//------------------------------//
// Chapter 4 
// Story: To Be a Wonderbolt 
// by Avabrony 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 4
                   The screaming was getting louder. Somepony was crying next to Rainbow. She turned, and saw herself, covered in filth, sobbing into the dirt. She wanted to scream, but she couldn’t move. A horrible grinding sound met her ears, and she inwardly cringed, the noise chilling her to her bone. Somewhere, she heard Twilight shout, and she saw a burst of light as magic zipped through the air, and there was a shriek like she had never heard before-
                   She snapped awake, covered in a cold sweat, the nightmare fresh in her mind. She looked out the window of the train, which was clouded by the early morning dew. Closing her eyes, she pushed the dream to the back of her mind, not wanting her first day as a Wonderbolt to be clouded by some nightmare, but the scene kept replaying in her head. ‘Why was I crying? Who was screaming?’ She shuddered again, this time due to the crisp morning air snaking its tendrils into the open window and caressing her with the chill of nighttime mountain air. She looked to see where the air was coming from, and found the door to her compartment cracked open. She walked sleepily over, and found a box, addressed to her, waiting outside the door. She shivered again, retrieved the box and irritably shut the door, making sure that it wouldn’t let anymore of the heat escape. The box was unmarked aside from her name, and, curious of the blank container’s contents, she opened it without any further delay. Inside of it were a slightly squished cake, and a piece of paper, which was partially covered in icing. After wiping the icing off, she saw that it was a letter addressed to her. Opening it, she found a hastily written message:
                   “SURPRISE!!!!!!!!!!
 I was really really really really excited for you and I couldn’t surprise you when you got back, so I went and found the train that would take you back to Canterlot and gave this to the conductor and told him to give it to the rainbow pony. I just wanted to let you know that we all are soooooooo happy back home in Ponyville, and you mean soooo much to us, so I made this cake super-duper extra-special for the superset duperest extra-specialest pony that I know! Have tons of fun, and eat lots of cake for me!
-Pinkie Pie”
                   After reading the note, she softly chuckled and whispered to herself, “Thanks, Pinkie.” She looked out the window, and jumped when she realized she was at her stop. She quickly grabbed all of her bags, looked at the smashed cake, decided that she wouldn’t be missing anything, and she rushed out of the train, eager to get to the track and find Spitfire.
“Hey there, Rainbow Dash!” Spitfire was waiting for the newest member of the Wonderbolts outside of the stadium. “Here-this is your uniform, after we fly scrimmage races I’ll show you to your hotel. Welcome to the team.”
Rainbow Dash was at a loss of words. She took the uniform silently; she couldn’t think of a way to vocalize her feelings. After a moment of utter speechlessness, she forced out a simple, “Wow. Thanks.” Spitfire smiled and led her into the stadium, where the rest of the team was waiting.
“Ok everypony, for those of you who don’t know: this is our newest member, Rainbow Dash. Feel free to greet her after we finish the scrimmage.” The rest of the Wonderbolts muttered among themselves for a moment, casting disbelieving looks at Rainbow Dash. She nervously smiled at them, and, much to her chagrin, Spitfire said, “Hey Rainbow Dash-how about you race me for the first one?”
Dash’s tongue felt swollen, and she knew that all eyes were on her. She took in a deep breath, and, unable to talk, she stared spitfire down and slowly nodded. The rest of the Wonderbolts laughed, and Dash blushed at the extra attention. ‘You can do this, Dash. Show them that you are number one.’  
They lined up at the starting line, and after wishing each other good luck, they were off. To Rainbow Dash, the nerves, the embarrassment, the fear, were all gone the second the race started. It was just her and the track; the only sounds reaching her were the blood rushing through her ears, the wind pulling at her mane, the sound of her own breath. She squinted, the air tearing at her eyes, and the landscape of the track seemed to blend into itself. However, as soon as it started, it seemed, the checkered flag was waving, and Rainbow Dash came to a stop, careful to not crash again. She looked around her at the other ponies, attempting to decipher their faces. It was when Spitfire came to a stop beside her, gasping for breath, that she realized that all the rest were all astonished. She looked at the captain of the team, and asked, “How was that?”
The Wonderbolts started to laugh again, and Spitfire, after she had recovered enough to talk, replied, “How was that?! I have never had anypony almost get a lap up on me in my life! Talk about speed, Dash, you’re the fastest there is!”
Rainbow Dash blushed at the compliment, and, not wanting to sound too soft, retorted with, “Tell me something I don’t know.” Everypony was on the ground in hysterics, and presently, she found herself laughing with them too.
Spitfire looked at the rest of the team, and said, “Now that’s the sort of spunk that we’ve been looking for. Ok-who’s up for a game of race the winner?” Seeing the confused look that Rainbow Dash gave her she laughed again. Race the winner-It’s where you race, and the winner sees how long they can keep winning.” With a triumphant look in her eye, Rainbow set up at the starting line again, and, on the mark, and sprung forward into a week of training more grueling than anything Rainbow Dash had ever had to do before.
Each individual day felt like one big, continuous race, and each morning it was harder and harder for Dash to get out of her bed. The schedule sucked everything out of her, and by the end of the week, she was ready to never fly again. After a particularly bad drill where she completely failed to get off the ground, she was ready to call it quits.
 “Trust me; it’s going to get easier.” Rainbow Dash had stayed late one day to voice her concern to her leader. “If you need a break, there are some races next week, which means no practice. I was going to offer you a chance to get used to the whole competitive racing scene, but I could give you a week off, especially since our next break would be in a few months. Go ahead and think it over tonight, and try and get back to me as soon as you can.”
They then proceeded to their own respective hotels, and when Rainbow Dash got into her room, she took the opportunity to write to Twilight about her first week, knowing that her friends would be dying to hear how she was doing. She took out the quill and ink, but then she remembered Spitfire’s offer of a break. She began to pace the room, unsure of just what to do. “I really should go back to my friends, but Spitfire wants me to race, Spitfire, of all ponies! And I can always write-that’s what I’ll do. All I have to do is write back every chance I get and everything will be alright, right? Nooooooooo, I have to go back to my friends-they care about me too much for me to leave them! Race, or friends; living the dream, talking to them again soon…ugh!” She went on, muttering to herself, each passing second only adding on to the agonizing decision. After an hour had passed, she finally decided to race, knowing that she may not get another chance for a while to show her stuff off to an actual crowd. She hastily wrote a letter to Twilight and sent it off, and then went to bed; the worry if she had made the right choice keeping her awake. Eventually, the fatigue of the week caught up to her, and she drifted off to sleep.

Chapter 6
A blood-curdling shriek rang out through the night. The town of Ponyville was being attacked, and chaos ran rampant in the streets. A bulky form rose above the skyline, tearing at the homes and shops of the quiet little Equestrian town. The shriek came again, following yet another burst of magic. Rainbow Dash still cowered on the hill overlooking the scene, unable to save her town. She screamed at herself, trying to get her to move, but for some reason she just wouldn’t. A fire erupted somewhere, illuminating the scene, and finally, the monster finished tearing down Ponyville. Rainbow Dash saw herself stand and walk to the desolation; ponies were crying in the streets. One turned to her, shouting that she could have saved them, but Rainbow Dash just stood awestruck at what had happened. Her friends lay exhausted and injured on the ground; the flickering flames cast dancing shadows over the ruins of Ponyville. She fell to the dirt, and could only cry as she surveyed what was left of the town so close to her heart.
The sun struck Rainbow Dash in the face, causing her to wake up from the terrible nightmare. The next week had been just as tiring as the first, and she now found herself on the day of the race. She hurried around the room, not wanting to be late for her, when the letter that Twilight had sent her caught her eye. She hadn’t had a chance to read it, but there wasn’t any time at this point, and so she left for the race track, saving the letter for later. When she got to the stadium, Spitfire was waiting, dressed in her own uniform, and together they entered the arena.
                   Rainbow Dash surveyed the place that she had grown to know so well. The waterfall was spilling its downpour as though there was nothing happening, the track was unchanged. The view was still just as breathtaking as it was the first time she had arrived just a few weeks before, but the stands were filled with ponies, each one as eager as the next, all of them clamoring for the race to begin. When Rainbow Dash and Spitfire were spotted, a roar rose from the seats, and Spitfire whispered, “Get used to it Dash-this is what your life is going to be like.” Rainbow Dash felt filled with confidence at the statement, and before she knew it, the race had begun, she and Spitfire had come in first and second, respectively, and the crowd was cheering again-for her. She looked around from the winner circle, and felt the radiant joy that emanated from the stands warmed her to the core. The cheering-the only time she had felt anything like that was at the Best Young Fliers competition, but this time, Spitfire was standing next to her, saying, “Get used to it, kid-This is the life.” Rainbow Dash just smiled, enveloped in the moment, never wanting to feel any different.
When she finally got back to her room, she decided to read the letter Twilight had sent her.
“Dear Rainbow Dash
I am very happy for you regarding all of your accomplishments. Everyone back at home misses you, and although we’re sad that it will be awhile before then, we are all pulling for you in your upcoming races. Just as a side note, I was reading that the most important part in racing…”
Rainbow Dash found that she couldn’t bring herself to read the rest of the letter. She started pacing again, the thrill of victory lost at the onset of a new worry: that she hadn’t made the right choice. ‘Did I fail my friends? Will they want to see me again?’ “No, no, I haven’t failed anypony-Twilight even said that they were pulling for me.” She shook her head, doubt settling in. “I’ll try and sleep on it-besides, there isn’t any turning back, and Spitfire needed me here, right? Right…I guess-ugh!” She threw herself onto the bed, wanting to just fall asleep. After multiple futile attempts to drift into rest, she decided to use that time to console herself. “Well, I’ve done everything that Spitfire has wanted, but...” she trailed off, a sinking feeling forming in her heart that drove away the joy of the spoils of the day. “I didn’t read Twilight’s letter, I chose the race over going home,” her breathing became more rapid by the second, and she began to feel every happy emotion drain from her. “I-I didn’t even eat any of Pinkie’s cake! What kind of friend am I?!” She began to cry, and for the rest of the night, the haven of sleep eluded Rainbow Dash.
 Before she knew it, it was morning, and time for her to go to the next race. With a heavy heart she made her way down to the track before anypony else, and surveyed the arena that was stealing her away from her friends. For the first time in the entire ordeal, Rainbow Dash felt sick-the mere thought of racing just reminded her of how terrible she was being to her friends. “It’s ok,” she told herself, ‘remember how happy they were for you Dash-they want you to be happy. It’s fine if you mess up a bit, everypony does…” but the uneasy feeling just would not leave. She hung her head, and made a promise to return to her friends the second that she could. ‘What would they want for me to do?’ “They would want me to win. So that’s what I’ll do-I’ll win every race-for them.”
 She felt herself begin to feel better, and as soon as she felt like racing again, Spitfire showed up at the stadium.“Hey Rainbow Dash-are you going to win again today, or am I going to have to carry the trophy back to my place?”
The blue pegasus laughed, and with a self-confident tone replied, “Only if you find a way to get me to crash.” They both continued to talk about strategies, the thrill of victory, and other racing related subjects until the crowd finally gathered, and it was time to line up at the start. Rainbow Dash looked confidently around her, hearing the broadcaster begin the final announcement before the race. She looked at the stands, and for a moment thought that she saw Twilight watching her. Taken aback, Rainbow Dash looked again, but realized that she had just imagined her friend.  ‘I wonder what they are doing back home right now?’ She began to feel herself slip again, but it was too late to do anything about it. Her thoughts had turned homeward, and she realized just how huge a mistake she made. Panicking, she looked at the other contestants, who all appeared to be mentally preparing themselves, and didn’t notice as Rainbow dissolved into a worried mess.
She shakily lined up at the start; the race began, and she was off. She felt the wind pick up around her, but when she looked up for the turn, and saw the view, she was struck by a homesickness that she had never felt before. Her wings were beating out of sync, the world began to spin, a collective gasp arose from the crowd. The ground got closer, closer, closer, so close that she could almost touch it, and then-darkness.
                   With a start, Rainbow Dash opened her eyes, wondering just what had happened. She saw a bright light immediately in front of her, and a voice saying something about concussions. She tried to talk, but could only barely mumble, “Whasss goinnng onn?” The light went away, and after her eyes adjusted, she found that she was surrounded by the on-site medical ponies, along with Spitfire and a few of the Wonderbolts who had shown up to the race.
                   “What happened out there, Dash? I thought you were joking when you were talking about crashing. I mean-I’ve seen ponies who have taken spills half that bad and never flown again!” Rainbow Dash sat up violently, against the medic-ponies’ cautions.
                   “I’m sorry, Spitfire-I don’t know what happened-everything was just so fast, and-”
                   “Calm down, kid! Everypony crashes every once in awhile! Look, you should take it easy; you’ve had your first win, you don’t need another.”
                   But Rainbow Dash was adamant. “Look, Spitfire, I’ve left my home, and my friends, and I gave up a chance to see them when I decided to race. I have to prove to them and everypony else here that I am good enough to be able to choose whether or not to race.” She pulled Spitfire close, adrenaline pumping through her veins. “You don’t understand-If I don’t win, then I lose, and if I chose to lose over choosing my friends, then I am a loser, and if I am a loser-then I can’t do anything right, and that means that I will never be able to talk to them again. I couldn’t stand the embarrassment of going back home, and I wouldn’t even be able to help any of them; I would be a loser!”
Spitfire took a step back, and a thoughtful look crossed her face. She sighed, and said, “Ok-I’ll give you one more chance. I don’t think that this is such a good idea, but if it is the only thing that you want to do, then I can’t fight it. But- after tomorrow-you are going to have to take a few months off. I know that you don’t want to, but I would rather you get rusty than have you get seriously hurt.”
Rainbow Dash thanked her and hurried to her apartment, inwardly criticizing her performance at the race. She hastily packed her things, and as soon as she was set to leave after her race, she went to bed, and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.
It seemed like only seconds before she found herself awakened by the rising sun. She solemnly dressed in her uniform, and collected her belongings. With one last look around the room, she swallowed a lump that formed in her throat, and set off for the arena. She arrived there, put her things on the ground, and walked up to the starting line, shaking from the anticipation of the upcoming race. She looked around, feeling like everypony was staring at her, waiting for her to crash again, but she shut the notion out of her mind. ‘I have to do this. I HAVE to. If I don’t, I’ll never be able to show my face around here again, let alone go home.’ She shut her eyes and gulped, the pressure of the race starting to crush her.
The race was starting, and it was time for her to focus, but Rainbow Dash felt her thoughts run amok, sabotaging her final chance to prove herself worthy of what she had become. ‘What if while I’m racing, something bad happens to my friends, and I could have protected them? Or what if they were planning a welcome home party, but I lost?’ She felt herself begin to hyperventilate, and when she heard the race begin, she fell to the ground, cowering in fear. After a moment, she got up, tore off her uniform, and fled the stadium; her life had turned into a nightmare.
She ran to the train station, tears freely flowing down her face; she hadn’t even bothered to gather her belongings. The train was waiting to depart, and, bawling, she boarded it and curled up in an isolated compartment, wishing for the world to leave her alone, but it wouldn’t. Every breath she took was the breath of a failure, a quitter, and a terrible friend. She cried like she never had before, feeling as though she had done the worst thing she possibly could: she failed Spitfire, she left her friends, and she ran away from a race. Shuddering with violent sobs, a broken Rainbow Dash fell asleep alone.

Chapter 7
The skyline of Ponyville seemed to sparkle in the setting sun. Rainbow Dash stood on the hill, watching, wondering if she should say what had happened. “No, they’ll never want to talk to me again.” A tear rolled down her cheek, the events of the day tearing at her very soul. She looked in the direction of Canterlot, where she knew that the news of the debacle must be spreading. The sun was almost completely set, and with a start, Rainbow Dash suddenly realized just what she was seeing. ‘The view, the time-it’s going to happen.’ She found herself shaking, and she whispered aloud, “I won’t let my friends down this time.”
The scene was set, and she knew that her nightmare was only just beginning. She looked down at the skyline, waiting for something to happen. After a while, she finally heard the sound she was dreading- a sickening crunch echoed through the valley. Then, through the last tendrils of the sun, Rainbow Dash saw a hump rising above the town. Images of destruction, fire, horror, flickered through her mind. All at once, she felt the humility of running from the race and the anxiety of her dream becoming life, and she felt herself begin to slip. She began to cry again, feeling useless, feeling that she would only serve to mess something else up, feeling that her friends would not care for her. With each subsequent thought, she felt herself falling deeper and deeper into sorrow, and she felt to the ground, ready to give up, to let fate take hold, to watch as everything that she loved was destroyed.
Rainbow Dash looked up again; the shape was moving closer to the town. She felt paralyzed by depression and fear, unable to do anything but cry as Ponyville approached its violent end. Then, a flame lit inside of her. She thought back, ages back, it seemed, back to the day that she had stepped off her train, the day that she made it into the Wonderbolts. Pinkie’s laugh, the celebration, the pure joy of it all began to fill her, and she stood again, a newly found courage coursing through her being. With a shout, she leapt toward the defenseless town, with the intention of saving her friends at all costs.
She sped into Ponyville, accelerating toward the monster as it approached Twilight’s library. “Oh no you don’t!” Rainbow Dash barreled into the beast, kicking and fighting it with everything she was worth. She heard a shout beneath her, and the crackle of magic; something struck her, and the last thing she saw was the ground speeding towards her.
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes; the light was blinding-she had no idea where she was. A voice was calling her name, but she couldn’t find a way to form the words to reply. She shielded her eyes, trying to discern the blurry shadows that she saw in front of her. After a moment, things began to come into focus, and Rainbow Dash found herself lying in a hospital bed, with Fluttershy, Twilight, and Spitfire all standing around her. They had concerned looks on their faces, and Rainbow Dash, worried about the state of Ponyville, asked, “Did I beat it?”
The other three ponies exchanged glances, and Twilight asked, “Beat what?”
“The monster-the one who was going to destroy Ponyville…didn’t you see it?”
Twilight looked at Rainbow Dash sadly, and whispered, “Rainbow-there was no monster. Spitfire and I were talking; it sounds like you were so worried about leaving us, and even inadvertently hurting us, that you just thought the monster was there. You weren’t attacking anything but the air, and I was lucky enough to knock you out before you could do any damage to yourself or anypony else.”
Rainbow Dash looked back at Twilight with disbelief, “But, I could see it-it was just like in my dream! Everything was the same, but…”
Twilight hung her head, her voice barely audible, “Rainbow Dash,we were also talking about…” she trailed off, tears forming in her eyes.
Rainbow Dash looked at each of the ponies anxiously, “What? What did you talk about?”
Twilight tried to answer, but tears choked out any words that she could have been trying to say. Spitfire took a deep breath, and answered in subdued tones, “We’ve decided that you shouldn’t be on the Wonderbolts anymore. It’s caused you this much trouble, and I have to run a team, not a pity squad. I understand that you’ll be upset about this, anypony would be, but you just aren’t ready.” She motioned to the bedside table, which had an unmarked box on it. “It’s your first trophy, and your uniform. I know that you weren’t able to use it much, but I thought that it might mean something to you. I’m  sorry-I really am, but…” she trailed off, searching to find the right words to tell the blue pegasus who lay in the bed before her, “But I just have to let you go.”
With that, Spitfire left, and Rainbow Dash was alone with Twilight and Fluttershy. She choked back her tears, and began, “Twilight, Fluttershy, let me just say-I’m sorry. I have been a terrible friend to you. I chose wrong-very, very wrong, and look where it got me. Yeah, I lived the dream a bit, but it turned into a nightmare so quickly that I guess that I just lost myself. Well now, looking back, I can see every mistake I have made, all the way back to not eating Pinkie’s cake, and not reading your letter, Twilight. But-but that’s not why I am not a good friend; those are only mistakes. I chose fame, racing, the Wonderbolts, all over you, the ones who have been, are now, and will be there for me. I can’t say that it was worth it-just look at me! I’m messed up, seeing monsters, getting kicked out of teams, and neglecting my best friends. Most of all, I’m sorry for letting you down-I wasn’t the Rainbow Dash you all knew, and I don’t think that I am now. I’m not a winner, I’m a loser, and not just because I ran away from a race. I’m a loser because I failed you.” She then began to weep, every sob sending waves of sorrow through her body, each tear carrying the weight of her words, every breath passing through the mouth that had uttered them.
Fluttershy walked over to the head of the bed, comforting her friend, and said with a smile, “Rainbow Dash-you have no idea how wrong you are. You might see this as a bad thing, but I learned something here. I learned that I have a friend who would care for me even if I were miles away and they were doing everything that they had ever wanted. I learned that even the best ponies get scared, and that even whenever you think that you are at your worst, to me, you will always be your best. Thank you, Rainbow Dash, for being the best friend that I’ve ever had.”
Rainbow Dash smiled, a small flicker of hope sprung up inside her when she heard Fluttershy’s words. The other two left her, and the sole blue pegasus looked at the ceiling, and whispered, “What’s next? Should I just…give up?” She closed her eyes, and falling asleep, she muttered to herself, “No, I’ll give up the day that I can no longer fly.” She smiled, and drifted into a deep slumber, ready to start a new day.