Iron Mare

"Lightning Dust, please... We don't have to do this..." Rainbow said, almost begging.

Lightning Dust charged at her without a word, her armor's metal feet smashing into the ground.

"Please, Dusty! I don't want to hurt you!"

Lightning Dust didn't stop and continued to run her down. With a heavy sigh, Rainbow activated her repulsors and flew at the larger metal pony.

With a crash, she slammed into Lightning Dust, sending the pair flying backwards and into the wall behind them, easily smashing through the bricks and into the crowded streets of Las Pegasus. Heads turned all around them as the Iron Mare and her opponent disrupted the on coming traffic.

Rainbow Dash pushed herself to her hooves as motorized carriages swerved in all directions to avoid hitting them. She looked up to see Lightning Dust on her feet and standing on her hind legs.

Before she could react, Lightning reached out and grabbed her by her foreleg. Rainbow yelped out loud as she was pulled.

"For ten years, I've been holding you up!" boomed Lightning Dust

She lifted Rainbow over her head and slammed her to the ground, the armor cracking the pavement beneath her.

Lightning Dust grabbed her by the head and slammed her to the ground once more.

"How's it feel, Rainbow?" yelled Lightning "How's it feel to be walked all over?"

With that, Lightning Dust stomped on her body with a metal hoof. While Rainbow's armor protected her from injury, that didn't mean it couldn't be damaged. And damaged it was.

Rainbow Dash lay in the street as Lightning Dust stomped on her again, trying her best to remain calm.

"Armor status, T.A.N.K." she coughed out.

"Damage level three. Weapons: offline. Crystal Power Link: online. Repulsors: online. Flares: online-"

"Flares! Now!" she cried as Lightning lifted her hoof.

At her command, two flaps opened on her back, shooting out several dozen bright flares, causing Lightning Dust to cease stomping on Rainbow, and step back, her suits HUD blinded by the flares.

Rainbow managed to flip onto her stomach as Lightning reeled from the flares.

"Yeah, you take a minute." she said, shakily standing up.

Every part of her body ached from the beating she had just received. Her armor was heavily damaged and dented in several places.

Rainbow watched as Lightning Dust lifted a nearby carriage over her head, obviously planning to crush her with it. Thinking quickly, she took off into the air, hovering several meters above the ground. Due to the damage her armor had taken, Rainbow's repulsors flickered and shorted as she struggled to remain airborne.

"You're always full of surprises, Rainbow. I've got one for you now!" cried Lightning Dust, dropping the carriage.

With that, the metal on her hind hooves shifted around, rearranging before finally shooting out a beam of repulsor energy. It wasn't long before she slowly began to rise from the ground.

"Oh boy..." mumbled Rainbow as she watched Lightning Dust's suit of armor come closer and closer.

"Ma'am, we can't survive another beating like that. I recommend taking evasive action." said T.A.N.K.

"I'm starting to agree with you, there." she replied.

Rainbow frantically looked around for something, anything that would prove useful. Looking up, she found that the night sky was quickly being blanketed by a large black cloud. That's when it hit her.

"Come and get me, Dusty!" she yelled out, taking off directly into the air.

All around Las Pegasus, ponies looked up to the sky to find two bright streaks of light flying higher and higher above the city.

Rainbow Dash could feel her body cooling down as she neared the clouds.

Almost there... She thought.

Seconds turned into minutes as she climbed higher into the sky.

"Miss Dash, oxygen levels are dropping." reported T.A.N.K.

"Just keep going! I know what I'm doing!"

Rainbow continued flying, the air around her began to cool rapidly. There was a small layer of ice building up on her armor as she went further.

"Miss Dash, we've reached the upper troposphere."

"I know, I know, just keep going."

They were now mere feet from the black clouds. Rainbow could hear Lightning Dust creeping up on her. It wouldn't be long before-

She yelped out as she felt Lightning grab her hind leg and drag her body back down. She was suddenly and forcefully turned to look right into the glowing white eyes of Lightning Dust's mask.

"You've always been a clever pony, Rainbow, but for once, I'm further ahead than you could ever hope to be!"

Rainbow strained to glance up as a flash of lightning cracked through the sky. She looked back at Lightning Dust.

"Time to live up to your name, Dusty!" she cried, kicking away just as a bolt of lightning struck the other mare.

Rainbow was forced to look away when Lightning was struck, the intensity of the light too great for her eyes to take. She could hear Lightning screaming as the deafening thunder pierced her ears.

She looked back in time to see her friend falling down to earth, her suit smoking and its eyes flickering out.

Rainbow took a deep breath and began her long descent to the ground. Wind blew all around her as she allowed herself to freefall before using her repulsors to catch herself a dozen feet above the DashCo factory.

Looking down, Rainbow found Lightning Dust laying stomach up in the middle of a large, circular skylight on the roof above the massive Crystal Chamber. The glass had shattered from the impact, leaving only the metal beams to keep her from falling through. The suit of armor opened up, revealing a battered Lightning Dust inside. She coughed twice before looking over at Rainbow.

"...hey" she whispered.

A quiet alarm sounded from within the large armor.

"Hey, Dusty..." Rainbow replied, taking a step forward.

The metal bars creaked under Lightning's weight as she shook herself out of a daze. She unlatched a harness around her chest and attempted to pull herself out of the armor. The metal creaked louder and sank into the building a bit. Seeing that she was stuck, Rainbow took her friend's hoof and began to pull.

Lightning smiled a bit.

"Couldn't help yourself... Even after all I've done." she coughed.

Rainbow grunted as she struggled to keep her grip on her friends hoof. The metal creaked and caved a bit more.

"Rainbow, listen.. I just want to say I'm sorry. For everything. I don't know what came over me.."

"I know you are. Just hold on. We'll get you out of there."

Rainbow pulled with all her might, but to no avail. Being considerably larger, Lightning Dust's suit of armor was much heavier than Rainbow could lift, even with her greatly enhanced strength.

"Rainbow, just stop. It's not happening..." Lightning said in a defeated tone.

"Don't talk like that, you're gonna be just fine."

Lightning shook her head.

"I know I haven't been myself these past few days, and I think I know why."

Rainbow grunted as she took a stance to try and pull her friend up.

"In the cave... I met a creature... It called itself Ahuizotl... And it took control of me... It got in my head. And it drove me crazy... It took away my soul and replaced me in my own body."

"Tell me about it once you're out of there."

"That's the thing, Rainbow... I... I don't want to get out of here. As long as I'm alive, it can get me. He can get me. He can get back in my head."

Rainbow Dash paused and looked at her friend.

"What are you saying?"

"I'm saying... This is it for me. I'm not going to go on any longer with this thing in my head."

With that, Lightning Dust pulled her hoof away from Rainbow's. Quickly, Rainbow reached out and grabbed her friend just before she could slide down into the Crystal.

"Wait! You don't have to do this!"

Lightning looked back at the cyan colored mare.

"This is the only way to get away from him."

"No! We can figure this out together!"

"I'm sorry, Rainbow. I'm so sorry..."

Again, Lightning Dust pulled her hoof from Rainbow, who made a frantic move to catch her friend. This time, however, she was unable to catch her in time before she and her armor slid down the metal beams. A loud creaking sound pierced the air as the metal gave way to its immense weight. Rainbow looked away as her friend fell through the skylight and directly into the Crystal Charger. An explosion lit the sky all around her as Lightning Dust and her suit were consumed by flames.

"Dusty!" screamed Rainbow Dash as the fire extended to the heavens.

Tears welled up in her eyes as she realized that Lightning Dust was gone for good. Her partner. Her friend.

She was gone.