//------------------------------// // 5 - Aborted Takeoff // Story: Return to Flight // by Outlaw Quadrant //------------------------------// “C’mon! C’mon! Hurry up!” “This isn’t a race, young lady.” Rainbow could already hear pitter patters on the clinic’s roof, as well as Nurse Redheart’s grunting as she cut into her patient’s cast with heavy duty scissors. She stopped the incision just short of where she started it. Finally, a reward for waiting in this diminutive room an hour too long. The nurse spat out her instrument. “Rainbow, you will not spread those wings until I say so. Understand?” “Yeah, yeah.” Redheart glared at her patient an inch from her face. “You give me that tone again and I’ll put another cast on that wing.” “Yes, ma’am,” Rainbow affirmed with a fierce head nod. With a yank, the shackles around Rainbow’s body plopped onto the tiled floor. Free, her wings are free but the brash mare trembled, holding back the instinct to unfurl them and soar into the skies. Grabbing a small rubber hammer, “Extend only the right wing, please.” She did, albeit slowly like pushing a heavy creaking door. In no way could Rainbow demonstrate pain lest she receives an unfavorable opinion from her physician. No pain, no gain! Redheart began tapping Rainbow’s appendage on the outer edges, moving inwards with every impact. “See. I don’t feel any—” Pop! Right at the center. Rainbow yelped, as though the nurse poked her with a needle. “No, no! It’s nothing! Just a—” Another strike on the injured area. “Ah!” Her wing folded flat against her body. “No! It’s just a little sting! That’s all! I don’t wanna wear a cast again! Please, please, please, please, pleaseeeeeeeeee!” Final hit, a soft one on the groveling mare. “You don’t need to worry about that. Now, I need to look closer at that wing, now!” Once Rainbow obliged, the nurse switched to a portable flashback so she can pry deep within the feathers. The light shone healthy cyan, save for a few blotchy bruise spots. “Rainbow, flex this wing, nice and easy.” She did except the movement was that of choppy ocean wave. Worse, her muscles throbbed with heat just enough to have her hiss. With time came relief - a little workout was all she needed. “Hmmm.” Redheart scribbled on paper attached to a clipboard. “Is that good or bad news?” Mumbling through her pencil, “I’ll give you this much. You might win for fastest recovery in all of Equestria.” Rainbow hoof-pumped. “But you’re not in the clear just yet, young lady.” Redheart flipped through some pages. “First off, I will not clear you for duty until after the rains have concluded. Do you understand?” Her lips moved for an interjection, but one look at the nurse’s subtle stare halted it. “Got it.” “I’m only doing that as a precaution. Your wing needs time to fully recuperate. As for the medicine I prescribed you, will you need a refill?” “No!” The nurse leaned back, “That was sudden. Did they give you trouble?” Here it was, a perfect opening to tell everything - that was if her mindset wasn’t on leaving in a hurry. “Um… nothing, really. They tasted bad.” Redheart placed the clipboard aside on a table. “Now, I think you’ll like this part. Slowly, I want you to power up your wings and lift off, gently.” With a salute, “Yes, ma’am!” Rainbow flipped all the switches to on, which pumped fuel to the engines that would grant her flight. When she turned the key, her wings became lead weights, their movements no more than a sway. “You don’t need to hold back that much,” Redheart assured. “I’m not,” she huffed. “Does it hurt?” “No. Ugh! C’mon! Move!” Finally, she sensed her hooves becoming light. In a rush, she pulled the yoke up for liftoff. In a flash of light, Rainbow was now standing on a floating cloud in a blustery sky. The world’s colors were that of those coming of a projector, present but muted. Beneath her hooves hundreds of feet down, Fluttershy and Scootaloo watched her every move with nary a blink. After a prolonged exhale, the daredevil mare free fell off the cloud, her wings in the closed position. Her heart raced as she accelerated by the second, resisting her natural instinct until reaching her desired altitude. Then, she unfurled her feathers and started a twisting loop using only momentum. I remember now! I was doing it and then… oh, no! The winds pushed her downwards toward the grassy fields, asphyxiating her with panic. No! No! Not again! Rainbow crashed sideways with a dull thud, the impact on her right the force of a swinging hammer. Her wing was on fire, her tear ducts gushed water and she unleashed a blood-curdling scream louder than Fluttershy and Scootaloo’s cries of shock and dismay. Nothing could’ve prepared her for this, not even all the times she crashed into ponies, signs and walls. Those were like pinpricks; this was raw and sudden pain and even as a memory, it felt real. Make it stop! Stop, please! I can’t take this anymore! No more! No more! Then, all the lights went out. All her aches has vanished, replaced by a stomach twisting calmness. Far ahead, an object suddenly came into form under a dim light, a barrier three times her height. Rainbow chose to fly except she had nothing to extend. Her pupils contracted as she touched her sides - soft hide instead of feathers. “My wings!” Her voice echoed. “Where are my wings?” “Over here,” somepony whispered. Rainbow flinched. “Who said that?” The stranger spoke again but not loud enough to comprehend the words. Yet, Rainbow somehow extracted more meaning out of that; she must walk toward the wall. Based on distance, it would take seconds to reach it with a gallop but when she tried, her hooves refused to budge. “Ugh! Move!” Bogged down by unseen quicksand, Rainbow grunted for every step. Then, she relived the crash, not just the one on Monday but every single instance where she impacted something; trees, signs, walls and ponies. Now they shone under a different light, that of primal fright and she screeched after every impact. “No! No! Stop! Stop!” “Rainbow!” Just like that, Nurse Redheart’s voice pulled her back to the clinic, under the physician’s tight embrace. Rainbow pulled her face away from her chest just enough to gasp for air. “It’s okay,” said Redheart, brushing her mane. “Just relax.” She looked all around the room, “I–I don’t…what just happened?” “I asked you to hover off the ground. You fainted and then…just like at the fields, your screams.” “Before you put me under.” Redheart cusped her gasp. “Hold on. You remember that?” Her patient nodded. “It came back to me. Everything that happ…ened.” Rainbow pushed the nurse away so she could inspect her sides; both wings were still there. When she tested them for lift-off, that’s when her bravery received a punishing uppercut. Feathers fell off and teeth chattered, as the idea to fly was much like dipping into lava. With a whimper, she raised the white flag. “I don’t… what’s wrong with me? Why can’t I… no.” She ran toward the door. “Rainbow! Wait!” Running on panic, she entered the clinic’s hallway. To the left were multiple conversations from ponies waiting in the lobby, far too many witnesses. She trotted right and around the bend where she bypassed the door to the right, choosing the one straight ahead leading outside. Cool, damp air greeted her along with the sounds of water pelting the building’s overhang before flowing off its slope. Fly, she urged herself, Fly! Rainbow ran into the open, wings unfurled but then came to a halt. She tripped and fell into a large puddle, the pain of hitting cobblestone chin-first nothing was like the gut-wrenching emotions that had her eyes gushing agony. The skies, she was free to come home but she was still in shackles, even after her nurse removed them. Banging the ground, she screamed “Why? Why? Why? Why can’t I fly?!” Redheart yanked her back under the awning’s protection, her typically stoic expression faltering at her despairing patient. “Please tell me what’s wrong with me,” Rainbow begged. “You know what it is, dontcha?” As a professional, she had nothing conclusive but she had a theory. Something about Rainbow’s trembling eyes reminded her of a patient she saw two days ago; a stallion needed a physical and she was happy to oblige. After running down through a basic examination checklist, he provided her with his medical records. There, she saw it, that brief moment where her patient’s confidence about his bill of health dipped. When she reached the page within a folder filled with text and diagrams, she knew why. “Sw--, I mean, Flying, according to your history, you had quite a serious accident last year with your left wing.” The short, grey stallion fidgeted on the exam table. “Yeah, I did… but you said my wings checked out, right?” She caught the appendage in question quiver. “Hmmm. They did.” Redheart continued reading his records detailing his recovery. Everything fell in line with a typical recovery except for one thing - his doctor diagnosed him with a condition she’d never seen before in all her years as a nurse. Nothing in her training or in the subsequent pages gave her a clue on what this was but it did say he recovered from it. Recover from what exactly, she thought. She dared not question a fellow physician about his diagnosis nor could she could ask her patient what this was, at least not directly. “Young stallion, is there anything not in the files you want to tell me? Please understand that as a physician, I am bound not to—” Swift shook his head, “It’s all good. What happened to me… it’s over now. Doc said so.” That was that. Redheart had nothing substantial that would deny him a pass. “Very well. Then you’re cleared for duty, Flying.” He slid off the table. “Wicked! So, can I go?” “Yes, of course.” “Later, Nurse.” The stallion left the room, but then stuck his head in.“Oh, and thanks for telling me about the special Committee Meeting at Sugarcube Corner.” She suppressed her giggle. “Yes, of course. Have a great day!” Once the door closed, the nurse tossed the files onto the exam bed. While she was an earth pony in an earth pony town, Redheart prided herself as a nurse that could diagnose any species with their unique conditions; she wasn’t going to be stumped by this. In the short time between then and now, she accumulated just enough knowledge to begin diagnosing her current patient. “Rainbow, let’s go somewhere a little more dry and private.” Redheart guided her back inside the building, but rather than return to the patient room, the nurse took her through the door by the exit and into an office. Pictures of the clinic’s staff hung on the left wall headshots depicted the clinic’s staff while a tall and wide bookcase occupied the right. Rainbow sat down in one of the two red beanbag chairs, while Nurse Redheart sat on an office chair across a burgundy desk. Atop the polished surface was a thick book she had pulled out from her nearby collection yesterday, Understanding Complex Pegasus Physiological, Physical, and Psychophysiological Conditions. She opened it to where she placed a pink bookmark, the section which she memorized by heart. This was mere confirmation of her recollection. “Maybe,” she said, rubbing her foreleg. “I, um, started fainting and shaking. Then I saw things but I couldn’t remember what it was. I thought it was the pill’s side effects. Please tell me that’s all it was.” “I’m afraid not.” Redheart inhaled deep, so she could hold her composure. “Rainbow Dash. I believe you have something called Flying Stress Syndrome, or FSS for short.” Rainbow’s head tilted slightly. “Huh?” “I’ll put in in the simplest way I can. You’re afraid to fly.” Instantly, an arctic chill ran across her body. Flying was her lifeblood, the very foundation of who she was and yet, this nurse was telling her that it wasn’t. “That’s the silliest thing I’ve ever heard! You’re lying to me!” She leaned forward and banged the desk. “Tell me the truth! Now!” Redheart’s grim expression did not waver. “I am, Rainbow. Please, if you sit back down, I will explain it to you in detail.” She slumped on the beanbag, grumbling. “You see, FSS is a rare condition. In fact, the medical profession doesn’t have a lot of material on it. What I do know is that it affects mainly highly-skilled pegasi, such as yourself, after a traumatic event that occurs during flight. Usually, this is some type of flying accident. In most cases, it’s like falling off a bike. You shake it off and get back on again. Unfortunately, there are situations where what happened is so traumatic, the pegasus’ mind tries to repress the memory related to that event” Rainbow’s lips quivered. “That’s what happened to me.” The nurse nodded. “While doing so is good short-term, the long-term consequences can be quite dire. Anything can trigger vague recollections of the hidden memory and the pegasus will often faint or convulse as a result. If the pony just happens to recover their memories, then all the negative emotions manifest itself into a phobia. In essence, that fear is a defense mechanism since it all but eliminates the possibility of having a similar accident again.” She heard it and yet, she had trouble digesting all of it. “It can’t be.” She pulled back tears. “Please tell me this is a joke. There has to be something else. Anything but that.” Shutting her eyelids, “I’m sorry, Rainbow. All the symptoms fit. Nothing else is even a close match.” The gavel struck the anvil and soon after, her face hit the desk, muffling her sobs. Her job as a weather manager, gone. Her dreams to be a Wonderbolt, a mere fantasy. The humiliation she would endure, total and complete. It was the perfect trifecta of the worst things that could happen to her in a single day, maybe in her lifetime. “Rainbow, please,” the nurse spoke, reaching across to caress her head. “It’s all right. This condition is not terminal. There is a way to recover.” “A... cure?” She suddenly latched onto Redheart. “What is it? Medicine? A spell? Whatever it is, I need it now!” “Hold on! It’s not like that. Please, just calm down let me explain.” Rainbow let her go and took a fetal position on the beanbag chair. The nurse leaned back on her office chair, rubbing her temple. “You see, FSS isn’t something you can wish away with magic or take pills and syrups. Unfortunately, this is where details are scarce.” Redheart closed the book and then tapped the cover. “Supposedly, the only method that has shown any sign of success is through rigorous flight training starting from the very basics. You must confront your fears repeatedly so you can eventually overcome it.” “But how?” she said, wiping her cheek. “I can’t even get off the ground.” Redheart sighed. “I wish I had a good answer. There is a physician from Cloudsdale I would refer you to but she’s away on leave for a few weeks. I will ask her office if they have any information that might be of any help.” “Oh.” “What I do know is that this is something you can’t do on your own. You’ll need help from somepony else to help you every step of the way. What needs to be done specifically, I’m not sure.” Rainbow stared at the tiles, “I have to… tell somepony else about all this?” A few drops splattered onto the floor. “I–I don’t… know if… I’m already embarrassed enough. How can—” Redheart went around the desk, so she could hold up her patient’s face and display a comforting smile. “Rainbow, I’ve patched you up enough times that I know that nothing in this world will stop you from flying again. This is no different. You just need some backup. How about your friends? I know they would do anything for you.” “I can’t,” she whimpered. “I don’t want for them to know about this. What are they going to think of me if they find out? Besides, I promised myself I wouldn’t ruin their trip.” “Oh, dear. Then, um—” She did have a name in mind to share, except doing so would break her oath on patient privacy. “I’m sure there’s somepony else out there than can help. Just think it through, Rainbow.” It pained her to do so, but she did, running through every flier she could recall. Too slow, too gabby, lost touch, poor character or lives too far away - Rainbow found new reasons to dismiss every name that came into her head. “How long would it take for somepony to cure me,” Rainbow asked. “When will I know when I’m cured?” Redheart frowned. “I’m sorry but I don’t have any specifics.” Without that information, going through the rolodex a second time twisted her heart even harder. If she wanted any chance to minimize her shame and hide it from her closest friends, Rainbow only had those within Ponyville to choose from. The pitter patter above her was a reminder that the only ones that could conceivably help her were on the weather team. One name stood far above the rest for qualifications but otherwise, just thinking about it had her teary-eyed once more. “I—I can’t ask Fly for help,” said a dejected Rainbow. “I barely know who he is.” The nurse bit her tongue; how she dreaded being in such an ethically bound profession. Her head sank. “I need to think this over.” “Do whatever you need to do.” Redheart hugged her like a mother would a child. “I’ll be here to help you anyway you can but please, I beg you. Don’t do this by yourself.” Rainbow fidgeted. “I’ll try but promise me something. Please don’t tell anypony else about all this. Not even any other doctors.” Redheart placed her foreleg over her heart. “Whatever is said in this room always stays in this room.” She then squeezed Rainbow even tighter. “I wish you all the luck in the world, Rainbow Dash.” She said nothing, preferring to bask in the gentle warmth of her embrace as long as she could. For this moment, she had no worries in the world but once Redheart ended the hug, all her worries heckled her psyche. I won’t cry again. C’mon. Stiff upper lip. After saying their goodbyes, Rainbow was back in the clinic’s hallway, free to leave. To where, that was the question. Rather than raise questions from onlookers by walking through the lobby, she left the building via the rear exit and back outside into a dreary rainy Saturday afternoon. Obviously, her floating home was inaccessible but she just had to give flight one last try, hoping fate would deliver a miracle. If I can just— Down onto the cobblestone she went, proving her extended wings were just for show. Hence, she only had one place to go, down the roads leading toward Fluttershy’s cottage. At least there was nopony in sight. She could run through the rain undetected but that gave her little solace. As she galloped away from the clinic, she was bitterly cold and abandoned. But somepony was watching her solemn journey - his light blue eyes peeked through the shifting grey masses traversing the sky. They soon disappeared before she had a chance to notice. If a nap didn’t relieve Rainbow’s stress, a hot and bubbly bath was the next best alternative. Floating within the tub, however, gave her wrinkly skin rather than answers. Once she toweled off, she meandered out of the bathroom and down the staircase to what has been her bed since Monday, the green chaise lounger by one of the living room windows. She could’ve used her friend’s bed - Fluttershy insisted as such during the week - but it didn’t feel right. Besides, the couch was more familiar to her now after all this time, a reliable but inanimate companion. “I don’t know what to do,” she moaned, as she rested on the couch. Her eyelids grew heavy and the murky drizzling world through the glass soon faded to black. Bang! Bang! A knock woke Rainbow from her slumber. The ambient light had dimmed but not by much. An hour past sundown read the clock. Again, somepony tapped the door. She slithered onto the floor and toward the window across the living room, avoiding the visitor’s eyes peeking into the living room. The moment the shadows shifted, Rainbow moved her head up to confirm who it was. She immediately curled into a ball. Fly! This is bad! This is really bad! What should I do? “Hey, Rainbow? Are you in there?” the young stallion spoke. “No,” she whispered to herself. Angel suddenly appeared in front of her, speaking in rabbit while pointing at the door. Somehow, she understood the gist of the message. “I can’t. I’m not ready to see him yet.” He pulled a feather out and brushed it against her nose. Inevitably, she broke her silence with the subtlety of a foghorn. “Is that you, Rainbow?” Again, more gibberish from Angel before he disappeared up the stairs - she vaguely interpreted his message as ‘good luck’. “One sec, Fly,” she responded Rainbow stood on all fours and then reached for the knob. She paused for a sigh before turning the knob, her foreleg trembling all the way. “Calm down”, she told herself. Little by little, she opened the creaking door until catching a glimpse of the grey stallion on the other side. Slam! She denied him entry. “Um? Is something wrong?” A few seconds of labored breathing later, she swung the door wide open. “Sorry about that. Thought you were somepony else.” Rainbow faked a chuckle. “Eh?” “Never mind. Get out of the rain, wontcha?” Swift took a step back and then shook his whole body, going from drenching to damp. Before he went inside, Angel had returned with a towel, a doormat and terse chatter for the stallion. “I have no idea what you said” — He rubbed his hooves on the mat before wiping off some water — “but I think I got your drift.” Once he handed back the towel, Angel retreated up the staircase with nary a grumble. Rainbow watched him, contemplating the rabbit was actually acting out of kindness rather than being a constant thorn on her side. He was no Fluttershy but she had a reason to smile just a little. “Um, do you want to hear about how my day went with the team?” Swift said, sitting down on the easy chair. “Huh? Oh, sure.” Back to the green couch she went, allowing him to start rambling about equipment failure at the Cloud Factory, more Thunderlane and Raindrops hijinks and his struggles teaching the patrol on improving their weak spots. Everything he said went in and out of Rainbow’s ears, not because of disinterest but of preoccupation about the subject that would surely rear its ugly head by the end of the evening. Surely, he already has or will notice that the cast was no more and ask why she was in Fluttershy’s cottage instead of her floating domain. Could she fabricate a lie? Would she get away with it? What if he figures out what’s wrong with her? What if the patrol realizes she was sleeping down here? Should he spill the beans? Would he even bother to help? Does she want him to help? Endless questions bombarded her to crippling indecision. “So, what do you think?” said Swift as he rubbed his goggles’ lenses. “Hmmm?” She kept her eyes set at the ceiling. “Um, what did you say?” “No worries.” Securing his headgear on his forehead, “It’s not important.” “‘kay.” Rainbow waited for him to say something, anything. Ten seconds went by, then twenty and more. Then, a sudden nose tickle - she sneezed, her wings opening by reflex. He saw, no way he didn’t notice by now! “Rainbow?” Swift said, his voice becoming softer. “I, um—” His left wing went into convulsions “—you got bad news at the clinic?” She gave a hesitant nod. His forelegs made circles on the seat’s cushion. “Can you… I mean, is something… does it feel like… oh, shoot.” “Just say it.” “Eh?” Voice cracking, “Don’t dance around it!” She briefly unfurled her wings. “Go on. Just say what you want to say. It doesn’t matter what it is. My life is ruined anyways.” He glanced at his shaking wing, grimacing at an impulse that was out of his control. “Well, I-I think… shoot!” He slapped his face. “All right! All right! I—I was by myself, in the clouds above the clinic. It was my lunch break but I thought you had already left. Then you went out the back, when you fell.” She covered her crimson face. “And when you ran off. That’s when I knew, Rainbow. I know what’s wrong with you.” Rainbow turned her back to him, unable to patch the leaks. “Just go.” “But—” “Leave!” She blindly threw a pillow, missing wide of her target. Swift slid off the easy chair and took a backwards step toward the door. His left wing just wouldn’t stop his fervent shake, however. It was telling him, no, ordering him to pull skeletons out of the closet. The stallion pulled on his mane to where it hurt but not to the same level as watching a fellow pony spiral deeper into agony. I can’t take this anymore! I don’t want to do this! But I will be going through this, aren’t I? Why must this happen to me? Haven’t I gone through enough already? She tossed another wayward pillow, “I told you to get out of here!” Swift swallowed his cowardice. “I can’t. Not until I show you something.” After a sniff, “I don’t want to see it.” He raised his hind leg, wanting to step away from Rainbow. Instead, he fought his instincts and walked right up to the couch. “You have to. If you want answers, then you’ll turn around. Please?” Rainbow noticed his reflection off the window. His twitching left wing was in full display, the same one that moved violently both times she had her medical episodes. It might’ve been coincidence or a key to the puzzle. “What am I looking for?” she whispered as she turned around to face him. “Straight ahead. This close, you can’t miss it.” She leaned forward to inspect the many grey feathers attached to his appendage. Their distribution was even except for an area right of center. “Can I?” she said, lifting her foreleg. With his audible permission, she moved around the plumage. Beneath, a thin straight scar ran across five inches and all around it, the skin’s color had a tinge of crimson. She fell back, covering her mouth. “I think I’m gonna barf.” “My bad.” He retracted his wing. “I should’ve warned you.” “That’s okay.” She patted her chest. “I–I just wasn’t expecting, that. Umm, how did that happen, exactly?” Swift slumped onto the easy chair. “That’s why I showed you that. You, um”— He removed his goggles and began fiddling with it with his forelegs —“it’s something that may explain a lot of things for you.” Rainbow latched onto a pillow. “Something tells me this is a long story.” “You could say that.” He paused until Rainbow got comfortable on the nearby couch. “Have you ever heard about the Saddlecloud Tornado Incident?” “The Saddlecloud Tornado Incident?” she parroted. Rainbow then gasped. “Oh yeah! A really bad tornado popped up near Saddlecloud and it was headed toward its twin earth pony town. There are some details missing but I do know that… wait a minute. Don’t tell me. You were there, weren’t you?” His wing twitched once more. “I was a rookie within the Saddlecloud Weather Squadron. That day, a major storm front kept us busy but that’s sorta the norm in that area. Then, a tornado suddenly appeared a few miles from Saddlecloud Village. Our leader, along with some of the best pegasi from the team, attacked the clouds above it while the rest of us flew into the town and warn them.” “They didn’t have an alarm?” Swift shook his head. “The last reported tornado in the Saddlecloud region was well before my time. Nopony saw it coming.” *** Start Flashback *** Swift exited a one-story cabin building onto a narrow road. Immediately, gusts kicked up dirt but with his plain brown goggles, he could still see his surroundings. Ponies ran past him and to his right toward a thick pine forest. In the other direction was a growing, spinning black mass ripping apart the soil beneath its wake. He trembled as though he faced a giant whose every step shook the ground. All the log buildings around him had no chance of surviving its brutality. A few colored dots hovering above the monster was their only hope from wiping the town and its fleeing citizens off the map. “Is that everypony in this sector, Fly?” Swift saluted the approaching yellow stallion. “Think so, Drizzle, but still have at least… eh?” A turquoise-tanned mare soon arrived from above, frantically flailing her hooves. “The wind knocked down some trees and it blocked the main road! We can’t find a clear way around!” Drizzle stomped the ground, “Dammit! Find one, Cirrus, but make sure everypony keeps heading north! Carry them if you have to! We don’t have… oh, no.” More pegasi arrived, many of them with bruises and collapsing onto the dirt upon landing. Two ponies carried one stallion with a dark bruise on his cheek on a stretcher. Swift gasped. “Boss!” “Flash, no!” Cirrus screeched, shaking the unresponsive pony. She then turned to one of the mares that carried the patrol’s leader. “Crush! What in Equestria happened? “The tornado tore up an empty barn and we got pelted by debris.” Crush removed a small wooden piece from her orange mane. “We barely made it out but that’s not the worst of it. We’ve tried every protocol in the book and nothing worked. I’m afraid there’s nothing we can do to stop the tornado from hitting the village.” Drizzle latched onto Crush. “But we have to stop it! The evac route’s blocked right now!” “What?” Her face lost all color. “If that’s the case, there’s no way we can get everypony out before—” Her eyes shrank and she lost most of her voice “— oh sweet Celestia.” Cirrus pranced in place, “What should we do? What should we do?” Multiple conversations broke out, but for the silent Swift, it was a wild zoo with no tamer in sight. This group shredded every plan that came to fruition with its sharp razor claws. They lacked the numbers for a massive airlift of every resident. Lifting the blockage would take too long. None of the structures could possibly serve as a last-resort shelter. Fear and panic spread like flames, not only within the patrol but also to the fleeing residents that overheard the grim news. Some yelled of their imminent demise while others bent down and prayed to Celestia that she would somehow come and save them. Swift facehoofed. Shoot! Why won’t anypony take charge here? He hovered a few feet off the ground for a better look at the approaching gargantuan funnel. Ten minutes at best - that’s all the time they had left. Then, a spark ignited in his mind. That’s it! We just have to… hold on. Smacking his forehead, They’re not going to listen to a rookie like me! They’ll think my plan is bonkers! Below, a few began pushing and shoving. There was no consensus, no order, no respect. This team was tearing itself apart, pushing everypony closer to the edge of unspeakable disaster. By impulse, Swift checked the mark forever imprinted on his flank. His body went limp in mid-air. Ah, shoot. I’m going through with this, aren’t I? Why is ‘doing the right thing’ so hard? Swift whistled with all that he could muster. Suddenly, all eyes were on him. The scorching spotlight parched his tongue. “Ummm, ‘sup?” He cleared his throat. “Well, you see, if—” He paused for a fervent mane rub “—the tornado! W-we can’t stop but what if we move it, away from the town?” Crush covered her face, muffling her groan. “How in Equestria will we accomplish something like that, rookie? Transform into alicorns?” “No, Crush. We’ll nudge it off its path, with our own whirlwind.” Crickets, Swift heard them from the forest of bewildered ponies. “Are you nuts?” Drizzle eventually barked. Other squadron members repeated the sentiment with snide remarks, crazy-in-the-head motions, or outright laughter. Swift sensed warmth coming to his face, only for it to escape through his nostrils as boiling steam. His chest swelled ever larger, preparing for the imminent eruption. “Knock it off!” Lightning struck through the patrol, stunning them into silence. He pointed at the tornado, “You see that? We have a job to do, save this town and everypony that lives in it! Now, unless somepony else has a better idea, we’re going ahead with my plan! I know it sounds crazy but if you guys follow exactly what I tell you, it will work!” Cirrus raised her hoof. “But your idea sounds dangerous!” Swift landed in front of her. “I get that, Cirrus, but we knew there would be risks the moment we signed up with the squadron. Now, I’ll admit that I’m a little scared about all this. We all are and that’s okay because we’re gonna face this together. We’ll watch out for one another and I’ll do everything I can to keep the team out of danger. If you wanna bail out of this, I won’t stop you but we’ll need every able pony for this. Please, trust me on this.” For the longest few seconds, he had no inclination whether they would accept him or disband and flee. Then, they all came closer, either nodding approvingly or saying their endorsement aloud. Drizzle popped him on the side. “Hmf. I’ve always wondered why Flash let you in our squad. So, what’s our orders?” *** End Flashback *** “Now, wait just a darn second,” Rainbow interrupted, raising a suspicious eyebrow. “You’re telling me the leader got knocked out and the pony that replaced them was… you?” Scratching his head, “Isn’t that I just said?” “Uhhhhh, huh.” Swift raised his hooves, “What? Both my folks have weather-related talents. I picked up on stuff they don’t teach ponies at school.” He grumbled. “Even when I didn’t wanna hear it. I had the right plan for the right situation. How’s that hard to believe?” “That’s not it.” Rainbow stretched, “I just can’t see you of all ponies taking over like that.” “Whatever,” he said with an eyeroll. “Well, I didn’t want to but I had to, Rainbow. Anyways, we didn’t have much time, so we only had one shot at it. We had to form our whirlwind exactly right or we’d all be in trouble.” *** Begin Flashback *** Swift hovered in the middle of the patrol’s whirlwind. At a torrid pace, he shouted orders to the ponies circling around him. Coming ever closer was the spinning funnel, its size towering twice as high as its false cousin. In seconds, they would go hoof to hoof with a monster to force it eastward. Its ear-splitting howl of a freight train barreling down the tracks pierced into his very soul and for those around him, they faltered in their formations. “Shift right,” Swift shouted at the top of his lungs. “Hold on to your paths! It’s coming!” He sensed the tornado’s long claws tugging the entire whirlwind towards its shredding teeth. “Left! Left!” They couldn’t hear him, so he signaled his orders. As the patrol adjusted their paths, a massive shudder travelled all across the whirlwind. Ponies screamed at the sounds of a thousand thunderclaps simultaneously striking the ground. Swirling doom was right at their footstep trying to rip off the door. “Don’t panic!” Again, another deafening collision, wobbling the whole contraption. One mare veered off course, heading straight at another. “No!” Swift flapped right up to her and grabbed onto her foreleg. With a wing burst, they spun around, avoiding a stallion before releasing her back into a counterclockwise course. No rest for the leader, however, as Cirrus was panting heavily. He approached her and tapped her shoulder. “You’re too tired! Stay in the center!” “But… I want to help!” “Then fly up and tell me if we pushed it safely off-course!” She pointed at both her ears, mouthing something stolen by the blaring tornado. He pointed skywards, repeating his instructions. Right after she left, another shove from the behemoth so hard, the force ejected three pegasi clear out of the whirlwind and into some soft bushes. While they were in no danger, losing that much wingpower meant the balance of power swung further against their favor. Swift joined the patrol flying in a circular motion but his tingling fur felt no difference in their collective strength. Their nemesis salivated for another hit but a minor flux in its rotation limited its blow to a soft jab. Even if they couldn’t see the real tornado, everypony sensed its shift in direction. Confidence swelling, the squadron countered with a shove, then two more. They had the upper hoof. Or so they thought. Suddenly, the tornado flipped a switch and its suction pulled them in like loose dirt under a vacuum hose. “Full power! Full reverse!” Pow! The hardest impact yet flung another four ponies well out of harm’s way and even knocked Swift off-balance. By the time they recovered, they realized the hit pushed them a fair distance but the tornado drifted toward their location, readying for a crippling blow. We can’t survive another hit! He signaled his lookout for an update. “Fly!” Cirrus flew right next to him. “Position, a quarter mile east of the town’s border!” “Heading?” “Thirty degrees and holding!” Good enough! He returned to the whirlwind’s center and with his forelegs, formed a cross symbol. “Evac! Evac!” Following the predetermined plan, the team peeled away in a set order, starting with those closest to the middle. As more ponies left the whirlwind, he resumed moving in circles as the tornado’s power grabbed onto some nearby pine trees, bending the trunks with a crunch. “Hurry! Hurry!” With the whirlwind all but dissipating, the howling black vortex came into full display. Never in Swift’s life had he felt so small and powerless being face to face against something that must have emerged from Tartarus. He wanted to flee but had to wait his turn; the patrol’s safety took priority. The last flier, Crush, flung herself toward the pine forest. He immediately pursued, engines at full to escape the black hole’s tug. Then, a snap - some fencing surrounding a large field lost its hold with the ground. “Crush! Watch out!” She remained on-course, oblivious to the tumbling debris coming her way. Adrenaline rushed into his wings, giving him an explosive burst straight at the mare. He body-slammed her, pushing the stunned pegasus out of the way right before painted wood delivered a crippling blow to his jaw. All flight systems went offline and his world became dim and blurry. Before he could overcome his staggered state, the howling demon grabbed him and pulled the stallion away from safety, away from the patrol that could do nothing except watch. *** End Flashback*** Rainbow hugged her pillow tight. “I–I had no idea. I thought everypony had made it out okay.” He kept his head down, motionless and breathing erratically. “You all right?” He shut his eyes. “My bad. It’s just that you try forgetting heavy stuff like this, you know?” “If you wanna stop—” “No worries.” Swift breathed out deeply. “You need to hear everything.” *** Start Flashback*** Alive. Somehow, he was still alive. The monster’s belly tossed him around its black guts in a neverending swirl. His eardrums had popped, he tasted soot and with what little strength he had left, he folded his wings back to his sides. They could do nothing to dictate direction and with all the fence posts, branches and logs floating around, he dare not expose them. Gotta… hang on! Wood splinters flew past him, a few skirting across his skin like a hot sharp knife. His eyelids weighed a ton but he held them open a sliver. He had to remain conscious for he had one hope to cling onto - the tornado would eventually spit him out. Stay... awake! He ricocheted off half a barn door, sending his limp body spinning around even faster. Then, another excruciating strike to his hindquarter but from what, he never saw. By the second, the lights dimmed closer to pitch darkness, his hold onto this world slipping from his grasp. Then, blue skies, marvelous blue skies! I’m... out. Must… fly! Swift unfurled his wings but his feathers simply fluttered in the wind. Gravity took over, sending him into a downward spiral toward what he saw as hazy dark green. The forest canopy, that’s where he would fall through and no matter how many times he told himself to fly, his wings wouldn’t move an inch. Fly! Why can’t I— He caught of glimpse of colorful dots coming his direction; the weather patrol were mounting a desperate rescue attempt. In desperation, Swift opened his mouth so he could utter the most his vocal chords could muster. “Help, me.” Swift continued spinning in mid-air. Sky, ponies, trees. Sky, ponies, trees. Sky, ponies and finally, he saw nothing but trees. *** End Flashback *** “They couldn’t—” Swift cleared his throat — “they were too far away. The branches broke my fall but they also, um—” He looked slightly away from Rainbow, trembling. “It’s alright,” she said in a hushed tone. “I can guess what that did to your wing.” He nodded. “Every–everything I told you and the day after that, I… there was a time when I couldn’t remember any of it.” Rainbow’s eyes shrank. No way. But, but— “At the hospital, I was in shock. Sure, the docs patched me up but I didn’t know what to think. Then the top weather bosses came to see me. For breaking so many rules during the crisis, disobeying chain of command, placing the team is such danger, and a few other things, they had no choice but to kick me off the team. Even though what I did saved the town, they couldn’t make an exception but would let me resign to save face. I… I thought—” His whole body trembled and his teeth clashed against each other. It was for but a moment, though. An exhale brought him back into a solemn tone. “That wasn’t very wicked at all. By the next morning, I’d forgotten everything.” “But it came back to you, didn’t it?” After a few seconds, “Little by little, then at once the day I tried to fly again.” Her jaw shuddered. “Y–you had that... that’s why... it all makes sense now.” She huffed. “You knew what was wrong with me all along!” Waving her off, “No, no! I mean… I wasn’t sure and besides, would you’ve believed me? ‘Sup. I’m Fly. Did you know you’ll be scared to fly?” “Well, when you put it that way, I guess not.” Swift stood on up all fours. “Listen, I get what you’re going through. It’s not easy and it won’t get much easier. The thing is that—” She hopped off the couch, cheeks with a touch of red. “Can you help me?” “Eh?” He took a step back, almost tripping on his hooves. “I mean, that was the whole point of this, right?” she said in a squeaky voice. “So that I could trust you in helping me fly again?” Both wings rose firmly, “Eeeeeeh-what?” You want me to help you with that?” Rainbow’s eyes quivered. “You not going to, are you?” “I never meant to… I mean… why me? Isn’t there somepony else? Like your friends? When they come back—” “No, no, no. You just don’t get it.” She turned around, realizing salty streams were touching her lips. “Right now, you and Nurse Redheart are the only ponies that know and I wanna keep it that way. Besides,” she began rubbing her eyes, “if you made it through this, then you should know what needs to be done, right?” His mouth made strange noises as though his mind had short-circuited. “Rainbow, it was hard enough to… the patrol, what about—” His foreleg tried starting a fire with his forelocks “—I’m not sure I can even, um—” “This is so embarrassing,” she whimpered. Her words struck right at his heart. “Oh, shoot. Please don’t cry.” “I’m not crying,” she snapped. “I just… never mind.” She collapsed onto the bed and took a fetal position. “Forget I even asked.” He wanted to but he couldn’t. Somepony was reaching out to him, a fellow pony that was going down the same narrow and treacherous road he once traveled. Such a request was too much for him. The tribulations of his crash and recovery, he would relive through that all over again. Besides, his first duty was to Ponyville’s weather. With a no, he can walk away from this nightmare and save himself. Except it was the wrong thing to do. Every instinct, every fiber of his being and even his cutie mark told him that but that made his decision no less painful than extracting teeth with a string and a doorknob. “Rainbow?” He moved closer to her. “It’s not that easy to choose that someone. You gotta really trust them all the way from start to finish. We’ve just met two days ago and you wanted me to be your rival.” She returned to a seated position. Despite the redness in her eyes, Rainbow allowed him a partial view of her face. After she got him to sit next to her, she began dangling her hindlegs. “I know that but, hey, gotta take a risk sometimes. Well, maybe not that big of a risk. I feel like I can actually trust you, Fly.” “But why?” “Because what you told me today isn’t something you’d tell some random stranger. Tell me, how many others know about the… thing?” Swift sighed. “Just two. Obviously my doc, so that’s one. I was lucky that my folks had already moved out of Saddlecloud before my crash and I’ve been able to keep them in the dark. The other one who helped me rehab my wing and deal with the—” His tongue twisted —“you-know-what, was a falcon, actually. Blaze Peregrine, my friend from Junior Speedsters, of all places.” “And you trusted me enough to make me the third. Fly, if you were willing to share that big of a secret to me, that tells me more about you than anything else. You’re the type of friend that I can count on for this.” His mouth opened wide. I, um, friends? She popped him in the ribs. “Geez louise. Well, duh! You’re terrible as a rival but in a weird way, you’re kinda fun to hang out with.” Rainbow then played with her mane, “But don’t think I won’t be your friend if you don’t wanna go through with this. I won’t force you like that. If you wanna bail, I understand.” “Rainbow?” he said as the grey stallion stood up straight. “Yeah?” He chomped on his lips. What in Equestria am I getting myself into? Then, he barely moved his head up and down. Leaning toward him, “You will? You really will?” Swift squirmed in place until finally, a smile emerged. “Right thing to do for a friend, right?” Salvation! She reached out and glomped the slender stallion with all her might, sending both of them down onto a rug. “Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you!” His talent failed him from having an overly joyous mare literally crush the life out of him. “Rainbow, I can’t, I can’t breathe—” Realizing his face was turning blue, she released him. “Oops. Heh, heh. Sorry.” He rose to his haunches, savoring his ribs. “N–no worries,” he wheezed. “Can’t blame you for getting excited.” “So, how long is this gonna take? How will I know when I’m all better? Do I need to buy anything?” “Whoa, whoa, whoa! Cool your jets now!” Swift rubbed his chin, “I gotta rack my brains about all this.” She held up her foreleg, “Actually, before you do that, can you promise me something?” “Promise?” he said with a head tilt. Rainbow gestured toward one of the rain-soaked windows. “I know the weather’s gonna keep you busy during the day but since ponies either left town or are staying indoors, it also gives us cover once you’re done. Then again, my friends come back next Saturday.” She sighed. “It’s asking a lot, I know, but can you promise me that you’ll keep everything we do a secret and that you’ll cure me by the time my friends return from Manehattan?” Swift craned his neck to look at the clock. “Shoot. That’s… whew. I gotta find a way to shorten the workday but even if I could, ummmmm—” He stared right at her. “Rainbow, it took me a month but, well, I had rehab for my wing. Um? What time do your friends get here?” “Noon.” He facehoofed. “Not even the whole day there.” “Well, can you promise me, please?” What she asked for made challenging the Saddlecloud tornado a trot in the park but at this point, there was no backtracking now. Whatever came his way, he would grin it and bear it. “Gotcha, Rainbow. I promise.” “Pinkie Pie swear?” “Eh?” While making the gyrations, “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye. Now, you do it.” Grin it, add whining noises, and then bear it. Along with the chant, he crossed his hooves, then flapped them, and finally touched his shut left eye. “There.” “Thanks. So, um, when do we start?” Swift headed for the door, “We start tonight.”