Phantom Limb

by The Red Parade

nine

Overnight, it began to rain.

It wasn’t unheard of for the desert, but Lightning’s reports showed that there was virtually zero chance of precipitation with the current arrangement of clouds and winds. None of the non-pegasi weather office ponies could offer an explanation, no matter how much Lightning shouted at them.

One of them guessed that the natural magic of pegasi was causing weather anomalies. Another said this was surely a time of doomsday.

The two had to be separated forcefully by deputies, and Braeburn ordered the office closed and sent everyone, including Lightning, home for the rest of the day.

She climbed into bed and lay there with Fiddle wrapped tightly against her non-winged side, and the two stared up at the ceiling listening to the rain. Nobody in town seemed to sleep at all that night.

The next day brought more of the same. The entire town was shut down: nobody dared step outside into the rain. Shops and houses stayed boarded up. The train didn’t even come into town.

Braeburn returned at some point with a newspaper and a grim look. Fiddle and Lightning had reread the headline hundreds of times. They still couldn’t believe it. Every single pegasus in Equestria had flown away, forming a massive flock that moved like a twister.

More would join the flock every day. And not one could attest as to where they were going.

“Surely you’re not the only one without a wing,” Fiddle said. “There’s gotta be someone else out there in the same boat.”

Lightning shrugged. “You heard them talk about how easy it was to get prosthetics done these days. Even then… I dunno if they’d have any more answers than I do.”

They fell silent, listening to Braeburn’s voice flow in from underneath their bedroom door.

“You gotta give me more than that.”

“Consarn it, I can’t!” barked Applejack’s voice. “I dunno any more than you do right now. Twilight went off to Canterlot, and she ain’t talkin’ to nobody. Went up and shut herself in the throne room with Celestia and Luna. Ain’t nobody knows what’s goin’ on.”

That statement twisted a knot into Fiddle’s stomach. Lightning sensed this and hugged her tighter. She always hated making Fiddle nervous.

Lightning took a deep, shaky breath. “Hey.”

“Hm?”

Her wing began to flutter even faster. “I… I don’t want to scare you.”

“Honey, I’m already terrified,” Fiddle said with a sad chuckle. “What’s wrong?”

“If anything happens… If I…” Her wing slapped rhythmically against the mattress. “I love you,” she said with a whimper.

Fiddle turned, a sad look in her eyes as if she knew that

She couldn’t

Keep her

Forever.

“I love you too.”

The rain pattered against their window. “I’m scared,” Lightning whispered.

“I know. Me too.” They leaned in close and pressed their foreheads together, holding their breaths and waiting.

The rain stopped in the morning, and Lightning Dust was gone with it.

Comments

[mushroompone]

This is such a beautifully written piece. I personally have struggled long and hard to give more to Salmon Run, but it eluded me at every attempt. This, though - well, damn, it seems so obvious!! It's creative and simple and works so perfectly as a counterpoint to my weird little story. I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since you shared it with me. I'm so happy to see it posted <3

[The Red Parade]

11830656

awwww thank youuuuuuu Salmon Run is one of my favorite things ever it's so good! I'm glad you liked it!

[AltruistArtist]

This is a fantastic follow up to Salmon Run! I love that it strikes a new tone from the original, encompassing a quiet air of tragedy by asking: what if there was someone who was unable to join the migration because they physically couldn’t? Despite the unusual nature of the circumstances, it still can be understood as this profound unifying experience for all the pegasi involved. For Lightning Dust to be the one left absent from that is especially heartbreaking considering she’s already been exiled many times over from central aspects of pegasus culture.

Also I am eating up the ambiguity laced into how the story concludes. There’s so much thematically that Lightning being gone by the morning could entail, either psychologically or literally — her phantom limb sensation having transmuted into something physical, allowing her to join the thrall of the migration by any means necessary. Or, she merely got up and started walking. Regardless, it’s a devastating end knowing how much Fiddle understood, innately, the inevitability of her leaving.

I’m also wildly curious if there’s more behind the circumstances surrounding how Lightning lost her wing since it feels like something that weighs on her beyond the scope of this story. But even so, from what is expressed in this context, the tension between her feelings of loss and acceptance are tremendous.

Knowing that you’re effectively the CEO of FiddleDust, this story has made me want to get into more of your works with those two! The glimpse of their dynamic here was so sweet, and I am a big fan of unique pairings!