Race 20: Who are you going to save, Dash?
Skepticism hung heavy in the air in the Map Room in the Castle of Friendship. Spike and the Element Bearers sat on their thrones while Starlight sat beside Twilight, using a comfortable cushion instead. Those who had not been eyewitnesses looked at Rainbow Dash, astonished, as the speedster relayed the news.
“Let me see if Ah got this straight; y’all have a reverse?!” asked Applejack, scratching her head.
“That's what she claimed,” said Rainbow Dash. “I didn’t believe it either, but that’s how she introduced herself, right, Flutters?”
The yellow pegasus nodded softly, confused.
Rainbow had spared the timid pegasus the gory details of the fight in Canterlot, saying only that Reverse had attacked the princesses. Blissfully unaware of Reverse's foul, equicidal deeds, Fluttershy was more surprised than scared of her friend's doppelganger.
"That doesn't make any sense!" protested Twilight. "You're saying that your reverse attacked the princesses directly? The guards I can believe, but the princesses are alicorns! Even you wouldn't be foolish enough to risk that!"
Rainbow Dash groaned. "Imagine someone as fast as me with a grudge. If she didn't like bragging so much, Celestia and Luna would have been dead before they even knew they were being attacked. I know I could have done it."
Twilight frowned. “I know your new powers are great, but don't you think you're exaggerating just a little?”
“You're already super; you don't need to impress us, Dashie,” said Pinkie Pie.
“You should be more careful; ponies might take it as a threat if you say you can defeat two alicorns at the same time,” said Fluttershy softly.
“Yer asking for the return of the Mare-Do-Well,” warned her Applejack.
“I'm not exaggerating. She'd taken out all of the guards, and she was going to tell me how she had killed the alicorns in her timeline." Rainbow Dash frowned.”
Starlight raised an eyebrow. “Timeline? What now?”
Rainbow shrugged. “I didn’t understand that either.”
“Can’t you tell us some more?” asked Rarity.
“Sorry, I’ve told you everything I know.”
“It seems like we have to question this so-called Reverse Dash when she comes again,” said Twilight, frowning. “Now, I wonder if she is really capable of defeating Celestia and Luna.”
Rainbow smiled at her friend. “What about a test? Spar with me, Twilight!”
Twilight’s expression darkened. “Rainbow, no. It's not that I don’t believe you; I do. But, there’s a chance that your other self was just bragging.”
The speedster nodded, and, for a split second, appeared to be in her throne and hovering in front of Twilight simultaneously. "I know; that's why I want you to try. The more we understand the Reverse Dash, the better chance we have of defeating her."
Twilight sobbed. “I know you’re right, Rainbow Dash. I almost killed you once! I won’t risk that again!”
“What if we try with a harmless spell?” suggested Spike. “Something fast and fun, like a tickle spell?”
Rainbow smiled approvingly at the baby dragon. “See? Spike knows what he’s talking about! Come on, Twi; just one hit of this tickle spell. Let’s see if you can get me.”
“NO!” Twilight blew Rainbow Dash back with the Royal Canterlot Voice.
Rainbow Dash dropped the subject and sat back on her throne.
Starlight looked at Rainbow. “I’ll do it. I’m not an alicorn, but you saw what I could do to an alicorn -- twice.”
Rainbow looked at Starlight, smiling.
“Okay, let’s do it!”
“Wait!” said Rarity, jumping out of her throne. “You’re not doing this just because you’re still mad about what happened with Sun Burst, right?”
Starlight put a forehoof to her chest and said dramatically, "Rarity! I'm shocked you would even think of something like that! Besides, to avenge my friend, I need to put my hooves on the Arrow or the Canary.” Starlight shrugged. “And, Rainbow Dash is still my friend.”
“Not to mention Sun Burst kind of deserved that,” mumbled Spike.
“Starlight, don’t you dare!” said Twilight, glaring at her student.
“Come on, Twilight; it's for the greater good. A tickle spell, one single hit, I promise it won't hurt her.”
Twilight gulped, but, reluctantly, she nodded. Starlight grinned.
“Okay, avoid this, DASH!!”
She shot a beam of green magic at Rainbow Dash, but when it hit her, the pegasus evaporated, and the real Dash whistled from right above Starlight.
“Do you like it? Speed illusion!”
“Shut up and take this!” shouted Starlight, shooting again.
Rainbow turned into a streak of light, and appeared right beside Starlight.
“Hahahahaha, that, hahahaha, doesn’t . . . hahahaha, doesn’t count!” protested Starlight as Rainbow Dash tickled her with a wingtip.
Rainbow stopped her tickling.
“What? …Why?”
“Because I warned you first.”
“Okay, surprise me,” said Dash, turning her back on Starlight.
Starlight didn’t attack immediately. She knew Dash would be expecting that. She cast a silence spell on herself and crept up slowly until she was right behind Rainbow Dash.
The tickle spell hadn't even traversed half the distance when Rainbow began tickling her from behind again.
“Nice try!” mocked the speedster.
Starlight tried to protest, but Rainbow increased her tickling speed, and it was too much for Starlight to handle.
“Hahahahahahahahaha! STOP, HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!”
Rainbow Dash complied while Spike and the rest of the ponies joined in the laughter.
Spike then grinned, and poked Twilight.
“What?” asked Twilight.
The baby dragon just aimed his head toward Rainbow.
Twilight gasped.
“What? I told you I won’t do it!” whispered the alicorn.
“Come on!” insisted Spike. “A tickle spell! Just a small one!”
Twilight frowned, worrying. But, this time, she decided to attack.
Rainbow’s ears twitched, and the mare disappeared in a streak of light. Just like with Starlight, the spell hadn't even covered half the distance when Rainbow began to tickle the alicorn from behind. Starlight found herself the victim of friendly fire.
The super-fast tickle ended up making Twilight fell on her knees.
“Bow before me, little alicorn!” mocked Rainbow, laughing happily.
The main door burst open, and Celestia and Luna charged in, each one shooting a powerful beam at Rainbow Dash. The speedster turned, and disappeared in a streak of light, carrying Twilight out of the line of fire.
From above the royal sisters, Rainbow Dash called out, "Real me! Real me!"
The two Princesses relaxed.
“For Faust sake, do not scare us like that!!” protested Luna. “For a second, we thought that your reverse was trying to kill Twilight Sparkle!”
“Sorry . . .” mumbled Rainbow Dash.
“What were you trying to do, anyway?” questioned Celestia.
“Trying to prove if it was possible for a speedster to defeat an alicorn. You see, we were speculating if Reverse could actually have . . .”
“Killed us back in her timeline; I get it,” sighed Celestia. “That means that you didn’t stop her.”
“I’m sorry; she disappeared into the Speed Force,” apologized Dash.
“I'm not surprised.” The Solar Princess sighed. "We should have expected her to slip away as easily as she slipped in. We must prepare for her return."
Rainbow nodded sadly.
Twilight got back on her hooves. “First things first, what are you two doing here?”
Luna gave a small frown. “Obviously, to check if Loyalty was able to capture her reverse.”
“Unbelievable,” said Rarity. “Apparently, this reverse-thing is part of being a speedster.”
“It may be the case,” agreed Rainbow Dash. “But, what I don’t get is how this Reverse Dash is me. I mean, she dresses funny, but she really is Rainbow Dash, or at least some twisted version of me.”
“It’s true,” said Fluttershy. “At first, I thought she was actually our Rainbow Dash, but then Rainbow showed up.”
“We were also misled by their resemblance,” confessed Celestia. “I think that may have irritated her.”
“So, you thought the Reverse Dash was Rainbow Dash?” asked Twilight.
“Until four of our most trusted guards were mercilessly killed,” said Luna, frowning.
The girls turned to Rainbow, who nodded slowly.
“Yes, but when I arrived, there were more than just four dead guards.”
“Unfortunately, an elite squad came to help us, and she killed them too,” said Celestia, frowning. “Luna and I were about to fight her when Rainbow Dash came in.”
Twilight frowned, thoughtful. It was too much information to process at once.
“Kill? She killed the guards?” asked Twilight.
“Slaughtered, they didn't stand a chance,” said Dash. “Sorry I didn’t tell you, but I wanted the princesses to vouch for me.”
Celestia and Luna nodded in agreement.
“In the meantime, it would be a good idea to study Rainbow Dash’s powers more thoroughly," said Celestia. "It may give us some idea of how to handle this threat.”
“Ask for the Arrow’s help wouldn’t be a bad idea, either,” suggested Rarity. “He lived with Barry for a while; he may know a thing or two about speedsters.”
The fashionista gulped, wilting under Celestia's glare.
Equestria 4:
The Speed Castle, named in honor of the new queen, was suddenly shaken by a shock wave, but none of the servants cared; that just signaled that their regent had come home.
The Reverse Dash ignored the servants bowing in the throne room, and went directly to the library.
The old room was filled with towers of documents that Nightmare Moon have taken from the Canterlot Archives, back when she defeated Celestia. The room had been empty during the first two days that Reverse had been in power, but the Speed Queen quickly accumulated so much material that she needed to hire a librarian.
The post had seemed trivial at first. After all, the new queen hated reading. However, it soon became clear that the librarian’s true job was going to determine how to raise the sun as had been done in the pre-alicorn era. The deadline was quite real; it was a matter of weeks before only a narrow band was habitable. Luckily, the new librarian was an overly enthusiastic egghead. The Reverse Dash truly disliked this pony, but knew she was perfect for this job. The librarian was a dead pony walking; it was only a question as to whether it would be slow and painful due to failure or quick and painful when the queen had what she wanted.
Reverse got into the library, looking for the egghead she hired. She found her in the corner, concentrating on her studies.
“Are you so busy that you forgot to bow to your queen?” asked Reverse, with a threatening tone.
Startled, the young librarian gulped, and bowed nervously.
“I’m terribly, sorry, my queen! I didn’t see you, but only because I was researching what you told me to last night!” cried the librarian.
The Reverse Dash looked at her, with lightning bolts coursing around her body. The librarian shrank in fear, but Reverse relaxed, and nodded.
“Okay, I’ll let that pass, for now, just because your little theory ended up being right. What I saw the other day was indeed another universe, totally different from here. It was a sunny day, can you imagine? A sunny day!”
That jogged the librarian's memory. “Oh, about that! I’ve just found the spell we were looking for! Unfortunately, it’s in ancient Unicornian, so I’ll need a little more time to translate it!”
The Reverse Dash rolled her eyes under her goggles. “I don’t care! All right? What about the research on the multiverse? What can you tell me about other selves?”
The librarian tilted her head. “Other selves? What do you mean?”
The Reverse Dash raised a hoof. “Okay, I’ll ask another, more capable pony.”
“WAIT!” shouted the librarian. “I think you mean the doppelganger theory, right? The belief that, no matter what, we’ll always exist in the multiple versions of our world, with different lives, experiences, and circumstances, but, in the end, our essence will remain the same.”
The Reverse Dash nodded slowly. “Is that so? Well, that makes sense. She was as fast as me, but she used her gift to play hero. Interesting, really interesting. That means, that just like me, you’re always up for a challenge, right Rainbow?”
“My queen?” asked the librarian.
“Just keep working, okay?” asked the Reverse Dash, leaving, but she stopped halfway through the door.
“My queen?” asked the librarian again.
“Nothing, it's just, that you remind me of somepony, but I can’t remember who exactly.”
With that, she left.
The librarian stood there, in silence. It wasn’t the first time the Queen had said that, so she really didn’t mind. She was about to go back to work when Rarity approached, sighing, relieved that the librarian was still alive.
“Oh, thanks Faust! For a moment, I thought I’ll have to mop blood again!” said the butler-lady, shivering.
The young librarian shrugged. “I guess I was lucky.”
Rarity smiled at the lavender unicorn. “Yes, we all are. She’s really frightening from time to time. But, believe it or not, I prefer working for her over Nightmare.”
“Seriously? I never knew Nightmare Moon, so I can’t really tell.”
“Believe it or not, she killed even more ponies than Rain . . . I mean Reverse Dash.” Rarity sighed. “And, I know my friend is still there, somewhere. During the rule of Nightmare Moon, she tried to be strong for the sake of her friends, but all she did was to get Nightmare’s attention, and not in a good way. She never lost a chance to torture Dash, leaving her of guard shifts of twenty hours each, kicking her every time she saw her, or even leaving her humiliating tasks like polishing her armor with her tongue. But Rainbow remained strong for way too long, defying Nightmare over and over, until the Nightmare had enough of her, and tried to kill her.”
The librarian frowned. “Oh, I’ve heard of that. That attempt at murder gave the queen her new speed.”
Rarity nodded. “More importantly, it broke her, turning my friend into this. Oh! Where are my manners? My name is Rarity!”
“Twilight, Twilight Sparkle.”
Equestria 1:
One thing that became patently obvious over the course of the week was that, despite her ability to learn at super speed, there were things for which Rainbow Dash was just not suited. Her skill and dedication as guardian were never in question. In addition to her normal routine, she had added extra patrols in the Canterlot area. Barry's training had burnished her talents in that regard. Her aptitude in basic research however, was what one would expect from a star athlete. Barry was the scientist, not she. Beyond what she had learned from Barry, she could offer no insight into the Speed Force.
As Rainbow Dash flew through the skylight in the solarium in the Castle of Friendship, it was painfully clear to all there what else had been going on over the past week. Bags had formed under her eyes, and her mane and tail were completely unkempt.
"Y'all gotta take better care o' yourself," said Applejack.
Rainbow Dash groaned. "I haven't been able to relax since Reverse Dash showed up. Every time I go to sleep, it's another nightmare."
Rarity said with concern, "Surely Princess Luna is helping you with that."
"I'm not sure I'd call it 'help'. She says I have to take control. I have to decide how each nightmare plays out."
"You really need a good night's sleep; you're hardly in shape to face Reverse like this."
"I know, Rarity, I know!" Rainbow Dash huffed, annoyed.
"I'm so sorry, darling. You know you can count on us. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have the support of both the Arrow and the Canary, whether or not they want it."
Rainbow Dash smiled. She'd forgotten that Blue Blood had a stake in the fight. After all the time he'd spent with Barry, he must have developed something to use against speedsters.
The speedster sighed. "Maybe you're right. Maybe I can relax a little."
Twilight smiled at her. "If she shows up here, we'll all fight at your side."
“Of course!” agreed Pinkie Pie. “We have faced worse things, remember? Worse things and worse baddies. We'll figure this out together.”
Rainbow Dash gave a wan smile. "You're right. I know how powerful friendship is."
Fluttershy slowly approached and took Rainbow in a tight embrace. One by one, the other ponies joined in. Starlight hesitated at first, before she decided that Rainbow wasn't to blame for Sun Burst's fate.
“Cookies are ready!” announced Spike, waddling into the room with a tray. “Who’s hungry?”
Rainbow Dash's ears twitched, but before she could safely separate from her friends, an eerily familiar voice shouted, "I AM!"
A streak of multi-colored light entered the room and surrounded Spike.
The dragon gasped in surprise. Not only was his tray empty, but also Reverse Dash was right in front of him, messily finishing off the last cookie.
“Oh, these are great, kiddo! Wanna work for me? I have an opening for a pastry chef. Why can't those morons remember I hate pies?" She looked at Spike hungrily. "I do have to admit, they were surprisingly good with a side of lentils and a good glass of spiced wine."
Reverse grinned evilly as the others backed away from her and Twilight snatched Spike away with her telekinesis, setting him behind a wall of mares. The others could feel the aura of menace that Reverse projected.
“Is that a no, then?” asked the Reverse Dash. As Spike was being whisked away, Reverse said, "Your momma looks familiar."
Rainbow Dash stepped forward with her friends following in support.
"Bad move, Reverse. With my friends at my side, there’s no way you can win!”
The Reverse Dash grinned. “You see friends? I see targets!”
Starlight and the Element Bearers girded their loins. Rarity awkwardly wielded a mop with her telekinesis while Starlight and Twilight prepared offensive spells. Pinkie Pie pointed her party cannon as she donned rose-colored safety goggles while Applejack prepared her lasso. Fluttershy looked at Reverse with concern; the timid pegasus was unwilling to fight, but she was also unwilling to flee.
“Last chance, Reverse!!” warned Rainbow. “Give up, NOW!”
Reverse’s grin grew wider, and she gave a rude gesture with her wing. She then scowled now that she had a clear view of Twilight. "An alicorn?! Oh, right! I knew my book-slave reminded me of somepony. You’re the one who came to piss off Nightmare the other night!”
Twilight glared at the Reverse Dash. “What are you talking about? I’ve just met you!”
“Your kind put me through Tartarus. I'll send you all there!" answered Reverse, ignoring Twilight.
Starlight and Twilight shot first. The Reverse grinned, and disappeared in a streak of light, just as Rainbow Dash entered the fray. The two spells impacted harmlessly on the wall as Rainbow began to chase Reverse Dash around the celling.
Pinkie aimed her cannon upwards, but after a few seconds, she aimed the cannon away.
“Come on Pinkie! Can´t you use your Pinkie-Sense to see which streak is the Reverse Dash?!” asked Rarity.
“I know where Reverse is, but the cannon is too slow to hit her!” answered Pinkie.
Twilight and Starlight had a more serious issue; not only could not cast fast enough to hit either streak, but also, they could not tell friend from foe.
On the air, Rainbow and her Reverse were chasing each other, as the Reverse Dash laughed all the way.
“IS THIS A JOKE FOR YOU?” shouted Rainbow Dash.
“Chillax!” answered the Reverse. “I have to let your little friends think they have a chance before I completely crush them.”
On the ground, Spike ran beside Twilight, looking at the two streaks of light crashing over and over on the celling.
“Oh no,” said Spike. “I think I’ve met her before!”
“Are y'all crazy?!” asked Applejack.
“No, and she knows us too Twilight! Remember Starlight’s time manipulation? The future where Nightmare Moon ruled Equestria, we did meet another Rarity, and . . .”
Twilight shivered as she understood. “. . . another Rainbow Dash.”
Starlight gasped.
“What have I done?”
In the air, Reverse’s ears twitched. She screamed, "IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! YOU RUINED MY TIMELINE!"
Reverse ricocheted off the wall and shoved Rainbow Dash aside as she streaked past. The demented speedster scooped Spike up in her forelegs and streaked out the skylight.
Rainbow Dash quickly was on the fiend's tail. She shouted, "Let him go! He's just a kid!"
Evilly, Reverse grinned. "You asked for it!" She pulled into an Immelmann turn, launching Spike on her way up. The rainbow ring of her speed boost flared when she was pointed at the skylight.
Rainbow Dash caught up with the terrified Spike before he began his descent. She stuffed him into the pouch of a passing mailmare before speeding back to the castle.
As super speed, Rainbow Dash took in the horror of the scene inside. Applejack was being hanged by her own lasso, while Pinkie Pie was trussed up in front of the party cannon. The speedster cut the farm pony down with a pulse of super compressed air, and, on the way down, pointed the cannon in a safe direction.
In normal time, Starlight and Twilight looked on in horror from opposite sides of the room as Reverse held Rarity with a wing while using a forehoof to press a dagger to the fashionista's throat. Reverse taunted the pair. "Do you feel lucky! Well, do you?!"
Falling to the floor, Applejack move to free Pinkie Pie. Rainbow Dash touched down and glared at Reverse, panting heavily.
Reverse smirked. "Took you long enough, slowpoke. Just to show you how stupid it is to count on friends, I'm going to kill them, one by one, while you watch."
Rarity's nose twitched. Frosting? She looked at Twilight and winked. She then did the same for Rainbow Dash.
Reverse asked, "Any last words?"
As she slashed, Rarity bucked, throwing the speedster into the air. Rainbow Dash charged while Twilight shot a tri-colored lightning bolt.
At super speed, Reverse cursed her carelessness. Somehow her dagger had changed into a butter knife. She dropped it as she turned to grapple Rainbow. The fatigued hero was no match for the fresh fiend. Reverse threw her into Twilight's attack.
Rainbow screamed, "NO!!" Blue, yellow, and red lightning bolts circulated around her body. She looked up at Reverse.
To Reverse's horror, Rainbow Dash now radiated an aura of vigor. It was time to go. From hidden pockets, Reverse drew a dagger with each wing. Simultaneously, she threw one at Starlight and the other at Twilight. Cackling madly, she zoomed out the skylight and warped back home.
This was the stuff of nightmares. As fast as she was, there was only enough time to deal with one threat. This was the very thing that had tormented her sleep for the past week. This was the sort of thing Luna had forced her to work out. A lesser mare would have been indecisive when faced with this horrible choice. Rainbow Dash bore the Element of Loyalty. Over those sleepless nights, she had decided that her first loyalty was to ponykind. There was no hesitation.
At the speeds at which the daggers were travelling, the results of the transfer of kinetic energy were spectacularly gruesome. Gravity drew what remained of Starlight's corpse to the floor as Rainbow landed beside Twilight, carrying the other dagger in her mouth.
“No . . .NO, NO, NO, NO! DANG IT, NO!!” Rainbow Dash shouted.
Fluttershy covered her eyes as she sobbed, but she was the only one. The rest of them, were looking at what was left of Starlight, too shocked to move.
“What have I done? WHAT HAVE I DONE?”
“Rainbow, it wasn’t yer fault!” said Applejack.
“I led you into danger! I made you all targets!”
Pinkie Pie spat the dagger she'd switched with Reverse out of her mouth. "No, Rainbow Dash! It's not your fault! You did all you could! None of us were truly ready for a crazy speedster!"
Rainbow, nodded as she flapped her wings.
“You’re right Pinkie, none of us is ready to face an evil speedster. I know someone who has faced them, twice.”
“What are you going to do?” asked Twilight.
"Go look for my teacher's help! What else? I won't allow anypony else to die."
Rainbow removed her goggles to clean away her tears, allowing the others to see the determined look in her eyes. “I've been analyzing Reverse's moves. Every time she does something special, it looks like there's a ring from a mini sonic rainboom. I saw how she did that; it's probably the key to get into the Speed Force."
She knelt beside Starlight's corpse as she covered it with a tarp. "You always will be my friend. Reverse will answer for her crimes."
She approached to the window.
“Sorry I can't stay for the funeral; I need to get help before Reverse comes again.”
The girls looked at Rainbow and each gave a sad smile.
“Don’t forget bring us a souvenir!” said Pinkie Pie. Holding up a pair of magenta goggles, she said, "I swapped with Reverse."
Rainbow Dash smiled back at her friends. As she accelerated, the air around her warped. She vanished into a small rainbow ring.