"FLUTTERSHY!!" the pink-haired girl heard a split second before the blaze slammed into her. She rolled across the ground as her body was encased in flames. She steeled herself for the pain, and then she felt.....
Nothing. No pain, even as she saw fire light up where she lay. Where she should have been laying, that is. It seemed she was roughly three feet away from where the blast was aimed, almost as if...someone....
"Oh, no!!" Fluttershy cried as she realized that someone had pushed her out of the way. She bent over the flames without touching them, trying to see who it was. Was it a creature? An enemy? Or a....a friend? Trying to see the figure's face, she watched as they were surrounded by Twilight's purple aura, lifting them out of the main part of the flames. Their clothes were still smoking, but all 7 - 6? of them were able to see her, clear as day.
"RAINBOW!!" they cried in a collective gasp. Aside from her smoking clothes, her skin was covered in burns, and her face was uncharacteristically still. Her pony ears had burnt edges, her extra-lengthened hair had tips coated in flames, and her wings...her wings...
Every feather was in the wrong spot or fallen out, with only a few in place, barely enough to still qualify as a wing at all. The structures were burnt and broken, as were most of the feathers. It seemed like they had gone from different shades of cyan blue to burnt black with gray highlights. If her hair hadn't stayed so colorful, they might not recognize her as Rainbow at all. She didn't stir, but lied stiller than when she slept.
"What should we do?" Applejack asked in a quivering voice. "We can't stop fighting, but if we leave her here, she'll be killed for sure. Besides, not one of us can get all the way up there anyhow. How's this gonna work?"
The weight of her words hung in the air. What do they do? Sunset and Twilight tried to come up with a plan, but they just couldn't. Nothing came to mind.
"I'll stay with her." Rarity said. "My gems can make a wall and will offer better protection than any of your powers could provide. She'll be safe with me."
"If you're sure, Rares." Sunset said. After a confident nod from Rarity, Twi used her magic to lower Dash to the ground near the edge of the battlefield. Rarity pulled up a forcefield of diamonds.
Though she knew it was the right thing to do, Rarity couldn't help but feel pity at the sight before her. The strong, confident, loyal girl she had known for what felt like forever was totally different. Weak, unstable, dependent. And she wasn't even awake yet. What would she do if she saw herself like this?
"Oh Rainbow," Rarity murmured. "Please wake up. Be alright. Please be alright." She started to weep a bit. This was her friend, of course. It pained her to see her like this.
The moment was broken by a sudden shudder of the dome. Still cradling the injured girl, Rarity looked outside. She gently laid Dash on the grass to get a better look. She then braced herself for impact when a streak if red came again. So that was what caused the forcefield to shake. As she pondered this, another blast came. It hit the diamonds and caused a small crack in the gems. Rarity could feel the pressure exerted upon the dome. She was beginning to feel strained; if the blasts kept coming, she wouldn't last much longer.
As much as she tried not to, Rarity glance wavered to Rainbow. That was what worried her the most. If the forcefield fell, she was vulnerable. If the forcefield fell, she could die.
And while the girl was on her mind, she took notice Dash's appearance. She looked better, at least a small amount. Her face had gained a bit of color, and she wasn't as still; she almost appeared to be sleeping.
Rarity offered a small smile. This girl would recover. She would come out stronger. She would come out a hero. Things would get better.
I hope.
The gems cracked again, and Rarity struggled to keep pushing. She had to do this. For the girls. For Rainbow.
She could only hope that the dome would hold out, and it, and she, wouldn't crack.