Elements of Discord, Chapter 3: On a Wing and a Prayer

I'm trapped, Fluttershy thought as she stared at the wall of flame before her. It crackled, sparked, danced and writhed like a sea of monsters taunting her with their flickering tongues. Behind her lay her helpless friends, a far more impenetrable barrier. No matter the terror rising in her throat, she never thought of flight. Not now, when all those poor injured animals needed her here for them.

But I don't know what I can do.

And there, walking through the long wet grass, was the fire pony. It's mane of flame rose like a volcanic ridge while its burning tail made the grass smoke and hiss. It advanced with smoke and ash swirling around its legs like a low fog, red eyes peering through the slits in its helmet. The black metal shimmered dull cherry red around its shoulders and the plume that was its tail made the grass pop and snap.

Slowly Fluttershy took one step forward. Another. Another. Her blue eyes kept to the moist strands beneath her hooves. The world filled with crackling, snapping, roaring voices that screamed at her to run. Heat played off her forelock and shoulders, popping up beads of sweat that trickled along her hide. Every breath scratched at her throat from the heat coming from before her. Still she walked forward, knowing deep inside that the monster did the same.

The sound of steps crackling stems underhoof. The hiss of grass. The smell of steam. The clank of hot metal. The hot steam of a breath. Two hooves filled Fluttershy's vision, the smoke and steam curling around the flickering flames spilling from the tip, and she stopped. For the longest time they stood just so, facing each other. Not a word spoken by either.

Then the fire pony stepped to the left. Fluttershy matched it. It moved to the right; she did the same. For the longest minute it simply stood there and she raised her head to meet its gaze. Orange on yellow met blue on black. This was it! If she could some how stare it down, force it back, then her friends would be safe. The monster met her stare for stare, and for Fluttershy all the world fell away. Her eyes remained locked on the fire pony's embers. Let it work. Let it work. Let it work. "Go away, please," she breathed.

The fire pony paused for a moment. A look stirred in its burning gaze; one of almost contemplation. Fluttershy stared so hard she swore she could almost hear its thoughts whispering softly in that frozen moment. Then the eyes hardened to match her own, "Sorry, no," it said in an oddly soft, feminine voice, "Please step aside."

Fluttershy blinked, and the link was lost. "I... I can't," she said as she took a step back.

"Well then, we have a problem, don't we?" The fire pony said as she slowly leaned closer towards Fluttershy. The heat made the yellow pegasus sweat even more. "So... what should we do about this?"

Fluttershy swallowed, looking around as she thought furiously of some way to put it kindly. "Well, you could go away," she suggested, and then winced. Hardly nice. "I mean, some where else?" Some place that doesn't burn.

The flaming pony just shook her head, "I can't. I've waited a thousand years for revenge. I'm going to have it." Slowly it leaned towards her, ember eyes brightening as they stared into Fluttershy's blue gaze, "I'd rather not waste it on anypony that doesn't deserve it."

Fluttershy clenched her eyes closed, rump on the cool ground, determined not to budge. "I... I won't." For a few seconds nothing happened, then she blinked and saw the pony had stepped around her once more. Fluttershy jumped and flew around to land in front of her again. This time the flaming pony regarded her coolly. "I mean it. I won't let you pass." She drummed up every reminder she had of Twilight Sparkle telling her to be more assertive, but it was so hard as the flaming pony narrowed her eyes at Fluttershy. Then the fire pony took a breath and blew a little ball of fire that lit the tip of Fluttershy's pink mane on fire! She squealed, beating the fire out with her hooves as the fire pony stepped past her once again.

With the singed tip dangling in front of her eyes, Fluttershy saw the fire pony walking casually towards the trees surrounding her cottage and thought of all the poor animals trapped and hurting within. And it was all this... this creature's fault! If she didn't do something to stop her they'd... they'd... "No. I won't let you hurt them anymore!" she declared as she rose to her feet.

"Not my problem," the fire pony said, turning to look at Fluttershy with an expression of smug superiority.

Her eyes widened just in time for Fluttershy's front hooves to clang loudly against that smoking helmet as the little pegasus flew past faster than she'd ever flown before. Fluttershy sucked in rapid breaths as she landed in front of the fire pony once more. Her hooves felt like she'd just kicked a stove and she winced, shaking her stinging front hooves. "Ow! Ow! Ow! Ow!" She'd hit her! Hit somepony at all! "S- Sorry!"

The fire pony just sat there in the smoking grass, head bowed. For a moment Fluttershy wondered if maybe she'd hurt the pony. Then she slowly raised her head to look at Fluttershy with a baleful glare. "Fine, we'll do it your way..."

"My way? What do you-"

Suddenly the fire pony was on it's feet and leaped towards her, and the pegasus barely got clear as the fire pony's front hooves slammed into the ground where she'd stood with a small explosion. Fluttershy whirled just in time to duck two glowing red rear hooves kicking at her head. It was all Fluttershy could do to keep leaping and flapping back and avoiding being cooked! The fire pony's blazing tail snapped in the air with a whip snap and sent a spitting ball of fire right at Fluttershy! Her wings beat furiously, barely getting her out of the way as the ball of fire scorched her tail! Now she knew exactly how Rainbow Dash felt!

As quickly as it had started the pony stilled. She stood in the hissing, smouldering grass as steam and smoke curled along her ebony legs. "You're quicker than you look, Feathers. Be smart as well. Stay out of my way."

Feathers? Fluttershy shook her head hard as she panted for breath, soaked in sweat. "I won't!"

"You're not a fighter. You can't stop me."

"I... I just hit you..." she said softly, feeling a shame blossom inside her. "Sorry, by the way..." Was it just her imagination or did the fire pony smile?

"Yeah, you did..." Then fire pony's tail cracked behind her. "Then hit me again." Fluttershy just stood there, her mouth dropped open as the fire pony leaned towards the sweating pegasus and pointed at her ebony nose with a hoof.

"W... w... what?" Fluttershy stammered, eyes round as her pupils contracted in shock.

"You heard me. Hit me. With everything you got."

Fluttershy just gaped at her. How'd she done it before? She tried to find that pit of anger inside her, but the more she thought the more scared she became. She screwed up her eyes, thought of her friends and animals, and imagined she was Rainbow Dash facing a dragon. She even tried to give a war cry to increase her force! "Kaiiiii...yah..." she whispered, her hoof coming up to make contact with the fire pony's face.

For a few seconds she was aware of the sharp warmth under her rear hoof before she looked behind at her enemy. Her foot rested gently on the end of her nose, and the fire pony arched one brow to look at her. "Nice try." The fire pony said and its eyes burst into flame, "My turn..."

She was too close to leap away, too overcome with fear and confusion to react in time as the fire pony snapped around and gave a double kick to Fluttershy's flank! The blast knocked her rolling across the grass and landing in a heap with two hoof shaped burns right above her cutie mark. Looking over to where she'd landed the firepony said in that soft, low voice. "Now stay down. You can't fight me. You can't stop me. You can't do anything."

Fluttershy clenched her eyes shut in pain, and worse, in acknowledgement that the monster was right. I can't fight her. I can't stop her.

I can't stop! Rainbow Dash thought as she pushed herself to wing her way through the smoky skies to find a cloud with the smallest drop of rain in it. The only problem was that this was the height of summer. The time of the year scheduled for the sunniest weather. This time of the year she'd normally be tasked with breaking up rainclouds rather than seeking them out.

She'd never known a fire this bad. Even dragon smoke was preferable to this this prevalent smog that choked the skies in brown and gray haze. Her throat burned as she breathed through the cloth mask on her muzzle and eyes watered despite the goggles. But she couldn't stop. She'd promised Twilight Sparkle that she'd find some rain. Normally when there was a fire it was a pegasus' job to do just this, but there hadn't been a fire this big, this fast in a long time.

"Come on, Rainbow Dash! You're the fastest pegasus in all of Equestria! You can do this!" She syched herself up, pumping her hoof. A shadow flickered through the smoggy air behind her.

"There!" It sure was a puny bank of clouds off to the south, but Rainbow Dash would beat them till every drop of water came out. She beat her wings towards the dozen or so clouds, hoping she could squeeze them into something-

A thunderous crack snapped through the air and a black streak ripped past her as if she were standing still! The black streak flashed through the heart of the largest cloud, exploding it in a rumble of thunder and wild high pitched laughter.

"What the heck was that?" Rainbow Dash looked around, but in the haze she'd lost whoever had just nailed the cloud, "And what do they think they're doing?"

Rainbow Dash flew towards the next cloud, only to have another crack and black shadow streak through it! Again and again, Dash tried to race it to the next cloud, only to have the mysterious thundering shadow obliterate it time and time again. Rainbow Dash just fluttered in place in shock as it swooped through and exploded the last four almost simultaneously.

"Too slow," a girl said in Rainbow Dash's ear in a grating voice like bending metal. She turned in time to spot a blood red flank, a black lightning bolt, and two crackling lightning wrapped hooves. With a blast of thunder, they slammed right into Rainbow Dash's face and knocked her from the sky. There was a horrible shrieking laugh followed by another cracking boom as the pony disappeared into the haze.

I can't stop her... Fluttershy thought to herself as she pushed herself to her hooves and ignored the pain blossoming from her rump. But I can't give up either! It hurt, but it was no different than the pain her injured animals felt. The pain helped focus her swirling fearful thoughts into the simple truth: if she gave up now her animal friends would... She couldn't bring herself to think it. She simply knew, and also knew she couldn't let it happen.

Her wings lifted her up and over the fire pony to land in her path once more. "How dare you?" She asked softly as her blue eyes glared up at the creature. "How dare you burn all my animal's homes, threaten my home, and hurt so many? You..." She saw the fire pony's eyes narrow to sullen slits. "...monster."

Suddenly the heat pouring off her black hide doubled and embers danced and sparked off her blazing mane. "So. A monster am I?" She advanced on Fluttershy, and the pegasus found herself backing off and blinking against the cinders snapping from around her hooves. The dark plates of metal chained to her frame now glowed a shimmering cherry red. "You want a real monster? Try a monster with vast magical powers, an army of loyal pegasus soldiers, and an entire kingdom under her hoof. A monster that would banish her kind and loving sister forever rather than share the slightest bit of power or acknowledgement! A monster that would seal you in stone for eons for daring to stand up to her tyranny!" She shouted, flames roaring out her mouth to rain down on the quivering pegasus. Still, Fluttershy refused to yield.

"If I am a monster, then that's what I had to be fight! Fighting is all I'm good for! It's all I've ever been good for. And it's what I'm going to keep doing until I burn that monster out of hiding or I'm destroyed. Now get out of my way!" And she reared up to bring her hooves down on Fluttershy.

Fluttershy didn't jump away this time. She rose up and pressed her hooves to the burning hooves of the fire pony. "No!" She screamed, eyes clenched and tears running down her cheeks as she felt her hide start to blister. The firepony shoved her back, but she refused to stay down and let her pass.

"Move, Feathers!" Bellowed the fire pony, but Fluttershy charged forward, pressing her shoulder to the burning hot chest plate of the pony.

"I won't! Please stop!" She said as she tried to push her back. Her legs trembled as she felt herself cooking against the fire pony's armor. The fire pony took a step back, rearing up once more to bring her hooves down on Fluttershy's head. The explosion knocked her into a heap on the grass.

"Damn it. What are you trying to do? You can't fight me! Stay down and live!" she bellowed down at the shaking, injured pegasus.

"No... I won't..." she said as she rose again, her body awash in pain. I can't worry about pain now. I can't. She stood on shaking knees. "Please... don't go this way. Please." She said as she shook.

"Don't make me burn you." The fire pony had a begging of her own as well.

"Please..." Fluttershy begged, clenching her eyes shut, spreading her wings as wide as she could. "Please. Please. Please."

"I can't!" She yelled and tried to shove forward. Fluttershy raised her hooves and pushed back, sitting down, pumping her wings as fast as she could as she felt the ends of her hooves on fire! The fire and pain sapped at her strength. I can't stop. I can't. I can't. The heat and cinders ignited the tips of her wing feathers and started to crawl along her shoulders. Then there was one final heave that knocked her away from the fire pony and into a heap in the grass.

Fluttershy opened an eye, looking at her cottage. She could see the outlines of the helpless injured animals. I'm sorry. She wept as she laid there, her wings smouldering and body aching.

But there was no spreading crackle of flames. No creeping destruction licking at her home. Fluttershy slowly rolled over to look at the fire pony. She stood a little ways apart, eyes closed. "I've walked plenty of miles for my revenge. What's a few more?"

"Thank you," Fluttershy whispered.

"Don't," she replied. "I'm still going to Ponyville. If burning that won't draw out my enemy, then I'll just go from one place to the next till she faces me." She started to walk away from the cottage, following the long crescent of the meadow in a slow trail of smoke and steam. "Take care, Feathers."

Fluttershy's strength finally gave out and she slowly collapsed on to the grass, darkness overtaking her.

Rainbow Dash had plenty of experience with skull impacts. She'd gone through more than one roof in the process of working out her newest tricks with the Wonderbolts. The kick to her head was certainly powerful, but it was more the surprise than the impact. Still, it took her several seconds to pull up and shake the tiny Pinkie Pie's hopping around her head away and stop her fall. She scanned the smoky skies for her attacker.

"Of all the low down tricks..." Rainbow Dash said as she smacked one hoof into the other. Still, she didn't know anypony with a black lightning cutie mark. Heck, that'd be rather cool if it hadn't been on a complete jerk. "When I find her, I'll show her who's the slow one."

Rainbow Dash wanted to track her down, but Twilight Sparkle needed rain and needed it now. It'd have to wait. Unfortunately between the summer season and that insane pegasus and all the smoke the only clouds she could make out was the distant splot of Cloudsdale far above her. Cloudsdale...

"Oh I'm so stupid!" She said as she smacked the side of her head with a hoof, then winced, "Ow..." She pumped her cyan wings, flying higher and higher. If she needed rain so badly she should just go to where they made the stuff! She bet that this moment the weather factories were cranking out big, soggy rainclouds that'd be perfect! "Hang on girls. Rain's coming!"

Despite it's altitude, Cloudsdale was still swathed in smoke. Thinner and more dilute, but there were still a lot of coughing and grounded pegasus around. However, as Rainbow Dash landed, something was definitely wrong. There wasn't a rain cloud to be seen! "What's going on? This place should be soaking wet right now!" She made her way up to the weather factories, not waiting to suit up as she burst through the door.

Something had happened. Busted machinery lay in the process of repair, rainbows splattered all over the walls, snow flakes being swept into heaps. She looked around and spotted a lavender pony wearing glasses with gray mane and raindrops on her flank. Rainy Days was the pony in charge of stormy weather production. "Rainy! Just the pony I needed to see! What the heck happened here?"

Rainy gave a miserable look, "There was an accident, Dash. Somepony dropped a whole pallet of thunder a few hours ago!"

"Was anypony hurt?" Thunder and lightning were dangerous by-products in manufacture of clouds and rainbows. Normally it was disposed of safely in thunder storms as far from towns as possible, but if there wasn't any clouds scheduled then it had to be stored.

"A few, but nothing serious. But look." She said as she pointed at the hall were the cloud machines sat broken and cracked. "It'll be weeks before we can start making clouds again! We'll be lucky to have production up and running for autumn showers." She said as she swept her limp gray tail.

"Forget about that! What about Ponyville? What about the fires?" Rainbow Dash asked as she waved her hooves at the morose pony.

"Oh. Well, you can just leave with us. I mean, weren't you going to do that anyway?" Rainbow Dash frowned at her honest question. She had been thinking of doing just that hours ago when the evacuation order arrived.

"Yeah. I was." She admitted, but felt ashamed that she had.

"And there's nothing we can do. We can't make new clouds, and we don't have any clouds on hand to turn into storm clouds." Rainy Days said sadly, drooping her head.

Rainbow Dash sighed as she looked down at her hoofs. Rainy Days was right of course, being an expert on that particular weather. To make rainclouds you made normal fluffy clouds and loaded them up with water. Cloudsdale had huge tanks of raindrops for just that purpose. If only they had some clouds they could use.

Then she looked at her hoof, brilliant rose eyes widening. "Rainy, we have clouds!" She said as she gripped the lavender Pegasus with a wide grin.

"Um, no Dash. We don't. I checked the inventory."

"Yes, Rainy. We do!" She said as she waved a hoof at the walls around them. "Cloudsdale!" Other pegasus listening in began to talk in concern.

"C- Cloudsdale?" Rainy Days stammered, staring in shock.

"Sure." She pointed at the water tanks at the end of halls. "We have the water. We can just put it into Cloudsdale till it rains." Rainbow Dash said with a grin, spreading her hooves wide at the ingeniousness of her plan.

"No. I don't think we'll be doing that." A pegasus stallion said from the doors. His fair ivory coat contrasted with his jet black mane. A sunburst spread along his flank as he approached both Rainbow Dash and Rainy Days. The head pegasus, mayor of Cloudsdale, Radiant looked at the assembled ponies with a stern look that sent them back to cleaning up the mess. Only then did he cast his gaze on Rainbow Dash. Despite herself she gave a gulp. "Rainbow Dash, is it? Winner of the Best Young Fliers Competition?"

"Yes sir?"

"Do you have any idea just what your plan would do to our home? Cloud formation 101, Miss Dash. You add water to clouds and what happens?" He asked as he inspected a crack in a rainbow storage basin.

"They get big and wet, I know."

"You know?" He replied, now looking sharply at her once more. "If you know then why would you propose such a thing? The clouds of Cloudsdale are structural. If they swelled Cloudsdale itself would be imperiled." He tapped an ivory hoof against the floor impatiently. "This is why we manufacture rain clouds. It's why we don't let Cloudsdale itself get saturated. And it is why we are not going to follow your ridiculous plan."

Rainbow Dash blushed furiously as she looked away, feeling every eye on her. This was worse than being laughed at for crashing through the stadium wall during summer flight school! Then she looked at him with a scowl, "If we don't then Ponyville could be destroyed! They're right in the path of the fire! What do you think is going to happen?"

He turned away to examine some damaged cloud making equipment, "I imagine that the Earth Ponies will do what they've always done. Find somewhere else to live." He then looked at her, "It's not our problem, Miss Dash."

Rainbow Dash's eyes went wide at the dismissive tone. "Not our problem? How can you say that?"

"Simply. The business of the Earth Ponies and Unicorns are not our own. We have repairs to make and a home to relocate."

"So you're going to just... just... let Ponyville burn?" Rainbow Dash said as she leapt to her hooves. "If we can help them, we should! Or do you want everypony to think that we're simply too high and mighty to bother?"

The expression on Radiant's face fit Rainbow Dash's accusation to a T. "Miss Dash, you forget yourself!" He retorted. "Pegasus must look after pegasus' concerns."

Rainbow Dash thought of Twilight, Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and even Spike. All her friends trapped on the ground. "No, you forget that this is Equestria! Land of all ponies, earth, unicorns, and pegasus!" she turned to look at the crowd, wishing she had Twilight Sparkle's words or Rarity's grace. Heck, even one of Pinkie Pie's songs would be better than her trying to convince a crowd of pegasus to risk their home for the homes of others. "They grow the food we eat! Make things we need! Why would anypony give a pegasus a rotten apple if we won't lift a hoof for them?"

"We must look after our own, Miss Dash." Radiant retorted. "The Princess gave orders to evacuate Ponyville and muster the pegasus guard. There were no instructions for us to endanger Cloudsdale!" He declared, looking flustered that he was arguing at all with a juvenile. The other pegasus were now talking to each other, echoing Rainbow Dash's points with the head pegasus.

"If Cloudsdale were ever in trouble, my friends wouldn't hesitate to help, regardless of what the Princess ordered. Nopony in Ponyville would."

"That may be but-" The head pegasus was clearly flustered now, looking at the smoke creeping in the windows.

"Not maybe. Is." She said as she hovered in the air before him. "Well, I promised my unicorn friend to find rain, not just to save Ponyville, but also to save Fluttershy. A pegasus that refuses to leave her friends in danger. And neither will I!"

"Rainbow Dash!" Called Rainy Days as she turned and flew away from the weather factory as fast as possible. How could they be so selfish? So willing to protect their own knowing that something else would be destroyed from their inaction?

I'm sorry, Twilight Sparkle. Rainbow Dash thought as tears of frustration ran down her cheeks. I failed you.

"You know... I think... a little... exercise... after this... is over... would be... good!" Twilight Sparkle gasped as she pulled the cart after her friends. This was a lot different than simply enjoying the Falling of the Leaves and not caring if she won or lost. Hours spent in a library were not conducive to a physique to pulling a wagon the miles back to Fluttershy's. Worse, this was a race against time. The banter kept the fear to a manageable level.

Rarity groaned ahead of her, "Just think of this as a workout. The tangential benefits should be good for both of us. After all, we were getting just a touch soft, weren't we?"

"Could be worse. Someponies don't have magic to make the load lighter," Applejack said sourly from in front of Rarity. The workhorse had been in a sour mood since they'd passed by Apple Acres to find no one had gone to help Fluttershy. Given that this was her third trip, Twilight Sparkle didn't blame her for being a bit surly and gave a sheepish smile to Rarity.

"What I cannot possibly fathom is why she's doing so well." Rarity said as they looked way up the road past Applejack to the cart being drawn by Pinkie Pie. The pink pony was easily three cart lengths ahead of the rest.

"Well, I guess a lot of sugar will do that for a pony." Twilight Sparkle offered as they pulled their carts to the crest of the low hill separating Apple Acres from the trees around Fluttershy's cottage. It was like walking in a freakish twilight, the ash falling around them like snow as the setting sun looked like a bloody coin in the sky. The fires ahead of them gave a flickering glow that danced and splashed off the apple trees around them in harsh golden glares.

"Pinkie Pie, how come you barely busted a sweat this whole time?" Applejack asked sharply as they caught up with the pink pony.

Pinkie Pie blinked at Applejack then gestured to the cart she pulled,"What? This? Please!" She said with a snort as she started bouncing along down the hill. "Compared to rotating rocks all day, this is easy peasie!"

"That's it. Next Applebuckin, she's getting drafted!"

"That's silly, Applejack. I'm not a draft horse!"

But Twilight Sparkle wasn't paying attention to their banter as she stared down the road. The wood smoldered and burned in explosive flares that silhouetted Fluttershy's cottage. Ash lay in a dusting over everything like dirty snow and suddenly the meadow between her collage and the Everfree Forest seemed flimsy protection. Worse of all though was the glowing form of the pony, Nightmare Fury, walking in the long grass.

"Everypony, hurry!" She yelled as she closed her eyes and concentrated. She'd tried teleporting before, but it was tricky over long distances and painful if she tried to take things with her. Right now she didn't care though. The guilt of leaving Fluttershy alone, the fear for her friend, exploded through her and in a flash both purple unicorn and wagon disappeared.

Both Twilight Sparkle and wagon arrived at the cottage; albeit upside down and on the empty chicken coop. Her horn and head throbbed, but she couldn't afford to pass out now. Fluttershy needs my help! Where is she? She teleported again out of the harness and swayed on her hooves. Okay, no more of that. Shaking it off, she rushed to the cottage, sure that the yellow pegasus would be within. "Fluttershy? Are you here?" Only dozens and dozens of fearful eyes greeted her. "She wouldn't just leave!"

Then she looked out at the fiery pony. Nightmare Fury. It was walking, leisurely, as if enjoying itself on an evening stroll with the soot and ash swirling about its hooves. But more importantly was its direction: decidedly going away from the cottage.

That's a wing.

The thought struck her as soon as she saw it sticking up like an odd shrub from the long ashen grass. "Fluttershy!" She screamed, running towards the smoky field to where Fluttershy lay on her side. Ash matted with sweat turned her dark, mottled gray with patches of yellow peeking through... and raw stretched of red. The sickly sweet smell of cooked meat. The sight of her friend lying so still. "No. No no no no..." She shook her gently with a hoof. "Please wake up, Fluttershy. Please!" She couldn't be... couldn't be...

Then Fluttershy coughed and looked up at Twilight Sparkle. "Twilight? You came back." Her voice was so weak, even for Fluttershy.

"I promised I would, didn't I?" Too late, Twilight Sparkle didn't add. If her friends had been here sooner she could have done something to prevent this.

"Are the animals okay?"

"They're fine. The girls will load them all up and get them to Ponyville."

"Oh. That's good." She said as she closed her eyes again. Only the slight shift of her wing sticking up in the air gave evidence for her breathing.

"Twilight!" cried Rarity as the others shrugged out of their harnesses and ran to meet her. They gasped in horror at the sight of their beaten friend.

"Oh no!"

"Is she... okay...?" asked Applejack, terrified of the alternative.

"She's fine. She's going to be fine." It was to convince herself as much as her friends. "Help me lift her, Rarity." The white unicorn nodded and their horns glowed in unison to lift Fluttershy in their magical grip.

"What about her?" Applejack asked as she looked at the departing form of the burning pony.

"No time for her now. We have to get Fluttershy and her animals out of here." Twilight Sparkle said as they carried the levitating Fluttershy to one of the carts. Pinkie Pie, so worried her hair was starting to uncurl, put some blankets in the bottom to cushion her injured friend. There wasn't any time to waste; the embers blown from the fire were starting to smolder around the cottage and more and more streamers of smoke were popping up around the building. Glaring at the cart atop the chicken coop, her horn flared and she flipped it upright.

"Wow. Didn't know you could flip around something that heavy like it was a toothpick." Applejack said with a look of concern. "You alright?"

"Fluttershy is burned. That... that thing out there burned her. Burned the Everfree Forest, Zecora, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy! She burned Fluttershy! No, I am not alright!" She shouted back at Applejack as tears ran down her cheeks. "I am sick of this. I want to go back to studying and not having my friends hurt!" She felt so angry that she wanted to explode just like the Nightmare ambling away from them!

Applejack pulled her into a hug, wrapping her hooves around her and draining her of the rage that billowed up inside her. It didn't take long, a few seconds, and she took a long and slow breath as she calmed herself. "Fluttershy'll be okay. Let's get these critters gone and hope Rainbow Dash can find-"

From overhead came a flapping of wings and Rainbow Dash fell in a heap besides the wagon. She coughed clouds of smoke, her mane and coat streaked in black and gray soot. As the others evacuated the helpless animals, Twilight went to her choking friend, patting her on the back to help her breathe. Her eyes were bloodshot and tearing as she struggled to stand. "Did you find rain, Dash?" Twilight asked, but looking at the swirling black skies she knew the answer.

"No. There's no clouds up there. None at all. None we can use anyway." She said bitterly as she looked around. "Where's Fluttershy?" Twilight gestured to the wagon and she peeked in and gasped, "Oh no! No no no! Damn it!" She smacked the ashy ground with a hoof. "If only I'd been faster or... or convinced Radiant... or..." She said as she put her hooves to her head, eyes squeezed tight. Suddenly Twilight Sparkle knew exactly how Applejack had felt moments ago.

She put her hooves around her friend as the others finished unloading. "Don't worry about it, Dash. We'll find some way to stop the fire."

Rainbow Dash just took a shuttering breath. "That's just it. I thought of a way... but the ponies in Cloudsdale... they..." She sniffed, a drop falling to the ash before her. Then another.

The rain started in slow hot heavy drops that hissed when they struck a hot spot of ground. Slowly Rainbow Dash raised her face skyward, the dirty rain washing the ash and tears from her face even as it started to scrub the smoke from the skies. "They... did it... they actually did it!"

The other ponies looked upwards as well as the rain increased. The smoke swirled as if it fought with the onslaught falling through it. Through the haze, shapes became clearer. "Is that... Cloudsdale?" Rarity gasped as the shapes of the clouds became more familiar, and oddly disturbing. They could see the Cloudsdale coliseum as a massive cylinder of growling black clouds. The Weatherworks distended out towards the Everfree Forest while other shops leaned towards Canterlot like great hollowed out gourds. Lightning flickered between the buildings big enough for giants, not ponies.

"Yes. It is," a voice said from above them. Radiant, the mayor of Cloudsdale, landed in the mud with a look of disgust and looked sternly at Rainbow Dash. "After your display in the Weatherworks, how could we not do as you suggested?" He glanced over at Fluttershy's form and his harsh expression softened a moment. Then he looked back at Rainbow Dash. "And since, as you pointed out, Cloudsdale was the only cloud in the sky, we emptied the rain tanks and have been ferrying more water to it." He flicked the water off a wingtip. "Let it not be said pegasus do things by half-measures.

"You did this, because of what I said?" Rainbow Dash said as she stood.

"Mostly. I suspect Rainy Days and the other ponies in the Weatherworks would have done so anyway," he said as he looked up as the deformed Cloudsdale above him. Then he sighed and shook his head. "I have little care for land bound ponies, but I suppose we'll have to ask Mayor Mare for hospitality for a time."

"The more the merrier." Applejack said with a grin.

"I'd best take care of my people." He gave a long look at Fluttershy and used a wingtip to move her singed pink hair out of her face. "You take care of… your friend. I know she'd rather be with you." With that he leapt into the air, winging his way towards Apple Farm and Ponyville.

The fires around them were quickly tamed by the rainfall, but behind them the forest continued to roar and hiss spitefully. It was the sound of a pony screaming in shock out in the meadow that made Twilight Sparkle smile though. It wasn't victory, but it was something.

"Come on; let's get Fluttershy back to Ponyville." She said as she started pulling the cart along with her friends towards home.

In the depths of a burned out hollow, angry crimson eyes glared at the sight of Cloudsdale pouring down rain on to the fires. "Well, all knowing one, I bet you didn't see that coming?" Her stormy blue wings fluttered in irritation, "So much for your big fire." Her hooves sparked as she punched the wall, lightning sparking in a cascade that was extinguished in the spreading wetness.

Nightmare Screamer was never one for patience. A thousand years of exile had done nothing to improve her attitude. Her blue mane snapped as she shook her head, pacing back and forth.

"It was inevitable. Had Cloudsdale not acted, Celestia would have," the whisper in her ear made her whirl. Of course there was nothing there. There never was. "You weren't supposed to reveal yourself, Screamer," the voice chastised.

Screamer sneered but with uncertainty in her eyes. "You told me to keep the clouds clear and wreck the Weatherworks. I did just that. Don't you tell me how to do my job!" She put a hoof to her chest in feigned injury. "Besides, that annoying foal thinks she's the fastest pegasus in Equestria! I simply had to correct her." Lightning crackled along her mane and snapped off her tail.

"Yes, yes. We all know you're the swiftest pony in history. And soon all of the world will know." The whispers hissed soothingly. "But unless you want to lose your powers to that damned unicorn, you'll keep to the plan."

"I'm not afraid of Princess Celestia." Screamer snorted.

"You should be," the whisper countered. "But she wasn't the unicorn I was speaking of."

Screamer blinked as she sat, annoyed at the smug tone that hid volumes. "You mean that horn head student of hers?"

"Yes. She has potential."

"Potential?" The way Whisper said the word put Screamer's teeth on edge. She'd once said the exact same thing of Screamer.

"Yes. Potential to rival Princess Celestia. Exceed it even."

"So what good is that to us?" Then Nightmare Screamer cackled. "Oh, I get it. You want to turn her?" Typical.

"Perhaps."

"You haven't changed. What about the Hot Head? And Luna?"

"Fury's lost to us. If she'd just stayed locked up for a year or two more... ah well, if wishes were apples no one would go hungry. If she kills Celestia, wonderful. Till then she can be a distraction." Nightmare Whispers said in a frustrated tone. It made Screamer chuckle inside as Whispers continued, "Regardless, I need you to move on to the next phase. And I need you to execute it exactly as I instructed you."

Nightmare Screamer listened to the words. "You didn't say anything about Luna." She knew it would nettle Whispers. She loved annoying that one to no end. She'd annoy her to death, if she could.

"Let me worry about Luna. You do your job, Screamer."

Screamer crouched and launched into the rainy skies with a thunderclap. Oh this was going to be fun! And when it was all done, it would be Screamer, not Whispers, calling the shots!