//------------------------------// // Part 3: Dammed and Determined // Story: En Fuego // by Mayclore //------------------------------// Fluttershy sat on the library's front stoop, looking around with a slightly vacant smile. She decided to invite Twilight to go along with her and Rarity to the spa, but was beginning to wonder just where the purple unicorn was. Behind her, various unhappy noises came from the open door as Spike was replacing all the books he'd taken down from the shelves. “I hope she's alright,” the pegasus murmured, her smile running away. “I thought she'd be back by now.” A unicorn was coming, but it wasn't Twilight. Rarity pranced down the street with a self-satisfied grin on her face, but that expression shifted into something more gentle when she made eye contact with Fluttershy. “Darling!” she waved, cantering over and nodding. She looked through the doorway at the mess inside and blinked. “Reshelving day, I take it? Where is Twilight?” “She isn't back yet.” Fluttershy looked away and up the street, tilting her head in confusion. “I'm not really sure where she is, actually...” Rarity blinked and, after ensuring there was nothing on the ground to dirty her shimmering tail, sat down next to her friend. “Back from what?” The yellow pegasus blushed with the thought. “Um, it's a long story.” The unicorn gave her a reassuring pat on the back. “Do tell! We've got time before the appointment. Besides, you look rather concerned about something.” “Twilight wanted to live in Filthy Rich's pond. I had to convince her to come out,” the yellow pegasus said, squeaking with surprise at the look of utter confusion in Rarity's eyes. “Oh. Wait. I should start at the beginning.” “Yes, please,” she stared, idly primping a shimmering purple curl. “How did she end up there, exactly?” Fluttershy looked down at the ground and sighed quietly, closing her eyes. “Yesterday, I talked to her about being so stressed out, and overreacting all the time. Um...I used examples that I probably shouldn't have.” “Such as?” Rarity urged her, leaning forward to look over at the pegasus' worried face. She cut her worried eyes up at the unicorn. “The two times she caught on fire.” If Rarity had looked confused before, now she just looked stunned. She raised up and stared off into the distance, as if trying to find understanding in her surroundings. “B-beg pardon?” she stammered, rubbing her head. “You remember Pinkie's first party, right? When she drank that hot sauce by accident?” The pegasus watched Rarity as she thought, then nodded after a moment. “That was the first time. The second was the day she followed Pinkie Pie around.” “I must admit, that instance at the party was rather odd,” she said, trying to regain her dignified demeanor. “I'm still not sure what that has to do with her trying to live in a pond.” The pegasus fluttered her wings briefly and sighed again. “She had a nightmare about burning down the library. I guess she thought she might be a fire hazard.” “Well, this is certainly...something.” Rarity shook her head and tried to wrap her mind around the situation. “I'm glad you set her straight.” Fluttershy nodded with a tiny smile. “I was hoping to invite her along to the spa with us, but she hasn't come back from the pond yet.” “She'd better hurry,” the unicorn replied, looking up through the branches as the weather team hauled clouds through the sky. “It's going to rain soon, and I surely do not want the precipitation ruining my pony-pedi.” “I'm sure she'll be back soon.” They both winced as a loud crash from inside rattled their ears. “Spike? Are you okay?” Fluttershy asked, standing and turning around to look in through the doorway. “I'm good!” he called back, although that assertion was suffixed with an unhappy groan. “Poor Spike,” Rarity giggled, covering her mouth with a foreleg. “I've nowhere else to be, so I'll wait with you.” Fluttershy smiled and gave the unicorn a weak hug. “Thanks.” And so they did, engaged in quiet conversation as they waited for Twilight to return. Five minutes passed, then ten, then twenty, and as the sky grew cloudier both ponies became worried. “She really should have been back by now,” Rarity stated, standing up and walking a short distance away. “What could possibly be keeping her?” The pegasus came up to stand with her, glancing about anxiously. “I don't know. Maybe we should go look?” “Let's,” Rarity nodded. “Something is not right.” Before they could get going, however, Rainbow Dash dove from above and came to a stop, hovering a few feet above the ground. “Hey guys, you better get inside. Storm's gonna start in about half an hour.” “Storm? I thought this was just a drizzle,” Rarity said, looking faintly cross. “It said so on the calendar.” “Yeah, well, Applejack wants the wind to help knock down some apples, or something,” Rainbow shrugged, rolling her eyes. “We all just decided on the fly – heh, on the fly,” she paused, unable to help snicker at her pun, “to round up a storm and do all the rain for the week today.” “Oh my. Um, Rainbow Dash, have you seen Twilight anywhere?” Fluttershy asked meekly, shuffling a foreleg. “I'm worried about her.” “Huh...oh, I saw her heading up toward the dam. I tried to warn her about the storm, but she just brushed me off.” Rainbow tapped her chin as she ran over the encounter. “Come to think of it, she looked kinda frazzled. Is she okay?” “Th-the dam?” Fluttershy stared off past the cyan pegasus and took a deep breath. “I'm sure she's fine,” Rarity interjected, waving a hoof dismissively. “Perhaps she went for a walk to clear her head a bit more.” “It better get clear fast,” Rainbow warned. “It's gonna rain like heck. Anyway, I'm out. Got a few more clouds to arrange. Later!” They watched her streak off through the sky, leaving a multicolored trail in her wake. When she had gone out of sight, the ponies looked at each other and blinked. “Why would she be going to the dam?” Rarity started, her eyes gleaming with confusion. Fluttershy's eyes were gleaming too, but with sheer terror. “We need to g-go find her, r-right now,” the pegasus said, taking to the air. “Hmm? Is something wrong?” the unicorn asked. Fluttershy flew away from her without a further word. “Wait! Darling!” She took off at full gallop to catch up with the terrified pegasus. “Where are you going?” “To stop Twilight from flooding the town!” she replied, breathlessly. “Please, Twilight wouldn't do such a thing.” Rarity stared ahead blankly as she nodded, but the thought of what the purple unicorn had done the last time she wanted to fix a problem – the friendship report incident – made a bitter chill run down her spine. “Oh my word,” she shuddered, her eyes growing wide, “she absolutely would.” “Which is why we need to hurry!” Fluttershy affirmed, her wings flapping furiously as they traveled up the road. Twilight Sparkle was already at her destination, pacing around on the top of the structure and peering into the reservoir. She ignored the idle rumbling of the clouds overhead as she walked, her frizzy tail swishing angrily. “I knew I should have bought that copy of Dams And You: How To Hold Your Water (And Lots Of It),” she hissed. “How am I supposed to flood the town and save everyone if I don't know how to open the spillways?” A few ponies were standing off some distance in front of her, gathered in a little clump. None of them were wearing the garish orange safety vests of the employees, so the unicorn was confused about what they were doing. As she approached, a cream earth pony mare with glasses waved her over. “Hurry, miss! The last tour for the day is about to start!” she called. A grin spread across Twilight's face. “Perfect.” She fell in with the group as they moved along the curving path toward the other end, where they filed through a door into a narrow stairwell that spiraled down. At the bottom, they emerged into a space that surprised Twilight with its décor. It was a brightly painted room with shining terracotta tile on the floors. The walls were studded with pictures and plaques. “Huh? I didn't know this was in here.” “These pictures depict the construction of the dam,” the guide began, walking to the left and pointing a hoof up at one large image. “The dam itself is of the arch-gravity type, which means the water squeezing on the arch compresses the material and increases its strength. The gravity part of the term refers to the sheer weight of the dam's concrete acting as the resistance that holds the water back.” Twilight blinked at the explanation, then stared up at the picture. “Fascinating,” she breathed. The rest of the crowd murmured in agreement as they began to move on. “It took almost four million tons of concrete to build the dam,” the guide continued, moving to a picture of the structure halfway built. “We used so much of the stuff, the limestone quarry in Baltimare ran out!” A light snicker was stuck to the end of her statement, and Twilight couldn't help but giggle too. The unicorn was fidgeting impatiently, but was bound by her standards to never interrupt anyone that was explaining something. “Here's the dam when it was nearly complete,” the guide said, moving to the right and looking up at another picture. “When this image was taken, the turbines had just been installed and the spillways were completely drilled. Notice how low the water level is behind the dam. Once the gap was sealed, the lake took about seven weeks to fill up to the level you see now.” “Huh.” Twilight was digesting the information, but caught herself, shook her head and grumbled as the tour began to move again toward another stairway. “Focus, Twilight. You need to pay attention so you can accomplish your mission.” The group went down these new stairs, which spiraled on for what seemed like a mile. At the bottom they found themselves on a catwalk, which emerged into a large space with a rather loud, incessant hum. In here were four large turbines, using the water's flow to make electricity. The tour guide had to raise her voice to be heard over their operation. “This is the turbine room,” she said, nodding to the massive objects. “Oooooo,” Twilight said, looking over the railing. “Each one of these is capable of outputting twenty million watts, although Ponyville doesn't use nearly that amount of power right now. In fact, most of the dam's generating capacity is sent to the hospital, or to run the dam itself.” “I wonder how heavy these things are,” a little green pegasus near the front said. “You would be surprised,” the tour guide smiled. “These are called Pelton wheels, and they are extremely efficient. The wheel part only weighs a little more than a ton, but is made out of very strong metal. The wheel itself is hidden in the enclosure, but you can see the shaft that it turns to make the electricity.” Twilight peered down again to see what the tour guide was talking about, then blinked at the sheer speed at which the silver tubes were spinning. “Wow. That's crazy.” The tour wandered on through the turbine room and toward a door at the end of the catwalk. Behind this they found themselves in a long hallway with white floors and cinder block walls that traveled ahead, straight, for a long distance. Twilight peered up at the long light tubes and blinked. “Where are we going now?” she asked. “This is the hallway that leads to the dam's operations center,” the tour guide replied, leading the group along at a leisurely pace. “Finally,” the unicorn grinned to herself. “I can put an end to this madness and make sure the whole town is safe from my--” She blinked and fell silent when one of the ponies in the back gave her an odd look. “Um...don't mind me!” she waved, putting on her best smile. When they reached the end of the corridor, they were standing in front of a wall with large panes of glass. Behind those panes were a series of consoles and the ponies tending to them. “This is the nerve center of the whole dam,” the guide said, looking through one of the windows. “Everything in the facility is controlled from here, from how much power the turbines generate to the release of excess water through the spillway system.” “Good. Now I can get this over with.” Twilight decided to make her move, but the tour guide was still talking. “Wait. I better make sure I don't miss anything.” She listened as the guide went on an exhaustive explanation of the control room, pointing out which panels did what, how those systems worked, and even when they were used. The unicorn found out that the spillways were meant to keep the dam from overtopping, but there was a manual override that could, in theory, empty the whole reservoir if the spillways were allowed to remain open. “How much water is in the reservoir?” Twilight asked, needing to make calculations. “A little over one trillion gallons!” she replied happily. “It's the largest artificial body of water in all of Equestria!” “Excellent,” Twilight muttered, her right eye twitching faintly. She looked around; the hallways here formed a 'T' shaped, and off to the left she saw a red door with a sign that said 'Control Room – Employees Only'. A wacky smiled twisted her lips, but before she could sneak off, she realized the guide was still talking. Politely, she returned her attention to the mare. “It's hard to imagine a trillion of anything, isn't it?” she said with a smile. “Let me put it this way. A trillion gallons is enough to flood the valley that contains Ponyville to a depth of twenty feet! Imagine what that would look like.” “It's beautiful,” the purple unicorn murmured. “And safe for everypony.” The guide was still going. “Why, that would be enough water to submerge even Sweet Apple Acres all the way over the treetops!” “Huh. Um...” Suddenly, Twilight felt a pang of uncertainty. A mental picture of Applejack rowing a boat through her precious orchard appeared, and it made the unicorn tremble for a moment. “She'd get over it. This is serious.” The tour guide was still going, and her tone was starkly chipper. “The town itself would be totally uninhabitable for several months! Hundred of ponies would be displaced. Thousands of animals, too. All the trees would probably be uprooted and swept away by the wall of water!” Twilight blinked a few times. “Wall of...?” A new picture sprung up, and this one depicted Fluttershy's cottage being carried off in a roiling sea, a horde of animals clinging to its branches as the pegasus shrieked bloody murder. “Oh, wow.” “All the smaller buildings would be destroyed outright! Only the taller structures would have any hope of remaining where they were, but those would have their lower levels completely flooded.” The guide's happy tone was utterly incongruous with the grim picture she painted. “Taller?” Rarity's boutique was the image her mind locked onto, and it was covered by flowing water halfway up. The white unicorn was at the top of her tower, screaming for help. The guide was pacing around now. “Oh, and don't even mention downtown. Anypony that didn't evacuate would have almost no chance of surviving.” “P-Pinkie?” She imagined the pink pony submerged in her loft above Sugarcube Corner, treading water just above her bed. Her cheeks were puffed as she held her breath, and the look in her eyes made the unicorn's heart sink into her hooves. “It would be the biggest disaster in living memory, to be sure,” the guide finally concluded, “Anyway, time to move on! Follow me, please.” The group headed away from Twilight, who was left staring at the red door with tears in her eyes. She took a sharp breath and tried to dry her face, but the water wouldn't stop coming. “I h-h-have to do what's n-n-necessary,” she said, her voice trembling. Her legs were equally unsure, and it took her a few seconds to start walking. It was beginning to rain by the time Rarity and Fluttershy reached the top of the dam. When they found no sign of Twilight, the pegasus began to succumb to blind panic. “It's too late!” she wheezed, fluttering in an anxious circle. Rarity was equally nervous, although her terror went in a somewhat different direction. “M-my dresses are dry clean only,” she muttered, eyes bulging. She suddenly stomped her hoof on the concrete, scaring Fluttershy. “Where is she?! We have got to find her!” “I d-d-don't know!” She tried to wail, but her voice wouldn't go above a raspy whisper. “Wh-what are we going to do?” They saw ponies emerging from the far end of the dam and galloped over to them. Twilight was not among their number, and the two began to shake with horror when they looked down into the stairwell and saw nothing there, either. “Oh my goodness,” Rarity breathed. “It's really the end.” Fluttershy simply fell where she stood and began to cry. Rarity laid down beside her and tried to put a positive spin on it. “At least we're safe up here, right? Even if the entire town is leveled...” she choked up and began sobbing as well. “We have to go in! We'll knock her out and tie her up!” The pegasus was in no shape to stand, much less do violence to the purple unicorn, so Rarity took up the task and barreled toward the entrance herself. Just as she arrived, Twilight emerged, looking around at the weather and eating a sandwich. “Oh, hi Rarity. Did you know this dam has a little diner for the employees?” she asked, smiling. That became a frown when she saw the look on the white unicorn's face. “Are you okay?” “Think of the dresses!” Rarity bawled, clinging to Twilight with one foreleg while she laid the other dramatically across her purple curls. “They'll be ruined! All my work will be ruined! Spare my gifts to fashion! Please!” “Um,” Twilight looked over at Fluttershy, weeping in the rain, and sighed. “She told you, I guess?” “Yes, and you simply cannot do—oh no. You already have, haven't you?!” She get to her hooves and backed away, staring a hateful hole into Twilight. “And you're just going to have a nice snack while you watch the town die! I cannot believe you!” They both glanced over at the pegasus as she emitted a horrified squeak. “Rarity, I didn't...” Twilight began, but fell silent when the white unicorn turned her back. In fact, she was simply charging up for a lecture, and after a few deep breaths whirled to face her friend. “I understand that you want to protect us, but this is not the way to do it! Think of the animals!” Fluttershy wailed fully at last. “My babies!” she cried, hiding her face and shaking with the sobs. “Think of the apples!” Rarity continued, prancing around furiously. “The...” she trailed off and stopped in her tracks, her face going blank as she tried to fit Rainbow Dash into her rant. “Cloud...things! The cupcakes! My dresses!” She stalked over to Twilight and planted her snout right in the stunned unicorn's face. “How could you?” Twilight rolled her eyes and took a bite out of her sandwich before walking right past the emotional Rarity. “I didn't.” “That does not answer my—what?” Both Fluttershy and Rarity became silent and still, watching as Twilight walked away. After a moment of collecting themselves, they took off after her. “Darling, you didn't?” “Of course not,” she sighed. “Fluttershy, you were right. I do overreact. I was seriously considering flooding the whole valley, but then...” “Guilt! Guilt stopped you,” Rarity interjected, blinking when Twilight shook her head. “What, then?” Twilight's shoulders dropped as they walked. “A very, very thorough tour guide. I'm sorry, girls. I don't know what came over me. I just didn't want to hurt anypony.” “Why didn't you come to us if you were so afraid?” Rarity asked, trotting ahead and stopping in Twilight's path. “You know we're always glad to help.” She sighed again and finished off her sandwich, swallowing before she spoke. “I didn't know what I needed help with. I mean, how many ponies just randomly catch on fire?” “Pinkie explodes all the time and doesn't cause any damage,” Fluttershy pointed out, shrinking away when Twilight snapped her eyes up. “I mean...sorry?” “Why didn't I think of that? She blows herself up and all you get is pretty fireworks.” No longer slumped and melancholy, Twilight stood up again and shook the dripping water from her mane. “I probably can't hurt anyone in the first place!” “Now that is simply a much better outlook, darling.” Rarity was smiling, at least until the point she tried to primp her hair. “My mane is ruined. Oh well. It was worth it to save Ponyville.” She then looked to the side and muttered unhappily. “The things I do for my country...” “I just want to go home and sleep this off,” Twilight admitted, moving on again. “I'm really sorry for all the trouble I've caused.” “Actually, we were going to the spa,” Fluttershy pointed out, taking wing and floating along. “Would you like to come?” Twilight considered it for a moment, then nodded with a smile. “I could use the relaxation, I think. We'd better get going before Rarity faints, though.” “Hmph!” Rarity tried to maintain the mockingly insulted look on her face, but broke down in a giggle. That laugh, however, stopped abruptly. “No, I'm being completely serious. This rain is ruining my hair. Let's go.” About two hours later, Fluttershy was in the library again, watching Spike as he finished up replacing all the books he'd un-shelved at Twilight's request. The purple unicorn herself had already retired, even though the sun was shining. As she watched Rainbow Dash clearing the clouds through the window, a noise from behind got her attention. “I think she'll be all right for now.” It was Rarity, who walked up and also looked through the glass. “The storm is over? Good. Well, this day was certainly...something,” she said, waving her forehoof around and smirking. “I'm heading home. See you later, darling.” “Goodbye,” Fluttershy nodded, watching her depart. After she had gone, an idea occurred to her and she walked over to Spike. “Um, would you mind taking a letter for the Princess?” “Of course not, just hold on a second.” He shoved a final book into the floor-level case under the window and dusted off his hands, sighing with relief. “I'm glad that's down for the second time in two days.” He turned to the yellow pegasus and reached behind his back, producing quill and parchment and sitting down on the floor. “All right, hit me.” “Hit you? Why would I...” She stopped herself and made a face. “Oh, I understand.” After daintily clearing her throat, she began. “Dear Princess Celestia,” she said, but once more became silent at the look on Spike's face. “What?” “I kinda already wrote that down. Speeds up the process a little,” he replied, wiggling his quill. “Oh, okay.” Before she could continue, however, she had to collect her thoughts. That's when it fully hit her; she was nearly responsible, at least in an indirect way, for Ponyville being flooded and destroyed. The realization made her wobbly, and she also sat down on the floor and held a foreleg to her head. “Oh my...” “You all right?” Spike asked, tapping the parchment with a claw. “Yes, I'm just...never mind. Ahem. Dear Prince—oh, you have that already.” Fluttershy began to fidget nervously and glance around. “Relax. Just say what's in your heart,” Spike offered with a smile. “Right. Dear Princ—I'm so sorry, I keep forgetting you've already written that. Um...” She paused for the longest time, staring into space as she tried to consolidating her thoughts into something parchment-sized. When the phrase finally came to her, she nodded with approval. “Oh, I've got it now.” Spike shook his head and grinned. “Great! What is it?” She looked at him, ears dropped and blushing with embarrassment. “Today I learned to mind my own business.”