Look, up in the sky!
I've said it before and I'll say it again, I am glad I got home when I did that day because things only got crazier from there. As soon as I got home, I poured myself a tall cool glass of lemonade, went upstairs to one of my astronomy books, and lay back on my bed. I felt bad for Twilight, being forced to choose between you're five closest friends could not have been an easy decision to make. Part of me hoped she took my idea of tearing up those tickets and forgetting about them.
Applejack came home a few hours later, her head hung low and her ears folded. At first, I thought it was because Twilight had either destroyed the ticket or given it to one of the others. But a closer inspection of the inside of her hat revealed that wasn't the case.
"Applejack, what's wrong?" Granny Smith asked with concern. Applejack looked up at her with tears in her eyes.
"It's Mac, he's in the hospital and it's all my fault."
Hospitals, there are lots of reasons foals don't like going to them. Whether it's because they're afraid of getting a shot or they're visiting a loved one that is sick or injured a hospital can be a very scary place.
We were seated in the hall outside the doctor's office, The clock slowly ticking by. Through my X-ray vision, I watched as Doctor Horse wrapped Big Mac's barrel in bandages. According to Applejack, he had been walking down Stirrup Street in one of Granny Smith's girdles after losing a bet, when suddenly he cried out in pain and fell.
I didn't need a doctor's word to figure out that the girdle he had been wearing was too tight, creating constricting pressure on his spine and ribcage that eventually resulted in multiple hairline fractures across his ribs. He'd recover eventually, but he would be taking it easy for a while that was for sure.
"It's all my fault," Applejack sobbed burying her face in her hooves. "If A'h hadn't made that stupid bet, this would never have happened."
"There there, Applejack," Apple Bloom said softly placing her hoof on her big sister's knee. "It'll be okay, Ah'm sure Mac will forgive you."
"Ah appreciate what ye'r saying Sugarcube," Applejack said as she placed her hoof on top of Apple Bloom's. "But A'h don't feel like Ah deserve forgiveness for this."
"Now, now don't say things like that," Granny Smith told her. "If anything it's the fault of this old gal for being so petite hee hee hee hee hee hee." She chuckled to herself.
"How can Y'all be laughing at a time like this?" Applejack asked irritably.
"Just trying to lighten the mood," Granny said.
About half an hour later, Doctor Horse stepped out. His muzzle was wrapped in a warm smile as he closed the door behind him.
"Apples, I have good news, Big Macintosh is going to be just fine."
Overcome with elation Applejack leaped out of her chair and wrapped her forelegs around the doctor's neck.
"Oh thank you Doctor Horse! Thank you, thank you so much!" Fresh tears flowed down her muzzle, only this time they were tears of relief. Unfortunately in her relief, she forgot her own strength.
"You're...welcome." Doctor Horse choked as he desperately tried to pry her forelegs off with his magic.
"Okay Applejack, you can let go of the doctor now," I said. "I think he got the message."
Applejack opened her eyes to see the Doctor's face turning blue. She released her grip sending the asphyxiated doctor into the floor, gasping for breath. "Oops, sorry about that?"
As the color returned to his face, Doctor Horse took in several deep breaths. "I understand...your excitement, but I must ask you...to respect my personal space...in the future. Now as I was saying, Big Macintosh is expected to recover fully, provided he does not exert himself for at least six weeks."
"Six weeks!" Applejack exclaimed, "But it's Applebuck Season, without Big Macintosh, we'll fall behind on our harvest!"
"Well, I'm sorry to hear that," Doctor Horse said condolingly. "Perhaps you could hire some hooves to help out. However, I must insist that Big Macintosh be allowed time to rest and recuperate.
"When can we see him?" Apple Bloom asked.
"You can see him right now actually," Doctor Horse replied. "However, I must ask that you be...
Almost as quickly as me, Applejack rushed past him into the doctor's office. "Mac! Oh, Mac A'h am so sorry!" Without thinking, She threw herself on top of him.
"GAAAARRRGGGHHHH!" Mac screamed as Applejack buried her face on top of his sore barrel.
"NO! GET OFF OF HIM!" The doctor shouted as he tried to pry Applejack off of Big Macintosh. "NURSE REDHEART GET IN HERE RIGHT NOW!"
We were banned from the hospital for the rest of the day. They gave Mac a whole bottle of painkillers and told us he'd have to stay overnight for observation. Applejack took it pretty hard, she hardly said a word once on the walk home.
For the next few days, she stayed close to Mac, checking on him, making sure he was comfortable, and of course reminding him of how sorry she was. Eventually, Mac was able to go outside for short amounts of time. However, he still wasn't fit enough to work, so Applejack offered to pick up the slack for him. Which is where everything started to go downhill.
Another day on the farm, I got up, went to the bathroom, washed my face, and went down to breakfast. Had breakfast, went upstairs, brushed my teeth, combed my mane and tail, and made my bed. So far, so regular. I sat down on my bed and looked up at the ceiling. The room was silent, save for the ticking of the alarm clock on my nightstand. I still had a few minutes before I had to go out and do my chores. I decided to spend them in the solitude. Unfortunately, that solitude was destined to be interrupted.
My right ear twitched as I heard a faint rumbling in the distance. It was steady, continuous, and concentrated in one place. My vision raced through the walls and over the trees towards a cloud of dust in the distance. It was a herd of cows stampeding down the road in a blind panic, and they were headed right for Ponyville.
Before I could even think about what I was doing, I opened the drawer of my nightstand and grabbed the clothing matrix resting inside. Placing it against my chest, I allowed it to envelop me in the clothing of my native planet. Quick as a flash, I flung open my window and climbed out. The herd was getting closer to town, there was only one way I was gonna make it in time. Like an arrow from a bow, I took to the sky, streaking to avert certain disaster.
Third Pony POV.
Rainbow Dash let out a yawn as she flew over the thatch-covered roofs of Ponyville. It was still early and she wasn't yet fully awake. She was never much of an early bird, preferring to sleep in over getting the worm. Nevertheless, she still had a few more places to check before her morning weather shift was through.
"What the hoof is that?" She said noticing a cloud of dust headed straight for Ponyville. Squinting to get a closer look, Rainbow's eyes went wide at the sight of what looked like a stampede of cows being chased by a shooting star.
"Look, up in the sky!" One of the cows gasped. The entire stampede looked up to see a red ball of directly above them.
"It's a bird," cried a Cracker,
"It's a phoenix," declared a Hereford.
"It's a dragon!" screamed a Holstein, bringing the entire herd to a screeching stop.
"A dragon!" The entire herd bolted in the opposite direction.
Comet's POV again.
"No no no, not that way! Stop!" I called out, but it was no use, I had been so determined to catch up to the herd that I hadn't thought about what I was going to do when I reached it. The cows were headed back up the road towards Sweet Apple Acres. And I needed to get after them before...
"Hey!"
...Somepony saw me. Crap, crap, crap, crap, crap.
"Hey get back here!"
Of all the ponies in town, why did it have to be her? I couldn't head back towards Sweet Apple Acres now, that would give away the whole charade. No, I had to find somewhere to disappear to and fast.
With that thought, I went into a half loop and flew towards town.
Third Pony POV.
"Hey get back here," Rainbow Dash shouted as the comet went into a half loop and flew over her head. But she would eat her own wings before she let it get away from her. With the speed that earned her the reputation as the fastest flyer in Ponyville, she darted after it, matching it move for move as it tried to escape her.
No doubt about it, it was the same object that was seen over the Summer Sun Celebration two days before. And she was gonna find out what it was or her name wasn't Rainbow Danger Dash.
Comet's POV
"You're not gonna shake me off that easily," As much as I hated to admit it, she had a point. Every maneuver I pulled, Rainbow Dash matched, sticking to my tail like burs. Below I could hear astonished gasps and murmurs of the townsponies as stood transfixed looking up at the aerial acrobatics above them.
"Look it's the shooting star!" One mare gasped.
"The one from the summer sun celebration," A stallion muttered.
"I told you, Mom, it was real!" A young filly declared.
Great now we had an audience, this was exactly what I didn't need. To make things worse, our chase was headed for the center of town which only meant more ponies were going to see us.
"When the Wonderbolts hear about how I caught you, they'll have to let me join them." Rainbow declared proudly as she raced to catch up to me.
The back of my mane stood on end as the implications of what would happen if she caught me came rushing forward. My secret would be exposed, and everypony would know who I was. I needed to end this chase now, but how? I couldn't fly low to the ground without putting everypony in the square in harm's way. The airspace above the town was mostly clear for now. But if any more pegasi were to join the chase, then we might be dealing with a mid-air collision or two. I had lead to lead us out of town before somepony got hurt. And the best way to get there was to go straight up.
Like a screaming bottle rocket, I began climbing higher and higher, putting on as much speed as I could. The town hall dome dwindled as I flew ever higher. In the distance, I could see Canterlot resting on the side of Mt Equis. Even further away, the Pegasi city of Cloudsdale floated gracefully across the sky. I certainly couldn't lay low in either of those places. My best bet was probably the Everfree Forest. Nopony in their right mind would think to look for me there.
"Hah, you won't shake me with flight school tricks like those," I looked behind to see Rainbow Dash was still behind me, a confident smirk spread across her face. Desperate I went into a series of rolls and turns, trying to incorporate every flight maneuver I knew about, in the hopes of shaking the pegasus off my tail.
"You're good, but I'm better," She boasted as she matched me move for move. It soon dawned on me that I wouldn't be able to outmaneuver her. So I turned to the only option I had left, speed.
My coma erupted in a flash of red light as I rocketed toward the Everfree Forest.
Third Pony Pov.
Rainbow Dash had to shield her eyes as the Comet released a flash of light, But she didn't slow down even slightly. She was determined to catch it and find out what it was. It wasn't a normal shooting star, that much she knew for sure after she saw how it tried to get away from her. But nothing got away from Rainbow Danger Dash. The Comet was getting faster, trying to outpace her, trying to beat her. Rainbow wouldn't allow that. She was the fastest flier in all of Equestria, she was the Element of Loyalty, and she was going this thing why that was.
As she put on more speed, Rainbow Dash suddenly felt a familiar feeling, A feeling she hadn't felt in a long time. A vapor cone began to form around her.
"I have you now," She said with a smile. There was a crack like distant thunder and then the sky lit up in an aurora of color.
Comet's POV.
"WHAT IN EQUESTRIA?" I gasped as I saw a flash of light erupt behind me, sending a shockwave of many colors out in every direction. I was so entranced by its display that I didn't notice the supersonic projectile headed toward me until it was too late.
WHAM!
Something crashed into me from behind sending me tumbling towards the ground. My senses overloaded as a thunderous roar washed over me. I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth as my brain seemed to catch on fire. I forced my eyes into a squint and out of the corner of my eye, my telescopic vision spotted Rainbow Dash falling toward the ground. The collision had knocked her unconscious and sent her into a death spiral.
"Oh no!" Fighting through the pain, I willed my body to right itself in mid-air. Then with as much speed as I could put on, I rushed to Rainbow's rescue. My neural synapses were still surging, but my conscience pushed them aside. My only thought at that moment was saving Rainbow Dash. Somehow with just feet left to the forest canopy, I swooped under her upside down and grabbed her wrapping my forelegs around her barrel.
I felt a rush of euphoria, I had done it. With the crisis averted, I quickly checked her over with my X-ray vision. Her heart was beating slower accounting for the unconsciousness. Fortunately, aside from a mild concussion, her head hadn't sustained any serious injuries. Made sense why she was so hard-headed I guess. Still, I needed to get her to the hospital as soon as possible.
I landed in an empty clearing just up the road from the hospital. After gently setting Rainbow Dash down on the grass, making sure not to drop her head, I pressed the emblem on my chest. In a flash of light, my koltonian costume vanished back into the hoof-sized emblem. I reached back to place it in my saddlebags, only to find it wasn't there.
"Oh no, I left my saddlebags at home." I couldn't run to the hospital carrying it in my hoof and I couldn't leave it here where somepony might find it. With no other option, I popped it in my mouth and headed for the hospital, clenching it in my teeth as I ran. Hopefully, I'd think of something before I got there.
The entrance to the hospital was clear when I arrived.
"The flowerbed," I mumbled as I ran over to the row of flowers planted around the sign. I dug a small hole placed the matrix inside and covered it up. With that out of the way, I ran to the front door to give a little performance.
"Help! Somepony help!" I shouted as I pushed open the front door, panting rapidly to make it seem like I was out of breath. Immediately the Receptionist got up from her desk and galloped over to me.
"What's wrong?" She asked concerned.
"I was walking down the path out there when I heard a loud crash," I explained. "When I went over to see what it was, I found a pegasus lying on the ground. She looked hurt and wasn't moving, so I came here."
"Alright wait here," The receptionist said. "I'll be right back." A few seconds later she came back with two paramedics.
"Alright, where is this Pegasus?" One of them asked me.
"Follow me, I'll show you," I said.
I led the paramedics to where I'd left Rainbow Dash. Luckily they didn't ask me any questions. They simply loaded her onto a stretcher and took her back to the hospital. When we arrived in the lobby, I found Doctor Horse was waiting for me.
"Apple Comet, I'm surprised to you again so soon." He said as he watched the paramedics carry Rainbow Dash down the hall. "What happened to her?"
"I dunno," I answered. "I was walking down the road when I heard something crash in the distance. I went over to see what it was and that's when I found her."
"I see," The doctor concurred. "Well, it's a good thing you did. You may have saved her life. By the way, how's your brother doing?"
"He's getting better," I said. "He's able to go out for walks a few times a day.
"That's great, just a reminder he's not to do any labor for the next few weeks."
"He knows, he's not stubborn like Applejack," I said.
"Thank Celestia for that," Doctor Horse sighed with relief. "Well, I better be going, duty calls. Why don't you help yourself to a lollipop on your way out?" With that, he turned and walked down the corridor.
I walked out of the hospital, lollipop in my mouth. The satisfying taste of a job well done. I quickly retrieved my clothing matrix from the flowerbed and donned my costume from behind a tree. Like a streak of light, I headed home taking the long route around the outskirts of Ponyville. I'd had enough excitement for one day, and it wasn't even noon yet.
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REALLY good job on the action, exchanges, characterizations and future chapter set-up here. I LOVED the lead-off to the "Applebuck Season" episode as well as Rainbow chasing Comet (and pulling off the Sonic Rainboom MONTHS sooner than in canon [even if Rainbow got knocked out in the process]).
I think he took a green apple flavored lollipop. He has been raised an Apple after all.
I think he needs to figure out flying first as Rainbow’s ego will not take this lightly. Plus he really needs to find his ceiling so he can just go higher then Rainbow. Unfortunately I think Rainbow is not going to be liking this at all as it will keep showing her up.
Grape. The same as twilights favorite smelling shampoo.
Is Apple too obvious?