Cutie Mark Chronicles Redux

by ColtClassic

The Time Rainbow Dash Tried Out For The Wonderbolts

Rainbow Dash was alone in a sea of clouds. The last remaining members of the weather patrol had gone to ground a while ago. A number of them had braved the rising winds to try and talk down their boss, but they had all fled before her snarls and threats. Through her rage, the oddly calm thought surfaced that she was probably their former boss at this point. She didn't see Madam Mayor or the Department of Weather letting her keep her post after this stunt. She also didn't care right now.

A wall of grey clouds filled her vision. Her wings beat hard as she sped towards it, faster and faster. At the last possible moment, she twisted her body so that her rear legs were leading. She closed her eyes as she felt herself sinking into the cloud mass. It wasn't the same as bucking a tree; clouds had their own peculiar feel, a sort of soft resistance. If it had been one of the small, white clouds she normally dealt with, it would have burst with the force of her hooves. The dense storm clouds, on the other hand, knew to push back. Her momentum carried her deep into the cloud, stretching the material further and further until it could compress no more. The cloud snapped back, and she was propelled on a new trajectory, riding on the wave of a flash of lightning and the roar of thunder towards another collision

It was a deeply satisfying experience, but the relentless sounds of the wind and thunder couldn't drown out the turmoil in her head. Her heart felled like a tight iron ball in her chest, and she couldn't decide if she wanted to scream or sob. Instead, she settled for ricocheting between the ever darkening clouds, trying to lose herself in the reckless flight.

Legs out. Wings tucked in. A moment of resistance. The rush of speed, and yet another crack of thunder.

Of course, it wasn't enough. The entire sequence of events ran again and again in mind. The nervousness she felt at her audition, coupled with the thrill and the certainty that she had nailed it. The three days of anticipation, unable to sleep as she waiting for that wonderful moment when her future would begin. And then it all came crashing down. She must have read the letter a thousand times, trying to make sense of it, trying to wake up from what seemed like a bad dream.

Dear Miss Dash,

We regret to inform you that you were not selected for recruitment into the Royal Wonderbolts for the upcoming season. This decision was not easy to make, as you were one of many outstanding applicants. Although our recruiting officers were impressed with your performance at the audition, as well as your exemplary achievements at last year's Wonderbolt Academy sessions, a survey of your record raised a number of concerns. The rather lengthy series of disciplinary incidents at your job as Head of the Weather Patrol of Ponyville and at Flight School, especially the occasion of your expulsion thereof, has led us to the conclusion that you are not at the current time ready for the rigor required for a member of Her Majesty's Royal Wonderbolts. We encourage you to return for future selections, when you have perhaps demonstrated a greater sense of commitment. In any case, we wish you luck in all of your future endeavors.

Sincerely,
Her Majesty's Royal Wonderbolts

Tucked beneath this was a short, hoofwritten note.

Sorry kiddo. Wasn't my call. -Spitfire

Rainbow Dash corkscrewed as she burst through a stray bit of grey cloud, and a few strands of the fluffy material trailed behind her. She barely took notice. Spitfire's note in particular had burned itself into her mind.

“'Sorry kiddo',” she growled to herself. “I guess saving a pony's life isn't enough to get them to pull a few strings for you, huh?”

Another mass of stormclouds rose up before her. It was an impressive piece of work. She had let loose Ponyville's entire supply of clouds for the next two months for her improvised storm. In addition to probably losing her job, she realized she was almost certainly going to have to reimburse the Mayor's office for replacing them. Just another thing she didn't give a pile of hayseed about right now.

“Sure, hang out with us at the Gala, come to our little training camp, jump through all our hoops, let us dangle the prize in front of your snout, but when it comes time to grab it, 'Whoops! Sorry, kiddo!'”

Legs out, stretch, snap, BOOM.

She could barely tell which way was up until she came out from beneath the blanket of clouds. It couldn't be later than mid afternoon, but Ponyville looked almost as dark as night. As she leveled out over the town, she could she ponies running up and down the streets. She didn't bother trying to identify any of them, and snorted at their panic. So a few heads would get wet. What did it matter? Her dreams were crushed, and none of them could possibly understand. She veered and up and returned to the storm.

The sound of the wind was nothing compared to the pounding of her heart in her ears. The arcs of lightning around her were a million miles away. She didn't want to think about the storm around her. She didn't want to think about the Wonderbolts or the audition or her job or the future. She didn't want to think about anything at all, so she pushed her legs forward for another kicking launch.

Only this time, the clouds snapped back much more powerfully than she had anticipated. In the split second of contact, she could feel the power of the clouds through her hooves. She spun, tumbling head over hooves, and struggled to right herself. Once she was steady, she found herself really looking at the storm she had created for the first time in hours.

The mass of clouds had grown into an angry mountain, its roiling peaks surrounding her for as far as the eye could see. Lightning jumped between clouds a shade of grey so dark it was almost black. She wasn't an expert on the theoretical side of weather formation, but she guessed that the sheer mass of clouds she had released, coupled with the relentless and aimless bucking she had been applying, had awoken something more than an everyday summer storm. This was a beast, and it was about to descend on the town she loved.

None of this was exactly spelled out in her conscious thoughts. Instead, it was encapsulated in the two words that escaped her mouth in a terrified whisper.

“Oh, ponyfeathers.”

Rainbow Dash beat her wings hard and threw herself into the storm. Her flight was as frantic as it had been moments before, but now it was imbued with a sense of urgent purpose. She racked her brain as she weaved between the towering columns of cloud, searching desperately for a weak spot in the chaotic mess. There had to be a way to defuse the storm. There had to be a way to undo the effort she had so mindlessly put forth. She wasn't cut out for the Wonderbolts, but she was still Rainbow Dash. Years of experience kicking clouds couldn't fail her now

But as the minutes ticked by and the sky around her grew darker and darker, those same years of experience told that it was hopeless. If she had her whole flight crew up her, then maybe then could disperse some of the clouds and at least soften the blow. But she had scared them all off.

Just another stupid mistake.

Just another failure.

Just another blunder by good ol' Rainbow Crash.

“Dashie! Hey, Dashie!”

Rainbow Dash's ears perked up, and her wings flared out and broke her speed. A familiar voice was calling out to her through the storm, and Rainbow's heart dropped into her stomach. She prayed that it was a trick of the wind. Of all the ponies she was putting into danger with her stupid tantrum, she thought, the last one who should be up here in the worst of it was the owner of that voice.

When she was finally able to bring herself to turn around, the first thing that greeted her face was a cold splash of water. The rain was starting to come loose from the clouds, and she was running out of time. Blinking away the water in her eyes, she found herself confronted with a scene as absurd as it was frightening.

Twilight Sparkle's hot air balloon hung in the air before her, the air bag shaking and the basket swaying wildly in the wind. The device seemed unbearably fragile to Dash, but not as fragile as the sole occupant. She could just make out Pinkie Pie's bright pink face as the earth pony waved cheerfully at her, seemingly oblivious to the storm around her.

As she sped toward the balloon, she cursed the storm, she cursed Pinkie's foolhardiness, and most of all she cursed her own stupid flank.

“Hi Rainbow Dash! Listen, um, this storm is cool and all, but down on the ground they're starting to get real worried, and-”

“Pinkie, you've gotta get out of here! It isn't safe!”

“Which is why I came up here to get you, silly!”

Dash was hovering right in front of the pink earth mare, but it was getting hard to see her in the growing darkness and the increasing rainfall. She was struggling to keep herself from being blown away in the wind, and every jolt of the balloon's basket made her heart race in response.

“Look, this whole stupid thing is my fault, so I have to try and fix it, okay? But there's nothing you can do, so just get back to ground and find shelter!”

Pinkie Pie's eternal smile wavered, but her eyes had a determined glint.

“I'm not going down without you, Dashie.”

“Pinkie, don't make me-”

There was a deafening CRACK, and for a split second the world was lost in a flash of brilliant white light.

Slowly and painfully, Rainbow Dash's senses returned to her. The world around her faded back into view, and a high pitched ringing replaced the silence in her ears. For a moment she couldn't figure out what was going, then she realized that she was still in the storm. Lightning had struck, and instinct had somehow kept her wings beating and her body aloft.

The same couldn't be said of Pinkie and the balloon. Far below her, and rapidly vanishing, the bright purple bag had deflated and was trailing smoke as it fell.

“No,” she whispered as she dove. “No, no, no, no, no.”

By now, Rainbow Dash was soaked. The wind pulled at her in every direction, and the whole world was reduced to the beating of her wings and the desperate need to save her friend. As she caught up to the balloon, which was being blown sideways by the wind as fast it was falling, she found Pinkie Pie hanging for dear life to the side of the flailing basket. The mare's normal curly mane and tail were plastered flat by the rain, but she somehow managed to give her pegasus friend a goofy grin.

“Pinkie Pie! I've got you! Just hold on!”

“Rainbow, I think we need to have a talk. Is something bothering you?”

“This isn't the time, Pinkie! Grab my hooves!”

“I know things might seem like a mess right now, but you have to keep your chin up and a smile on your face! Do you know why?”

“I... why?”

“Because I believe in you!”

With this, the pink mare flung herself, legs outstretched, up from the falling balloon and towards her friend. Rainbow Dash's stomach lurched as she saw Pinkie falling through space, but she gave her body one final desperate push and managed to grasp the other pony in her forelegs.

The added weight immediately spent her spiraling out of control. She closed her eyes and flapped her wings, but she was at the mercy of the wind, which flung her about violently, preventing her from righting herself. Instead she held as tight as she could to Pinkie Pie and did her best to slow their inevitable descent. She couldn't tell how long their fall lasted, but the seconds stretched out to hours for her exhausted body and failing mind. Eventually the sensation of the wind and rain was replaced by a scraping pain across her entire body, then a bone-shattering tremor, and finally a numb darkness.

---

The first sensation that Rainbow Dash was aware of was a sharp pain in her left wing. When she tried to move it, a spike of pain shot down the entire appendage. It was futile anyway‒ the whole thing was tightly bound to her body. As she drifted up from the foggy black sea of unconsciousness, this was the only fact that her mind was able to process for a long while. Eventually, the pain in her wing was joined by a general ache throughout her entire body, the weight of which threatened to pull her back down into the darkness. With a momentous effort, though, she managed to pry open one of her eyes. What greeted this effort was a blurry sea of pink and a high pitched giggle.

“Oh, goodie, you're awake!”

With a groan, Dash snapped her eye back shut. Unconsciousness was definitely the better option right now. Unfortunately, whatever she was lying on was rocky and wet, and now that she her injuries had made themselves known, they were doing their best to prevent her retreat into sleep. The constant nudging of Pinkie Pie's snout in her side wasn't helping matters. She sighed, opened her eyes once more, and dragged herself up to a sitting position.

She found herself in a dim forest clearing. The earthy smell of wet leaves filled the air, and although the thick canopy blocked most of the sun, she figured it must be late morning or early afternoon. Memories of the audition, the letter and storm welled up in her mind, and her breath caught in her throat. For a moment, all she could do was contemplate her gloomy surroundings.

“Pinkie Pie, where are we?”

She could barely manage to speak above a whisper, and the trees and undergrowth seemed to swallow the sound. Even the bright chirp of her companion's voice seemed muted by the wall of vegetation. The pink earth pony's normally bright coat was covered in dirt and her mane and tail were in a state of disarray, but she seemed uninjured and her manner was her usual bubbly perkiness.

“I think we're in the Everfree Forest. We've gotta get moving if we're gonna get out of her before dark, especially since I think we're gonna have to walk.”

Pinkie was gesturing to Rainbow Dash's side, and her gaze slowly followed the direction of her friend's hoof to see what she was talking about. Her brain was in a haze, and trying to figure out what was going on was like trying to put together a jigsaw puzzle in the dark with her hooves tied behind her back. She realized that her wing was tied to her side with a length of purple fabric.

“I think it's broken. The balloon crashed a ways off, and I tore some of it up the help set your wing! You wouldn't believe how hard that stuff is to rip with your teeth, by the way, or how awful it tastes. Yeuck. Anyways, I heard that was what you were supposed to do for a broken wing, so I did it, but I'm not a doctor, so I don't know if I did it right or what, which is why we have to get back to Ponyville lickety-split!”

Rainbow Dash was looking at her friend again. She was smiling. She was always smiling. It was a smile that she saw every day, and it never failed to lift her spirits. But the memories of the past few days, coupled with the thought of what she had done to Ponyville, proved too much even for that steadfast grin. When she didn't get a response, Pinkie spoke up.

“So... let's get going! Up and at'em!”

Dash felt her legs give out. The front half of her body came to rest in the leaves and mud of the forest floor. Her eyes closed once more.

“I'm not going back, Pinkie.”

“What do you mean? We certainly can't go forward, that would just bring us deeper into the forest! Although I'm not entirely sure which way we do need to go, but I think we can figure it out from the sun or something.”

“I'm not going anywhere. Just... just go back without me. Tell them that I didn't make it.”

There was silence. Eventually she heard the sounds of Pinkie's hooves as the mare trotted off. She expected to hear them fade away, but the sounds of the other pony moving about the clearing persisted. Several times they disappeared into the forest, only to return a few moments later. Rainbow Dash didn't have the energy to try and figure it all out, and after awhile, she finally fell back into slumber.

---

This time, as Rainbow Dash slept, she dreamed as well. She soared endlessly above strange landscapes, the air chill around her. The sun rose and set, and she flew beneath cloudy skies and clear, star-filled nights. The land beneath was an endless patchwork of colors (all the colors of her mane, she thought), but although her wings ached, she knew she couldn't land. She flew on and on until the world turned grey around her, and just when the fog grew too thick for her to see, she awoke with a start.

Night had fallen, and the dark forest closed in around her. The ground she lay on was still cold and damp, but a crackling campfire greeted her when she opened her eyes. The heat gave momentary comfort, but this was quickly squashed by the reminder of her failure in the form of a twinge of pain in her broken wing. She lifted her head to look around, and found Pinkie lying asleep next to her, close but not touching. For a while, she was content to lay still and listen to the rise and fall of her friend's breath. It couldn't have been more than a few minutes, but it seemed like hours to Dash. The normally hyperactive mare was so peaceful in sleep, and it helped her forget about her troubles. Finally, though, Rainbow Dash nudged her gently in the side. With a snort and a yawn, Pinkie rose to her hooves, and Dash found herself staring once again into those bright blue eyes.

“Oopsies! Didn't mean to fall asleep there. Oh wow, it's dark. I think we're gonna have to wait until morning to start walking back. That's okay though, I guess. Did you have a good sleep?”

“Pinkie.” Dash's voice was flat, and sounded strange in her own ears. “Why are you still here?”

“Why wouldn't I still be here? I can't go back until you go back, and you decided to take another nap, so I made a fire so you wouldn't get cold while you slept, and I guess rubbing those sticks together wore me out because I fell asleep too, and now it's dark and-”

“Pinkie, I told you. I'm not going back.”

“Okay, yes, you did say that. But that's also the stupidest thing I've ever heard, and believe me, I've heard a lot of stupid things. Like this one time, I was at the oatmeal factory, and this mare came up to me-”

“Pinkie!”

“Right. The point is, it doesn't make sense for you not to go back to Ponyville, because then you would just be stuck out here in the forest, and what would you even do out here?”

“Lie down. Sleep.” Dash lay her head in her hooves and closed her eyes, signaling her intent to do just that. “Sleep and never wake up.”

Pinkie's voice was quieter now. “Why would you say something like that?”

“Are you kidding? You saw what happened back there. That big crazy storm must've wrecked half of Ponyville, and it's all my fault. I got angry, and lost control, and now who knows if anypony got hurt, or... or worse. Nopony's gonna want to talk to me. Nopony's gonna want to see me.” She struggled even now to hold back her tears. “They're right, too.”

“Okay, first off? That last part isn't true. I'm sure some ponies might be a teensy bit upset with you, but your friends all love you, and they'll forgive you. And really, practically every pony in town is your friend. You're Rainbow Dash! Who doesn't love Rainbow Dash? Nopony, that's who! And secondly, everypony makes mistakes, but you're not gonna fix them by lying around moping in the middle of the forest. Ponyville needs your help more than ever, so I'm certainly not gonna let you lie here much longer.” Pinkie paused for a deep breath. “And thirdly, you haven't even told me why you were so mad in the first place, and you're gonna have to do that if I'm gonna help you.”

“You can't help, Pinkie. It was the Wonderbolts. They turned me down.”

“Oh no!” Rainbow could hear the scuffle as Pinkie Pie lay down again next to her. “I'm so sorry to hear that.”

An edge of anger entered Dash's voice. “Not as sorry as I was.”

“But why wouldn't they? You're bestest, most stupendous flier I've ever seen!”

Rainbow Dash's eyes shot open and her good wing flared out, the other pushing painfully against its bindings. “Apparently not! Apparently I'm nothing but a great big screw-up! I failed the Wonderbolts, I failed Ponyville, and now I'm just done!” The echoes of her outburst rang through the air, and she let her wing fall to the ground. “I'm just done. Some Element of Loyalty I turned out to be.”

Pinkie had a look Rainbow rarely saw to her. It was a quiet, thoughtful look. It was driving Dash a little crazy, so she refocused her gaze to the hypnotic dancing of the fire. But Pinkie Pie spoke, and in a much softer tone than her usual bright chirp.

“You know, Rarity told me something kinda funny awhile back. Remember when Spike grew into that big nasty beast of a dragon, and we all thought he was gonna wreck Ponyville and smoosh Rarity, but then he remembered when he gave her that gem, and he shrunk back down to little Spikey-wikey? After that, she told me she had learned something about what being 'the Element of Generosity' really meant.”

Rainbow Dash was only half listening. She didn't understand why Pinkie couldn't just accept that it was over, that she was giving up. She only felt sorry for the other mare. She wished that Pinkie would be angry with her, would yell at her and leave her alone and forget about her. Still, she managed a listless response.

“What did she learn.”

“Well, do you know why I'm the Element of Laughter?”

“...no, Pinkie. Why are you the Element of Laughter?”

“It's because I know the best knock-knock joke in the world!”

“Um. What?”

“Oh man, you've never heard the best knock-knock joke in the world? It's the best!” Pinkie Pie was giggling at this point. “Okay, you start.”

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. “Fine. Knock knock.”

“Who's there?”

Rainbow Dash opened her mouth, and the seconds ticked by as her brain struggled to catch up. The realization rose up ponderously, and her despondency was forgotten as she turned to glare angrily at Pinkie Pie, who was now grinning maniacally back at her.

“Pinkie, that's-”

And suddenly, Dash was lost. The chuckles rose uncontrollably from her chest, and before she knew it she was prone on the ground, tears finally falling from her eyes as she rolled in fits of laughter. It took several long minutes before she caught her breath.

“That's- now that's the stupidest thing I've ever h-heard.” She let out a sound that was halfway between a cough and a giggle. “Celestia, I can't believe I f-fell for that.”

She rose and sat up, futilely rubbing the dirt from her fur. Pinkie Pie was just smiling gently, the firelight playing with her features.

“But. Um. What does that have to do with anything?”

“Nothing, really. Just that you're so certain that your friends are all gonna turn their backs on you, except then what am I doing here?”

That was a good question, Rainbow thought. But Pinkie Pie seemed so certain, so calm, so confident that she was where she needed to be, that suddenly Rainbow Dash realized she could believe it too. A fog seemed to lift from around her mind, and she knew that she had to return to Ponyville. If not for herself, then for Pinkie. She shifted uncomfortably.

“I'm scared,” she admitted.

“I know. But you gotta giggle at the ghosties, remember? Just gotta giggle-” Pinkie Pie was cut off by her own lengthy yawn.

“Listen, Pinkie, why don't you go to sleep? I'll keep watch, I'm all rested up. And then we'll get up early and figure out our way back to Ponyville.”

Pinkie Pie smiled sleepily. “Okie-dokie, Dash.” She lay her head in her hooves, smiling even as her breathing became heavy and even. “You're a good friend.”

Rainbow Dash gazed into the fire once more. “You too, Pinkie.”

Comments

[Crimson Dawn]

I love this chapter no doubt.

[grogar]

To be fair on spitfire, to be fair
You can win lots of awards in the high school science fair, and go all the way to nationals, but that won't get you further than into the class. Once your in, you have to prove yourself again, and not just expect to ride out old accomplishments.

You could even be the president's son. But those things don't matter unless you can prove IN THE BOOTCAMP that your a professional or educated or whatnot.
This is especially true for military careers. You could be a former seal team member rejoining the army, a recruit, or may have once been the best, or the smartest, but if you grow complacent in gun safety, you could still get someone killed with your stupidity. Or, if you can't remember how your gun fits together or how to respond to a particular situation, clearly your not cut out to be a military leader even if you went to a fancy college.

Let's look at the wonderbolt acadamy episode where ld came from: Rainbow Dash is known for her stunts, but what has she proved in the academy? We know she wouldn't immediately crack under verbal pressure, and is very good at in-flight orientation. Meanwhile, Lightning also doesn't crack under verbal pressure, shows to be very adept at in-flight orientation, and also pushes herself to her limits even when no outside benefits present themselves. That last bit is important: It means she'll keep straining to be the best without outside motivations. If you have a great flier who only does her best when his or her career's on the line, your going to wind up with a slacker after he or she makes the job.

and if Spitfire IS a drill-sergeant she can't go against the brass, whether she wanted to or not on there decision.

[Stiggerzz]

ahhh, i love pulling that knock knock joke on peeps

really likin' the story, i'm just annoyed we're drawing ever closer to chapter 12. oh well, all good things must come to an end i guess

1940803 vinyl and i disagree, chapter 4 all the way

[SlashopentheSky]

1941246
That was a very well-thought out comment. Kudos.
I don't agree with the last paragraph. Lightning dust was reckless and would have seriously injured, perhaps killed, many ponies if it wasn't a show geared towards children.
I will also take this time to comment on the similarity of LD's and SF's hair.

[LittleSallyDigby]

Well now I'm curious about what Rarity learned.

I like that Rainbow Dash is ultimately responsible for another generation of ponies getting their cutie marks, though in a very different way than the episode for which this story is named.

Also you just completely nailed Pinkie Pie here. Her voice, her motivations, everything. This is damn good character drama. I particularly like her reactions when Dash starts saying really terrible stuff- she doesn't freak out or get depressed/repressive or even misunderstand in a cheerful way; she processes what's going on and reacts to it while completely remaining her optimistic, endlessly peppy self. Too many people jump to one of those other reactions the moment things get seriously bad for her, and frankly it comes off as more a caricature of Pinkie Pie than what she's actually like.