When Destiny Changes

"We're sorry, Rainbow Dash. There's nothing we can do."

Words. Words that float into ears as if floating on a dream, obviously present but not distinguished reality. The words no one wanted to hear, ever said to themselves, or a loved one. The words that could sacrifice the dreams of the victim just to be spoken. Words that should never be breathed into existence.

But there she was, lying in a cold hospital bed with these words being fed into her head. They tangled up in her mind, drowning out all emotion. Masking all emotion except for complete, utter despair. Rainbow Dash was drowned in a sadness so profound, she wasn't sure if she could even cry. She thought those were tears streaming down her face, but she was mostly unaware.

She turned her head, slowly moving her eyes to where her twisted wings rested on her back, all crumpled and...dead. A gasped formed as she stroked her precious wings with a hoof, sobbing even more when she realized that she couldn't feel her wings. Her wings had no sense, no feeling in them. They could not feel Rainbow Dash's hoof petting them, or ruffling through their feathers. There was no saving them.

"I...how did...I-" Rainbow Dash was cut off as she burst into tears again, and Applejack lied a hoof on her shoulder. Pinkie Pie tried to nuzzle Rainbow's cheek, but soon gave up after seeing how hopeless her cause was. She left the room with a tear in her eye and a deflated coiffure. Applejack left as well, bowing her head in a somber show of pity and respect as she stepped through the doorway.

Rainbow Dash was left wailing with the doctor. She cried and cried, while the doctor stood patiently and quietly, not wanting to interrupt her moods. And Rainbow Dash had many. She cried because she was bereaved of her wings, and because of her deep hopelessness. She sobbed for her rage, an anger so hot it burned in her blushing cheeks. And she cried for her disappointment, of all the things she never accomplished and never would.

"Can I get you anything? I would be happy to help you," the doctor said, talking a step forward. He lifted a hoof towards Rainbow Dash, which she promptly struck down. She snorted through her nose, like a wild bull would do.

Why? Her trick had gone perfectly. How had she ended up smashed into a building, after flawlessly executing her triple loop? Someone must have pushed her, or knocked her out in the air. She didn't know who. And frankly, she didn't care.

Her hatred bubbled up, and her acrimony shone through. "You...you did this to me! You broke me! You broke my wings!"Rainbow Dash leapt from her hospital bed, gritting her teeth as her disabled wings shook about. Then she clutched the doctor's throat, forcing him to the ground. Tears spilled from her eyes, mixing with the ones of the doctor as they fell. The next thing she knew she was flung back in bed, head pounding and heart racing. Her limbs were tied down, and she struggled in vain against them. Her screams echoed in the sanitary hallways, and her wails could be heard from far away.

She was left sniffling, a hollow shell of a pony with no hope to fill her being. She was utterly destroyed, and she didn't even care about anything anymore. If she couldn't have her wings...she would probably rather die.

Rainbow Dash's destiny was changed that day. She was fully aware of it, but not of the effect it had yet to bring. For several more weeks she waited in that hospital, eating mushy peas and watching depressing TV shows. Only when she is released back into her world, her home Ponyville, do things really change Rainbow Dash.