//------------------------------//
// Chapter 6- Clipped Wings 
// Story: Only the Broken, Only the Cursed (please read blog post) 
// by DougtheLoremaster 
//------------------------------//

Twilight sat there in awkward silence. Where should she begin? Should she introduce herself? This was all so new to her.

***

Twilight had been taught to act first, question later. If someone stood in her way, remove them. It didn’t matter why they were in her way; she was to take them out. The number of lives she had brought to an end in the past 8 years numbered in the thousands. She had tortured, dismembered, and executed without a thought about who they were or what their story was. Celestia had beaten many things into her, but not how to talk to other ponies.

***

Looking at the Pegasus beside her, Twilight noticed something peculiar; especially for a Pegasus: Her wings had been folded ever since their first encounter. The other Pegasus had hovered when she talked to Twilight; this one, however, never once unfolded her wings. You aren’t alone. 
Rainbow was the first to break the silence. Her raspy voice carried a sheepish inflection as she began the conversation.
“Hey-um, sorry about stabbing at you with that spear, earlier. I got a little overzealous with it.”
Twilight shrugged before attempting her own apology.
“No problem. Uh, sorry about shoving it up your- uh-”
Rainbow cut her off with a chuckle.
“No worries there. I get worse than that every game night with AJ and Rarity. Barely felt it.”
Holding out a hoof, Rainbow smiled.
“Tell ya what kid, let’s start fresh. Clean slate. My name is Rainbow Dash. What’s yours?”
“Twilight, Twilight Sparkle. Um-”
The Rainbow-maned Pegasus followed Twilight’s gaze to her wings. She gave a broken smile as she attempted to move them. Aside from a feeble wiggle, nothing happened.
“Aren’t they great?”
Charred and blackened; The wings were burned across the entire surface. The feathers were ripped and folded. It was clear in Twilight’s eyes that something horrible had happened to them. Rainbow’s voice, however, was one of pride.
“Trophies from the greatest flight maneuver I ever performed.”
Twilight stared at the burns. Why was Rainbow so happy? Though Twilight didn’t understand Pegasi all that well, she did know they treasured their gift of flight above anything else. Whatever she did during that flight must have been something to be proud of losing that gift.
Rainbow saw Twilight’s brow furrowed in thought. She grinned.
“You wanna hear how I got these scars, kid?”
Twilight nodded as Rainbow passed her a juice box; containing apple juice. Meanwhile, Rainbow pulled a bottle of Apple Whiskey from a satchel on her side. 
“Here, it’s a long story, so might as well have some refreshments. Cheers!”
Twilight blinked as Rainbow held out the bottle, and slowly reached out and tapped the juice box against it.
“Erm- Thank you.”
Taking a grateful sip from the bendy straw in the box, Twilight sat there and listened as Rainbow told her what happened 8 years ago.

***

In the skies over Ponyville, Captain Rainbow ‘Danger’ Dash flew; performing aerial acrobatics. Her squad lay asleep in their bunks as she performed her normal midnight drills. However, she wasn’t alone.
On her back sat a small Pegasus filly; holding on tightly and cheering loudly. The little filly held a special place in Rainbow’s heart; almost like a little sister of sorts. Born with an extremely rare disease, the little filly was the only known confirmed case of flightlessness. Her wings were permanently stunted, unable to grow, and unable to provide enough support to lift her. 
On the back of her idol, however, the little filly felt like the queen of the air. 
“Hey Scoots, make sure you hold on tightly, gonna practice rolls.”
Rainbow was known for her ability to fly. There was no creature faster than her, and no other who pushed the physical limits of Pegasi as much as her. Scootaloo grabbed hold of the nape of Rainbow Dash with her teeth; bracing herself. In a sudden rush, The world began spinning as Rainbow corkscrewed through the air at the speed of sound; causing a break in the color spectrum and a massive blast of air indicated the breaking of the sound barrier.
As soon as it began however, it was over. Scootaloo cheered with excitement, her idol was truly amazing. And as Rainbow flew through the air, laughing, it happened: the sky began raining fire.
The scream on her back told Rainbow something was wrong. Looking over her shoulder Rainbow saw the massive wall of fire descending from the sky above them. Without a second thought, the Captain of the Wonderbolts flipped over in midair, wrapping her wings around the filly in a protective shield of her feathers.
Doing so prevented her from remaining airborne, and so with Scootaloo pressed close against her barrel, Rainbow plummeted down from the sky. With her back facing the ground, Rainbow watched in horror as the fire rained down onto her and the surrounding area. If she released her protective grasp, she could easily outspeed the flames. Doing so would force her to sacrifice Scootaloo, though.
Gritting her teeth, Rainbow tightened her hold on Scootaloo, as the fire slammed into her wings. The pain was unimaginable, but she didn’t care. The only thought in her mind was to protect the child, no matter the cost. Swallowing her agonizing urge to scream, Rainbow whispered to Scootaloo.
“It’s alright, I got you. You’re safe.”
That’s when she slammed into the ground, the impact knocking the wind out of her, still she held on with all she had. 
“I promise I got you, Scootaloo.”
Coughing up a spray of blood, Rainbow held on until the fire stopped falling. Slowly she unfolded her now useless wings; with them flopping onto the ground. She ignored her pain and smiled lovingly at the untouched form of Scootaloo, still clinging tightly to her.
“See? Told you I would protect you, Scootal-ugh.”
The pain overcame her and seeing she had succeeded in protecting her friend; she blacked out with a smile.

***

“...I awoke hours later in a hospital cot; being told by Rarity that though she healed most of my burns, I would never fly again.”
Twilight stared at her in disbelief.
“You sacrificed your ability to fly to save a single life?”
Rainbow popped the top on her bottle of cider and took a swig. She seemed thoughtful for a moment before she responded; her raspy voice the result of permanent damage to her throat.
“Listen Twilight. Sometimes the greatest use of one’s ability is to protect another. And honestly, being flightless sucks, but the reward was well worth the sacrifice.”
At that moment a tiny filly ran into the room, shouting.
“I found her, mommy!”
The filly was a light orange pegasus, with a light magenta mane and tail. Her flank was bare and she leaped excitedly into Rainbow’s hooves.
“Hi, Auntie Rainbow!”
Twilight watched in astonishment as Rainbow gently nuzzled the little filly; a huge smile on her face. A sound in the doorway, caused Twilight to turn her attention to a Pegasus mare with a shield that contained a wing for a cutiemark. The wings of the mare were stunted in growth and her fur was bright orange. She lovingly observed the scene; a smile on her face. The filly from the story; Scootaloo.
“Come now, sweetie; Auntie Rainbow is busy at the moment.”
“Aw, okay mommy.”
After they left, Twilight stared at Rainbow in surprise, trying to process what just happened. Rainbow laughed and looked at her.
“You see Twilight, some pains are worth enduring. Loyalty can have it’s upside.”
So you gave up your greatest gift, so another could thrive. Sacrificing part of yourself to protect another.  Twilight had never thought of how her actions could affect others, she had been taught to put herself above all others. Perhaps being willing to sacrifice one’s self for another could be a beneficial trait after all.
At that moment Rarity passed by the doorway before backtracking and sticking her head in. Her voice was one of annoyance as she lectured Rainbow Dash.
“Rainbow, there you are! Do you realize you are 20 seconds late to begin your guard duty? Get your flank out there and walk the perimeter. Sheesh, Dah-ling. You’re lucky it was me and not AJ that found you. Now get a move on!”
Rainbow, however, took the chastisement in stride; rising to her hooves and giving a wink to Twilight before starting for the door. Calling over her shoulder, Rainbow told Rarity.
“I’m going, I’m going. Don’t get your lovely mane in a tangle.”
Rarity smacked her flank in indignation.
“Well, I never! I swear I’ll tell AJ to give you double duty, don’t think I won’t!”
Rainbow just laughed as she continued on her way; unfazed.
Twilight watched the scene in confusion, as Rarity gave a small smile and muttered.
“Wretched Pegasus.”
Rarity’s smile faded as she turned to stare at Twilight; her eyes hardened into a fierce glare. Twilight shivered as Rarity huffed and turned away. Calling out, over her shoulder, Rarity sounded angry.
“Listen, when your dragon wakes up, meet me in my office.”
“Uh-”
Before Twilight could say anything more, Rarity stomped off. Twilight sat there thinking about what just happened. Why is she so mad at me? And why do I even care?
She was so lost in thought, she failed to notice a yellow Pegasus standing in front of her; talking to her in a soft voice.
“H-hello, um, w-would you mind helping me with something?”