Author's Note: This is the alternate ending, based on my original idea of how to end the story. This had been my plan all along, until the time came to write it. I ended up deciding it was both a cop-out ending and anticlimactic, leading to the standing ending. But I've noticed that the most criticized part of this story is the ending. Thus, I provide to you my original ending for the story, and you are free to decide which you prefer. This ending comes after "Ends and Means", but go ahead and read the first paragraph of "Crusader Chronicles: Redemption" (not the author's note). And on that note, I've pretty much given up on that idea; it didn't flow in naturally with my other stories. But I digress. Here you go...
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Scootaloo revved her wings expectantly, balancing on her scooter. She had concieved this plan many years ago, but had never found a moment to pull it off. Until now, that is. She had calculated each movement necessary, preparing herself and practicing as best she could. It would have to be enough, or she would be dead in the water, or on the ground, as it were.
Step 1: Find a low-lying cloud coming out of the Everfree Forest, close to the intercept point.
Easy enough. She had been sitting on that pathway for a good half-hour, waiting for just the perfect one to come over. It was in her target area.
Step 2: Two seconds before the cloud reaches the intercept point, begin accelerating on the scooter.
Scootaloo flapped her wings as hard as she could, propeling her scooter across the dirt trail.
Step 3: Reach maximum speed at least fifty feet before the jump.
All she needed was a little more power. The world around her was becoming a blur, and the only clear thing she could see was her plywood ramp ahead. She had to be at maximum speed by now, she just had to be.
Step 4: Make the jump.
The ramp came to her faster than she expected, but she was still holding her balance. The adrenaline rush of a jump washed over her, only made stronger by the intense speed. She was ascending now, reaching some 10 hooves off the ground.
Step 5: As you approach the cloud, release the scooter and transfer to the cloud.
Scootaloo leapt from her scooter, scrambling to get a hold of the wild cloud. If she was willing to give into wishful thinking, she could say she was flying now. Her wings were flapping aggressively as ever, trying to push her towards the salvation of white fluff beside her. If she failed, it was a long, scary, and inevitably painful way back down. But that would not happen today; she had landed both front hooves on the cloud, and swinging the other two on was a simple business. She was through the toughest part now; all she had left was to trust the cloud and her wings, then hope her scooter was still in one piece when she came back.
Step 6: Using wings as propulsion, fly the cloud to the target area.
Thankfully, the cloud was able to support her weight, and hopefully enough that she could fly it. She wrapped her legs around both sides, and set her wings back to fluttering. She could only imagine how she could explain it if she ran into some other pegasus. Only one idea came to mind.
"Beep beep," she muttered. "I'm a cloud."
She slowly leaned back, cautiously experimenting with her newest form of transportation. Sure, it was unorthdox, but when you're a flightless pegasus filly, what are you going to do? The nose of the cloud tilted back with her, sending her up. It appeared as though she could fly it by leaning in the direction she wanted to go. So, with wings beating faster than ever before, she banked right, towards Ponyville.
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Scootaloo's plan to fly without flying had worked thus far, and her target was one she had had in mind for years. But only now was the situation urgent enough for her to actually go through with it. She scanned the clouds ahead of her, looking for something distinguishable. Cirrus here, stratocumulous there, a big cumulonimbus approaching Ponyville. But among all the shades of gray, only the faintest hint of color stood out. It was a bright red and orange, side by side, poking out between two cumulus clouds. That had to be it.
As she approached, Scootaloo thought back to her one image of Cloudsdale. It actually came from a snowglobe, a gift from Rainbow Dash after the Best Young Fliers Competition. The home she saw was near identical. Exact same architecture, floating islands and balconies made of clouds, and liquid rainbow flowing through the exterior water-features. So this was Rainbow Dash's house. Scootaloo tried to gently bring the cloud down, leveling it with the building's foundation, then dismounting. Though she was flightless, she was still a pegasus, and the clouds supported her weight without any fault. She tentatively crossed the surface to what seemed to be a door, and pushed it open with similar caution.
"Hey, Rainbow Dash! Are you home? Dash? Gilda? Anypony?"
Inside the house, the first thing she noticed was the furniture; it was made entirely of clouds. Couches, counters, chairs, everything. They were hard-packed and precisely shaped, almost carved, nothing like the clouds outside. But aside from those, all she could see was a huge mess. Documents were scattered everywhere, alongside upturned pictures and old newspapers on the ground. Scootaloo flipped a few of them to the front pages, and read over the headlines:
Filly Does the Impossible!
The Sonic Rainboom is Real!
Rainbow Dash: Wonderbolt in the Making?
Each was accompanied by some inspiring portrait of Rainbow Dash, the Sonic Rainboom, or a similar topic. But nearby, Scootaloo found another pile of newspaper clippings, these ones from more recent editions:
Masked Hero a Hit in Ponyville
Mare-Do-Well Does It Again
Rainbow Who?
The picture from these that stood out was little more than the bottom a cyan hoof, held out to obscure the camera, and around which one could barely make out Rainbow Dash's face. They only confirmed what she knew all along: Dash was not in a good spot in life. Having the spotlight ripped out from under her like that must have hurt, and for a wild, impulsive personality like Rainbow Dash's, it was unpleasant to think of what the end result would be. But as these thoughts ran across her mind, a folded letter on the counter continually grabbed Scootaloo's attention. It was so neat, creased perfectly, almost like it had been intentionally placed there. And with the state of disarray the rest of the house was in, that had to mean something. Any inhibitions related to privacy or fears of what she would find inside yielded in the end to curiousity, and Scootaloo nervously unfolded the letter, then slowly began reading it.
As soon as she had finished, Scootaloo chomped down on the slip of paper and scrambled back out the door. She leapt back on her cloud, tucked the letter into the fluff, and raced off, heading towards downtown Ponyville.
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Twilight and the other four had finally broken out of depression, and sitting down together at Sugarcube Corner, tried to figure out a new course of action.
"It goes without saying that we'll need to make first contact with her. I doubt she's in any mood to take intiative. Do you agree, Twilight?"
"Please, Rarity, don't ask. I'm not really sure what to do now. This whole problem started because of my plan, my idea. Anything I come up with will probably only make things worse. I'm not even going to try."
"Twi, you're letting one failure get to ya. We all screw up once and a while, but we've gotta bounce back. If you can't stop doubting yourself, we'll never be able to figure out what to do. And I ain't sure all this time alone is good for Rainbow."
"You're right, Applejack. She's always been a volatile personality, and this recent turn of events has put her on a very sharp edge. Moving fast is definitely our safest option."
"Then it's decided. We'll move immediately. But should we all go, or send an emissary? Pinkie, Fluttershy, dearies, you've been awfully quiet today. What do you all think?"
"I just don't know! Part of me wants to rush to her and tell her how much we care about her and how sorry we are, but then the other part of me says that she'll just push me further away! I'm not sure how much time alone she needs! The first part of me says she's had enough, and she'll do something stupid if we give her any more, but if the first part of me's wrong, the second part says that Rainbow will just be even madder, and then..."
"Pinkie, slow down! We get your point, now calm down before you make your mane even straighter! Fluttershy, you're the closest one to her. You'll need to talk sometime."
"Twilight... sniff I'm just so worried! What if Rainbow hates us now? sniffsniff What if she never wants to see us again?"
"You've got to quit thinking like that, sugarcube! Of all of us, you're probably the one she likes best! You've got nothing to worry about, but we need you. I think Twi's right; you're closer to her than any of us. You should be the one to talk her down. When she's out of her home, we can get to her as a group."
"Not to mention that she's the only one who can get to Rainbow Dash's house."
"That too!"
Scootaloo headbutted through the front door, abruptly cutting off their conversation. She was carrying a slip of paper in her mouth, and ran toward their table, sobbing all the way in.
"Scootaloo! What's the matter?"
"Look at this, Twilight! I went by Rainbow Dash's house this morning, to see if she was alright, but nopony was home, and I found this! Look at it!"
She passed the paper over to Twilight, who opened up the folds and read it aloud.
To whoever cares about me enough to read,
As you've probably noticed, I'm not around Ponyville anymore. Since I know you'll probably care more about the weather than me, don't worry, I've signed the job over to my cousin, Firefly. She's just as good as me, and I'm sure she'll feel at home in Ponyville. I'm leaving this house and whatever's left in it to her. Consider this my resignation. Recently, I reunited with an old friend, Gilda. She brought to my attention the opportunity to enlist in the Gryffanian Foreign Legion. They are a special arm of the Gryffanian Armed Forces that accepts soldiers of all species. Her brother is a high-ranking officer within their ranks, and she said he could secure us both positions in the Legion. With this in mind, I am moving to Gryffania to enlist with Gilda. This transition offers me the chance of a fresh start, which is the one thing I need most right now. If anypony remembers me enough to miss me, to them, I'm sorry. Just understand that this is probably for the best.
To Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack,
Right now, I'm not sure whether to say goodbye or good riddance. Truth be told, I'm still kinda pissed off at you all. I doubt you will ever understand how I feel right now, but I can only hope. I know your first thought is going to be to follow me. Please don't. It's been hard enough for Gilda's brother to get me into Gryffania, and without an inside contact, you'll be turned back at the border at best. I don't want to mention the at-worst scenario. Somewhere in my house you'll find the Element of Loyalty necklace. Since they only work when united, it's kind of worthless to me now. If you want to reassign it to Spike or somepony, be my guest. Will I come back? I honestly have no idea. There may come a time when I feel ready to, but that will be a ways off in any case. I wish I could stay and work this out, but I just don't feel like I can trust you anymore. And if I can't trust my best friends, it's better off I just leave and find new ones. At least I've got Gilda. Never thought I'd see the day when I picked her over you all. Go figure.
To Fluttershy,
I know that, of anypony in Ponyville or otherwise, you'll take this the hardest. I've been looking out for you ever since I knew you; the time has come for that to end. I may never see you again, but if that's the case, this is my last request: stick up for yourself. Don't let anypony push you or your friends around. If you believe in something, don't be afraid to fight for it. This is going to be tough on everypony, so you'll need to be strong like that. But no matter what happens, I've always cared about you, and I always will. Goodbye, Fluttershy. I think I'll miss you the most.
To Scootaloo,
If this ever reaches you, I just wanted to let you know that I always thought of you as the little sister I never had. You supported me like nopony else, and believed in me even when I didn't believe in myself. So thanks, kid. If you asked me for some final advice, I would have to say this: don't give up. I wish I could say I practice what I preach, but you've got as fresh a slate as a pony could ask for. Your missing Cutie Mark is more of a blessing than you think. You could go anywhere in life, from the Wonderbolts to the Royal Palace, and anywhere in between. Whatever you want to do, you can go for it. Just don't give up on your dreams. I wish I could say you'll never have to deal with circumstances like I am now, though I beg in the name of Faust that you won't. But you'll know what to do. Trust your friends, and most importantly, trust yourself. You're going to have to be strong, but I know you'll figure out how to handle things. I always have. That's about all I've got. See you around sometime. You're gonna go far, kid.
Everypony at the table was left speechless. Of course, this didn't mean much for Fluttershy, who had already fainted on the table.
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Fluttershy having been woken up, the group of now 6 tried to make sense of this news.
"We were too late! I told y'all she would do somethin' stupid if we left her alone for too long. Now she's run off to join a foreign army!"
"And the Gryffanian army, of all groups! Should you look up 'ruffian' in a dictionary, you will always find a picture of a griffon. But I do suppose that's her type."
"Yes, the Gryffanian Foreign Legion would seem like a perfect fit for Rainbow Dash. They're a very shadowy group, a black-ops type organization that you always hear the rumors about. During the Griffon War, they were our greatest worry on the home front."
"Have you all forgotten who this is about? We shouldn't be bragging about the army Rainbow Dash just ran off to join, we should be worrying that Rainbow Dash just ran off to join an army! What will we do now?"
"Pinkie's right. How are we supposed to save our friendship with her if she's in a foreign country? Twilight, what do we do?"
"I'm not sure, Rarity. Scootaloo, do you think she meant it? Would Rainbow Dash really do this?"
"I think so, Twilight. Her house was a complete disaster area, and there was no sign of her or Gilda. She's never lied to me before, so I have to say I think she means it. But we have to go after her! There's got to be some way for me to see her again. Twilight, you're close to the Princesses, can't you get in with some kind of diplomatic connection?"
"That was my first idea too, Scootaloo. But relations with the griffons have been tense ever since the Treaty of Manetreal ended the Griffon War. Neither of us have ambassadors to the other country, and international travel is closely monitored and regulated. Gilda's brother must be somepony important to get Rainbow Dash into the Foreign Legion. Nevertheless, any kind of diplomatic envoy would be out of the question. I'm afraid she was right in her letter; there's no way to go after her."
"Hang on a sec', Twi. What if we go into Gryffania by ourselves?"
"Still pointless. Even if we were able to enter the country, it would be next to impossible to get anywhere near the Foreign Legion. Like I said, they're a special ops unit, and you have to have an inside contact to even be considered for membership."
"Not what I meant. What if we snuck over the border, all sneaky-like, and found her and brought her back here?"
"Even worse. First, with my relationship to the princess, I might be considered a representative of the Crown, which would spark an international incident. It would be percieved as an invasion, which would inevitably tail-spin into another war. And if we get far enough, we could be caught kidnapping Gryffanian military personnel and attempting to remove her from the country. We'd be executed without a second thought. Not to mention the fact that Rainbow herself would not be the least bit cooperative."
"Point taken, Twilight. But we certainly can't just sit around here and hope she stops by for tea."
"Right now, Rarity, I'm afraid that's all we can do. As we discussed, getting into Gryffania is not an option, and there's next to no way to get Rainbow Dash out. If Gilda's brother has enough influence to get her into the Gryffanian military, and she wants to be there, he certainly has enough of it to keep her there. For once, I'm afraid there's nothing we can do to get her back. The Element of Loyalty would be our only way to track her and stop her before she gets to the border, if she hasn't already, and she's left it behind."
"Celestia help us, did we really do so much to push her over the edge?"
"To her, Pinkie, I'm afraid we did. Rainbow Dash was always impulsive and unstable. It wouldn't take a perfect storm to make her do something like this, and a perfect storm is what she got. Think about it: she had recently managed to reconcile with Gilda, and gets her help to deal with her "problem". When they catch us, it seems like we are the source of said problem. Dash feels betrayed. Broken and lonely, she is offered an opportunity for a life of adventure and purpose in a faraway land by Gilda, who now seems like the perfect friend compared to us. Knowing the impulsive, emotional Rainbow Dash, could we honestly expect her to say no?"
Fluttershy, who had been sobbing most of the time, abruptly stopped, causing an eerie silence to fall upon the group. The others took notice of this, and looked over to her to see her slowly raising her head from the table, teeth gritted. Nopony had seen Fluttershy angry in quite a while, but this was no ordinary anger. One could tell it from her voice, which was no longer sweet and demure, but gritty and tense.
"I don't care."
"Wait, what did you just say, Fluttershy?"
"I said, Twilight, I don't care! I don't care what we would expect Rainbow Dash to do; she's long gone. We should be asking what we expect ourselves to do."
"True, dearie, but like we were saying..."
"I don't care about that, either, Rarity. I don't care about diplomacy, international incidents, or any stupid war that ended 30 years ago! I care that we've lost one of our own. I care that the six of us, supposed to be the perfect representatives of harmony and friendship, are now five. But if we just let Rainbow Dash go, we don't deserve to wear those necklaces. She's been too good of a friend to us for us to just let her go!"
"We all want Rainbow Dash back, sugarcube. But it just don't make sense to..."
"Shut the buck up, Applejack."
When Fluttershy used language like that, the others knew that this pile of pony-turd had just gotten real.
"Fluttershy, listen to yourself! You've got to..."
"No, Twilight, you listen to yourself! You're giving up on one of your best friends just because it seems too dangerous to try. On any other day, would Rainbow Dash have taken the risks to get one of us back if we were where she is now? You buckin' bet she would. I don't care what she's said or who she's joined, she's still our friend. We have to at least try. I don't know about you four, but that's what I plan to do. I'm no 'representative of the Crown'; if I'm caught, you can just call me crazy and let them have me. But I'll die before I let Rainbow Dash get away from me that easily."
"Please, Fluttershy, that's crazy, and I should know. Isn't there any way we can talk you out of this?"
"Never, Pinkie. In her letter, Rainbow told me to be strong and fight for what I believe in. Well, I believe in her, and I believe that we can still be friends. But that would involve making the effort to get to her. That's where 'being strong' comes in. I'm going after her, girls, and there's nothing you can do to stop me."
The other 5, stunned at this sudden outburst of courage and determination, were dumbstruck. Fluttershy's pep talk had given them each food for thought, and Applejack was the first to finish her meal.
"Well, heck, I couldn't call myself your friend if I let you do this all alone, 'Shy. If you want to chase after Rainbow Dash, I'll chase after her with you."
"Yeah, me too. I never got to throw Dash a decent goodbye party. That, and getting her back may be the only way to recurl my hair."
"Well, I suppose you can count me in as well. I won't sleep a night with that kind of regret in my mind. Besides, it's my best chance to scout out Gryffanian fashions."
"Fluttershy, you know I'd sooner lose my horn than lose Rainbow Dash. But like you said, you four are independent citizens; if you're caught, you can't be tied back to the Princesses. But I can, and if I go, I risk starting another war. Please, understand."
"I understand, Twilight. We could really use your magic expertise, but I would never want to have the bloodstains of a war on my hooves. Is there anything else you could do?"
"I've been thinking about that. I can go as far as the border, no further, but there's no reason I can't stay there on a nice camping trip. And the four of you will be a lot easier to detect as a group. So here's what we do: I can use my magic to give us telepathic abilities, so we can talk to each other through our thoughts. That way, you can each go in alone, and still keep in touch with each other. I can also translate Old Gryffanian, if you need it. And I can use my magic to help you from far away, though only with simple spells. But I can't be connected to this, or we know what happens."
"That's more than enough, Twilight. Thank you. Can you contact Princess Celestia, and see if she can get us some weapons or resources?"
"I might be able to get some bits from her, or gold or precious stones for trade. But it's best that she not know what we're doing. That way, if we're caught, she can disavow any knowledge of our actions, and hopefully avoid war."
"Fair enough."
Scootaloo had been inspired by this daring rescue plan, and was suddenly excited at the idea.
"I want to go too! Take me with you! I could get my Cutie Mark as a spy!"
"I'm afraid not, little one. You know Rainbow Dash would kill me on sight if she knew I had put you in harm's way. You need to stay in Ponyville."
"Come on, I'm her friend, too! You've got to let me in on something!"
"I think there's a way you can help us, Scootaloo."
"What is it, Twilight?"
"Well, you're very fast on your scooter, right?"
"Faster than anypony on hooves, that's for sure!"
"Well, since I'm going to be camping at the Gryffanian border, I'll need some way to communicate with Spike. I'm going to let him in on this, and have him keep up the loose ends in Ponyville while we're gone. More specifically, I need a messenger. Could you do that for us?"
"I'd do anything to get Rainbow Dash back. Count me in."
"That's good to hear. Fluttershy, this is kind of your plan. Are you okay with that?"
"As long as she stays in Equestria, I don't mind. But keep her safe, Twilight. Girls, it's getting late. We should all go home pretty soon. But start packing first thing tomorrow; we leave the day after."
"That soon, Fluttershy? Shouldn't we give ourselves a little more time for something like this?"
"Maybe we should, Rarity. But ask youself this: does Rainbow Dash deserve to wait?"
"No, no she doesn't. We can leave as soon as you'd like, Fluttershy. We'll follow you."
"Good. Take care of your personal business and get together anything you might need. But pack light; we need to be able to sneak across the border without any heavy baggage. We'll meet at my cottage the morning after tomorrow. We're going after Rainbow Dash, and nothing's going to get in our way."