One Last Flight

by Prismfire Productions

Occulsion Zone

Rainbow Dash wandered down the hallways of the Holiday Inn that the Wonderbolts had decided to crash at overnight. She had been the last one up, grumbling when she realized that she had slept through her alarm. Then again, after the night that Twilight and Pinkie had given her, it was expected that she would be extra tired. As she walked, she thought of how the three women had talked the previous night, a talk about the future that gave her a small comfort in her heart for when the chase was over. For now, her thoughts were primarily focused on the day ahead, wanting to cover as much ground as possible with the available sunlight in order to get into a more favorable position. After all, just because they needed sleep, the front and Tropical Storm Alex did not care and kept on moving closer to the Voodoo City.

Entering the lobby where the breakfast bar was set up, she could see the rest of her team was already hard at work, with Twilight and Pinkie discussing the SPC outlook and Spitfire looking on Google Maps for the fastest route east with minimum traffic and Soarin was monitoring TS Alex. The others were doing idle chatter, acting as if nothing was wrong, a strange calmness that Rainbow knew would vanish once they got on the road.

“Attention everyone, a word if you please?” Rainbow’s declaration alerted everyone to her presence, all eyes snapping over and looking at the veteran tornado chaser. Right away they could tell that something was wrong from how set her face was, her words lacking any and all emotion, and silence set upon the team like the eye of a hurricane. “I know that I normally do not do this until later, but I want to give everyone a quick debrief on my thoughts regarding the upcoming situation.”

“Breaking from routine? Must be serious indeed,” Thunderlane said, quickly drawing the ire of everyone else as they deadpanned at his interruption and making him feel rather sheepish as a result. “Um, sorry boss, please continue.”

“Thanks for apologizing,” A smile, quick to form, vanished almost immediately as it showed. It was just enough of a gesture to show that she was grateful for the apology, but was dead set on discussing business. “All of you who have chased with me have seen death and destruction first hand, feeling zero pulses from colling bodies and hearing the cries of despair from those clinging to life buried in the rubble. We have seen crops blown away, foundations slabbed clean, and so much worse during our time as the Wonderbolts. I may have a God-given gift for sniffing out tornados, but as much as it is a blessing to get us in position for our research and for rapid response to towns decimated by Mother Nature, but it is also a curse knowing in my gut that those who are not prepared are likely to die. With that being said, there is someone amongst us who has not seen it in person. So, before we press forward, I ask for her to say her thoughts.”

All eyes went straight to Twilight, waiting for her reaction. While the part of her who had spent her entire career in the lab immediately paled at the thought of seeing such devastation with her own two eyes instead of from the safety of her lab, a new and growing part of her took charge. Aided by the side of her that was a therapist, her mind was instantly made up on what her course of action was going to be.

“Death is part of life, and is something that we all have to face eventually.” Twilight’s answer had an immediate effect, with everyone giving a solemn nod and Pinkie giving her right arm a vice-grip squeeze. Considering that her side job involved helping people through trauma and depression, she saw how those skills would come in handy while the others did clean up and rescue. “While I have been lucky enough to have not experienced the same horrors you all have, that changes today. No matter what I may see, I will not run. I will weep for the fallen, but still help those I still can, I am a Wonderbolt after all. We are all in this together and have each other’s backs, no matter the outcome we will do our part.”

“You are indeed a Wonderbolt Twi,” Rainbow smiled, feeling proud that her fiancee had put together such a morale booster on the spot, and she could see by the others’ reactions that they were pumped at the impromptu speech. “Now then, moving on to our objectives. While New Orleans and the Louisiana coast are our ultimate concern, for now we need to focus on the threat
from the cold front. Alex’s outflow is no doubt throwing more moisture further north, thus raising instability and dews. Therefore, we could have an outbreak before the main event.”

“Me and Twilly have been keeping an eye on that for you Dashie,” Rising up out of her seat, she walked over to Rainbow before turning to look at the others. “The Storm Prediction Center has put out a special advisory Day 1 and 2 outlooks, with an Enhanced Risk starting this afternoon and evening, and a Moderate Risk in effect for tomorrow. Ryan, Reed, and others have already spread the word on their socials, and both will be live streaming tonight and tomorrow.”

“Good, Reed still got his rep as a former Weather Channel employee and the Y’all Squad always shows up in good numbers.” Rainbow said, feeling a bit more confident about people taking the upcoming threat a bit more seriously. “Tag Ryan on Twitter and see if we can be special chasers for the upcoming event.”

“Wait, you serious?” Pinkie asked, slightly shocked that Rainbow even suggested it. It was well known that Ryan self-employed his own team of storm trackers, so to even ask was something that stumped the energetic woman. “I mean, I can ask, but that doesn’t mean that he will respond. He probably is going to be busy organizing his own team and directing them where to go.”

“Then reach out to them too, you know who they are,” Rainbow was determined to get the collaboration going, with the Wonderbolts being affiliated with the NWS, she knew that the Youtube weather sensation would not pass on the opportunity being offered. While Pinkie started reaching out via the necessary channels, Rainbow turned her attention back to the others. “This is going to be a long few days, so I hope that you all got some decent sleep last night, going to need the energy for when we get into the bear cage.”

“It sounded like you were in one last night boss,” Spitfire quipped, making Rainbow, Twilight, and Pinkie all furiously blush as the rest of the group smirked and snickered. “If anyone is going to need energy, its gotta be you who needs it the most. After all, you are our leader, and we are all counting on your guidance.”

“T-true,” Rainbow stammered, suddenly feeling a bit hot under her collar. Luckily for her, she got a welcome distraction when her phone buzzed and seeing the number, she excused herself to deal with an important business matter. “This is Dynamo Dash, how may I be of assistance?”

---

The following few hours had been done in relative silence, an air of nervousness surrounding the group as they made their way towards their rendezvous point. After Rainbow had received the phone call from none other than Director Platinum herself, the plan that Rainbow had carefully planned had been thrown out the window. Not wanting to draw the ire of the head of the National Weather Service, she had taken the lead and led the team up to Waco. Nobody, not even Rainbow, knew what was in store, but when the person at the top of the organization directly gives you orders, you listen. To everyone’s surprise, Luna was waiting for them at a warehouse rental.

“Hello everyone,” Luna said, waiting for the group to assemble around her before starting to speak. “On the behalf of the Director, we issue our apologies for drawing your attention away from your planning, but we both thought this was pressing enough that gathering you all ASAP was in everyone’s best interest. I heard from a little birdie through the grapevine that some of your equipment is, for lack of a better term, outdated.”

“Yes mam,” Pinkie said, speaking up for the rest of the Bolts since she had been their leader after Rainbow had switched companies and left the crew. Countless hours of trying and failing to fix Ol Blindspot haunted her mind, to the point she had to suppress a shudder. “What spare resources I had went to the Specials, and since that was before we found out our funding had been cut and we were facing unemployment, we have been trying to make do with what we have.”

“I see,” Luna frowned, making a mental note to scold Celestia later for even putting the Wonderbolts in their bind to begin with. She knew how valuable the unit was when firing on all cylinders, from how many articles were available online to the numerous references that Rainbow had on her resume. “Well then, as you all are probably aware, the NWS primarily focuses on post-storm surveys and related damage reports. Verification has always been our top priority, so as such, we really do not have “storm mode” equipment.”

“Madame Dir-” Rainbow started to say, only for Luna to hold up her hand.

“I was not finished Rainbow,” Luna said, lowering her hand and clearing her throat. “As I was about to say, verification has always been our top priority. We have always done this via our survey crews and looking at mPings and relying on radar, but even I have to admit that perhaps the best way to verify our results is by a team on the ground. Now, admittedly, I think that even you all can say that the equipment you are currently using is not cut out for the current situation so I managed to pull a few strings and call in a few favors.”

Hitting the remote that had been hidden in her suit pocket, the doors to the warehouse behind her slowly opened. What Rainbow and the others saw made their jaws job, it was a fleet of brand-new vehicles with top-of-the-line instruments. Each had a custom cyan wrap with twin lightning bolts that entered a custom decal on the hood of the vehicle. The decal itself was a modified version of the NOAA logo, with the lightning bolts replacing the twin wings and WONDERBOLTS arching above the intersection point. Below where the bolts crossed, a tornado twisted to the bottom of the logo, completing the look.

“Woah,” Rainbow was in awe, while several things had crossed her mind on the drive from El Dorado, being gifted with a brand new fleet had not crossed her mind in the slightest. Even her current F450 had been around the office for a few years before she had been hired on, but the truck that was beckoning her looked straight off the showroom floor. “H-how did you manage to get this together so fast?”

“As I said, I managed to pull a few strings with people who had connections,” While the answer was a lie, one that Luna could tell Rainbow was highly skeptical of, she was not about to tell her that Platinum herself had arranged for the fleet to be delivered and covered all the costs. “Anyway, each is equipped with a CB radio, something that I know you take a particular interest in having.”

“For a wide variety of reasons,” Rainbow said, crossing her arms in a slight huff. While she was thankful for the gift, she was set on finding out the truth at some point. “Though, I guess with us getting the new fleet, our proposal was approved?”

“It was,” Luna smiled, seeing the life flair into the eyes of the rest of the Wonderbolts the moment the news registered in their brains. “As of this moment, you are all members of the National Weather Service, and there is something else too. Rainbow, you and Twilight are no longer going to be in the office, instead spearheading our new Mobile Chaser Unit. Included in it is a 10% pay bump and hiring individuals for your own data processing team.”

“That,” Rainbow was at a loss for words. When she had taken the position at the NWS, she had fully accepted that her chasing days were over, which was part of the reason why she did not argue Twilight accepting the proposal to do one last chase. It was a chance for her to relive her glory years one final time before settling in behind a desk and having to analyze models and patterns in conjunction with the SPC. However, now she did not have to worry about that, instead being able to focus on dealing with the chasing aspects herself. “Thank you Madame, you have no idea what this means to me.”

“Pardon, but may I make a small request?” Twilight’s question caught the attention of Luna, who raised an eyebrow as she waited for the woman to continue. “Is it too much to ask that Pinkie be given the same position as me and Rainbow? If we are going to be our own unit, the more we have to split the workload the better. Besides, if it were not for her, Rainbow would not be where she is today. It is a small gesture, but one I find worthy of her station… if it is within the budget that is.”

“Granted,” Luna answering without a second thought gave both Rainbow and Twilight pause, making them both wonder where the sudden influx of funds were coming from. However, with time being pressed, they decided not to push the issue as Luna stepped aside. “Go on, get all your stuff transferred and head out, the front is still coming you know.”

“Yes mam,” Flashing a group salute, each scrambled to get their items and provisions transferred, but with Pinkie and Twilight taking command of that while Rainbow tested the CB systems and transferred the channel sheets over it seemed like it was no time at all before the group was out on the road once more. Feeling a bit bold, and wanting to give the new vehicles a breaking in, Rainbow grabbed up the CB and queued it. “Yo Vapor, do me a favor and see if there are any pop-up showers in the area. Over.”

“Standby, over.” Passing the CB over to Twilight so she could focus on the road, Rainbow relaxed into her seat as all the tension seemed to pour from her shoulders. It was not long until the CB crackled to life. “Boss, there is a storm over near Crockett that looks to be a slow-moving hailer at only twenty-five knots to the Northeast. Shear and updraft profiles match it and a Severe Thunderstorm Warning has been issued. Do you copy?”

“We copy,” Twilight said, glancing over and waiting for the signal from Rainbow, who gave a nod in return as she cued up “Through the Fire and Flames”. “Lets go get it.”

“Roger,” Thunderlane said, cutting in as he assumed his role as navigator. “Fastest route to get in front of it is to continue along Highway 84 through Palestine and Rusk, then bank right onto 204 down to Cushing. Considering how slow the storm is moving, we should be able to beat it there seeing as how we are already over halfway to Rusk.”

“Over,” Hanging up the CB and listening to the rest of the team doing their call outs, Twilight could not help but notice Rainbow was not smiling as she took her lover’s hand. “What is wrong dear?”

“A discrete cell like that in the environment that is being primed is never a good thing, we both know this from HRRR runs,” Rainbow said, pushing the truck’s speed up to 80 as a feeling started to settle into her gut. “This is not even close to the main event and already getting a precursor hail core has me concerned that I initially underestimated the environment. Send out a group text to the offices to increase balloon launches over the next few days, I want to see how the cap is doing aloof.”

“You don’t think that a High Risk should be issued, do you?” Twilight asked, her own worry levels rising as she sent out the text. “You know the implications of that love, a lot of people would freak out.”

“I am not saying that yet, but at minimum it should be a high end Moderate,” Weaving through traffic like water in a river bank, Rainbow could see the building cloud tops off to her southeast. Tranquil, fluffy white mixed in with an angry gray as she felt the pressure slightly dip. “The sooner we get on top of this thing the better, but something in my gut tells me that this setup is different than most, I just can’t shake it.”

“That in itself is concerning,” Twilight frowned, knowing that when her fiancee had a gut feeling it often happened. Choosing to distract herself, she decided to open Twitter, and much to her surprise a DM was waiting for her. “Hey hun, Ryan gave the all clear on the collaboration, he just wants our dashcam stream info and wants to know the compensation price.”

“Tell him this system is free, the lives of the public are more important than monetary gains or losses. Send that word for word.” Rainbow let loose a sigh of relief that she did not know she had been holding in. The collaboration had more than one purpose in her mind, not only giving Ryan a direct relationship with the NWS, but also announcing to the public that the Wonderbolts were back in full force. It was well known, thanks to Pinkie’s post on Facebook, that the group was facing trouble with disbanding lurking on the horizon. With this grand re-debut, she knew that the NWS would soon have new funds rolling in. “While you at it, send him our dash stream link so that it will be up when he goes live, and let him know we are on the hail core.”

“On it,” Following Rainbow’s instructions, Twilight was amazed at how fast word spread amongst wxtwitter like a proverbial wildfire. Soon, it was not long before her own twitter handle started to gain attention, followers racking up in such rapid succession that it made her phone start to overheat from how fast she had to keep refreshing. “Well, it seems like word got out rather quickly, the news has gotten a lot of retweets already.”

“The more that get the info, the more lives that we can save,” Rainbow had done the song and dance many times with severe outbreaks, knowing full and well that outreach was one of the biggest factors in preventing fatalities. With storms having the potential to move at interstate speeds, every second saved with advanced warning was another second that could be used to get out of harms way or into shelter. “Got to ask hun, what do you think of how everything's going so far?”

“Sure does beat sitting at a desk pouring over model data,” Twilight’s answer earning a raised eyebrow from Rainbow as the weather convoy drew closer to the hail storm, turning onto the aforementioned road towards Cushing. “Think about it, even the models struggle at times with latent heat due to how the terrain changes from fields to heat islands from large cities. The resolution just is not there yet, but being out here on the road seems a lot more freeing than the comfort of the lab. Sure, the risk is higher, but it seems like it is more enjoyable in this position.”

“It is, to me anyway,” Rainbow sighed, thinking back to when she was just a greenhorn herself. Her and Pinkie had went through a lot over the years to earn their reputation for being one of the top chaser units in the United States. It had been a brutal grind to get to where they were, and she was thankful for both the experiences and connections she had made along the way. “To be honest? I would have missed every second of this when I was to take my position in the office. Being in charge would have been nice and all, but it still would not compare to being out here on the road. Meeting people, listening to their stories, and helping communities regrow is so fulfilling. “It is kinda funny though, we have not even started a proper chase mode and it seems like you are already hooked.”

“Hooked like an echo top, and can you blame me?” Despite the danger that she knew that she would eventually face, Twilight was feeling like a young girl again like when she had gotten her first home weather kit as a Christmas present. The darkening skies to her right served as a physical reminder that even non-tornatic storms could catch people off guard and cause problems. “If this is going to be part of my new duties, I am going to dive into my duties head-on. Still, I got a feeling that there is something on your mind that is bothering you, want to talk about it now before things get too busy or would you rather wait until after things settle back down?”

“After, I need some time to process my emotions, and I rather wait until I can fully do so,” Slowing down as she entered Cushing proper, Rainbow lead the group down a few side roads and ended up in a field just southwest of town, in perfect position for an intercept as the group got ready to set up. Jumping out of her own vehicle, Pinkie beat Rainbow into getting one of the Specials primed for gathering information. “Need some help Pinks?”

“Yeah, the bottom left strap is stuck and I can’t reach it from here,” Pinkie said, struggling a bit to get the tension out of the anchor cable that secured MACH I to the flatbed they were loaded on, but after a bit of help from Twilight it was free and off the trailer. “Alright, MACH I is deployed, lets move!”

“Boss, we have a problem!” Spitfire said, grabbing everyone’s attention and making everyone rush over to the mobile lab where the radar station was located. “Velos are picking up, 43 inbound and 27 out, this might drop a funnel if it keeps tightening up.”

“You have got to be shitting me,” Jumping into the mobile lab, Rainbow slid Spitfire off to the side as she waited for the next scan to come through. When it did, she could see the tell-tale signs of a forming tornado, with a forming hook on the storm signature and the overall circulation starting to ramp up. Considering the proximity to Cushing, Rainbow looked downstream to see the other cities that may be affected and what she saw made her gulp. While there were several small towns in the storm’s path, including Dotson and Carthage, just across the Louisiana state line lay a major population center. “Shreveport…”

“I noticed that too,” Spitfire said, leaning back in her seat and crossing her arms. “I am sure that the folks back in office can see this too, but it is your call on what we do from here.”

“Reposition a bit south to fully deploy the MACH I for starters,” Rainbow said, taking full control as the others awaited their orders. She knew that there was no way that they were going to get far enough ahead of the storm to deploy more than one, so even if the organizing cyclonic spin dropped after passing the zone, it was still a valuable test run for the sensitive gear. “Twi will be riding with Pinkie while I take point, as for the rest of you, you know what to do.”

“Got it,” Not wanting to make a scene in front of everyone, Twilight got into the passenger seat of Pinkie’s vehicle and waited until the woman got in to finally vent the question. “Pinkie, why did Rainbow have me ride with you instead of her?”

“Just in case the worse happens,” Pinkie did not need to elaborate to get that point across, Twilight shuddering at the implications that were being implied as the team raced down state road 225 to get into a better position. “She even made me ride with the others back before she left, so don’t think it is anything personal. We are both her partners after all.”

“True,” Twilight chuckled, thinking back to the conversation the previous night, and the resulting fun thereafter. “Bet that feels good to say about Rainbow again for you, but the question is, what about us?”

“I am going to treat you the same way I do her, you are my girlfriend after all,” Pinkie giggled, reaching over and ruffling Twilight’s hair with her right hand before placing it back on the wheel. She could hear Rainbow and Spitfire talking back and forth on the CB channel, but for now that was in the background in her mind. “I want to get to know you better, and hopefully we can get as close to each other as we are to Dashie. After this outbreak is over, how about I treat you to dinner, just the two of us so we can have those kind of deep talks between partners as their relationship grows?”

“I would love that,” Twilight smiled, knowing full and well that Rainbow would not object to missing out on the planned date once the purpose got revealed to her. However, her attention was quickly drawn elsewhere as another vehicle passed them to the left, the deep purple paint job making the black lightning bolts almost invisible, only seen by the yellow trim that arched along them. At first, she paid them no mind, that is until she saw the chevy swerve to the right, sending Rainbow off the road in an evasive maneuver and slashing the left front tire while making Twilight hop on the CB. “Holy shit, you ok Rainbow?!”

“I’m fine, just keep driving,” Ignoring the normal protocol for the radios, Rainbow let out an audio sigh before speaking again. “Got a few calls to make and see about getting a tow, meet me up at the tire shop in Mt. Enterprise. This just got personal between me and Dust.”

“10-4 Dashie, over and out,” Pinkie closing the CB made Twilight realize that her partner had taken it out of her hand without her noticing, but Pinkie could tell that the newest member of the Bolts was clearly a bit rattled by what she had just seen. “Relax Twily, Dashie is ok, that is all that matters.”

“B–but,” For a brief moment, Twilight’s mental processing power failed her, but soon rebounded as she started to calm her nerves. “Yeah, you’re right, but who was that and why did they try to make Rainbow crash? It seemed like that was someone she knew to address them by name.”

“An old associate of ours, Lightning Dust,” Pinkie said, a bit of venom seeping into her tone as she spoke the culprit’s name. “Went to school with Dashie, graduated together even, but soon she became jealous of our lovely’s ability to predict tornadoes. So, one day after a huge fight she left us and went and joined Accuweather to try and advance their computer systems to try and outmaneuver Dashie. She is in it for the money and personal glory instead of the science and wanting to save people’s lives.”

“Wow, she sounds like a total bitch then,” Twilight, even though she had never met Lightning Dust, and knew better than to judge a book by its cover, she had a feeling that should the two ever crossed paths that she would need to be held back from doing something stupid. “Still, why would she try and run Rainbow off the road like that? It makes zero sense.”

“It makes a lot more sense than you realize dear,” Banking north up Highway 259, Pinkie noted the radio chatter had switched from the storm to various means of what each would do to Lightning. It set off something deep in her core, long buried in the distant realm of her childhood experiences, and it was something that took control as her curls fully deflated and snatched up the CB. “Everyone, SHUT IT! Yes, what Dust did was bad, but be thankful that it was not any worse. Keep in mind that it was fully captured on our dashcam so if anyone asks or she gets defensive on twitter we will just release the footage. Regardless, that waste of oxygen should not be the primary focus here, there is a developing tornado that could potentially endanger lives. Remember, we are storm chasers, not vigilantes so FOCUS!”

“Wow,” Twilight was surprised at how fast the radio went dead silent at Pinkie’s outburst, only for a flurry of activity to come through regarding the tornado track and velocity couplet. “Does not take much for them to fall in line does it?”

“They know not to get on my bad side,” Pinkie snarled, pausing to calm herself down and collect her emotions before they got out of control. “Anyway, as I was saying, even in this line of work people want to be the first to get a scoop for notoriety and it can be absolutely ruthless at times. TV networks and news stations often do payouts for footage, so broadcasting rights play a part in it trying to get the most photogenic images possible. That, my dear, is the wonder of nature baby.”

Author's Note:

Surprised? Considering the recent tornado outbreaks, I decided to dust this one of the shelves and give an update. If you want one of the best weather mets to follow on Youtube, go and follow Ryan Hall here for all your weather coverage and remain weather aware! ~Lily https://www.youtube.com/@RyanHallYall