//------------------------------// // Dismissed // Story: Swooping Pegasus // by FenrisianBrony //------------------------------// Rainbow sped through Canterlot again, flying quickly rather than trying to out manoeuvre Lightning Dust. Even so, Rainbow was not the only one who had got training over the past few years, and while she had got trained in combat manoeuvers, Lightning Dust had been trained in speed, something she had demonstrated to Rainbow two years ago when she had stolen Rainbows signature move, something that would take considerable speed anyway. Rainbow glanced back, and saw Lightning Dust right behind her, not catching up in any meaningful way, but not losing any ground either. Realising that she couldn’t get away from Lightning Dust without resorting to the Rainboom, something she was still weary of doing unless she had no choice, Rainbow made a snap decision. Closing her wings, Rainbow dived towards the ground, before flaring them just as she dipped beneath the rooftops of the Canterlot buildings. Lightning Dust was not as stupid as Rainbow would have liked however, and didn’t dive straight away. Instead, she stayed at her height, not bleeding off her speed until she had seen Rainbow level out. Only then, did she begin her own dive, propelling herself downwards, and levelling out just behind Rainbow. Growling, she pushed herself forwards, and reached for Rainbows tail, grabbing it, and hauling backwards. Surprised by the sudden force on her tail, Rainbow dropped back, and now found herself level with a very angry looking Lightning Dust. “Lightning.” Rainbow shouted, raising her hoof to stop a punch impacting with her face. “Don’t, please.” “You’d like that wouldn’t you?” She growled, lashing out again. “Yes!” Rainbow yelled, flapping her wings and banking sharply around a building, momentarily getting ahead of Lightning again. She flipped onto her back, and looked at the pony. “I don’t want to hurt you!” “Then tell me what Spitfire said!” Lightning yelled back. “Why do you want to know?!” Rainbow yelled, narrowly avoiding crashing into a building spire, and flipping back over. “Just. Tell me!” Lightning screamed, pushing herself forward. Rainbow could just make out the familiar sight of a Mach cone beginning to form, and instantly, Rainbow found Lightning catching up to her. Rainbow opened her mouth, but was forced to block an attack from Lightning, fending her off easily, but reaching a point where she really didn’t want to be. A red haze descended on her vision, nearly completely covering her perception of the world. Screaming, Rainbow lashed out herself, catching Lightning Dust on the wing, and causing her to squawk in pain, dropping slightly, but more importantly, giving Rainbow enough time to put her final plan into action. Gritting her teeth, Rainbow pushed herself forward, forcing herself through the air, and tapping into the natural Pegasus magic that existed within her. Quickly, she parted the air in front of her, allowing her to move through the lower pressure air quicker than she had before. Quickly, the cone of low pressure air that formed around her condensed, forming the visible Mach cone that heralded the sonic Rainboom. “Don’t. Follow.” Rainbow screamed, before the cone condensed, and Rainbow rocketed forward, sending out a ring of Rainbow coloured shockwaves behind her. The shockwaves battered the buildings around her, shattering windows, and buffeting the ponies on the ground, who all looked up as if the sky was about to fall on their heads. That didn’t faze Rainbow however, and she had a much bigger problem at the moment, as finally, the war mask burst through her psyche, dominating her mind, and bringing back memories in horrifying clarity. She screamed as her fractured mind was forced through the process again, but it was no longer Rainbow. Now, the Swooping Pegasus was in control. Suddenly, another blast erupted from behind Rainbow, and she looked back, teeth bared as she saw what was happening. A blast, nearly identical to the one Rainbow had just created, had erupted from Lightning Dust, crackling with electricity, as a single strand followed Lightning Dust, who rocketed after Rainbow. Rainbows eyes widened, before moments later, the pale turquoise Pegasus impacted with her, hitting her with enough force to cause her to spin out of control. Lightning Dust grabbed hold of Rainbow, and span with her, the two strands that were still being admitted by the ponies mixing together, and forming a crackling Rainbow trail, as they streaked across the sky. Lightning looked at Rainbow face, and suddenly realised that she had made a big mistake in coming after Rainbow. The spectral maned Pegasus’s face was pulled back into a snarl, and her eyes were vacant, staring straight at Lightning, but not truly seeing her. Quickly though, that changed, as Rainbows pupils suddenly shrank, focusing on Lightning. Rainbow grinned, as she brought her head smashing forward, stunning Lightning for a moment, and causing her to let go. Recovering quickly, Lightning suddenly found herself on the offensive, as well as being woefully outclassed. Bringing her hooves up, Lightning kept pace with Rainbow, blocking a few of the blows, but the majority still slipped through. She tried to move away from Rainbow, but the maddened pony grabbed hold of her pulling her closer, and bringing her other hoof into the ponies face, bloodying her nose. “Rainbow. Please.” She begged, as Rainbow brought her hoof forward again. “No.” Rainbow grinned manically, her voice underlined with rage, and pain. Lightning Dust was shocked at the sound of the voice. It wasn’t the Rainbow that she had known just a few minutes ago, this was the one who had survived for two years in, wherever it was she went. She realised that as Rainbow brought a hoof forward again, that Rainbow was not going to let her go, and she know realised exactly why Rainbow had tried to get away. As that thought went through her mind, Lightning Dust looked forward, desperately searching for a way to escape from the crazed pony. What she saw however, was worse. The pair were flying directly towards a spire atop a building, and at their current speed, they would hit it right… The pair smashed into the spire, knocking them apart, as Rainbow went one way, and Lightning careened in the other direction. The pair tumbled towards the ground, their speed significantly reduced, but not enough that a fall from this height wouldn’t hurt. Using everything she had learned as a Pegasus and as a member of the Wonderbolts, Lightning Dust curled herself into a ball, rolling with the impact as she struck the ground. She still went sprawling, and slid across the floor on her back, before coming to rest in the middle of a restaurant, the owner of which did not look very pleased with the two ponies who had just wrecked his street front. Looking over, she saw Rainbow getting up, her armour scuffed, but all in all, looking in a better shape than Lightning did. Her face was still in the same snarling expression though, and Lightning realised that Rainbow wasn’t going to stop now. “Help!” She bellowed, looking around at the patrons of the restaurant. They all looked at her in confusion, before they saw Rainbows expression, and understanding dawned on their faces. Lightning saw a pony running out of the square, and hoped that the stallion wasn’t just trying to get away for his own sake. She didn’t have much time however, as Rainbow lunged at her, bringing a hoof into Lightning’s muzzle. Lightning tried everything she knew, everything she had learnt about combat from the Wonderbolts, but it was still not enough. Rainbow simply had more skill, more strength, and more experience than her, and she realised this as a hoof penetrated her defence again, slamming into her chest. “Canterlot Guard! Stop what you are doing now!” A voice called out, and Lightning looked over, shakily moving her head to look at the five golden armoured guards that had entered the square, led by the stallion that had left earlier. Lightning smiled crookedly, assuming Rainbow would stop now the guards were here. Wrong again. Rainbow grinned, before bringing her hoof into Lightning’s face, before letting go of her and standing up, looking at the guards. “Rainbow Dash. Come quietly, and you will not be harmed.” A unicorn guard announced, stepping forward. Rainbow growled, taking a step forward, before a bolt of magic hit her exposed head, knocking her back a few paces. She growled, as the guard stared at her in shock, before looking at his horn. Letting out a scream, Rainbow charged towards the guard, moving in a much more sluggish way than she had before, but still catching the guard unaware. Standing firm, the guard charged his horn again, making it glow brighter than it had before, before unleashing another beam of light at Rainbow, once again sending it into her unexposed head. This time, the spell had closer to the desired effect, and the rainbow maned pony stumbled, before crashing to the floor. Her legs flailed frantically as she tried to find purchase to push herself upright again, but she could not coordinate them properly, and simply flopped around on the floor like a fish that had been taken out of a river and thrown onto the land. Another bolt of magic shot out of the unicorn’s horn, impacting on Rainbow’s head for the third time, and finally, it worked properly, knocking Rainbow unconscious. Not wanting to take any chances, the guard placed his horn against Rainbows forehead, and channelled magic directly into it, before straightening up and addressing Lightning Dust. “The pair of you are under arrest for counts of disturbing the peace and public brawling.” The guard said, gesturing for the other guards to move forward and restrain the unconscious form of Rainbow. “You do not have to say anything, but it may harm your defence if you do not mention, when questioned, something you later rely on in court. Anything you do say may be given in evidence.” Quickly, Lightning Dust felt a pair of hoof cuffs around her fore and rear legs, and a band was placed around her stomach, pinning her wings to her side. Sighing, she meekly followed the guards as they led her out of the Square, a pair of unicorns hovering the unconscious form of Rainbow behind her. *** Lightning Dust paced around in the cell that she had been assigned. It was small, but not really that bad. She had a bed and toilet, and at the moment, that was all she needed. She glanced through the bars at the cell next to hers, and saw Rainbow was stirring. She was still wearing the armour that she had been during the fight, the guards being unable to remove it, before coming to the decision that it was armour, and not a weapon. Quickly backing up to the other side of her cell, Lightning pressed herself against the bars, wary of what Rainbow would do when she woke up. “Argggh!” She screamed, sitting up straight and looking around at the bars that surrounded her. “What?” “Are you…” Lightning began, looking nervously at Rainbow. “Am I what?” Rainbow asked, getting up and stretching. Looking over, she saw the look on Lightning’s face, and her blood suddenly went cold. “Did I attack you?” She asked slowly. “Yes.” Lightning replied simply, still not sure what to make of the situation. “And my face, what did it look like?” “What?” Lightning asked. “My face. Were, my lips pulled back, my eyes unfocused, anything like that?” Rainbow expanded, still looking as if something was wrong. “Well…yes. When I…attacked you, you looked different, at first I thought it was just the Sonic Rainboom, but…” Lightning began, but Rainbow cut her off. “I did a Sonic Rainboom?!” She said urgently, before pacing around. “Damn it. Damn it, damn it, damn it.” “What’s wrong?” Lightning asked, walking towards the bars between their cells. “I didn’t want to do that.” Rainbow said, more to herself than Lightning, before she pushed herself against the bars, staring straight at Lightning. “Why did you follow me?!” “I…What’s wrong with doing the Sonic Rainboom? I did my own one no problem.” “You mean apart from the property damage we will have caused?” Rainbow growled. “Do you know what the Sonic Rainboom does to your mind? It opens it up, to everything. You can’t literally think of anything else when you do it.” “So?” Lightning asked. “So that’s bad for me.” Rainbow said, slumping down the wall. “My mind is…not, in a good way. The more I do stuff like this, the more it will break.” “I’m…” Lightning began. “If you were sorry, you wouldn’t have chased me.” Rainbow said softly, but with a hard edge to her voice. “Tell me one thing Lightning. Was chasing me worth it?” “No.” Lightning admitted sadly, sitting down and placing her back against Rainbows through the bar. “No it wasn’t.” “Why did you do it?” Rainbow asked. “Because I was scared all right!” Lightning shouted, turning to look at Rainbow. “I know that I only got into the Wonderbolts because you disappeared. Ad for two years, it was so…great.” “And now?” Rainbow asked, not looking around. “Now your back, and I don’t want you to replace me.” She finished softly. “And.” Rainbow said, sensing that there was something more to Lightning’s actions. “And what? I just told you.” Lightning said irritably. “No, you told me most of it. Your body language says that there is more to it. Seriously, compared to Eldar, you’re fairly easy to read.” Rainbow said simply. “I’m…I’m scared Rainbow. Of you. For you.” Lightning admitted. “You’re scared of me as well?” Rainbow said sadly. “What? You think I’m a changeling or something.” “No. I know that you’re you. Nopony could imitate you.” She said, smiling weakly to herself. “But you’re still scared of me.” Rainbow nodded. “You can do things, things that nopony else can do. I didn’t think that you would be able to take on all nine of those ponies, and yet you took them all out, and me. Nopony should be able to do that.” Lightning explained. “Nopony from Equestria.” Rainbow agreed, before turning to face Lightning. “Not a day goes by, when I would not give everything to have stayed in Equestria, to have not tried to upstage you in that bucking contest.” “What happened, when you were gone?” Lightning asked. “Spitfire said something about you fighting, and you’ve got the skills to back that up. Not to mention the armour you’re wearing.” “War happened.” Rainbow said simply. “Unending war, across the whole of the galaxy. Thousands of worlds, burning under the heel of millions of troops. Billions die on a daily basis in the Imperium. I had to kill, and it is not something that I would want do again, but if it came to it, I wouldn’t hesitate.” “You’d kill again?” Lightning asked. “If I was threatened, or if one of my friends were, in a heartbeat.” Rainbow said without any hint of remorse. Lightning stared at the pony who she was next to, before getting up and backing away from her, not taking her eyes from her. “Still scared then.” Rainbow observed. Lightning was about to open her mouth to speak again, but a door just outside the cells banged open loudly, and a golden armoured guard walked in, followed quickly by Princess Celestia and Spitfire. “Lightning Dust.” Spitfire said unhappily, facehoofing. “Why is it whenever anything goes wrong in the Wonderbolts, you are involved?” “I don’t know ma’am.” She said, coming to attention, and looking at Spitfire directly. “Rainbow Dash.” Celestia said sternly. “I made a judgement allowing you to walk around as if nothing had happened to you. Did I make a mistake?” “Possibly, your highness.” Rainbow said simply. “What happened?” Celestia asked, addressing both of the ponies. “Lightning and I fought. She wanted to know something which I could have told her without losing anything. Neither of us are guiltier than the other.” Rainbow said simply. “Lie.” Celestia said simply. “Tell us again.” Rainbow opened her mouth, but Lightning opened hers first. “I attacked Rainbow, and wanted to know what she and Spitfire had been talking about. I paid others to help me in my attempt. They’re not to blame, and neither is Rainbow. I pushed her for my own reasons.” Lightning said, standing tall. “Is this true Rainbow?” Celestia asked. “I…” Rainbow began. “Do not lie.” Celestia said softly. “It…yes.” Rainbow nodded. “Very well. Spitfire. I believe as a Wonderbolt, Lightning Dust falls under your jurisdiction.” “You are correct.” Spitfire nodded, before turning to Lightning Dust. “Well. What do you have to say for yourself?” “Nothing ma’am.” Lightning said glumly. “Very well then. Lightning Dust, you are here by decommissioned. You must turn in all Wonderbolts kit, and empty your locker within two days. I am sorry Lightning, but this is how it has to be.” “I…I understand ma’am.” Lightning sniffed, keeping her head up high. “I will deal with Rainbow Dash at the castle.” Celestia informed the guard. “Open their cells. They are both cleared of all charges. The crown will pay for damages rendered.” Nodding, the guard walked over to Rainbows cell, unlocking the door, and allowing it to swing open, before doing the same to Lightning Dust’s. As the door swung open on her cell, Lightning Dust quickly darted out, pushing past Rainbow and running from the door, shielding her face with her mane, in a very Fluttershy like fashion. “Lightning.” Rainbow called, but she didn’t turn, continuing to put ground between the pair. Rainbow tried to follow, but a move from Celestia stopped her in her path. “Do not believe that you will go unpunished.” Celestia said sternly. “You have bits in a bank somewhere I presume?” “As long as they’re still there.” Rainbow nodded. “And they should have grown in the two years.” “Two thousand bits. To help go towards repairs that you and Lightning Dust caused. She will not be fined, she has her punishment, and now you have yours.” “That is fair.” Rainbow nodded. “I’m disappointed in you Rainbow.” Spitfire said simply, before turning and walking out of the room. “We should leave as well.” Celestia said. “The others are waiting at the castle for you. They will be anxious to hear what happened between the pair of you.” Nodding, Rainbow followed the princess out of the room, making their way back towards the castle. *** Rainbow took a deep breath, before pushing the doors to the throne room open, and leading Celestia back into the room. Instantly, the other elements of harmony ran over to her, all clamouring around her. “I can’t answer you all at once.” Rainbow smiled weakly. “Why were you arrested?” Twilight asked sternly. “I heard a pair of Sonic Rainbooms, and then heard that you had been arrested by the guards.” “After speaking to Spitfire, I met Lightning Dust outside. One thing led to another, and we caused a public disturbance, as well as damaging public property.” “What have I told you about doing Sonic Rainbooms at low levels?” Twilight scolded. “Not to.” Rainbow said simply. “Trust me Twilight, I know far more than you do the consequences of my actions.” She added, slightly tersely. “What do you mean?” Twilight asked in confusion. “I put my war mask on outside of combat. I could have killed her, and myself.” Rainbow said dejectedly. “And I probably shortened my life again.” “What?!” The other five asked in shock and confusion. “It wouldn’t make sense if I told you now.” Rainbow said. “Hold up sugar cube. You said it shortened your life. That can’t be good.” Applejack pointed out. “Yes.” Rainbow agreed. “I know that. But that bit doesn’t come for a while yet.” “Then tell us.” Pinkie said, sounding excited, as well as a bit apprehensive. “It’s…it’s not going to be as…violent, as that was? Is it?” Fluttershy asked. “Worse.” Rainbow admitted, before sitting down, and beginning to recount her tale again.