Rainbow Dash dipped her wings. Her flight path angled sharply, taking her down through the large cloudbank that had previously blocked her view of the ground. The large harness strapped around her abdomen groaned with the abrupt altitude change, and the small crate dangling below her swung around in a tight circle. Dash readjusted her wings again to account for the new movement. She flew on through the clouds, her surroundings temporarily morphed into a gray field.

A few moments later she reemerged into the sunlight. Immediately she pulled up to avoid crashing into two pegasi pushing more clouds in position. The crate swung up with her, passing so close to the other flyers the wood ruffled their manes.

“Whoops, sorry!” Dash called out with a small grin. The two pegasi shouted back a series of very colorful replies, but Dash was already out of earshot.

Ponyville expanded out in front of her. She headed down towards the town square, forelegs raised and hooves pointed. The crate whipped up behind her, still tugging at the cargo harness with every flick of movement Dash sent its way.

As she neared the ground, the crowds in the streets came into focus. Ponies were everywhere. With the recent change of the season, everypony wanted to enjoy the fresh, crisp autumn days. The marketplace was especially crowded, with food carts scattered about and every shop open for business.

Dash leveled out by the rooftops, slowing back down to an even pace. She glanced around, keeping a casual eye on the crowds and searching for her destination. She took a sharp turn as she passed Sugarcube Corner when suddenly a loud snap sounded out, followed by the feeling of a large weight being lifted from her chest.

“Uh, oh…”

She looked down to see the crate falling towards away from her, the remnants of the strap flailing about. In an instant she whipped around and gave chase. Her wings flapped furiously as she worked to beat the crate in its plummet to the ground. Right before it crashed down on a particularly large melon stand, she swooped beneath it and cradled it on her chest. The new weight knocked some of the wind out of her, but still she carried on and got back up to her original height. She heard a few ponies below her gasp at the fall and stomp their hooves in approval at the catch. She grinned to herself, but didn’t stop flapping away.

And the crowd goes wild! Of course, I can’t really give a victory wave without dropping this thing… ah well, I’ll get back to them on that. Just gotta deliver this stupid thing first. Now, where’s that library… bingo!

Up ahead, the familiar sight of the tree rose up over the rooftops. Dash squinted her eyes, noticing the door on the second story balcony was wide open.

Landing site spotted, commencing descent…

Dash gripped the crate as tightly as she could, causing a few of the aged timbers to creak under the stress. She kept her eyes steady. The tree grew closer and closer. When she saw her shadow appear on the balcony wall, she tucked her wings in. In one swift motion, she sailed through the door, glided across the room inside, floated down the staircase, popped the crate up onto the table, and finally landed on the library floor.

Dash took a few steps forward upon landing, panting heavily while she eased to a full stop. A few books clattered to the floor behind her, and she turned to find a very surprised looking Twilight Sparkle staring back.

“Rainbow Dash! Do you have to just barge in like that?”

Dash stretched her wings up and struck a pose. “Dash’s Delivery Service always makes a grand entrance. It’s a bonus for you.”

“Yes, well, for the future, I assure you that the front door is grand enough for me,” Twilight said, regaining some composure. She glanced over at the crate and smiled. “Although I must say, you made good time getting that.”

“Good? Hah!” Dash pulled her wings back in and started pacing around the room, still breathing deeply. She dropped the torn harness off as she went by the front door. “From Ponyville to Canterlot and back in under five hours? With heavy cargo and crummy strap to carry it with? Good nothing, I did awesome. That’s gotta be a new record right there, easy.”

Twilight smiled. Her horn lit up, and the crate’s lid cracked off and fell to the floor. “As always, I must concede to your flying abilities. Although you really didn’t need to go out of your way for me on this one. I was perfectly happy waiting for the normal postal service to mail it out.”

“Hey, I saved you bits on the shipping fees. Besides, it was a good run for me, and I need the practice. The more I build up my flight endurance, the better. And my heart is pumping right now, let me tell you. Though you’ll need to let me keep trotting around for a bit here, so I don’t just fall over or anything like that.”

Twilight nodded and lit her horn again. A series of large books floated out of the crate and onto a separate table, where they were laid out in a neat row. They were all filthy; covered in grime, parts of the dust jackets falling apart, and one of the spines was almost completely eroded away.

Dash watched Twilight work. “Still more studying old books, Twilight? Is that all you ever do?”

“Well, I am still technically a student, and studying is usually something students do.” Twilight cast a wry glance at Dash. “Besides, I could say the same thing about you always training.”

Dash shook her head and kept pacing.

“Anyway,” Twilight continued, “these aren’t for studying. Well, not right away, at least. They’re part of the history archives of the Royal Canterlot Library. It’s been in serious neglect for too long, but they’re finally doing a complete overhaul and upgrade. That means all the books need to be taken out, sorted, and stored until they can be put back. I just offered my services to the Canterlot scribes to help catalog everything and they agreed to send me some of the collection. Now I’ve just got to go through them and figure out exactly what they’re about, where they belong, and what, if anything, can be done to help restore them.”

“Didn’t they send a list or something to tell you what they’re about?” Dash glanced around the room. “I don’t see anything. Did they forget it? Do you want me to fly back and check? Because I totally can.”

“No, there’s no list like that,” Twilight said. “Most of the books have been stored away for so long that nopony really knows what’s in them. The old information listings have been lost for decades. A big part of the whole renovation project is to finally go in and figure out what’s what.”

“So… it’s a filing project? Isn’t that something that’s more up Spike’s alley than yours?” Dash looked around the library. “Come to think of it, where is he? I would’ve figured him to be right here when I got back.”

“I decided Spike had earned a break, so I gave him the day off. I believe he’s out helping Fluttershy stake out the hibernation spots near her house. She’s trying to get an early start on that this year.”

“Yeesh, even when that guy’s on break from assisting he’s still assisting. And anyway, if nopony’s looked at these books in so long that everypony’s forgotten what they’re even about, why even bother? It’s not like there’s not other books to deal with. For all we know, ponies stored them away because they weren’t worth reading to begin with.”

Twilight raised an eyebrow. “Every book matters, Rainbow Dash. Even more so if they’ve been forgotten. Just think of all the long-forgotten knowledge that’s just waiting to be rediscovered! This is important work here, and it needs to be treated seriously.”

Dash rolled her eyes. “Yeah, I’ll bet. Meaning of life could be hidden right on page one, and we wouldn’t know about it. What a shame.”

Dash paused by the table to take a closer look at one of the books. She reached a hoof out, only to have it batted away by a quick purple spark.

“Careful, Dash!” Twilight said. “Some of those are older than Ponyville. That means hooves off. Part of the reason I sent Spike away today was so I could get these set up safely and securely.”

“What’s the point of a book if you can’t even read it?” Dash asked. She walked over to the crate, which was still leaning on the edge of the table. “Besides, they survived a ride over in this thing. I think they can handle simply being opened.”

“All the same, I’d rather not go overboard on them just yet. From here on out, I treat them with as much care as I can manage,” Twilight said. She gingerly levitated the first volume in front of her face. A small brush floated up behind her and quickly moved in to dust off the cover.

“Come to think of it, this box looks about as old as the books,” Dash said. “Of course, it worked out a heck of a lot better than this strap did, so I gotta give it– whoops!”

A small misstep caused Dash to bump the table. The crate slipped forward a few inches, leaned off the edge at a steep angle, and tumbled to the floor. It landed in a crunch of splintering wood. The book and brush jiggled in the air as Twilight jumped at the noise, but she kept in control long enough to set them back down before turning around.

“Uh, sorry Twilight,” Dash said. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

“It’s alright, Rainbow,” Twilight said. “I’ve already got all the books out. That crate’s just good for firewood now anyway.”

“Ah, well, in that case…” Dash gave the crate a small kick, sending it sliding across the floor. She set herself to resume pacing when something caught her eye.

“Hey, what’s that?” Dash wandered over to the crate and peered inside. A small hole appeared at the bottom. Instead of giving a view of the library floor below, it instead revealed a small compartment hidden within the crate. Light from a nearby window shone straight through it, illuminating a small book kept in place by a pair of thin twine straps. Dash leaned over and flicked the book out.

“What is it, Rainbow Dash?” Twilight moved in to take a look.

“It looks like a book was hidden in the box. Not like one of the ones you’ve got over there, either; this one looks new.” Dash eyed the book carefully. It was a small volume, with firm felt covers that were as black as coal. Inscribed on the front cover in tiny, dark-red text were the letters “T.H.T.” In spite of the dust that had accumulated in every nook and cranny of the crate, this new book was completely grime-free. It looked like something that would have little difficulty blending into the New Releases shelf down at the bookstore.

Dash nudged it open. A blank page stared up at her. She flipped few a few more pages, but they all gave her the same empty view.

“There’s nothing in it, it’s totally blank,” she said.

Twilight cocked her head. “That’s odd. Why would somepony bother to hide an empty book?”

A purple haze appeared around the book. It floated over to Twilight, who looked through it at random. As she watched, small ripples appeared through the blank pages, followed by dark blurred lines. Within moments the lines cleared up into neatly typed words that filled every page.

“Wait, there is writing in here!” Twilight exclaimed. “It must’ve been activated by my magic. But… that’s strange…”

“What? The fact that somepony wrote a book that you can’t read unless you make it float?” Dash asked. “It’s either from somepony who only wants unicorns to read it, or it’s somepony going through an awful lot of trouble to hide their diary.”

“No… well, maybe that’s it, I’m not sure. I can’t read whatever language this is.”

She turned the book around to show Dash. The letters were a series of boxes, squiggles, and half-formed characters that looked totally unlike any writing Dash had ever seen before.

Twilight turned over to a nearby bookshelf. “Although a few of these characters do look a little familiar. Maybe I can work out a translation. Let me see, I know I’ve wrote myself some notes on ancient and archaic languages around here somewhere…”

While Twilight scanned the shelves, Dash shrugged and resumed her pacing.

“Well, whatever Twilight. It’s just another book thing for you to study. Me, I’ve got more important things on my mind. I mean, I told you what I’m training for, right?”

“Uh, no Rainbow, you never said– ah, here it is, next to my linguistics notebook.” Twilight retrieved the book she’d been searching for and opened it on the table next to the black book. She flipped through pages in both, her head going back and forth. “Let’s see… not Gryphian, not Hoofese… maybe something from southern Equestria…”

Dash grinned in anticipation. “Oh man, Twilight, this one’s big. Lemme break it down for you. The annual weather expo is happening in Cloudsdale this week. And tomorrow, I’ve got a chance to show myself off at an exhibition.”

She paused to beam with pride. “A personal exhibition, actually. See, it’s like this. This convention thing is huge. A ton of pegasi are coming in for it. I’m talking flyers from all over Equestria, and a lot of them have new weather control techniques to debut, or tricks to show off, or ideas to experiment with, or whatever. Now me, I’ve got a little something more cooked up that’s all three rolled into one, and the right audience to show it to. I’m talking about a few of the flight trainers from the academy, along with one of the VPs from the central weather factory, all together just for me. And I’ve got a new move lined up that not only looks phenomenal, it could also be a big time saver for clearing leaves off trees when autumn rolls around. It’s a part of weather they never really address at these things, so I’m bound to stand out. Not to mention it’ll knock their feathers off, for sure.”

“Uh-huh, that’s neat. No, there’d be at least some similarities to Palsic if it was from that region. Alright, think… this character here seems familiar. I know I’ve seen it before, but where?”

“It wasn’t easy to set up, let me tell you. Everypony’s looking for their time in the spotlight at this thing, after all.” Dash cocked her head and thought back. “I had to call in a lot of favors, and give out even more. No matter what happens, I’m on storm duty for pretty much the rest of the year. But it’ll be worth it. I’ve been practicing it for weeks now, not to mention getting my body in shape for actually pulling it off.”

Twilight checked over a few pages in her notebook. “Here we go. It’s part of the scripture in that big painting over the archive entrance at Canterlot. Let’s see… ‘The Gates Of Knowledge Are To Be Forever Locked Against Ignorance’, artist unknown, 10th century. Which means this must be Equestrian Regal! But that language has been dead for centuries now, and this book looks really recent. Who would still be writing in it? For that matter, who knows enough of it to even write this much? This is the sort of language that was really never used like this except for… for…”

Dash fluttered into the air. “I mean, let me just emphasize what I’d be doing here. With just a few sharp drops, some even sharper hairpins, and a complete flatline over the trees, in one instant I’ll be able to take the leaves off an entire acre of forest all by myself.”

Twilight gasped. Dash held a hoof out.

“I know, I know! But I’m just getting warmed up here.” She pointed and dropped to the floor, letting her wings out to catch herself at the last second.

“This must be a spell book!” Twilight said with palpable excitement. “A lot of the ancient wizards kept this writing practice up even as it fell out of style. It got rarer as time went by, but some insisted on sticking to it, claiming it made the process more refined and, by extension, more powerful. Whoever wrote this one now must’ve been transcribing some old texts into a modern manuscript. For them to not only keep it in the original language but mask it in magically-activated ink… well, that means there could very well be some very advanced magic in here… I have to know what it is.”

Twilight let out a broad smile. A large language book floated over from the top shelf and sat down next to her notebook. She quickly flipped it open and browsed through it for the proper section. “Now, where to begin with this…”

Meanwhile, Dash continued floating around above the floor, using her hooves to better illustrate her description. “I mean, it’s something that’s never been done before. Or at least, never been done right. See, we can’t just push a windstorm or anything out over a forest, it’ll do too much damage to the trees. But I got to thinking about all that energy that builds up around me when I pull off a Sonic Rainboom. If I fly at just right, and if I keep myself focused, I can actually keep it going without letting it get away from me, and without breaking through the barrier.”

Twilight turned over a few pages in the black book, stopping at one at random. The words shifted around, vanishing and then reappearing. The lines came into view one at a time, the same as they were before, each one identical. “That’s very unusual.”

Dash laughed. “Unusual nothing. When I show this off tomorrow, it’ll be out of this world. But I haven’t even gotten to the best part!”

Leaning in, Twilight squinted at the page. “Well, the title here is really elaborately written. I can’t even tell what’s a letter and what’s just extra ink. But it seems like… like every sentence is the same?”

Dash flapped back into the air, moving throughout the library in wide arcs. “See, this is what really makes it work out. Like I said, a simple windstorm won’t work, and just going through and kicking the trees and whatnot takes too long for certain forests. So what I do is swoop down with all this speed and energy built up, and at the last second, and I mean right at the uppermost branches, I level out. Pull into a totally flat line along the top, and release all that wind energy, and then BAM. Energy spreads out, leaves fly off, trees are unharmed, and just like that, one lonesome pegasus has de-leafed an entire acre of forest.”

Twilight’s head kept weaving back and forth between the books, alternating between long stares at the black book’s sentences and her language book’s translation and grammar rule notes. “Alright, first word… starts with that symbol, so it’s a verb– no, a command. Let me see, to single out, to select… choose! The first word is ‘choose’. Second character looks short, probably an indefinite article… yup, ‘a’. ‘Choose a…’, simple as that. Now, ‘choose a’ what…”

A smug grin crossed Dash’s face, though her cheeks grew a red in the process. “Now, I’m not saying it’ll be easy, even for me. I’ve got the drop, corkscrew, and hairpins down cold. Really, the whole opening? That’s no biggie.”

“That pull-up, though…” Dash rubbed the back of her neck. “That one’s giving me trouble. It’s not so much the actual pull, since I’ve done flatlines before. I can just never quite… judge it right, ya know? About getting close enough to the trees. Too far up and there’s not enough impact, and the leaves stay on. Too close, and I end up crashing into the forest.”

She smiled again and flexed her wings. “But that’s why I’ve been doing all this long distance flying recently. I build up my wing strength, I keep my energy at the right levels, and I can get all the power I need right when I need it. So as soon as I drop to where I need to do the pull, I can do it without even a moment’s hesitation. Just down and wooosh.”

“Last word’s definitely a noun. Haven’t seen that character before, and it’s written a little funny. In fact, a lot of these don’t seem to quite match up. But these ones here… looks like…”

Dash put her hooves on her hips, another prideful smile adorning her face. Meanwhile, Twilight kept at her work.

“Tail? Talisman? No, that doesn’t fit, hang on…” Twilight turned another page. Her hoof scrolled down over the text, finally stopping near the bottom. Her eyes lit up. “Target! That’s it, target! Choose a target!”

Twilight smiled gleefully, though it quickly fell to a frown. “Okay, so… what does it mean by that? ‘Choose a target’… that’s all it says?”

Twilight checked other pages in the black book, but they had all reverted back to blank slates. The only text that remained was on the single page, still under an overly ornate title, still constantly flashing in and out, always repeating the same sentence over and over again. Twilight scratched her head. “Just this page now… it reacted to my magic picking the book up, so maybe it’s reacting to something else? But what? And how? ‘Choose a target’, ‘Choose a target’, hmmm…”

Dash finally settled back on the floor, letting her wings take a quick break. “So, yeah. That’s my training. And you know what? I can do this. Sure, I haven’t technically been able to pull it off just yet, but that’ll change tomorrow. I’m pumped, I’m ready, I’ve worked hard enough, I always deliver when the chips are down, and, well, for crying out loud, I deserve it. I mean, you think so, right Twilight?”

Twilight stared at her books, her eyes in constant motion between the open page and the translation notes.

“Hey, Twilight? Helloooooo, Twilight. Can you hear me in there?” Dash walked forward and waved.

“Huh?” Twilight’s head twitched, and she looked up. “What? Oh, sorry, what were you saying Rainbow Dash?”

Before Twilight could even shut her mouth, there was a flash of movement. She yelped and jumped back in surprise as the black book snapped shut on its own. It quivered softly on the table, sending small vibrations down into the floorboards. Up in the rafters, a few stray piles of dust wafted to the floor.

Dash took an instinctive step back, her wings flaring up defensively. “Um, Twilight? Did you do–”

A small puff of smoke leaked out of the book’s spine. It came out like a strong exhale, morphing into a small, translucent ball in mid-air. It spun a few times, building up energy and sending out arms like some mini cyclone. There was a deafening snap that sounded as if a tree had been broken in two, and the ball took off.

It moved at Dash so fast she barely had time to see it coming. The ball struck dead center in her chest, sending her tumbling backwards. She rolled a few times, coming to a stop against a far wall. A few loose books on a low-hanging shelf popped off on the impact. They fell down in unison, all of them marginally avoiding Dash’s head as she sat up. She rubbed a hoof along her scalp while the world came back into focus.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight shouted. She hurried across the room to tend to her friend. “Are you all right? How do you feel? Is anything feeling off or weird?”

“Whoa, whoa, just… just hang on a sec, alright?” Dash eased Twilight back with one of her wings, and slowly stood back up. She swayed back and forth a few times before shaking her head and regaining her poise.

“Rainbow, look at me,” Twilight said. She looked into the pegasus’ eyes closely. “Can you still see and hear me clearly? Do you still see normal colors? Is everything the same shape as before?”

“Uh… yeah, actually. I feel fine,” Dash said. She glanced back over her shoulders and down at her hooves, looking over herself carefully. She flapped her wings, rising into the air to do a few quick laps around the library.

“Dash, you just got hit with a magical spell that knocked you across a room,” Twilight said, her eyes following Dash’s every move. “Not only that, it was a spell I don’t know that came from a book I don’t know cast in a manner I don’t know. It could’ve done anything.”

“I know that, but I’m just telling you, I feel fine.” Dash did one final lap and landed gracefully in front of Twilight. “Maybe that’s all it did, just knock me back. You’ve got spells that do that, don’t ya?”

“Well, more or less. Maybe it was a defensive mechanism for the book against unwanted readers…” Twilight looked at the floor, letting her mind try and collect itself. “It went after you… it blocks out non-magical ponies nearby? No, there’s got to be more to it…”

“Uh, right, well… here I am, still me.” Dash did a small jump, landing on two hooves with ease. She flew back up overhead. “You’re the magical expert here, Twilight, you tell me.”

“Well, if we can’t tell just by what you feel right now, we’ll have to do some tests. Maybe it’s something subtle, or takes effect later on. I’ve got a few detection hexes that should work for just this sort of thing. Just let me get my notes out and–”

“Wait, Twilight, quick question, so, uh, pause,” Dash said, crossing her forelegs. “Exactly how long are these tests gonna take? I mean, I wanna know I’m good just as much as you do, but I really need to get some more training in and a good night’s sleep tonight.”

“What for? Wait, never mind, that doesn’t matter. Right now the most important thing for you to do is stay here until I can figure out exactly what happened.” Twilight trotted over to a bookshelf under the stairs and started browsing titles, muttering under her breath as her hoof skimmed across the spines.

“Right, but again, my question is how long that might take. I did say I was fine, after all, so maybe that means it won’t take long? Or–”

“It’ll take as long as it needs to take,” Twilight said. She pulled three large volumes out of the top of the shelf and turned to Dash. Noting Dash’s concerned look, she smiled.

“But… it really shouldn’t take too long,” Twilight said with confidence. “Especially if it does turn out to be nothing. Let me run my spells and other tests, and we’ll be set in no time. Now, come back down to the floor so I can get started. I think a rudimentary cleansing-and-welfare spell should knock out any of the obvious candidates straight away…”

Rainbow Dash beat her wings at a steady beat. It kept her flat and level in the crisp late-morning air, which seemed even cooler than normal thanks in no small part to her present vantage point being over two miles up in the air. She took a deep breath and glanced down at the ground. A cluster of small dots in the distance marked the edge of Ponyville, while a large white blob on the opposing mountains marked Canterlot. Directly beneath her was an impressive expanse of orange, red, and gold; Bramblewood Forest, filled to the brim with trees recently transformed into their full autumn glory.

Dash took another deep breath and shook her head.

Alright, relax, you’ve got this. Drop to the halfway, hairpin back, climb to this spot, hairpin back… and quit letting your hooves shake so much, it’ll throw your aim off on the fall.

“You okay, Rainbow Dash?”

The question caught Dash’s attention, snapping her back into focus. She glanced at the assembled group of pegasi behind her. They sat on a cloudbank near the outer edge of one of the Flight Academy’s training grounds. Normally such a field would be swarming with activity, but it was largely empty today save for the assembled group. The main festivities for the convention had been set up in near the main weather factory on the other side of the city. The crowds gathered there, with their only presence here being the steady buzz of conversation that filled the background.

“Oh, uh, yeah! Just… just taking one last stretch!” Dash smiled and flexed out her legs. Her ears perked up, and in the quiet, windless sky she heard a few murmurs emerge from the group.

“Another day, another new trick. What’s this thing supposed to do again?” One asked with a lazy droll.

“Clear the leaves off a whole forest,” another answered. “Or impale herself on a tree. One of the two.”

“Hmmph. Smart money’s on the tree.”

Hey, focus! Dash thought, blocking out the whispers. They’ll be eating their words in a few seconds and you know it.

Dash kept a calm face and didn’t turn around. She stifled a yawn and kept stretching.

Yeesh, I knew I should’ve gotten more sleep last night… stupid magic and tests and whatever. Keeps me stuck in that library for hours, all for nothing. Just a clean bill of health and lost practice and sleep time… well, practice time. I guess I might’ve been a little nervous last night, but then, it’s not like this is the first time I’ve–

“Whenever you’re ready, then!”

Dash glanced back around. The words came from a slim pegasus sitting apart from the rest of the group. Unlike his companions, who all wore athletic jackets and related training gear, his attire was more businesslike: A smart red tie that complimented his gray mane and black jacket, capped off by a pair of pencil-thin spectacles pressed snugly against his face. He smiled easily back at Dash, his confidant expression clashing with his colleagues.

Alright Rainbow Dash, it’s go time. Now or never.

Her wings flapped. Dash shot up a half-dozen meters, then paused. She took one final breath, and closed her wings. For a fraction of a second she stayed in place, a motionless dot in the vast skies over Equestria. Then gravity kicked in, and she fell. She twisted over straight away, going face-first towards the ground. Her wings stayed clamped on her sides, while her forelegs stretched out in front of her. With a few quick shifts of her body weight, she started spinning. As she corkscrewed down faster and faster, she heard the sound of voices to her side. Cracking her eyes open stole her a quick glance of the other pegasi as she flashed by. Then she was below Cloudsdale, her speed increasing by the second.

Nearly there. Hairpin up in three, two, one… now!

Dash’s wings popped open. The wind caught her immediately, and she flipped around and shot skyward. She practically shoved energy into her wings, and pumped them with as much muscle as she could manage. It wasn’t long before she flew past the cloudbank and then higher still, all the way up to her starting position.

So far so good, speed feels right. Ready for that last turn… now!

Another hairpin put Dash back into a nosedive. With one hoof in front of her she rocketed towards the forest below. Her wings stayed out behind her, slightly tucked to better guide her fall. The air roared past her ears to the point of drowning out all other noise. She squinted against the rush as pressure mounted against her face. She caught the faint curved line of energy building up in front of her, a line that got thicker and thicker the closer the ground got.

Alright, you’ve got this, keep it steady. No Rainboom here, just the right speed, you’ve got this, you’ve got this.

Dash stretched her body out a little further, aching to get as thin and aerodynamic as possible. Below, Equestria’s size increased at a dizzying pace. The colored stretch of land was now breaking up into individually discernible trees. Each stood motionless, unruffled by even a hint of wind.

Just got to pull up and flatline now. You can do this. Wait for it, wait for it…

A few larger limbs on the trees started standing out. It was an especially thick forest; each tree was more than full of enough leaves to totally block the view of the ground.

Wait for it…

The energy in front of her drew in until it angled at a point in front of her hoof. Dash’s body shook all over. The top of the nearest tree was no more than a stone’s throw away.

Wait for it, wait for– no, now! Now!

Dash flattened her wings. The air shrieked in her ears. Her body quickly leveled out, pulling her view up over the horizon.

Keep at it, come on… no… no, no, don’t be too low, come on, keep pulling up, keep–

Dash groaned against the weight of the air pushing all around her. Her angle kept leveling out, though still pointed downward. The top of the nearest tree loomed, blocking out the rest of the background.

…yeah, this is gonna su–

In a blur of movement, Dash crashed into the top of the tree and disappeared into the woods below.

A collection of winces and groans sounded out as Dash crashed into the trees. She snapped out of view in an instant, disappearing into the forest below and leaving a small, faintly-visible hole in the canopy.

There was a brief moment of silence within the group.

“Alright, we can all admit that could’ve gone better,” one of them finally said.

The pegasus floating next to him rolled his eyes and glanced at his smartly-dressed companion. “Still got all that faith in these young flyers, Cirrus?”

Cirrus adjusted his glasses. “The idea looked promising, and it was worth investigating. Besides, trial and error is how these things work. You know that as well as I do, Thunder.”

“Yeah, but I usually don’t like to kill a morning for one. Especially one I don’t think is gonna work. Especially not during the Expo,” Thunder replied.

“Alright, but I’m still saying it wouldn’t kill you to be a little more positive,” Cirrus said. “Besides, you know what this girl’s done before. There was plenty of reason to think she could’ve succeeded here, and that means–”

“Uh, she’s not coming back up,” the first pagasus cut in. He motioned downward to the others. “Shouldn’t we go check on her?”

“Yeah, yeah… come on then, Streamline” Thunder said. “Let’s go make sure she’s still in one piece. I don’t wanna have to drag this thing out any longer than we already have.”

The two pegasi dropped out of the group, flying down in a wide, controlled spiral. Cirrus looked at the remainder of the group.

“Really, I liked the idea,” he said. “It just needs work in the execution.”

The others shrugged and joined in the descent. Cirrus followed them down, all the while working to mask his disappointed expression. Within another minute, the group hovered a few meters over the treetops. The hole where Dash entered was directly below them, though it didn’t go far before the thick foliage cut off their view.

“Hey Rainbow Dash! Can you hear us? Are you all right?” Thunder called out. His voice boomed in every direction, spooking a few birds flying nearby. The others kept their eyes peeled for any signs of movement. Small talk soon broke up the silence.

“Wow, that was some hit. Look, you can see how she snapped that tree branch clean in half.”

“Can we get in there? Can’t see a thing up here.”

“Wouldn’t be easy to pick our way down. That’s a thick forest, lotta limbs on the trees you gotta climb through. Can’t land easily anywhere nearby, either.”

“Yeah, this one could be serious. What’s fastest today, the aid station in the Academy or that booth out by the factory?”

“The booth, I suspect. Most of the Academy docs are there today, to help manage the crowd.”

“Right, right. Well, Streamline, you’re the fastest. Get up there and tell them that we’ve got–”

“Hey, look!”

Everypony followed Cirrus’ outstretched hoof to a spot a few trees away. As they watched, the leaves rustled back and forth more and more vigorously until finally a rainbow-maned head popped out. Dash quickly flapped up into the open air, shaking a few leaves off that followed her. Even from a distance, the group could see her hooves trembling. She looked off in the opposite direction, her head moving sluggishly.

“Uh… Rainbow Dash?” Cirrus called out.

“Huh? What?” Dash spun around in a fright. Her face was pale with bloodshot eyes. Her hooves popped up in front of her, adapting an almost fighting stance.

Cirrus glanced back at the group. They stared ahead, silent. He looked back.

“Well, um… are you okay?” he asked. “That looked like a terrible crash. How do you feel?”

“…you can see me?” Dash asked. She glanced down over her body, patting her chest and sides. The stunned expression remained transfixed on her face.

“Yeah, not quite the most reassuring answer,” Thunder muttered.

“Rainbow, maybe you should follow us back to Cloudsdale. Let the medics check you out,” Cirrus said.

Dash’s gaze faltered into the distance, then she shook her head. “Uh… no, wait! I’m… I’m okay, really. Just fine! See?”

With a fresh flap of her wings, Dash sailed over to the group. She did several twirls and spins in the air, landing before them in a steady hover. “See? Not even a scratch on me. I’m feeling A-OK.”

The others stared at her. True to her word, Dash appeared completely unharmed. A few miniscule cuts stood out on her shoulders, likely received in her final push out of the tree, but that was all. She stared back at them with a forced smile.

“Well, uh, I…” Cirrus started, but found himself at a loss.

“So… how’d I do?” Dash asked, rubbing the back of her head somewhat sheepishly.

The others quickly glanced at one another.

“Well, it was a nice idea,” Streamline said.

“And you started it out really well,” the pegasus behind him added.

“With some terrific form in the opening. I mean, those were some pitch perfect hairpins and controlled falls,” another said.

“But…” Cirrus said slowly.

“But it didn’t work out,” Thunder finished. He looked Dash with a steady gaze and shook his head. “I’m sorry Rainbow Dash. You’ve got the spirit, I’ll give you that, but it didn’t pay off. And frankly, I don’t have the time for near misses, however close they get. So, uh… better luck next time.”

At that, Thunder made an abrupt turn and flexed his wings, flapping up towards Cloudsdale. The others each gave Dash a small nod or small sentence of encouragement, and then flew up after him. The chatter started shortly thereafter.

“Not a scratch on her, can you believe it?”

“Absolutely crazy, that’s what it is.”

“I’d have torn a wing off in an accident like that, without question.”

“I’ll say. Even if she didn’t pull that trick off, she’s one heck of a flyer.”

“Or at least somepony who really, really knows how to crash.”

The banter grew fainter as the group ascended, eventually becoming indiscernible with the rest of the noise coming out of Cloudsdale high in the sky.

Back down over the forest, Cirrus gave Dash one final look over. Dash, meanwhile, hung her head in disappointment.

“For what it’s worth, I still think it’s a solid idea,” Cirrus finally said. “Ponies are always throwing ideas at us weather bureau folk, and a lot of them don’t work out at first. Even the good ones.”

He gave Dash a small smile. She looked up and made an effort to return it.

“Well, uh… thanks. I just… I’m not sure what happened, I thought…”

“Like I said, these things happen. But keep training for it. When you think you’re ready, and I mean actually pulled it off once or twice… come see me again.”

“Really? You mean it?” Dash said, her smile growing more genuine.

Cirrus nodded and turned towards Cloudsdale. Before he took off, he glanced back. “Oh, and, uh, you still really may want to consider seeing a doctor. At least to give your head a once-over, alright? Do me that favor?”

“Oh, sure! Yeah, I’ll get, uh, I’ll get right on it.” Dash smiled and waved goodbye.

Cirrus nodded again and, with a few powerful pumps of his wings, he was off into the sky towards the others. Dash watched him fly away, dejection seeping back into her expression.

“Man, all that effort for this…” she mumbled with a sigh. She glanced back down at the forest, and her eyes lit up.

Hey! Why are you still just floating around? Go get Twilight, now!

Dash’s head took one final look at the spot in the trees she crashed through. Then her body leveled out, her wings twitched, and she soared off across the trees towards Ponyville. A few leaves cleared out in her wake, mingling with her natural rainbow trail into a new mix of color and light.

Unlike the previous day, the door on the second story balcony of the library was closed and locked. That didn’t deter Dash from crashing through it as she entered the tree. At the speed she was moving, she barely even noticed the door splinter around her, nor the shards of glass from the window pane implode with it.

“Twilight! Twilight!” Dash shouted as soon as she was inside. She zipped over the staircase and came thundering down to the floor below. A few scattered pieces of wood came along with her, clattering into the wall by the front door.

Twilight and Spike, working together on a small stack of books near the basement door, each jumped in fright. Spike tripped backward into the book pile, knocking the stack over onto a different stack next to it. The parchment Twilight had been studying wafted to the floor as her magic disappeared.

“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight exclaimed. “What are you doing? What did I say about using the front–”

“Nope, no time for that, gotta take you somewhere right now.” Dash swooped forward and grabbed Twilight by the shoulders, quickly forcing her up the stairs.

“Whoa, Rainbow, hang on a second!” Twilight’s horn flashed and she teleported behind Dash. The sudden increase in momentum sent Dash hurling into a nearby wall. She quickly shook the blow off and turned around.

“Hey, what– look, just come with me now,” she said. “This is something you’ve really got to–”

“What’s going on here?” Spike asked, having finally freed himself from the mass of books. “Rainbow Dash, what’s the big idea crashing through the window like that? I’m the one who’s gotta clean that up, you know.”

“Hi Spike, sorry about the mess, but can’t stay to chat.” Dash turned back to Twilight. “Twilight, seriously, I need you to come with me. I’ve got to show you something important.”

Twilight put a hoof up. “Rainbow Dash, calm down. I’ll listen to you, you just need to explain to me, nice and slowly–”

“Rainbow Dash, you’re bleeding!” Spike pointed at Dash’s flank. Dash glanced back and saw a thin red line crossing over her thigh, with a few small streams of blood making their way down her leg. A few small pieces of broken glass were still embedded in the cut, and stuck out at odd angles.

“Um… don’t, uh, don’t worry about that. It’ll be fine,” Dash said. She pushed a wing back to block the wound.

“Ooh, careful Rainbow,” Twilight said. “Don’t move too much, so that doesn’t get worse. I think I can take these glass shards out. Spike, go get the bandages out of the bathroom.”

Spike gave a small salute and scurried off into the other room. Twilight leaned in to get a closer look, but Dash grabbed her head and moved it up to stare at her eye-to-eye.

“Twilight. Listen to me very, very carefully,” Dash said in a low, flat voice. “Something really, really weird just happened to me. Something that I’m pretty sure involves you, and that I’m pretty sure involves a little incident that took place right here yesterday. Do you get me now?”

Dash kept a hard stare up. Realization finally dawned on Twilight’s face.

“Um… okay, I… Spike!” Twilight wiggled out of Dash’s grip and turned towards the bathroom door. Spike walked out holding a small roll of gauze.

“This is all I could find, Twilight. Will it be enough?” He asked.

“Uh, Spike, actually, don’t worry about it,” Twilight said. “We’re just going to, um…”

“Go to the hospital!” Dash said. She smiled and pulled Twilight a little closer. “We’ll just take a quick trip over to the hospital. I’ll get stitched up there in no time, don’t you worry.”

“Well, if you think that’s best–”

“Just see about cleaning up the mess for now,” Twilight said, glancing up at the broken door. “But watch out for broken glass! I know your scales are thick, but that’s no reason to be careless with the–”

“Well that’s great, Twilight, but we gotta go now.” Dash wrapped around Twilight’s shoulders and lifted her into the air. Before Spike could respond, the two were flying out the broken window and into the air over Ponyville.

It took a few seconds for Twilight to adjust to her awkward position. A few ponies on the ground looked up in time to see them fly by, but it was only for a moment, and then they were out of sight.

“You know, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight called as the wind whipped by, “you could’ve told me where we were going and I would’ve teleported us there! Probably would’ve been easier than this.”

“Would you just bear with me for a bit longer? We’re nearly there.”

Dash flew with a purpose, and in less than twenty minutes Bramblewood was in sight. Twilight’s eyes grew narrow at the sight, but she kept her mouth shut. As they came over the treetops, Dash finally slowed down, her eyes scanning around for her final destination.

“There! Over there!” Dash brought Twilight over to the hole in the large tree. Twilight glanced down at it, and then up into the sky. Cloudsdale was clearly visible, the sun casting a large beam over it.

“Say, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight said slowly, “this wouldn’t have anything to do with that trick you were supposed to perform today, does it?”

“You could say that. Watch your hooves here, these trees are crammed full of branches and stuff.” Dash tenderly lowered Twilight onto a sturdy limb at the top of the tree, by the hole’s entrance. As soon as Twilight’s hooves were down, she lit up her horn.

“Here, let me save us some time.”

The two ponies vanished in a flash of light. An identical flash appeared on the forest floor, depositing them firmly on the ground. Twilight looked up at the tree. From her new perspective, the extent of the damage was immediately apparent. A steady path led from the hole at the top of the tree, down through four nearby trees and just as many bushes. It angled down towards the ground and continued on through a large bush Twilight couldn’t see past. Most of the branches in the path had been completely ripped off, though some of the larger pieces still hung on by a few strips of bark.

“Wow… Rainbow Dash, did you do this?” Twilight asked.

Dash shrugged. “Yeah, but… that’s not it. Come on over here.”

Twilight stayed close behind as Dash walked towards the end of the path. They rounded the large bush, and Twilight caught sight of the rest of the impact path. It finally struck the forest floor a little after the bush, ripping grass and small shrubs straight out of the ground to create a long, thin crash zone. Twilight looked at it carefully. At first she thought it was some moss that had gotten thrown in during the confusion, then realized it was a liquid in the dirt.

Blood. Enough of it to stain the earth red. It started small at first, with only a few scattered drops, but soon turned into a large smear, and then an outright trail. It streaked along the displaced dirt, thick enough in parts to form actual puddles. It continued on ahead through another small shrub. More broken twigs marked the way, along with more blood. A few feathers and torn bits of flesh appeared close to the shrub as well. Looking over the top, Twilight saw a few tall, thick boulders resting on the other side.

Dash paused by the shrub. She glanced back and forth between Twilight and the rocks ahead. “Alright, um… just don’t freak out, okay?”

“What, uh, what am I looking at here?” Twilight asked nervously. She tried to peer through the hole in the shrub, but Dash stepped in her way.

“Seriously Twilight. I need you to promise not to freak out.” Dash leveled a firm look at Twilight. “I’ve already been doing plenty of that, and I need your help here. And I’m not gonna get it if you lose your cool. You hear me?”

“I hear you Rainbow, honest.” Twilight took a step forward. “Just… show me what you want me to see.”

“Okay… get ready now…” Dash took a deep breath, and stepped back. She grabbed the edges of the shrub with her wings and pushed it aside, giving a clear view of the end of the path.

Twilight took a few more steps forward, then stopped. Her face quickly paled, and she released an audible gasp.

Lying in a crumpled heap against the enormous gray boulders was the body of a pegasus. A red splatter on the rock marked the spot where its crashing dive had come to an abrupt end. The skull was split in two, pushing off into rough, jagged pieces like a cracked egg shell. Sickly grey brain matter leaked out the top, some of it stopped in place by skull fragments while other bits managed to make it all the way to the moss-covered stone. The right foreleg, apparently having impacted a microsecond before the head, had shattered completely into a pulpy mess beneath the chest. Cracks and gashes appeared all over the abdomen as a result of the force of the impact rushing through it. A few drops of blood dripped out of a few wounds, but most of it was already deposited across the rock or in the large puddle directly beneath the body.

The thing that Twilight noticed most as she stared at the red, rocky mess, once she got over the initial shock of the gory display, were the original colors of the body itself. Namely, the cyan skin and rainbow colored mane, complete with the remnants of a rainbow colored, lightning bolt shaped cutie mark that was half-ripped off the flank.

“Rainbow Dash, that’s… that’s…”

“Yeah, it’s me. No doubts about that.” Dash wandered over next to the corpse and looked it over with a long, uneasy glance.

Twilight gaped wordlessly for another minute. “Well, um… I guess that explains what that spell did.”

Dash glanced up at Twilight. “Ya think? I figured that part out. My question is… well, I don’t know. I’m still trying to just deal with this.”

Fighting back the urge to gag, Twilight stepped forward for a closer look. A small crack of sunlight managed to work its way through the thick leaf cover, causing the broken body to glisten.

“Okay, so, it’s your… dead body,” Twilight said. “Except you’re standing right here. Talking to me.”

“I know!” Dash said. She paced back and forth by the rock. “I just… I guess I misjudged the pull up, crashed through the trees, came down here, and, uh… well, here I am now.”

“How did… what happened? What do you remember?”

“I just said what I remember!” Dash threw her legs up in frustration. “One second I’m in the trees, I see a rock coming at me, then I’m standing right where I am now, totally fine. I turn around, and I see this, and… I don’t really know what I thought after that, actually.”

Tenderly, Twilight used some magic to pull the head back. It took a second to peel off the rock before she managed to get it free. Though it was smashed to pieces, and one of the eyeballs had half leaked out in a way that made Twilight once again fight back her gag reflex, there was no denying who it was.

“Well?” Dash asked. “What’s going on? What’s happening here? Why am I alive here and dead there?”

“I just… just let me think for a second…” Twilight backed up, staring at a spot of ground that was undamaged.

“Crashed here, died, but didn’t die, turned out just fine, but there’s still a body…” she muttered under her breath. She scratched her chin for a moment and paced around in a few tight circles.

“What does this, Twilight?” Dash asked. “I mean, if it really was that spell… I mean, if this is what it… well, just what the hay is going on?”

Twilight kept pacing, still muttering to herself.

“Did you figure out what was up with that book yet?” Dash asked. Her voice grew more frantic with every question. “Did you? Is there an explanation in there? Just… well? Come on!”

“I… I’m not sure,” Twilight said. She looked up at Dash with a glum expression. “I mean, I translated a little more, but it was proving… difficult. I was going to take a closer look at it later this week when I had time, but now…”

Twilight trailed off. She looked at Dash, then at Dash’s corpse, then back at Dash. She noticed the blood on Dash’s flank.

“Rainbow, can you feel that?” She pointed at the cut.

Dash did a quick double take, then looked back. “Can I– huh? I don’t… well, no, not really, I’m just kinda numb right now. Why? What’s that matter right now anyway?”

Twilight stared ahead. Her eyes lost focus for a moment as her mind raced ahead.

“Oh…” she murmured. “Oh dear…”

“’Oh dear’? ‘Oh dear’ what?” Dash flapped forward, taking a small hop over herself. “What does ‘oh dear’ mean? Spill it Twilight!”

“We need to get back to the tree, right now,” Twilight said. “There’s something I need to look at.”

“Back to the–”

“Trust me on this, Rainbow.” Twilight took a deep breath. “I think I may have an idea what all this is about.”

Dash grimaced, then shrugged and took another look back at the body.

“Well what, uh, do we do with this?”

Twilight opened her mouth to respond, but paused abruptly. Her ears perked up as a new noise broke through the trees from somewhere nearby. Dash’s head snapped over to look between the trees towards a nearby grotto. Hoofsteps could be heard breaking through the twigs and fallen leaves, with a steady conversation backing them up.

“This is some trail you’re taking us on.”

“You two said you were bored with the mountains, and that you wanted more trees. Well, here you are.”

“Yeah, but I also would’ve liked to be able to get some breathing room walking between them.”

“Very true. As much as I enjoy hopping from stump to stump, I wouldn’t mind being able to touch solid ground from time to time.”

“Picky, picky, picky…”

“You two need to just enjoy the forest for the tre– ouch! Hey, no throwing things at the host!”

Laughter cut in as the voices drew closer. Dash turned back to Twilight.

“We gotta get out of here!” she said in a frantic whisper. “I don’t want somepony think I’m some crazed changeling or something!”

“I don’t think changelings actually kill their prey–”

“Twilight, focus! Can you teleport us back to the tree now?”

Twilight shook her head. “I don’t know who’d be around! I can’t just pop in there with this. What if Spike saw?”

“Well, think of something before they–”

Another loud crack of breaking wood sounded out, this one even closer than before. Dim movement flashed between the thick limbs.

“Alright, alright, just… I got this, hang on…”

Twilight’s horn glowed. A purple field surrounded the corpse, covering it in a cloud of faint haze. It rose into the air, the mangled hooves drooping down once they left the ground. The head followed suit, hanging down at a harsh angle that threatened to fall off altogether at any moment. A long tear on the stomach strained under its own weight. As the corpse reached head level, it split, releasing a long strand of intestines. They unraveled out faster and faster until a small, soppy spool hung just above the ground, held in place by the edge of the field.

“Ah geeze, Twilight, come on!” Dash snapped, louder than she meant.

The approaching group paused in place.

“Hey, anypony hear something?”

“Dude, it’s too early for Nightmare Night pranks.”

“And yet I still heard something. Over there, I think.”

Twilight blushed. “Sorry!” she whispered. “Let’s just get moving.”

Dash grimaced. “I know, just… be more careful with me.”

The two nodded and took a few steps back the way they came. Twilight came to a quick stop, the corpse halting in front of her.

“Wait. One last thing.”

Twilight turned her head back and applied more power to her horn. A small blue circle appeared over the crash site. It spun several rotations in place, then opened up into a miniature waterfall. The liquid splashed down the rocks, flushing away blood, feathers, and bone fragments. A few nearby leaves and branches magically descended into place to cover up the scene. It wasn’t perfect, but neither was it the violent image it had been seconds before.

“Yeah, I heard something now too,” the voices said.

“Might be a bear or something.”

“Do they have bears out here?”

“You guys really paid attention in that zoology class, I see.”

“That’s not what that class was about!”

Dash motioned Twilight to move along. Without another delay, the two scurried through the underbrush, back along the crash entrance and then farther into the woods. The thick trees kept them from moving at a quick speed, and Twilight had to carefully watch the path of the corpse so her magical field didn’t get stuck in place, but it didn’t take long before the party behind them was no longer in earshot.

The two galloped ahead. Dash stayed in front, the corpse in the middle, and Twilight picking up the rear. The woods remained thick and unrelenting, though at least they both retained their sense of direction enough to know they were headed back towards Ponyville.

“It shouldn’t take more than an hour to get back,” Twilight said after a while. “Once we’re closer I can see about teleporting back and forth. Just enough to move us along without anypony else seeing us.”

“Think we could fly out of here at least?” Dash asked after a while. “It would definitely get us out of these woods faster.”

“Rainbow, Cloudsdale’s right there. If you were flying around and saw another pegasi struggling to carry something, what would you do?”

Dash thought for a second, then nodded. “Alright, fine. Let’s just pick up the pace a bit at least. I’m sick of being that close to that thing. I’m not sure how to say this, but… I’m really starting to reek.”