doesn’t even give your desires a dark, ironic twist to teach a lesson!” Jumping up, he slowly paced back and forth in the air. “So I thought to myself…”
With a snap of his paw another copy of himself appeared in the air, only the mimic looked like it could have been his grandfather. In a raspy voice, it said “Discord, old chap! You can’t just let them rain chocolate milk on your parade like this!” before disappearing in a puff of smoke.
“And of course I was right.” The original Discord continued. “Since I can’t magic the Book or the Pages out of existence, and I’m not interested in you ponies stealing my whole shtick, I’ve decided to play interference! And if you’re all going to have a scavenger hunt, what better way to muddy the field than to trap the teams from even playing?” He pointed at Spitfire. “It’s nothing personal, mon capitaine, I’ve actually set up distractions and traps for several of Celestia’s top searchers.”
Lightning stomped the ground. “Then why drag me into this? All the way out here we hadn’t even heard about the Pages, I didn’t even know they were a thing until you brought it up to me!”
Discord shrugged. “Collateral damage, really. I was worried the Captain would be too cautious to fall into the little trap I had planned. You just happened to be a convenient way to distract her. Wrong place, right time I suppose.” Glancing at his wrist, which now sported a sundial watch, he let out a whistle. “Oh my, look at the time.”
“Hey!” Spitfire shouted, grimacing from the pain that lanced through her head. “Where do you think you’re going?”
“Oh you’ll have to forgive me, I do have a prior engagement.” Discord responded, beginning to fade from sight. “Rainbow and Daring will never get trapped in the Temple of the Autumn Equinox with Ahuizotl if I don’t lend a helping claw.” Only his smile now remained. “Don’t worry, I’ll let somepony know you’re both stuck here, just give me two to four business days.”
And with that, he was gone.
Silence held over the pair for a moment, before Lightning kicked a stone at where the god had been with an angry growl. “Collateral damage? What a friggin mule.”
Laying back down with a heavy sigh, Spitfire took another sip of water. “I figured something was off when the Princess mentioned he was the source, but we couldn’t just let a potential Page fall into the wrong hooves.” She stared at the cave-in. “We thought he may have been wasting our time, but we never considered he might try to trap me.”
With a huff, Lightning shook her head. “He better hope I don’t actually find a Page, because I will use it to drop a friggin’ anvil onto his head.”
Spitfire chuckled, slowly sitting herself up. “Well unless you happen to have a pickaxe or dynamite hiding in here, I don’t think we have a choice but to wait for rescue.” Glancing over at her fellow captive, she saw Lightning roll her eyes.
“I happen to know this cave like the back of my hoof, and there are other ways out. It's a pretty decent walk though, and I didn't want to move you until you had woken up.” The turquoise mare shifted, leaning against the wall behind her. “Just take a few more minutes to sort yourself out, then we'll get moving.” A long, smoldering silence fell over the pair, but neither wanted to break it by bringing up the draconequus’ actions. Finally, Spitfire decided to speak.
“So, I'm guessing you grew up around here then? What you said about knowing the cave, and I know that was your grandmother back there in town...” She trailed off.
Thankful for any subject other than Discord, Dust nodded, her eyes unfocused as she stared into the darkness beyond the lantern's light. “I don't really remember anything before her, and she's never talked about our family. But yeah, she raised me here in Pinegrove, I think practically from when I was born. She always wanted to retire to a small, quiet town surrounded by nature, and this was where she decided to settle down. Did a damn good job raising me, if I do say so myself.” She rubbed the back of her neck, smiling sheepishly. “I, uh, might not have been the best behaved filly growing up, got in a lot of trouble for stupid stuff. Ended up lost in this cave more than once, so I got good at finding my way back out of it. There happen to be a lot of branching paths, and two different exits we could take to get out, but only one puts us close to the town.”
With a grunt, Spitfire slowly pushed herself off her flank and onto her hooves. “Let's get moving then, the Princess is going to have a bone to pick with the lord of Chaos after she finds out what he did.” She only got a few shaky steps before her balance teetered and the floor rushed up at her. Thankfully a pair of hooves caught her, stopping her before impact.
Sigh. “If you're going to be too stubborn to rest any longer, at least let me help you.” With obvious effort, Dust managed to help the Captain stand back up. Hanging one of Spitfire’s forelegs around her shoulders, she used her own body to help support some of the weight. “Think you can handle the lantern?” With a nod, Spitfire felt their source of light hook around her outer wing, dispelling the darkness for several meters in front of the mares. With a deft flick of a hind leg, Lightning snagged the strap of the saddlebag and placed it across her own back. “Let's go.” And with that, the pair set off deeper into the cave.
As the two walked on slowly, Spitfire tried to think of what to say to keep away the oppressive silence of the stone around them. Thinking back to the entrance, she nudged her partner “So, your grandma came out here to retire? What did she do?”
“Look, you don't gotta act like you're interested in my life just because you're bored, there has to be a million other things you could talk about instead.” Lightning griped.
She nodded. “Sure, but you managed to pique my curiosity, so that's where my head is. The application that got sent across my desk didn't exactly go far beyond your flying capabilities.” Still not getting an answer, she put on a mock frown and nudged the mare. “Entertain me, I'm injured.”
Unable to contain a chuckle, Dust gave in. “Alright, fine.” She fell silent for a moment, collecting her thoughts. “Actually, she was a Wonderbolt. Not one that you would have heard of,” Lightning cut her off before Spitfire could even open her muzzle, “she was one of the two reserve fliers for Team Charlie back in her day. She got to fly a few shows here and there, but mostly just helped coordinate the stunts and play support.”
Nodding slowly, Spitfire glanced over. “I take it that's where you got your push from? For the Academy?”
Dust smiled slightly. “Yup. She used to tell me stories all the time about when she was on the Wonderbolts. And not the fancy flying, the places she visited, or any of that stuff, it was... like, funny behind-the-scenes sort of stories about the team. Embarrassing moments they had, pranks they played on each other, the holidays they had together.” Ducking them under a low hanging stalactite, she let out a wistful sigh. “She made it sound like a family, you know? Not just a team of exceptional fliers.”
Spitfire smiled as well. “I do, it's part of why I pushed so hard to become the Captain. I wanted the Wonderbolts to feel like that to any pegasus that came into our ranks.” Coming to a rather narrow gap, they separated to squeeze through one after the other. “One of those 'give what you never had' sort of situations, I guess.” After getting through herself, she shook her head. “I think I can walk now, thanks for the help.” With a confirming nod from Lightning, they began to travel again.
“So,” Dust began, seizing on the Captain's words, “not the best home life then? I mean, if you're looking to give what you didn't have.” Gaining no response, she nudged the other mare. “Oh come on, you can ask but I can't? Afraid I'm going to spread rumors about ya?” With a gesture over her heart, Lightning met her gaze. “Nothing you say leaves the cave. Ya know, unless it's really friggin hilarious, then I might bring it up at a party. Entertain me, I’m injured.” The two shared a laugh, the yellow pegasus nodding.
“Alright, that's fair enough.” She responded. Her wing growing tired from holding the lantern, she slipped it across to the other one. “It's not that my parents were bad or neglected me, I love them to pieces. But they had... expectations, very very high expectations, that they insisted I had to meet. I don't think they were trying to be malicious, or force me to live out some unobtained dream they had. They just wanted me to be the best I could be, but the only way they knew how to do that was to push as hard as they could. I was a pretty natural flier from a young age, so they took that and sprinted with it. As young as I can remember they were signing me up for flight camps, private instructors, after school clubs, anything they thought might help me become the best, and they spared no expense.”
“As a self-taught mare, that all sounds awesome.” Dust said, confused.
“Sure, I guess.” Spitfire grunted as a wet patch of floor caused her to momentarily slip. Catching herself on the wall, they paused for a moment as she regained her footing. “But it's hard to make, or keep, friends when you're always in lessons, or practicing, or any of the other dozen things that were pushed into my schedule on top of normal school. No free time to actually make friends your own age, or find an interest to talk about that doesn’t involve wings and aerodynamics.” The pair paused abruptly as they came to a wall, a ledge sticking out far above them. Lightning let out a long sigh of frustration, hitting the wall with a hoof in annoyance.
“Damn it, I forgot this would be hard without both my wings.” Thinking for a moment, she nudged the Captain with her shoulder. “Guess you'll have to go ahead and bring help back to me, then, I can’t fly up there.”
Snort. “What, you think I can't carry you up there? My wings avoided the rocks, in case you forgot.”
“Sure, but...” she gestured to the large bruise on Spitfire's head. “with a concussion, you might end up really hurting yourself. How's it going to help if you end up dropping us both back down here?”
“Well I'm not going to leave you down here, what happens if I end up collapsing further up? Then we're both trapped here waiting for help.”
Looking between the ledge and the Wonderbolt, Dust slowly nodded. “I guess you have a point. Still doesn't feel great though.”
“Not a lot of options, really.” She knelt down.“All aboard, Air Spitfire.” She joked.
With a chuckle Lightning carefully crawled onto her back, wrapping her forelegs around the Captain's barrel to hang on. Raising an eyebrow, she leaned over to look at the mare. “Wow, you uh... I always thought you were just sleek, but you've got some muscle under the surface.”
“Comes with the territory, personal trainers and all that.” She responded, glancing back at the mare. “You're a lot lighter than I thought you'd be. You... been okay?”
Letting her mane fall across her eyes, Lightning refused to meet her gaze. “Let's... let's just go.” Adjusting her stance Spitfire looked up, and with a powerful flap of her wings took off from the ground. Gaining altitude quickly, the pain in her head grew and her vision began to blur far too quickly for her liking, causing her to lose track of her position. Wobbling slightly in the air, she felt Dust's legs grip her a little tighter.
“Almost there, angle fifteen degrees to your left, ascend four more meters, then fly forward and you're onto the ledge.” Lightning directed. With a grunt of acknowledgment, Spitfire pushed herself to follow the instructions, years of high-level flying making the adjustments nearly automatic. A moment later she felt her hoof scrape the edge of the ledge and she tumbled forward, the pair landing hard at their destination.
Spitfire felt a pair of hooves roll her over, groaning at the incredible throbbing in her head. “Hey, hey Spitfire, come on stay with me.”
“'m just fine,” she mumbled in response, “everything is great. Floor just looked super comfortable, you know?” Shifting slightly as she felt her head tilt up, water poured slowly into her muzzle and she drank it down happily.
“Easy Captain, easy.” Allowing the injured mare to finish the flask, Lightning shoved it into the saddlebag before gently pulling her away from the edge, putting Spitfire’s back against one of the larger boulders to rest. Pulling out a ration, she chomped it down in an instant. Pulling out another one, she slid slightly closer to her companion. “Here, lemme help you.” Carefully leaning Spitfire against her side, she hoofed the other ration bar to the struggling mare.
“Thanks.” She mumbled, still very disoriented from the exertion of the short flight and her injury. As she began to eat, she looked up at Lightning. “So, they say the Pages can make your wildest dreams come true. What were you going to use it for?”
Silent for a moment, Dust met her gaze. “I think it's pretty obvious. I was planning to use the magic in the Page to rewrite my time at the Academy, get myself into the Wonderbolt Reserves.” Her eyes darted away. “I thought about going crazy, writing myself in as like the owner or the Captain of the lead team, but it wouldn't have felt right. The Reserve spot though? I bucking earned that.” She took a slow breath, her head tilting back as she looked at the ceiling. “I would've been somepony then, Spitfire, and had a whole family to be with and support me. Don't get me wrong,” she clarified, “I love my grandma to pieces, she's the best pony I could have asked to help raise me. But... I always dreamed of having a big family, you know? Brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, one of those families where you always have someone to hang with and get into trouble together, where a reunion looks like an entire town decided to camp out at one house for the weekend.” She stared off for a long moment, her voice growing quiet. “I wasn't going to ask for much, just... somewhere of my own to finally belong. Somewhere I didn’t have to feel so alone. That would have meant more to me than anything that magic could bring to reality.”
“You have the Washouts, right? Rainbow Dash told me you all seemed like buddies. What’s wrong with them?”
Biting her lip, Lightning looked away. “You can only flaunt safety rules for so long before somepony ends up in a full body wing and hoof cast, drinking through a straw. Short Fuse recovered after several months, but it’s harder to justify the danger factor of your shows after watching a friend taking a cow-sized firework directly to the chest. You also get a lot of animosity for being the mare that failed at basic math and put him in the line of fire.”
Shifting slightly, Spitfire nudged her. “Well, why didn't you reapply to the Academy then? We made it clear you were just dismissed from the session, that you weren't banned from coming back to try again. You’d have blown the competition away just like before.”
“Money.” Dust answered, her voice growing softer as she continued speaking. “The application fee took every bit I had the first time around, I had nothing left after that. I didn't have the heart to tell my grandma what had happened up there, so... I just let the dream die.”
“That sounds heartbreaking.”
Lightning’s voice was now a whisper. “It was. I was so, so empty after getting kicked out, and even the Washouts couldn’t completely fill the hole burned into my chest. They let me stay after the Short Fuse accident, even though it was my fault. But when you’re skipping meals because you just can’t find the motivation, missing sleep because your brain can’t stop spiraling, forgetting the flight plans… stunt flying, just, becomes impossible to perform.” She looked up at the ceiling. “I had no choice but to leave, walk away from my last hope. And when none of them ever reached out… well, it told me how they really felt about me after the accident.” She took a shuddering breath, gripping herself tightly. “It was bad, Spits, it was dark. The numbness to the world, the thoughts that slowly took over until it was the only words I could hear inside, the things I… I wanted to do to myself.” Tears spilled down her cheeks as she buried her muzzle into her crossed forelegs. “I was so close to the edge, and I kept hoping I would slip off and it would finally be over.”
A pair of hooves wrapped around her, and she found herself pulled against the Captain’s warm body. “Dust, I…” At a loss for words, she merely held the sobbing mare close, rubbing along her back in hopes that the small act might bring some comfort. Leaning her muzzle down, she quietly said “I’m glad you’re still here.”
“T-thanks.” Dust whispered, rubbing her eyes gently. “I’ve… never mentioned this to anypony before, how weak I was. I-I hope you don’t think less of me.”
Tilting her back, Spitfire looked her in the eyes. “Lightning, you battled against one of the darkest experiences there is in life, and you survived it. You may have some battle scars, even if they aren’t physical, but you’re alive. The kind of strength it takes to fight against that kind of unyielding opponent is beyond any words I could speak.” Squeezing the mare gently, she smiled softly down at her. “I am so proud that you fought back.” They sat quietly for a while longer, before Lightning finally cleared her throat.
“S-sorry, I didn’t mean to get so heavy on you there.” She pushed away gently, rubbing the back of her neck in embarrassment. “I guess it’s been harder than I thought, especially keeping it bottled up for so long.”
“Have you thought about finding a professional?”
Lightning shrugged. “I keep finding excuses not to, yet. But Grandma knows something is up and has been pushing me to find someone. Since she always gets her way in the end, it’ll happen eventually.” Shaking her head, she jumped up to her hooves. “We need to keep going though, your concussion can’t wait forever. Hop on.”
“Hop on?”
Giving her a deadpan look for a long moment, she rolled her eyes. “Look, I can't just leave you here when you clearly just made your concussion worse, and you're not in any shape to walk at the moment, even assisted.” She said, in a tone of voice that made it clear she wasn’t about to take any answer other than yes. “I may not be as in-shape as you are, but we're nearly out of the cave and town isn't too far beyond that. So hop on.” After a quiet grumble, Spitfire gave in and carefully climbed onto the mare's back, situating herself to avoid Dust's injured wing. “Alright, let's go.”
“You sure you’re okay?” Spitfire inquired.
Dust shook her head. “No, I’m not okay. But I’m not going to find okay trapped in this cave, so let’s go.” She glanced over her shoulder. “I… do appreciate the concern though.” The pace was quite a bit slower now that Lightning was carrying the concussed mare, but considering the alternative was to leave the injured Spitfire behind, she wasn't about to make a fuss about it. Letting the silence last for a few minutes, she let her mind roll back to the question that had started her emotional spiral. Curiosity gnawed at her for a long moment, before she finally spoke. “Going back to before though, what about you?”
“What about me what?” Spitfire asked.
“The Page. What were you going to use the magic for?”
Spitfire laughed. “I had orders to bring it back to the Princess, I wasn't going to use it. Can you imagine how much they would chew me out over it?”
“Okay, hypothetically then.” Lightning pressed. “If you didn't have the orders, or you decided to disobey them, what is it the Captain of the Wonderbolts would use the Page to wish into existence? You said it yourself, that the rumors say the Pages can rewrite any event, or make your desires come true.” She felt the mare shift uncomfortably on her back.
“It's... stupid.”
With a chuckle, Lightning adjusted her slightly as they squeezed through another tight passage. “Well now I'm even more curious. Come on Spitfire, afraid I'm going to make fun of you? Even after falling apart back there? What is it that you want more than anything, that you'd have risked disobeying orders for?”
“... Marefriend.” Came the mumbled reply.
Nearly tripping over her hooves, Lightning felt her jaw drop. “Wait, did... did I hear you right? Literally all the world as putty in your hooves, and you'd just use the Page to... to get a date?”
“I told you it was stupid.” Spitfire retorted. “Hey, is that light up ahead?”
“Yup, told you we were almost out. Shouldn't take too long to get to the town from here either.” Another turn, one final squeeze through the rocks, and the two were finally freed into the outside world.
Exiting the cave, the two took a deep breath of fresh air, enjoying the sunlight that danced across them once again. Judging by the sun, they had been stuck inside for several hours before finding the exit, but it was still daylight. Birds singing around them, and the breeze through the leaves, were welcome sounds after the stifling quiet of the cave they had been trapped in. Spitfire wasn't quite sure where they were, but she trusted the mare who had grown up in these woods to find the way. Taking another long look around to gather her bearings, Lightning set off down the side of the hill and into the trees. There was no path to guide her, but that didn't worry either mare.
“But come on,” Dust returned to their earlier conversation, “surely as the Captain you could practically date just about any pony you wanted. Don't you have all those functions you go to, like galas and garden parties? None of them ever asked you out? You've never met anyone at those events that swooned you, or just made you want to give them a chance?”
Spitfire shook her head. “No, I haven't.” She clarified, “When I'm at those kinds of functions, I'm a Wonderbolt, representing our organization as Captain of the lead stunt flier team. I have to be professional from the moment I arrive, there's no room for my personal life to make an appearance. Besides, it’s Canterlot. Everyone there is just looking to cross paths with a household name and a fancy uniform, they don't care about the mare behind the vest and title. So no, I'm not going to be meeting any pony at those functions that actually cares about me me. And even if dating within the team wasn't strictly against the rules, I see them all as family and it'd be really awkward to try, you know?”
“I... see your point.” Lightning conceded. “We've got a little further to go, so why don't you tell me about the mare underneath then? Tell me things about Spitfire that the rich and famous at your galas don't know.”
“Oh come on, you can't expect me to do that.”
“Hey, I already promised not to share anything you tell me, and I meant it. How many times do I gotta remind you?” Dust shot back. “I know I was a jerk back at the academy, but I don't make promises to others lightly. So tell me, what does Spitfire get up to when she isn't on the clock with the Wonderbolts? Just one look behind the curtain, and I'll leave it alone.”
Taking a breath, the Captain slowly nodded. “Alright then.” She thought for a moment, shifting slightly. “Karaoke.”
Walking face-first into a tree, Lightning fought to keep them both balanced as she rubbed her nose, Spitfire biting back a laugh. “I'm sorry, say that again?”
Spitfire let out a huff, fixing her gaze on anything but the other mare. “Karaoke. There's a hole-in-the-wall place across Canterlot that I like to go to when I have a night off. It’s far enough away, and not super popular, so nopony I know is going to stumble across me there. I rent out one of the rooms, grab a few drinks, and just... sing. It’s a lot of fun for me, it's always been a great stress reliever, and I try to go once a week when we're in town. Kick back, let the walls down and be myself for an hour or two.”
Dust nodded slowly “Huh, definitely not an answer I was expecting to hear.”
Spitfire chuckled. “Yeah, I didn’t think so.”
Still curious, Lightning decided to press a little further. “So what are we talking about? Rock? Metal? You dig down deep and pull out your inner pop star?”
“Little bit of everything I guess, depends on where the mood takes me.” Spitfire answered. “But my favorite genre has got to be show tunes.”
Lightning gave a quiet hum of interest, glancing back at her. “Show tunes, eh? I've always been a sucker for Phantom. Never gotten to see it, but I have a couple renditions of the show vinyls back at my place.” She ducked them under a very low branch. “Couple of other shows too, lot of good performances out there.”
“One of the perks to being the lead team,” Spitfire said, “we get box seats to all the major performances in Canterlot Theater. Shame most of the team is indifferent, sort of kills the mood when you're the only one into it.” Ears perking up, she pointed ahead. “Hey, is that Pinegrove?”
Dust nodded. “Yup, that's the town. First stop is to get you to the doctor. We don't have a hospital here, but he's got a degree and some spare rooms just for situations like this.”
The town was still rather empty in the early afternoon, and Spitfire assumed most of the ponies were still out collecting lumber or at one of the mills nearby processing the fallen trees. She idly wondered how long they spent in the forest each day. Did they take weekends off? Surely they didn’t work seven days a week. Tucking that thought away, she decided to learn more another day. They approached a house near the center of the town, and Lightning knocked on it politely. Almost immediately the door opened, revealing a light red unicorn.
“Lightning Dust.” He deadpanned. “What is it this time?”
Blushing lightly in embarrassment, she shuffled a bit. “Hey First Aid. Long story, but my friend took a pretty nasty blow to the head, thought it'd be a good idea to drop her off here. Also uhm... the usual, for me.” She gestured at her broken wing.
Sighing through his nose, First Aid opened the door and stepped aside. “First room on the left, lay her down gently on the bed.” Doing as she was asked, the doctor shut the door and followed behind them. “Head injury comes first, so you'll need to wait a few moments, Dust.”
“No problem.” Lightning gingerly laid Spitfire onto the bed, taking a few steps back to give the doctor his space. He looked over her for several long minutes, examining her head to tail, paying close attention to the bruise on her head. As he ran through several questions and cursory tests, she lost focus as the adrenaline of the situation left her, and exhaustion began to catch up. She was pulled out of her thoughts, and near slumber, by a gentle shake of her shoulder.
“Sorry, what?” She blinked several times.
“I said, your friend is going to be fine.” First Aid repeated, his voice much friendlier than before. “I'll keep her for two nights of observation, but she should heal just fine. Though the bruising and battering she took will need longer to heal, that won’t require my supervision.”
Lightning grimaced, nodding. “Yeah, some jerk dropped a cave on us, guess we got lucky it wasn't worse.”
“Sounds like it.” He replied. His horn lighting up, he pulled out several bandages and a sling. “Now, let's patch up that wing of yours and I'll send you back home to your grandmother. This mare is going to need time alone to rest and recover, so please don't bother her until she's released, okay?”
She nodded, grimacing as First Aid took hold of her injured wing. “You got it doc.”
“Normally Captain, I'd ask you to remain for another twenty-four hours of observation.” First Aid told his patient, who was currently stretching her limbs out beside the bed. “Forty-eight hours is what I recommend for anypony who has taken a blow to the head that serious, especially before serious physical activity.”
Spitfire grunted as she shook the tightness out of her limbs. She couldn’t deny her head still stung, but there were more important issues at play. “Look Doc, I know, but I need to get back to Canterlot and report on what happened. I promise to be careful and not push myself harder than I need to, but this is too important to wait for a letter to travel. So with the utmost respect, please give me the consent and discharge forms to sign.”
With a huff, he produced the papers.“Very well. You have been informed of the risks to your leaving my care and the potential problems that could arise from doing so, so I suppose I can't technically stop you. But I do suggest you check in with another doctor as soon as possible, just to keep an eye on your recovery. Also I would highly recommend only flying to Ponyville, and then taking the train from there to save yourself the physical strain.”
With a flourish of the pen, Spitfire slid the paperwork back to the stallion. “I appreciate it Doc, and again I am sorry about this. But the Princesses need to know about what’s going on, and it can’t wait.” With a soft salute, she left the doctor's house.
“Hey, leaving already?” A voice inquired. Spitfire turned, nodding to Lightning who was leaning against the house she had just walked out of.
“Afraid I have to.” She answered. “The Princess needs to be told about what happened here, and about the... well, lack of a Page I found. I'm sure she'll have some choice words for Discord as well about his behavior and antics. Plus there’s no telling how many other ponies he’s tricked and trapped like he did to us, and we’ll need to send rescue teams as soon as we can.” She tightened her saddlebag strap, looking the other mare over. “How about the wing? I didn't hear the doc mention how long.”
Turning slightly, Lightning showed off the bandaged appendage. “Doc says I can start trying it out in about two weeks, but it'll likely be a solid month before I'm, quote, 'back to my old nonsense'.” She flourished the statement with airquotes. “What can I say, he’s had to put up with my awful choices and luck for a long time.” The pair chuckled together, Lightning pushing away from the house and closing the gap between them. Rubbing the back of her neck for a moment, she offered a hoof to Spitfire. “I have to admit, it's been... interesting, to see you again Spitfire.”
Shaking the hoof, Spitfire smiled back. “Not the worst company I could have asked for,” she joked, “though next time maybe I'll skip the cave. Doesn't really have the ambiance I'm looking for, you know?”
“So uhm…” Lightning pawed at the ground with a hoof. “With everything that we went through. Does this mean we’re, like, friends now?” Spitfire raised an eyebrow, causing Dust to shift on her hooves nervously. “Hey look, I don’t want to make assumptions about our trauma-bonding, I think it’s a fair question.”
She smiled softly. “Friends.” She gave Lightning a brief hug, before taking a few steps back to have the space to take off. Spreading her wings broadly, she pushed off into the air and gained altitude. Pausing a moment, she turned her head back to the mare below her. “Hey, Lightning? You uh... you should write me some time. I think it'd be neat to learn more about you.” With that, she took off and was lost over the trees in the blink of an eye.
Humming in confusion, Lightning stared at the spot the Captain had been at for a long moment, before turning to head back home.
She had a lot to think about.
