//------------------------------// // Day 6: On the Edge // Story: Scoot Camp // by theNDinspector //------------------------------// Scootaloo opened her eyes. She was breathing rapidly, her heart raced and she couldn’t distinguish anything because her vision was extremely blurry. Scootaloo was on her back, so she tried to get up. Imediately, an overwhelming sensation of pain engulfed her—particularly in her head and forlegs. She fell back down. It was a soft landing. Scootaloo was in a bed, but it didn’t feel like her bunk back at the barracks. It wasn’t her bed at home either. Scootaloo’s vision started to clear, but she still didn’t recognize her surroundings. It was a room of some kind, but she couldn’t discern anything else. Scootaloo looked herself over and saw some banages on her fore hooves. There were also some suction cups on her that were connected to a machine making a constant beeping noise. What was most startling, however, was that she wasn’t wearing her flight suit anymore. This discovery—combined with the fact that she woke up in a strange bed in an unknown place and no recollection of how she got there—really unnerved her. Scootaloo was about to get up again when she heard somepony open the door. It was an olive-green pegasus with a messy black mane and wearing a long white coat. He looked over in her direction. “Good, you’re awake,” the strange pony said. “How are you feeling?” Scootaloo immediately started to panic. “WHO ARE YOU WHERE AM I AND WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH ME YOU PERVERT!?” “Whoa, take it easy!” The strange pony said raising his hooves. “You’re in the infirmary and I’m Doctor Hawkeye. I’m here to take care of you.” “But I don’t need to be taken care of,” Scootaloo said. “I was doing just fine a minute ago at the stadium.” “Scootaloo, you’ve been unconscious for the past hour,” Doctor Hawkeye said in a very serious tone. “What?” Scootaloo whispered. That didn’t make any sense. She was just about to perform for the air show and was feeling fine, if only a little sore. How could she have been unconscious for an hour when she hadn’t done anything yet? “You fell at high speed straight into the ground in the middle of your performance,” Doctor Hawkeye explained. “To be honest, it’s a miracle that you survived let alone not being severely injured—although the x-rays are still developing, so I’m not sure if you fractured anything or damaged your spine.” “But…I don’t remember any of that,” Scootaloo said slowly. “That doesn’t surprise me,” Doctor Hawkeye commented. “Memory loss is a common sign of a concussion; which reminds me, there are a few tests I need to do right now.” Hawkeye proceeded to do a lot of things that Scootaloo didn’t comprehend. First, he shined a light in her eye, which deeply irritated her. He also asked her a bunch of questions about how she felt as she got up. Scootaloo mentioned the pain in her head, but she didn’t feel all that nauseous, even if she was a little sluggish in movement. Finally, he held up a card and asked, “What do you see?” Scootaloo couldn’t make heads or tails with it. “A big, yellow…blob?” “It’s actually a gryphon, but that’s okay,” Doctor Hawkeye said. “You definitely have at least a mild concussion. We’ll know everything else about your bones once the x-rays come in. In the meantime though, take some of these, they’ll alleviate the pain and help you see and feel better.” He took out some pills from a bottle and helped her take them by drinking some water. Once she finished swallowing, the doctor gently laid her back down. “By the way, you have a visitor,” Doctor Hawkeye said. He opened the door and in came Blue Yonder. She immediately rushed over to Scootaloo’s bedside and fussed over her. “Oh Sweet Celestia, are you okay?” Blue Yonder asked. “You scared me half to death. I thought you had died, but you were still breathing so they took you here and I’ve been waiting ever since.” “Now cadet,” Hawkeye said in a warning tone. “Miss Scootaloo’s been through a lot and needs some rest. If you can’t behave yourself than I’m going to have you leave. Understood?” “Yes Doctor,” Blue Yonder replied. With that, the doctor left the room. Blue Yonder started telling Scootaloo everything that she saw happen at the stadium. However, Scootaloo wasn’t paying her any attention. A feeling of dread and fear came over her. ‘I failed.’ *** Spitfire’s desk was covered with files and reports. This was perhaps the most difficult part of the week with new cadets for her—evaluations. Unlike pairing the cadets at the beginning of the week, this process always took a long time to go over everything and went late into the night—sometimes into the next day. Things weren’t being made any easier by Rainbow Dash—who was supposed to be helping her evaluate the performances earlier that afternoon. “You can’t just fail Scootaloo for crashing into the mountain!” Rainbow Dash argued. “She’s always worked hard to overcome any obstacles in her way, and this isn’t any different!” “I’m well aware of that Rainbow Dash,” Spitfire said—her patience wearing thin. “But her performance has disintegrated every day since she’s been here. You have to accept that not everypony is Wonderbolt material. She barely got through the basic course in Flight School.” “What does that have to do with anything?” Rainbow Dash countered. “I dropped out of Flight School and I’m still here.” “Yes,” Spitfire said, rubbing the temples on her head. “And you have no idea what trouble I went through to get your performance at the Best Young Flyer Competition to count as an equivalency test—especially considering that I was knocked unconscious for that last part.” “Yes, but you were still there throughout my training,” Rainbow Dash stated. “But you weren’t there for most of Scootaloo’s or any of these cadets! It’s like you don’t care about her at all! Wouldn’t Soarin be better qualified to evaluate them?” “DON’T YOU DARE TELL ME HOW TO DO MY JOB LIEUTENANT!!!” Spitfire snapped, slamming her forehooves on the desk. “I DON’T CARE IF YOU ARE ONE OF THE BEARERS TO THE ELEMENTS OF HARMONY AND AN ADVISOR TO PRINCESS TWILIGHT SPARKLE! THIS IS MY ACADEMY AND I WILL RUN IT HOW I SEE FIT! THAT INCLUDES HOW I EVALUATE MY CADETS! AND I AM WORRIED ABOUT SCOOTALOO, BUT THERE’S NOTHING I CAN DO ABOUT IT RIGHT NOW!” Rainbow Dash jerked back at her superior’s outburst. Colonel Spitfire very rarely pulled rank on anypony, but when she did it was absolutely terrifying. The only other pony that Rainbow Dash had ever heard shout even louder was when Princess Luna used the “Royal Canterlot Voice” many years ago during Nightmare Night at Ponyville. But this was way scarier. Rainbow Dash could only watch in silence as Spitfire sat back down again. “I understand your concerns Rainbow Dash; believe me, I do,” Spitfire said, rubbing the space in between her eyes. “I would’ve rather supervised all the training in this camp personally than deal with this media crap, but I’m only one pony. I need to delegate my responsibilities and trust that my officers can handle the responsibility I give them and report every relevant thing that occurs. It’s not all that different from when I was the lead pony in the First Wonderbolt Squadron; just with more paperwork.” “I’m sorry for doubting you Ma’am,” Rainbow Dash said. “Don’t be,” Spitfire stated. “An important part of being a leader is to have her decisions questioned by her followers. This doesn’t mean to hide away our doubts, but to bring them forward to everypony, especially to the leader. That way, things can be discussed and changed if needed. It is the only way for me to know how to improve my leadership and let everypony know that they are respected. I only ask to be respected in return.” “I understand,” Rainbow Dash said humbly. Spitfire then leaned forward to her desk and grabbed Scootaloo’s file. She held it up for Rainbow Dash to see clearly. “Listen,” Spitfire said. “I know everything you’ve done for this kid over the years. I think that it’s very admirable of you to have dedicated as much time as you did in order to help her overcome her challenges and even make it this far. You never cease to amaze me. But you have to understand that she can’t always rely on you. She needs to rise or fall on her own merits.” Rainbow Dash simply nodded in understanding. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ll evaluate her last,” Spitfire said as she tossed the file to the far corner of her desk. “I can’t promise you anything, but at least I’ll have some time to think about it.” “Thank you Ma’am,” Rainbow Dash said. “Now, will you please get out of my office?” Spitfire requested. “Scootaloo needs your help right now more than I do. Celestia knows that she’s going to need somepony to support her; no matter how this turns out.” “Yes Ma’am, thank you Ma’am,” Rainbow Dash said, saluting Spitfire before leaving the office. *** Scootaloo opened the door to the barracks. Thankfully nopony was around. It took a while, but she finally managed to get out of the infirmary while Blue Yonder was in the bathroom. Scootaloo felt perfectly fine now; everypony was just overreacting. Scootaloo opened her dresser and grabbed her saddlebags. She began to pack everything. She didn’t know where she was going to go, but she knew that she couldn’t stay here. ‘It’s all over now.’ Suddenly the door opened behind her. Scootaloo winced in pain as she turned her head too quickly to look. She also tensed once she realized just who it was. “What in Celestia’s name do you think you’re doing!?” Blue Yonder demanded. “What does it look like I’m doing?” Scootaloo replied. “I’m packing.” “But why?” Blue Yonder asked. “Don’t you get it?” Scootaloo turned, now facing Blue Yonder. “They’ll never let me become a Wonderbolt after a crash like that! I let everypony down: you, my family, my friends…Rainbow Dash. I’m honestly surprised that Spitfire hasn’t kicked me out already.” “Probably because the doctor says that you are supposed to stay in the infirmary the whole night!” Blue Yonder stated. “The evaluations aren’t even until tomorrow anyways! You don’t even know if Spitfire is going to kick you out!” “What difference would it make?” Scootaloo asked. “I may as well give up on my dreams of being a Wonderbolt just like Rainbow Dash.” “But you’re not Rainbow Dash,” Blue Yonder said. “You’re Scootaloo! And even then, I don’t think that Rainbow Dash would want you to just quit! And neither do I!” Scootaloo sat by her saddlebags and remained silent. She was breaking down, but continued to hold everything in. Blue Yonder sighed, deciding to try a different approach. “Do you know why my parents decided to name me ‘Blue Yonder’?” She asked. “I don’t see what that has to do with anything,” Scootaloo replied before putting a hoof to her head to alleviate some pain. “Please just hear me out,” Blue Yonder begged. Scootaloo fell quiet and motioned for her teammate to continue. “Thank you,” Blue Yonder said before continuing. “They named me ‘Blue Yonder’ because when they looked out into the horizon, they always thought of the wonders and joys that lay beyond it and the journey it would take to get there. Having a foal was a very similar thing for them. They didn’t know what would happen, but they were willing to go forward and experience it all the same. “Ever since I was a little filly, I have always wanted to see for myself what wonders lay beyond the horizon. The first time I left Cloudsdale and discovered the wonders of other places, I got this,” Blue Yonder stated, motioning to her cutie mark (a sun behind a skyline of mountains and clouds). “The possibility of what I could find has always given me hope and the desire to continue, despite the difficulties. And when I look at you, I see a pony who has lived the dream I’ve had her entire life. You didn’t quit when you couldn’t fly as a filly.” “But I did quit!” Scootaloo interrupted. “Several times!” “But you came back!” Blue Yonder asserted. “You persevered! Despite all the discouragements you’ve had, you never truly gave up. Tell me, when you failed to fly all those times, did you ever think you would find yourself here?” “No,” Scootaloo sobbed. “Yet here you are,” Blue Yonder pointed out. “You’ve beaten the odds and are among some of the best flyers in the world! And now, you stand at a crossroads on the very edge of the horizon. Are you going to be the mare who quit; living your life under the assumption that you were never good enough? Or are you going to be the mare who stood her ground; not knowing what she would face, but with a firm hope that she still had a chance despite the mistakes and troubles she encountered?” “Are you going to force me to stay?” Scootaloo asked. “No,” Blue Yonder sighed, tears flowing from her eyes. “You may be my wingpony, but you are also my partner and my friend. Even if I could stop you, I wouldn’t. I respect you too much for that.” Blue Yonder walked back to the door. “If you want to leave, go on ahead. But then you’ll never know what truly is beyond the horizon. I’ll wait outside and make sure that nopony bothers you.” With that, she closed the door, leaving Scootaloo alone once again. *** Rainbow Dash was thankful to get out of Spitfire’s office. She always hated paperwork, even during her days as the Ponyville Weather Manager. Besides, she couldn’t focus on it even if she wanted to. The pony she cared about the most was in bad shape. She had to be there for Scootaloo. She reached the infirmary, but something was wrong. The recovery room was…empty. Suddenly, the doctor burst into the room. “Thank goodness you’re here,” Hawkeye exclaimed. “I can’t find Scootaloo or her partner anywhere!” “What?” Rainbow Dash said. “How did this happen? Where did they go?” “Well if I knew that, then we wouldn’t have this problem!” Hawkeye replied. “The good news is that nothing is broken or out of place in Scootaloo’s body, but those pain pills are going to wear off soon. When they do, she’s still going to be in a lot of pain from the ordeal.” “Oh great!” Rainbow Dash said, with her eye twitching. *** A few minutes passed, but it felt like an eternity. Scootaloo didn’t think it was possible for her to go on. She had made too many mistakes this past week—the crash certainly being the final nail in the coffin. She could not possibly go on. Yet she still sat there. She wanted to turn away, to forget everything. But she also didn’t want to quit either. Nopony would look at her the same again; Rainbow Dash, her parents, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, or even herself. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but Lavender was right,” Scootaloo muttered. Sighing, Scootaloo tried to stand up straight. Her legs felt weak and her knees ached as she struggled to rise. After a lot of effort, she finally managed to get up. Gently, she walked over to the door and opened it to find Blue Yonder standing a few feet away. “I’m staying,” Scootaloo declared. “I hoped you would,” Blue Yonder smiled as she gave her a hug, causing Scootaloo to squirm a little more than usual. “One thing though,” Scootaloo said once she let go. “That speech; did you get some of that out of a book?” “Two or three actually,” Blue Yonder admitted. “But I meant every word of it. Come on, we need to get you back to the infirmary.” “Oh, all right,” Scootaloo said. “But I’m telling you, I’m fi—OW!” Scootaloo fell to her knees—a stinging surge of pain coursing throughout her body from the impact. “WHAT IN TARTARUS IS GOING ON!?” Scootaloo yelled painfully. “Oh dear,” Blue Yonder said, trying not to panic. “The pain-killers must have worn off. Can you still walk?” “I think so,” Scootaloo winced as she tried to get up, only to fall down again. “OH, SWEET CELESITA! IT HUUUUURTS!!!!” Scootaloo curled up on the ground, crying due to the most excruciating pain she could ever remember having in her life. Blue Yonder panicked, not knowing what to do. She desperately looked around to get some help, but nopony was there. They were all in the mess hall for dinner. Suddenly, an idea came to her. “How about I carry you?” Blue Yonder suggested. Seeing that walking was impossible, Scootaloo nodded. She moaned as she felt herself being draped over Blue Yonder’s back and they started moving. Scootaloo noticed that Blue Yonder was walking pretty slowly—no doubt because she was carrying the combined weight of two pegasi and trying to cause as little pain as possible in the process. “Hmph,” Scootaloo mumbled as they got closer to the infirmary. “I guess this beats you having your head stuck in your flight suit as the most embarrassing moment this week.” Blue Yonder chuckled as she got her friend back into the infirmary where a very concerned doctor and Wonderbolt were waiting.