Fading Colors

by J-Webb

Chapter 5

Chapter 5: |
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|Shipping| |Sad| |Dark|

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Applejack stumbled for a sense of direction, having only enough vision to make out the faint outline of walls in this dark tomb. The stale air lingered, weighed down with years of undisturbed dust. Applejack took a breath of the old air, coughing as the musty acrid undertone of mold invaded her nostrils.

Having no choice, Applejack braved the stale air, navigating the labyrinth, not sure in which direction to head. She had been so close to setting Dash free, just to have it all taken away by Dash's own denial. Her body felt exhausted, every muscle ached, begging her to stop this crazy nightmare. She faltered, almost giving in to her body's demands. However, finding her rational thought kick in, Applejack remembered just who was in trouble here. With the glistening sight of her lover filling her mind, the Earth pony pushed on with renewed vigor.

Applejack's body continued feeling its way around the labyrinth, with no correct direction to go. Meanwhile, her mind was elsewhere, reminiscing back on the time she had met Dash, years before Twilight had come to Ponyville.

---

Celestia's sun beat down upon the land, casting its warming rays to the far reaches of the world. Ponyville sat in the middle of the sun's assault, soaking up every ray of sunshine that came beaming towards the small town.

Applejack trotted along the dirt road leading into town from Sweet Apple Acres. Her pace having slowed considerably from the fully loaded apple cart she tugged along behind her. Sweat dripped slowly from her brow, but she paid it no mind. After a short while of hauling the overstuffed cart, the Earth pony had made it into town, and began setting up shop for the day.

Lunchtime came and passed, and Applejack found herself making sale after sale with no signs of it slowing anytime soon. Less than half her stock remained when she spotted her best customer approaching. "Well, howdy there Fluttershy." She greeted the timid Pegasus with a friendly smile.

"Oh, hi, Applejack," replied Fluttershy, with her usual quiet demeanor.

"What brings mah best customer around today? Need some more apples for them animals o' yers?" the farmer pony questioned, trying to push another big sale.

The Pegasus shifted slightly, her mane draping over her face. "Actually, I need some apples for a pie that I am making for-"

"Hey, Fluttershy!" called a unique tomboyish voice, cutting the Pegasus off mid-sentence.

"Eek!" The timid Pegasus jumped up with a start, falling to the ground in a heap.

"Heh, sorry about that Shy, didn't mean to startle you," replied the tomboyish voice, just as its owner stepped up beside the yellow Pegasus to help her up.

The apple farmer caught sight of the new pony, guiding her eyes from head to hoof as she took in the full sight of the newcomer. She took note of the Pegasus's sleek toned body, and found herself staring, lost in the vivid colors of the wild rainbow mane and tail.

The new pony noticed Applejack's gawking; a smile came to her face as she rejoiced in the attention. "It's the hair isn't it?" she questioned, raising an eyebrow at the Earth pony, as if she was used to this kind of attention. "They don't call me Rainbow Dash for nothing!" she bragged, confidence practically spewing everywhere.

Regaining herself, Applejack smiled, "Well, it's nice ta meet ya, Rainbow Dash," announced the Earth pony, stepping around to the front of her stall to offer a hoof to the Pegasus. Rainbow Dash eagerly accepted the friendly gesture, holding out a hoof of her own.

"So what brings ya to Ponyville?" the Earth pony questioned, releasing the Pegasus's hoof.

"Well, me and Fluttershy go way back, and when I found out she was living here, I just had to drop by for old time's sake you know? But after seeing this place I decided it was time that I settled down in a house myself," boasted the rainbow-maned pony, pointing off into the distance at a newly built cloud castle in the sky.

"Well, any friend of Fluttershy's is a friend o' mine," stated Applejack. "Now, how many apples can I do ya for today, Fluttershy?"

"A dozen should do just fine," Fluttershy answered calmly.

"One dozen apple coming right up! That'll be six bits."

Fluttershy reached into her saddlebags, dropping six six bits on the stall and accepting the basket of apples.

"Thank ya, kindly. Ya'll come again now, ya hear!" Applejack called after the two Pegasi as they walked off.

---

Snapping back from her thoughts, Applejack came to a dead end. Turning around, she began feeling her way back through the corridor, letting her mind continue to wander…

---

Ever since meeting the brash Pegasus, Applejack could not help but notice how fast time had slipped by. Over the years, the Earth pony found herself going from no friends, to five of the best she could ask for. In just the past year, the six of them had been through a lot. The whole Nightmare Moon ordeal and the countless troubles they found themselves in sure made for an interesting twist on her normal everyday farm pony life.

As time came and passed, it brought with it new feelings. Ones that Applejack never thought she would have developed for a certain Pegasus. Dreams of the rainbow-maned pony began assaulting her shortly after the running of the leaves. In the beginning, they were seemingly normal, nothing more than her and Rainbow Dash hanging out. In fact, she was starting to like just how natural the dreams felt. Nevertheless, as time wore on, the dreams had become more romantic. They startled the Earth pony at first, having never felt a romantic connection to anypony before, especially not a mare. Scared, Applejack tried everything to make the dreams go away, to no use. The dreams were too strong, too real, too right. Night after night, they slowly revealed the inner secrets of the Earth pony's mind. Coming to terms with herself, Applejack accepted that she had in fact fallen in love with the brash Pegasus. Soon after, the Earth pony found herself enjoying the dream world, the only place where she could be together with the mare she loved.

Then came the Grand Galloping Gala; the best night ever, or so the group of friends thought. Applejack remembered that night like it was yesterday. The Gala was not the important part of that night. No, the Gala down right sucked for all of them. What happened in the hours after the Gala changed Applejack's life, forever.

---

The carriage ride back from Canterlot passed by quickly, as the six friends chatted away about how bad the night had gone. In the end, the group decided it was not that bad, and were even able to laugh at their antics. Shortly after, they arrived at Rarity's Boutique, and parted ways for the night.

Living outside of town meant for long walks, however, they never bothered Applejack, tonight would be no different. She trotted down the lone road back to Sweet Apple Acres. It was late; a calming cool breeze rushed past her, she shivered as the cold wind invaded the thin fabric of her Gala dress. Trying to take her mind off the chilled night, Applejack cast a glance towards the moon, taking it in. Luna's moon shown almost as bright as the sun itself, Applejack found herself becoming lost in its unmatchable beauty. That was until; a multicolored streak whisked by in front of the moon, causing her vision to focus on the trail maker. She watched intently, as Rainbow Dash soared peacefully across the night sky. Suddenly, the Earth pony felt very lonely. She loved Dash, and longed to be with her, but knew that it would probably never happen. She had planned to tell Dash how she felt before, but had always come up short on courage. As she watched her fly solely across the sky now, her heart ached to sing its love for the brash Pegasus to the world.

The cyan Pegasus disappeared from sight. Applejack let out a soft sigh, dropping her gaze from the sky as she continued to peregrinate on towards home.

"Hey, Applejack!"

Applejack jumped at the sudden call, she stopped mid stride, cursorily searching for a sign of anypony. Suddenly, the soft sound of beating wings reached her ears. Returning her glance to the sky, Applejack found Rainbow Dash hovering close above her. Applejack chuckled at her friend's antics, as the Pegasus slipped into a fit of laughter. The Earth pony smiled at the simplicity of her brash friend, noticing that the Pegasus had already discarded her ruined Gala dress.

"I saw you walking and you looked upset, is something wrong AJ?" Rainbow Dash questioned a look of concern upon her face.

"Uhh… Ah ain't lone- Ah mean upset," Applejack stuttered, offering a fake smile to Dash.

"Applejack? You know you're a terrible liar, right?" Dash replied, setting down next to her friend. "What's up?"

The Earth pony sighed, knowing her honest nature had betrayed her. "Ah guess Ah'm just lonely, sugarcube…" she replied, sadness heavily detectable in her tone.

"Well, we will just have to fix that, won't we!" exclaimed Dash excitedly pumping a hoof in the air.

"And just how are ya gonna do that?" question Applejack, cocking an eyebrow at the cyan Pegasus.

"Follow me," Dash replied, giving the Earth pony a sly smile as she took off towards the lake.

Applejack took after her friend. The rush of wind was cold against her face but she managed to power through it. Catching up beside the speedy Pegasus, "Where are we going!" she shouted through the sound of the wind.

"There!" replied Dash, motioning with her head for the Earth pony to look forward.

Returning her head forward, Applejack gazed out over the land. Up ahead, the lake was fast approaching, "Why are we goin' to tha' lake?" she questioned her Pegasus friend.

Rainbow Dash did not answer the way Applejack thought she would have. Instead, the rainbow-hued Pegasus said nothing, instead, she picked up the pace, forcing the Earth pony to concentrate all her energy on catching up. Before she knew it, Applejack found herself nearing the edge of the lake, slowing her gallop to a stop; she stood beside an equally tired Rainbow Dash. The Earth pony focused her vision on Dash, smiling as she felt the emotions of true friendship course throughout her veins.

"Look." Rainbow Dash pointed a hoof out over the lake towards the sky; Applejack followed her friend's instructions and found herself in awe.

"Awesome, isn't it?" she asked the Earth pony, before returning her gaze skyward to soak up the moonlight.

The moon's bright ray reflected across the calm darkened lake, recreating a perfect picture of the sky across its surface. The stars twinkled off the lake's surface, dancing calmly with every ripple of water. It was breathtaking; Applejack was so lost in the sheer beauty of the scene before her that she failed to notice the cyan wing now draped around her back, holding her in a comforting embrace.

"I come here a lot when I need to get away." Dash told the Earth pony, nuzzling the side of her cheek. "AJ, don't forget, you have five amazing friends who would drop everything to help you," Rainbow Dash reassured, pulling the apple farmer closer.

Applejack fought hard to contain her blush, in the end; she failed to do so as her body's true emotions took over and a faint streak of crimson spread across her cheeks. "Thank you sugarcube, Ah feel a lot better now."

"You want me to walk with you back to the farm?" Dash questioned, looking to her friend.

"Actually, Sugar, Ah want to stay here for the night," Applejack admitted, focusing her vision on the cyan Pegasus. As Rainbow Dash returned the expression, Applejack slipped into a trance, finding herself lost in those bright rose-colored eyes.

"We can do that!" Dash exclaimed, removing her wing and lying down beside the Earth pony.

Under the moonlight, two friends shared an embrace, falling asleep in each other's hooves. It was on that night, that Applejack knew for sure she wanted to be more than friends with Rainbow Dash.

---

In the darkness of the labyrinth, Applejack stumbled, landing hard on the solid cloud floor below with a soft thud.

---

The quiet surroundings of the library suddenly erupted, as a loud groan shattered the still atmosphere. Everypony froze mid-task, staring intently at the unconscious Earth pony.

Moving first, Pinkie Pie happily hopped over to Applejack, violently shaking the orange Earth pony. "Wakey, wakey!" she exclaimed, continuing to rock her sleeping friend back and forth.

---

"Wakey, wakey!" sounded a familiar happy voice, pounding its way through Applejack's head. The Earth pony stood back on her hooves, wobbling a little. She hit her head hard on the floor below, but it was almost as if she heard her friend Pinkie telling her to wake up.

---

"Pinkie, stop!" came a less familiar voice, echoing off the walls of the labyrinth. The booming voice held a soft but regal tone to it.

Jumping at the sudden loudness, Applejack frantically searched the empty corridor. "Ah'm going crazy…" she said aloud, finding herself unable to pinpoint the location of the echoes.

"The spell will fade soon, she doesn't have much time left," echoed the voice again. Suddenly, Applejack felt the realization of who was speaking collide with her brain, revealing the true nature of the voice.

"Princess?" the Earth pony shouted, standing quietly she listened. Nothing but the fading echo of her own voice eerily made its way back to her ears.

"The spell is hours from fading. After that, Applejack will return to us here in the real world. The boundaries are weak now, it is important that we stay quiet and do not disturb her. If she wants any chance at bringing Rainbow Dash home, she must act swiftly," Luna explained, "and I know you can hear us, Applejack. Hurry!"

Panic sunk into the depths of Applejack's mind, she found herself breathing fast shallow breaths. Realizing that she needed to get out of this labyrinth fast, Applejack rocketed off, galloping blindly down the twisting and turning hallways, frantically searching for a means of escape. A low, but harsh voice inaugurated, slowly creeping into Applejack's ears. It took her a sometime to notice it over the sound of her ragged breathing, but now that she had, it seemed to be growing louder. Pinpointing the sounds, she followed the direction of it.

"haha! Rainbow Dyke!"

Turning the corner, she pressed on faster.

"Get lost, filly-fooler!"

She rounded another corner, picking up more speed.

"You don't belong here, freak!"

Applejack drifted around another corner, accelerating to her max. She galloped as fast as the adrenaline flooding her bloodstream would let her travel. Again, she reminded herself of the time crunch she want now facing. Applejack grew more frantic by the second. Another corner passed her by, she was pushing her body to the limits to find any means of an exit.

She took another corner, losing her grip on the cloud floor, Applejack smashed side on into the wall. If not adrenaline, or the will to save the one she loved; that impact would have stopped the Earth pony in her tracks. Instead, she pushed off the wall regaining lost speed. At the end of this hallway, she could see a faint hint of light. As she charged closer, the light seemed to be coming from the ceiling of the labyrinth.

In seconds, Applejack was upon the light source. Taking her time to catch her breath, she deemed that the light source was in fact an exit. Atop of the stairs, blocking the exit lay a trap door. The Earth pony ascended the stairs, forcefully pushing up on it. Deterred by the lack of movement, Applejack spun around; delivering the hardest buck she could muster to the trapdoor.

A splintering crack rang out as hoof met wood. The trapdoor shattered open, and the Earth pony quickly pulled herself up through the opening. Emerging from the dark tunnels, the Earth pony glanced about, temporarily blinded by the powerful light of day. Once her eyes adjusted to the new level of light, Applejack began to take note of her surroundings. Big mounds of cloud lay piled up around her, and basic pieces of building structure remained. The fragmented structure had received so much damage, that she could only assume it had been a house at one point. Applejack trotted over to the half-standing doorframe of what was once the front door. Scanning the area, the Earth pony spotted the flight school just across the street. She let out a sigh of relief; the apple farmer knew that is where she would find Dash.

Still feeling the effects of her panicked gallop, Applejack settled for cantering towards the school.

"Whoa, Nelly!" called Applejack coming to an abrupt halt. In front of her was a massive gap in the street, at least 25 feet across.

"Just great!" yelled the Earth pony, "Dash, yer mind is tryin' ta kill me!"

Applejack retreated into the house. She had not come this far to let a little gap stop her. Moving all the way to the broken-down back wall, she turned around to face the school again and readied herself.

"Ok, AJ. Ya got this. C'mon, Dash is dependin' on ya," she told herself, doing anything to boost her confidence for this seemingly impossible jump. With one final release of breath, Applejack once again poured all her energy into her legs. She took off galloping with a fierceness nopony had ever seen, the burning compassion that she felt towards Rainbow Dash allowed her to dig deep. Finding that inner strength thought to be unusable, Applejack worked her muscles to full capacity.

Grunting, the Earth pony felt her muscles straining under the intense pressure they were undergoing. She knew that she could not keep up this pace for much longer. Her muscles were burning now, begging her for rest, she ignored their cries and pushed on. With the last ounce of strength she had, Applejack leapt forward. The Earth pony was midair now, soaring high above the ground below. Her muscles ached and cramped, the pain almost too much to handle. Applejack was going to make it; she was going to clear the gap. The opposite side drew closer.

Applejack noticed her speed decreasing, as panic set in. "Ah'm not gonna make it!" the Earth pony yelled, clearly full of disbelief. Not sure of what to do, she stretched out her body, reaching for the fast approaching clouds. The apple farmer did not know what lied beneath the dream world, but knew she didn't want to find out first-hoof.

Applejack landed hard on the other side, collapsing as her hooves slid from beneath her.

"Ah made it!" she exclaimed happily between heavy breaths. It took the Earth pony some time to recover from her jump. The apple farmer wobbled uneasily as she stood up, her legs begging her to lie back down. Applejack's mind forced her to stand, having already made the decision; no matter the amount of pain she went through, she was going to tell Dash how she felt, properly this time.

---

Applejack stood uneasily at the bottom of the school stairs. Slowly, she began walking up them approaching the door. The soft faint sound of laughter invaded her ears as she approached the door. Pulling at the closed door, the world seemed to fade.

---

Applejack awoke, sharply inhaling a lungful of air. Her eyes opened wide, blurry vision and all she could still make out the bright colors of the room before her. Realizing that she had left the dream world, the Earth pony quickly shut her eyes, letting her mind slip blank.

What the Earth pony failed to notice, was the group of friends huddled quietly around a book, all their attention now directed intently at her.

"Princess did the spell fade?" questioned Twilight Sparkle, a look of sadness shown through her facial features.

"Not yet, my little ponies. Not yet…" Luna replied, reassuring the lavender Unicorn.

---

"Applejack…" Dash's voice lingered in Applejack's head as the Earth pony came back to consciousness.

A sharp pain rang throughout Applejack's head, as the world exploded into light when her eyes opened. Whatever had happened to her, it was enough to push her back through the boundaries of the dreamscape. Realizing that time was of the essence, the Earth pony forced her battered body to stand. Her whole body ached, screaming at her to stop. Applejack ignored her body's cries, Dash needed her help. After all, it was her own fault that the Pegasus was in this situation.

Applejack continued her attempts at steadying herself. When she finally did, she cast a glance at the school. Her jaw dropped, shocked to Find it in a completely destroyed state. Shaking her head to confirm her vision, she surveyed the area. After a quick look over the Earth pony concluded, that the world was swiftly breaking apart. In the distance, Applejack could see a lone house standing perfectly among the ruined world. It was Dash's little cloud home. The apple farmer forced herself towards the cloud home as fast as her crippled body could move.

--

The path to Dash's home had since improved, making the apple farmer's journey relatively swift. Applejack wasted no time in entering the house, slowly limping down the hallway towards the brash pony's room.

Passing through the doorframe, Applejack's jaw fell limp. Her heart skipped a beat, as she took in the sight before her eyes. In the center of the bedroom, a rope hung from the ceiling. A colorless Pegasus hovered just below the ceiling, rope tied tightly around her neck. Tears slid down the cheeks of Rainbow Dash, as the Pegasus mentally prepared herself.

The Pegasus' wings retracted, dropping her like a stone. Her body turned midair, locking eyes with Applejack. The Earth pony could make out the sadness in the Pegasus' face as she fell. Time slowed to a halt for the Earth pony, her mind kicked into panic mode. Sprinting forward, she hopped to stop Rainbow Dash's fall.

Applejack slid into place under the Pegasus. The heavy thud of hooves landed on her back as her own legs strained to support them both. She had caught the falling filly, saving her life.

"What the hay…" replied Dash, with a tone of sadness and annoyance.

"Sugarcube, don't ya do this!" Applejack pleaded, her broken body straining under the newly acquired load.

"Why not? Everypony hates me! They're right… I don't belong here," Dash replied, her tone switching from anger to depression.

"Rainbow, accept who ya are, don't try ta change just 'cause somepony laughs at ya. Remember how happy ya were with Skyfire?" The Earth pony paused, allowing the Pegasus time to reminisce.

"Yeah, I guess I do…," replied the Pegasus, clearly not amused.

"That was 'cause ya were happy being who ya were, Dash. Nopony bothered ya, so you didn't think nothing was wrong. Ya need to remember that, Dash. Don't let them bullies in yer head."

Moments passed in silence, Applejack shut her eyes tightly, the strain of her muscles picked up. Gritting her teeth together, she put mind over matter, as her body neared its failure point. A long drawn out sigh escaped Rainbow's lips, as the Pegasus gave in and removed the noose from her neck.

"You're right AJ" she said with a renewed purpose, Hopping off the Earth pony's back, calming Applejack's nerves and reliving her strained muscles.

Applejack grabbed the Pegasus, pulling her into a tight embrace. In this instant, she felt contempt. She had helped Dash begin to accept who she was; the road to recovery was in sight now. Or so she thought…

"Hey, Rainbow Crash!"

The two friends quickly separated, their ears telling them the voice came from outside the house.

"Will they ever just leave me alone?" questioned Dash, becoming increasingly frustrated.

"This is it Dash. Show 'em that it doesn't bother ya anymore," the Earth pony instructed, smiling at her friend.

Dash returned the smile and nodded. "All right."

The pair made their way out of the house, with Rainbow leading the path. The Earth pony was limping, finding it hard to keep pace.

The duo came to a stop just before the front door, looking into each other's eyes. Each gave a reassuring nod, as the cyan Pegasus opened the door.

"Why are you still here? I thought we ran you out of town?" replied a lone Pegasus colt, standing on the sidewalk.

"Guess again, Cloud Twister. Nothing you say can bother me," Rainbow Dash retorted, confidence radiating through her tone.

"Ha ha, Oh yeah?" asked the bully. He spoke again without waiting for a reply. "Gee, you must wish your filly-friend could say the same thing. Don't you? Hey, where is she anyway? Oh wait, I remember! She ran away!" He erupted into another fit of laughter.

"You…" The filly lost all confidence, she stood their silently, at a complete loss of words.

"Ha ha! What's the matter Rainbow Dyke? I thought words didn't hurt you?" Cloud Twister continued verbally assaulting the filly.

"They…" Rainbow Dash recoiled, hiding her face, as she grew closer to the verge of tears.

"Hahahah!" Cloud Twister fell to the ground, in a fit of laughter.

Dash glanced back to Applejack, as tears slowly leaked from her eyes. The sight of her friend made the Earth pony's heart sink; she stepped forward to comfort the distraught Pegasus. "Ya can do it, Dash. Ah believe in ya," Applejack reassured, stroking Dash's mane with a fore hoof.

"I… I don't think I can…" Dash choked, her voice cracking as the salty tears raced down her face.

"Nopony will ever love you, Rainbow Crash! Ha ha!" came Cloud Twister's voice from behind the pair. At that sentence Applejack became enraged, she wanted to buck him right out of Equestria. Before her impulses could take over, her mind returned to the crying filly in her hoofs.

"He's right… nopony, will..." Rainbow Dash repeated, pushing her face deep into Applejack's mane, and bursting into tears.

The Earth pony was unsure about this whole situation, her mind looked everywhere for an answer. Applejack's heart took over, finding the answer easily. "No, he's not right, sugarcube, 'Cause, Ah love you."

What happened next surprised the Earth pony, as she had fully expected the world to burst. Instead, Cloud Twister faded away, leaving her and Dash still sharing an embrace.

The rainbow-maned pony's crying ceased, slowly, she removed her face from the Earth pony's mane. "Applejack, do you really mean that?" questioned a much older sounding Dash.

Applejack couldn't help but smile. Rainbow Dash was back, her Dash. "Yes, sugarcube, Ah mean it." The Earth pony found tears of joy trying to escape her eyes.

"AJ… I'm sorry. For what I put you through, I think I'm ready f-" The shaking of the ground below them cut the Pegasus off mid-sentence.

A deep rumble erupted.

Dash and Applejack separated, both fighting gravity to stay upright. Cloudsdale collapsed, disappearing into nothingness. Dash's instincts kicked in as she took flight instantaneously. She stayed hovering a few feet from the dissolved cloud floor, trying to get a grip on the situation. The one thing that she failed to notice, though, was the Earth pony falling towards the ground at a blistering speed.

7500 feet

The world slowed to a standstill for Applejack, as she tumbled helplessly farther away from Rainbow Dash. The Earth pony spun around in midair facing the ground, her eyes confirmed her fear. The ground was there, and it was getting increasing closer by the second. Applejack spun back around to face the Pegasus. Luckily, she had noticed the falling Earth pony, diving after her. Even though she was far away, Applejack could make out the frightened look on Dash's face. The apple farmer knew there was no way that Rainbow could catch her in time, she flashed a weak smile towards the Pegasus. Tears flew out of Applejack's eyes, taken upwards by the wind. She accepted that she wouldn't make it.

5000 feet

"Well, ya did it AJ. Ya saved her," she told herself in triumph, a weak chuckle escaping her lips. Casting one last look at the speeding Pegasus, Applejack took in every detail before closing her eyes. As the moments past, she held on to that picture as it slowly began to fade from her mind.

Her thoughts wandered as she began reminiscing back on the great times she had with Rainbow Dash. From the time they first met, that summer day in the town market. To the Iron Pony Competition, and how much fun it had been to race with Dash in the running of the leaves. The night where she had fallen asleep in the Pegasus's hold by the lake was now but a peaceful memory, helping her find comfort, as she knew her last moments were upon her.

3000 feet

"Applejack!" shrieked Rainbow Dash.

Applejack opened her eyes, finding the cyan pony still barreling down towards her. The Earth pony smiled, even when there was no hope left, no chance at safety, Dash still never gave up on her. She always admired Rainbow for that, and in this moment, that is all she needed. Applejack felt at peace, as she knew that her friend would never give up on her.

2500 feet

"Goodbye, Rainbow... Ah love you," she said calmly to herself, closing her eyes once again waiting for impact.

2000 feet

"Noo!" cried Dash, her voice alive with hysterics. She pushed herself harder, the Mach cone growing smaller as she poured all her power into her wings. She had both fore hooves pointing straight ahead at this point, her mane and cheeks blowing back wildly from the sheer speed. Speed, is what she needed to have more of at this moment. Rainbow Dash knew she was not going fast enough. Nevertheless, she refused to give up on Applejack.

1000 feet

Rainbow Dash's concentration faltered, as she felt something wet hit her forehead. Confused at where it could be coming from, Dash focused in the direction the water was coming. Up. The Pegasus realized in that moment, that they were the faint remains of Applejack's tears.

300 feet

Dash's adrenaline kicked into overdrive, her feelings for Applejack pushed her over the top. The familiar blur of the world slowly crept into her vision, focusing hard on her target; she exploded past the sound barrier.

Ka-boom!

At that moment in time, the blurring of the world disappeared. Regaining all her vision, Dash rocketed forward, accelerating madly with every passing second. The colors of the Rainboom washed over the sky, restoring the color back to the dreamscape.

50 feet

Rainbow Dash reached out, latching on to Applejack with her fore hoofs. Immediately, she began pulling out of the downward dive with all her force. It was too late. The pair was too close to the ground.

1 foot

The cyan Pegasus tried one last attempt to save the Earth pony, quickly; she maneuvered herself under the Earth pony, preparing to take the full impact of the fall. The two ponies, gripped tightly in each other's embrace, quietly shared their last moments together.

The low-pitched hollow tone of flesh striking the Earth rang out, shattering the soundless atmosphere. The force of impact ripped their embrace apart, sending both ponies bouncing along the ground. An eerie silence flushed over the land, time seemed to stand still. Slowly, the unconscious ponies skidded to a halt, lying motionless mere feet from one another. A calm breeze blew over their battered bodies, lifting their lifeless tails from the dirt. As the breeze picked up, their tails danced gracefully in the wind, entangling in a swirl of gray and blonde. As the wind died, so did the energy in their tails, falling back to the motionless Earth together as one.

---

The Earth pony's eyes shot open, her body ached and pained. Ignoring it, she turned her concentration to the motionless Pegasus pony that lay across from her.

Rainbow Dash lay lifeless, her coat revealing faint traces of color. Sparking a faint speck of hope in Applejack's soul, however, it was short lived, as she realized that Dash was not stirring.

"She's awake!" Fluttershy shrieked, forgetting her quiet demeanor.

Applejack's friends all rushed to her side, sweeping her up in joyful embrace.

"Let me go!" Applejack shrieked, tears running freely down her cheeks. Her friends released their embrace, concern quickly washing over them.

Dropping to the ground, Applejack dragged her tired body over to Rainbow Dash. Lying down next to the cyan mare, she closed her eyes and cried. Applejack felt her world crumbling, overcome by a tidal wave of sorrow.

"Ah'm sorry, Dash…" Applejack croaked her voice slow and quiet. "Ah, failed."

The group of friends stood shocked, nopony dared say a word. From the actions of Applejack, the group could easily infer that Rainbow Dash did not make it. A deathly silence tore through the room, deafening all other sounds but that of Applejack's hysteric cries. Looks of concern and disconsolateness fastened upon all their faces as the group tried to grasp the gravity of the situation.

---

Outside, the bright sun was shining high in the sky. Animals ran free, birds chirped, and butterflies flew by gracefully. The raging storm that had engulfed Ponyville throughout the night had ended. However, that was not what was capturing everypony's attention; all across Equestria, ponies stopped their daily tasks to share a glance towards the sky. For there, adorning the sky in all its glory was the biggest and brightest rainbow ever seen in Equestria.

Comments

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