Shattered Rainbow

by TheMajorTechie

Dream

Author's Note:

Just dipping my toes into a less comedic/sci-fi genre to write. Any constructive criticism is gladly accepted.

Rainbow Dash sliced through the air, the wind tumbling through her feathers as she flew alongside the Wonderbolts. They were performing a show for Princess Celestia herself, and it was quite clear that everypony was enjoying the act. After all, it was the anniversary ceremony marking Luna's return to her sister's side. From the sidelines Rainbow spotted her friends, each one of them watching in awe as the pegasus sped forth.

As a final salutation to the Princess, Rainbow separated from the rest of her team, opting instead to soar almost vertically, her wings flapping faster than she had ever pushed them. This was her chance to truly prove herself. Not just to the Wonderbolts, but to Equestria. As the rest of the Wonderbolts began landing and starting their after-show activities, Rainbow only continued to rise. Fewer and fewer clouds obstructed her view as she climbed higher than she had ever gone. Soon enough, the mare had found herself staring down at the miniature scene below, grinning cockily as she mentally prepared for her final act.

A quadruple rainboom.

All at once, her body rocketed downwards, plummeting faster and faster as she folded her wings in to streamline herself. The whispering sounds of the wind filled her ears, and the air graciously tore through her mane as it was strewn free in the air.

One rainboom.

Two.

The ground drew closer and closer by the second, and as it did so, Rainbow rapidly changed her trajectory, opting to instead glide for the rest of the way.

The cheering of the crowd pushed her onwards, and though the increased drag from the redirection had slowed her, she continued to gain momentum.

Three rainbooms.

Four.

A burst of color streamed through the air from all sides, the telltale sign of Rainbow's trademark move. The wind billowed through her wings as the shockwave died down. As the colors began to fade, she began to angle herself upwards again, reaching higher and higher once more. It wasn't part of her practiced routine. Every part of her brain screamed to stop, to turn around and land to ease her aching muscles. But at the same time, another part screeched in return again and again to push further, higher. Faster.

Reach for the skies, and touch the stars.

A tightening in her chest told her that the air was growing thin-- even for a pegasus. And yet she flew higher.

The shallow air billowed through her mane, though second by second, it began to wane. Even against her mind's protest, she somehow only continued to gain momentum.

The voice in her mind continued its pleads for her to stop, but even then, she pushed her wings onward, flapping faster and harder than they had ever done before.

At last, her lungs began to feel as if they were alit with flame. There simply wasn't enough oxygen left to breathe. Her breathing intensified, her lungs trying with all their might to draw in more air by the second. Soon enough, however, a soothing sensation began to wash over the mare, who had finally stopped to enjoy the fulfillment of the strange urge to soar higher.

But then, the sensation turned to dizziness. Dizzyness to downright nausea. Her mind began to become fuzzy, and all over she had become numb. She felt her wings seize for the final moments of consciousness, and she plummeted.

And then she woke.

---

For Rainbow, it wasn't much of a surprise. With her routine crashes, it wasn't too uncommon for her to wake up in a hospital room, a bandage wrapped about her head or wings. On a couple of occasions she ended up with a cast, but that hadn't happened for years.

What was strange was the fact that this wasn't any old clinic, but Cloudsdale University Hospital, one of the best available to pegasi. Confused, she turned to face the window. It was indeed CUH, and judging by the vast, sprawling network of skyline infrastructure that was presented before her, she was in the Intensive Care Ward.

She had been admitted to the hospital on multiple occasions before, with ailments ranging typically from sprains to the occasional broken bone. She racked her mind in attempt to remember any time from before she was admitted.

Streams of foggy memories passed through her mind, and yet she still couldn't remember the last time she had been awake.

For minutes, Rainbow stayed silent, her brain attempting to process what could've brought her there.

Crash? Late night drunkenness?

Her mind continued to race as she attempted to trace her memories. She had been performing for Celestia, with the Wonderbolts. The show was in memorium to the return of Luna. She had been picked to lead the show, and along with her stunts, she had performed a final act.

"Quadruple Rainboom," she whispered, remembering the lack of control that had taken her. It had truly been a terrifying experience, to simply stall in midair and drop like she did. Moreso even then Tirek, or the thought of Tank's loss.

A light chirp distracted her from her thoughts.

She turned back to face the wall in front of her. It was lined with various medical devices, blinking and beeping in sync with each other as they monitored her vitals. The room was already growing dark with the sun vanishing beneath the horizon. Rainbow's eyes set upon a calendar hanging on the wall.

How long had it been? Hours? Days?

Rainbow squinted at the calendar. Her vision was still blurred from her rest, and she could only make out the month, in large, block letters.

She couldn't tell particularly however, but judging by her patient tag on her foreleg, she'd been there for far longer than a couple of days. Even longer than the couple of months she had assumed it to be from the calendar.

It had been nearly seventeen years since she had been admitted.

Comments

[ARTL]

O snap.