Empire of Mercy

by Daelyx Len Auphydas

Rainbow Dash Flies West

Rainbow Dash trots in through the door of her home with considerably more enthusiasm than she had left it earlier that day. It's still not that late in the day, and her mother and father are currently having breakfast at the table. But as soon as Rainbow Dash opens the door, they both whirl around, faces lighting up.

"Oh, sweetie, you're back! Did you have fun with your friends?" Windy asks, and Rainbow Dash shrugs.

"Maybe. Not important right now. I've thought it over, and I want to go to Canterlot." Rainbow Dash announces, not mincing words. Once she made up her mind, that was all there was to say.

Windy Whistle blinks at Rainbow Dash, surprised. "Just like that? After all that fussing about you did this morning?"

Rainbow Dash nods, and jumps up on one of the chairs to talk to her more directly. "I made up my mind, what more is there to say?" Rainbow Dash states, bluntly. "I mean, I gotta go tell my friends I guess."

Bow walks up by his daughter and ruffles her mane. "There's the Dashie we know, always eager to run off at a moment's notice!" But after that statement, his tone turns more serious. "But, that might be for the best. Cloudsdale will be heading south soon and the trip will only get longer. I'm afraid you'll probably have to fly there, the train from Ponyville isn't operational yet, and the forest is too dangerous to cross on foot." Bow frowns. "That's quite the journey to undertake. I should go with you."

"No!" Rainbow Dash rejects the offer quickly, shaking her head so quickly her mane whips from side to side. "No, no, I can get there on my own just fine.." I do not want my first impression in Canterlot to be getting a noogie from Dad... Rainbow Dash groans internally at the thought.

"But, honey, it could be dangerous..." Windy protests, but the filly just jumps up onto the counter, striking a bold pose.

"You're always telling me how awesome I am, but you don't think I can fly to Canterlot? I could fly there with one wing tied behind my back!" Rainbow Dash boasts. "Watch me!"

"That won't be necessary!" Windy quickly relents, sighing. "Alright, sweetie, we just worry about you, you know that. But you are pretty amazing. If you were any other pony..." Windy shakes her head. "Well, Celestia themself showed up and seemed to think you could do it, given that they didn't give you any other way to reach them... So I guess that's good enough for us." Windy looks at Bow to confirm, receiving a nervous nod in return. "But, I want you to write to us as soon as you get there! And don't you even think about leaving us out of the loop, young lady, understand?" Windy tries to say firmly, although the impact is lost as she starts tearing up at the thought of her daughter going away for a prolonged period of time.

Uh-oh. Better get out of here before the waterworks start. "Well, there's no time to waste! I'd better set off now if I wanna get there in time, Cloudsdale is moving tonight!" Rainbow Dash blurts out, eager to get going.

"Woah there, Dashie, are you sure you're ready to go, just like that?" Bow asks, reluctantly.

But Rainbow Dash was prepared for such a question. "I can’t keep the princess waiting, can I? What if they change their mind? And I’m sure they’ll have whatever I need in Canterlot, anyway, so I should only pack the essentials." Rainbow Dash justifies.

Bow and Windy look at eachother, then back at Dash reluctantly. "You... Have a point." Bow admits. "Still, you should at least pack some basic survival equipment. I know you're a good flier, but... Bad things happen to good fliers all the time." He finishes a bit darkly.

If I agree, I'll be able to get out of here faster. Rainbow Dash nods. "Uh, duh, I'm not stupid." ...Even though I wasn't planning to do anything of the sort until you brought it up. Rainbow Dash keeps that thought inside, wanting to make sure to portray herself as responsible and competent as possible. She flies around the house in a blitz of speed, ransacking the rooms to get whatever she felt she would need- Some light saddlebags that wouldn't weigh her down too much, survival flares, and a snack. In ten seconds flat, she is once again standing in front of her parents, fully packed and tapping her foot impatiently. "There! Can I go now?"

Bow and Windy just sit there with their jaws hanging open in awe for a long moment. "You really are amazing..." Windy eventually breathes out, almost in shock. "We'll come see you in Canterlot as soon as we're able to get time off of work. But you have to remember to write to us! We want to know all about everything you get up to!"

"I... I guess we can't keep you around all day, huh?" Bow replies, frowning and glancing out the window. He would have preferred to think this through more, talk to his daughter for longer. But Rainbow has a point- Flying to Canterlot would be much harder if she waited until after the cloud city moved, and it isn't safe to fly at night. Right now is the best time to go. "But be careful, it would kill us if you got hurt!"

Rainbow Dash nods. That was all the excuse she needs. "Alright Canterlot, here I come!", and with that a prismatic blur bolts out the door.

---

"You're really going, huh? This is... Really happening?" Gilda sounds unusually hesitant, her cool veneer slipping for just a moment. "You're sure?"

Rainbow Dash nods, confidently. "What’s the point in second guessing myself?"

"Well... Alright. You'll write, right?" Gilda asks, an undertone to her voice that suggests nervousness, even reluctance. Rainbow didn't think she'd ever seen the griffin like this before.

"Uh, yeah, of course." Rainbow Dash replies. That sure is going to be alot of letters I gotta write... Rainbow Dash groans a little inwardly, trying to keep her reluctance from escaping. Writing is... Not really her strong suite. But if all her friends and parents wanted her to write, then write she would.

"That's awesome! As soon as flight camp is over, I'll be able to see you again!" Cloudkicker beams at Rainbow Dash excitedly. "Oh, there's so much I'd wanna show you in Canterlot, just like you showed me here in Cloudsdale! It's going to be awesome!"

"You know it." Rainbow Dash winks and hoofbumps the pegasus, then the griffin in turn- Even if Gilda was oddly hesitant about it. "Well... I don't think I can wait much longer. I've got to get a move out if I wanna get to Canterlot before evening."

"Yeah, alright." Gilda snorts, the cool veneer sliding back into place. "Cloudkicker and I gotta... Go... Practice our flying, anyways."

Rainbow Dash winces a little at the coldness in her friends voice. Just what's going on with her? But despite that, she flaps her wings, pulling into the air. "Alright, you two. Stay cool, now!" Rainbow Dash salutes the two of them one more time before zipping away.

Despite what she said, there was still one more stop she had to make before she left Cloudsdale for real. Returning to her oldest friend Fluttershy's house, she knocks at the door. A faint-looking Fluttershy peaks through the curtains of the window, trying to be stealthy, though Dash saw her immediately. The yellow pegasus then disappears for several moments, before the door slowly opens, with Fluttershy inside looking a little pale.

"H-hello?" Fluttershy asks, unconfidently. "Did you forget something?"

Rainbow Dash shakes her head. "No. I just came to say goodbye." She takes a deep breath and puffs out her chest. "I've decided to go to Canterlot."

"Oh, wow..." Fluttershy pins her ears back. "Sounds scary... I'm glad you're going, and not me." She shudders a little. "Though it would be nice to see all the animals there. Ah, maybe one day..." She states, wistfully.

"I don't have long... I gotta get going just about now." Rainbow Dash explains, frowning slightly. She almost wishes she could say more, but she wasn't really one for sentimental words. "I... I'll miss you. But I'll come back up and visit when I'm able, alright?" Rainbow Dash promises, before giving her longest lasting friend a quick, awkward hug.

"Please do... I hope you know, I'll miss you alot, Dash." Fluttershy states. "I'll always be grateful for all the ways you've helped me. I wouldn't be nearly this confident if not for your help."

Rainbow Dash resists scoffing at that notion. She wouldn't exactly describe Fluttershy as confident on a good day... But that was not something that needed saying right now. "Well... I gotta go, I guess." Rainbow Dash finally says, reluctantly. "Duty calls." Rainbow Dash shoots one more salute Fluttershy's way, before zipping off. As she goes, she can only dimly hear the 'Take care of yourself, now!' that Fluttershy practically whispers on Rainbow's way out.

---

Goodbye's out of the way, Rainbow Dash lands at the northern edge of Cloudsdale one more time, steeling herself for the trip she would be going on. She still isn't entirely sure how she was able to talk her way out here so quickly, but she can't deny a certain feeling of nervousness looking over the vast distance. She is a good flier—That much she knows, even the princess had recognized it. An amazing flier, even. But still, it's a long way to Canterlot, and she had never had to fly that far before. For that matter, she'd never even touched the ground before, or been near it. It was always just... A distant landscape far beneath her. I wonder what it feels like, to walk around on dirt and rocks. Rainbow Dash wonders idly.

Well... Nothing for it but to go, now. Rainbow Dash's wings buzz to life and she leaps from the edge of the city. It's mostly slightly downwards on the way there, so I should mostly just glide to save energy.

As soon as she catches flight beyond the rim of the city, Rainbow Dash feels her nerves relax. Whatever might await her when she arrives, right now, she is free, soaring through the wild blue skies.

The filly closes her eyes, feeling the wind in her face and running through her feathers. This, right here, is what she lived for. That feeling of pure freedom, the rest of the world just passing by in a blur as she soars through the endless blue yonder. Rainbow Dash opens her eyes, just in time to avoid running head-first into a black stormcloud ahead.

Woah! The filly flaps her wings hard, climbing up over the black cloud. That's right, I'm over the Everfree Forest now! Weather out here is unpredictable, I have to be careful. Rainbow Dash reminds herself, dipping down to the top of the cloud, just enough to dip the tip of her wing in the top. It feels different than the white fluffy clouds she is used to, thrumming with electricity and turbulence. Nopony out here to tell me what to do! Just me and the sky! Rainbow Dash grins broader, and with one hoof she scoops up a chunk of stormcloud just as she passes the outer side of it, watching the dark particles released from it as the small chunk of cloud dissolves.

"Ow!" It takes Rainbow Dash a second to realize the voice came from herself, as a jolt of electricity stings her hoof. “Stupid cloud...” She mutters, shaking the rest of the storm cloud on her hoof off and directing her attention back to the landscape ahead.

The landscape ahead is vast and untamed, not a pony in sight, as she soars across the expansive forest. The sky is unruly, with an easterly breeze and dozens of clouds scattered at various altitudes. It is one of the most interesting skies that Rainbow Dash had ever seen, at least. If nothing else, she would have safe places to rest if she needed them.

It’s only when she glances downwards that Rainbow Dash feels a pang of unease. The forest below her has a grim reputation, and its appearance doesn’t do it any favors either; The canopy seems completely impenetrable, thick with dark needles and leaves. Who knows what kind of things stalk the land in the shadows beneath the treetops? As if the weather moving on its own isn’t bad enough...

As if to fuel Rainbow Dash’s slowly developing feeling of paranoia, an unearthly wail echoes from somewhere far below, standing the fur on the pegasus filly’s neck on end. Ugh, creepy. Rainbow Dash shakes her head and tries to keep her attention on her destination in the mountains, to avoid thinking too long about what could have made such a noise.

“Alright, let’s see if I can get this going again...” Rainbow Dash grins broadly, and tries to imagine like she’s in a race, flapping her wings as hard as she can. C’mon, c’mon, Rainboom! Focusing all of her attention, both of her hooves placed perfectly in front of her face to block the wind at the cost of visibility, Rainbow Dash dives forwards.

There’s a feeling of weightlessness as she bolts through the sky, a familiar rush of exhilaration that reminds her again why flying is her joy and passion. She doesn’t even feel the soreness in her wings, long having since trained herself to ignore it and push further. But as she squeezes her eyes to a slit to not be blinded by the wind passing across her face, every fiber of her being straining to go faster... She stops accelerating, capping out.

C’mon, c’mon! Faster! You can do better than this, you know that! Yet despite telling herself that, she can’t seem to squeeze any more force out of her wings, and at long last, she is forced to break off her descent for fear of crashing into the forest, which is now uncomfortably close. From this range, she can actually see a little bit of what’s inside, a small creek flowing between two rocky ridges covered in moss and foliage.

As she passes by, Rainbow Dash stares at the gap in some degree of wonder. She’d never been near the ground before, and here it is, so close to her. A small part of her urges her to go touch down, explore this whole new world before her.

But a much larger part is frightened by the harsh growling sounds of a fight breaking out somewhere below her. Uh, that’s my cue to leave, I think! Rainbow Dash beats her wings at the air again, using her momentum to climb back into the sky.

But now, with the rush of exhilarating speed having worn off, Rainbow feels the soreness in her wings once again. “Ah, shucks, guess I overdid it again.” The filly groans. She’d used up too much of her energy in that attempt, and now she needs to find someplace to rest.

Powering through the pain, Rainbow Dash soars back up until she feels she is at a comfortable distance from the forest below, landing on a modestly sized stormcloud. It's not an ideal rest point, but she doesn’t particularly care right now.

Compared to your standard wispy or fluffy clouds, storm clouds have more of a physical feel to them. They don’t make as nice of a bed, but the feeling of power inside of them has its own kind of charm. I mean, it's where I belong. Just look at my mark. Rainbow Dash glances back at her flank, smirking to herself. She’d just gotten the thing a day ago and hadn’t really taken the time to look at it much, given everything else that had been going on, but now that she took a moment to actually think about it... She had gotten, undeniably, the coolest Cutie Mark possible.

By performing... The Sonic Rainboom. An old mares tale, yet she had done it. Yet, though that thought was meant to be encouraging, psyching herself up for when she would arrive in Canterlot, a pang of fear enters her heart.

I wasn’t able to do it again. Rainbow Dash bites her lip. Was it just a fluke? What if Celestia asks me to show them what I can do, and I can’t do it? The fear only intensifies as she thinks about it more. The whole reason they wanted me to come was because of what I did, but they didn’t even see it! If I can’t do it again, will they think I’m a fraud? Maybe they’ll send me back to Cloudsdale! Rainbow Dash gulps anxiously.

To turn down the offer would have been one thing. She can just imagine bragging to her friends about how she was so cool that Celestia themself had invited her to Canterlot, and she just turned them down to focus on training. But... To get all the way there, only to be rejected as a failure and have to return to Cloudsdale in shame...

The thought is almost enough to turn the pegasus around on the spot. Maybe she can still get away with it, say she had changed her mind?

No! The thought cries out in her mind with surprising ferocity. No... I'm not a coward. Stop doubting yourself, you’re awesome, you know that. Rainbow Dash tells herself, strutting back up to her hooves as she tries to psych herself up again. Do you really want to wait the rest of your life never knowing if you could have made it?

Of course she doesn’t. The doubt vanishes almost as quickly as it had appeared, resolve quickly returning to her. Her endurance, alas, did not... Her wings still feel sore.

C’mon, you don’t wanna just wait around all day, do you? Rainbow Dash groans, stretching out her wings.

But to her surprise, that sentiment is suddenly reinforced when the cloud in front of her opens its eyes, and she realizes suddenly that it isn’t a cloud at all.

“AHHHH!” Rainbow Dash screeches at an inequinely high pitch, silently grateful nopony is around to see her screaming like the little filly she is, as she bolts upwards, adrenaline giving her the strength to move. The “cloud” moves after her, a long sinuous body of stormy gray and silver linings, with limbs stretching out like the wings of a storm.

In a moment, Rainbow Dash realizes what she is staring at; It's a cloud sprite, an aerial predator that makes its home among the clouds, with a serpent-like body and wings that blend into the clouds where they wait in ambush. The usual advice upon meeting one was to keep your cool, not act scared, and certainly don’t fly away—They would give chase if you did, but could be frightened away if you stood your ground.

Well, it was a little late for that. Rainbow could see not only the one flying after her after she had bolted up, but two more companions joining it, all circling around her. Their predator instincts had clearly already kicked in, and Rainbow Dash isn’t going to get out of it that easily.

So instead, she tucks her hooves into her body and purposefully stalls flying upwards. It’s a trick she had tried a few times when showing off her agility at obstacle courses; It allows her to reverse her direction extremely quickly, though at the cost of all forward momentum. But she doesn’t have much of that to begin with, and the cloud sprites are swooping in for the kill.

“Ow! Ow! Get away from me!” Rainbow Dash kicks at the winged serpents as she starts her dive, little bolts of electricity nipping at her from the stormcloud scales of her pursuers. A particularly strong jolt of electricity pulses through her as one of them bites her tail, thankfully just barely missing her flank and getting only rainbow hair in their mouth instead.

That was way too close! Rainbow Dash glances back, panic building up. She would have to take things up a notch if she wants to lose her pursuers, but as tired as she is, she isn't able to fly at top speed, and she doesn't know how much longer her endurance will last.

As another of the cloud sprites swoop after her, Rainbow Dash commits to a corkscrew dive trying to lose them, her wings batting away the pursuers while only sustaining minor electrical burns in the process. This... Isn’t... Good! The canopy is coming up ahead of her, but she can’t afford to pull up. Gulping anxiously, Rainbow Dash dives down below the tree line.

“Woah!” Rainbow Dash screeches as she barely avoids flying directly into a tree trunk. Thankfully, time spent on maneuvering obstacle courses had prepared her for this, now. Having said that, the visibility is far worse here under the canopy, and the obstacle course didn’t include random branches placed directly in front of her. Nor did it tend to feature three wild animals chasing you who would eat you alive if they caught you!

Rainbow Dash can’t afford to look backwards, given how hard it already is to dodge the upcoming trees, but she can hear her pursuers behind her, screeching and swooping after her- sometimes even feeling the air from their wingbeats.

I’m slowing down, I can’t keep this up much longer... Rainbow Dash realizes with a distinct feeling of cold terror. In desperation, she slams her wings down with all the remaining force she can muster, making one last attempt to break free. The pegasus filly soars out of the tree canopy below her, with the three cloud sprites hot on her tail. Almost literally, as her tail is currently sizzling from the little bolts of electricity that keep impacting it. If she had been a vain pony (Or at least, even more vain), Rainbow Dash might have feared that her tail wouldn’t grow back after this; As it is, she is far more concerned with survival.

“Augh!” Rainbow Dash can’t help but cry out as one of the cloud sprites gets a small nip of one of her legs, a thin stream of blood sailing through the sky behind her. Ok, if I can’t outfly them... Then that leaves me only one choice.

All other options exhausted, Rainbow Dash pitches up once more, stalling in midair even as the cloud serpents swoop in for the kill. In a last, desperate attempt, the prismatic filly puts all of her small body’s strength into flipping her body over, reversing her momentum and direction. Just as the cloud sprite dives for her, all of her strength is put into swinging her rear legs down from overhead.

Both hooves land square on the cloud serpent’s face, using its own momentum against it. For a split second, Rainbow Dash and the cloud sprite seem to hang in midair, blinded by a vibrant flash of lightning pulsing out in no direction in particular... And then, the serpent’s limp body falls through the air, smoke trailing from it. But Rainbow Dash hardly notices any of these things, as by far the strongest jolt of electricity pulses through her legs, eliciting a scream of agony from the filly. Blinded by the pain and flash of light, Rainbow Dash's consciousness begins to fade.

No! A voice inside her jolts her eyes open once again, unable to see still, her vision going dark. Fighting through the pain, Rainbow Dash flaps her wings for dear life, catching herself before she can plummet to her death. Not that it would matter much, if the other two cloud sprites decided to attack.

But her gambit had worked. Intimidated by both the thunderous screech that Rainbow Dash had just let out, and the fate of their erstwhile compatriot, the two remaining Cloud Sprites take off in opposite directions, apparently hoping to find less feisty prey.

Rainbow Dash could barely spare a thought for them, as she desperately flaps with the rest of her energy until she reaches the nearest cloud, hoping with all her heart that this one is safe. “Uuuagh...” Rainbow Dash moans, as she barely pulls herself over the side. That had hurt more than anything else in her life ever had, even that one time she had sprained two ankles at once trying to show off on an obstacle course. But it had gotten her away with her life—she hopes.

Uneasily, she glances back at the sky to make sure her two opponents aren't wheeling back around, but thankfully they are nowhere to be seen. Not that I’d be able to do anything about it if they did come back. Rainbow Dash thinks to herself ruefully, staring down at her rear two hooves. They are blackened and scorched, the hoof cracked with vein-like structures of blood stretching up her legs. “That... Doesn’t... Look good...” Rainbow Dash groans out. She tenses the muscles experimentally, hissing in agony but also some measure of relief. They aren’t paralyzed, just damaged. Too horribly damaged to use right now, that’s for sure.

Rainbow Dash feels tears of pain leaking down her face, and fights to hold them back. "C'mon, big fillies don't cry, big fillies don't cry..." Rainbow Dash hisses to herself, trying to ignore the shaking in her voice. “You gotta be strong and keep it together, I’m sure somepony can help you when you get to Canterlot...” She hisses to herself, trying to stoke the fire inside of her. “You just have to make it there. You just have to make it there.” Her wings still work, and that's what is most important. She has to reach Canterlot if she wants to get any medical attention.

She shuts her eyes tightly, trying to block out the throbbing pain in her hooves. Her wings had not had as much of a rest as they would like, but it doesn’t matter; The sun is declining in the sky, and she needs to get a move on. Besides, the pain in her wings doesn't hold a candle to that in her legs—And the pain in her legs isn’t going to go away just by resting, so there isn’t much point in waiting.

So as soon as Rainbow Dash feels she is able to fly once again, she takes off. Canterlot is not too far away now, the mountains loom just ahead of her, close enough that she can make out the individual platforms and towers now, rather than just the palace. “Just a little farther...” Rainbow Dash steels herself. She does not want her first impression upon reaching her destination to be a filly bawling in pain. So she blinks back her tears, and soars with all her remaining might towards her destination.

Comments

[Jymbroni]

11901963
73 people seem to like it.

[Leviathan Eclipse]

11912422
Probably because it's a great story.

[Jymbroni]

11912493
No shade, just supporting the author.

[Leviathan Eclipse]

11912543
No shade your way either. Just thought we were stating facts