17
Rain
After weeks of scouting, Thunderhead had finally located where they supposed the griffon weapon to be—set inside a hill at the southernmost end of the Griffish Isles. Rainbow and Soarin' were tasked to sneak into and secure the cannon amidst the backdrop of a thunderstorm and air battle, launching a flare when they finished. They were minutes away from their last briefing and were presently equipping themselves in the now empty locker room. Without the rest of the Wonderbolts, it was eerily quiet.
Rainbow hadn't stopped thinking about that night. Every day, for almost two weeks, her subconscious replayed it over and over in her mind, visualizing every moment from every angle, not allowing her to forget even a wisp of cloud. The nauseating guilt never left her, and she ate little because of it. Images would flash sporadically in her mind of blood or loose feathers or talons or dogtags. She closed her eyes, trying to banish the thoughts and clear her head, but focusing on them only made them more sour. An overwhelming feeling of ineptitude blanketed these memories. If only she had been faster, if only she had flown harder, if only she had not hesitated, if only...
Rainbow felt the sutures running alongside her face. Those three cuts would soon become scars, scars that will never let her forget Gwen. Her mind and heart were at odds with each other ever since that night. Gwen admitted to killing Princess Celestia, and she even gloated about taking her wings and horn; Rainbow's mind justified her actions. However, she felt sick whenever she looked at her own hooves, and she imagined them crushing the small griffon's throat; Rainbow's heart despised her actions. Just like the argument with Twilight, Rainbow knew she was in the right, but she felt awful in spite of it. She couldn't forget those last few moments. The sounds Gwen made, her flailing legs and wings, her face, her eyes, her eyes...
Rainbow shook her head again, desperate to think of anything else. Her wet eyes landed on her new armor in front of her. Her mind ran along, glad for the respite. She and Soarin' had agreed to indefinitely retire the Wonderbolts' uniform out of respect for and in mourning of their fallen, requesting new armor. Soarin' decided a week after the fact to dye his mane a sooty black and coat an ashen grey, even obscuring his cutie mark; Rainbow couldn't help but do the same the following day. It just felt right.
Since there were only two of them now, everyone at Thunderhead soon referred to them by names instead. Rainbow didn't mind. She and Soarin' received their new armor a few days later. It bore the same pattern as before, but was dark and light grey instead of blue and gold.
Rainbow held her helmet and looked around the room. She sighed, somewhat calm now but still on her train of thought. "Why do you think we haven't been reassigned to a different locker room yet? It's been weeks. This place..." She trailed off, glancing at Soarin'. He shrugged but didn't say anything, and Rainbow took the cue. They slowly resumed slipping on their armor in silence. Soarin' went to his locker and grabbed the orange flare launcher from inside.
"Sorry," Rainbow muttered. "Shouldn't've brought it up."
Soarin' shuffled his hooves a bit. "Dash, I..." He looked down and furrowed his brows. He shook his head and slung the orange tube onto his back. "Never mind."
Rainbow tilted her head, looking at him curiously. "Okay then." She turned towards the door. "I guess we should head out now. Final briefing and whatnot." He nodded curtly and left somewhat hurriedly. She shrugged and followed him out.
Rainbow felt oddly at peace once she started to fly again. She followed Soarin', who was trailing behind the diversionary force. She was able to glide for long stretches of time, buoyed along by the air currents the other pegasi created. With her visor up, the brisk night air helped in keeping her awake. She scanned below the clouds and noticed the ocean was now replaced by tall hills and the beginnings of a mountain range, all covered in seemingly endless pine.
Soarin' looked behind at Rainbow and gestured towards the ground. She nodded, flipped down her visor, and the two slowly descended towards the forest. She looked up, watching the flock of pegasi grow smaller and smaller against the starlit night. Once they had landed, she could barely distinguish them from the sky.
"Wow," she said in awe.
"Yeah, I can hardly see 'em." Soarin' landed and trotted in the same direction as the pegasi above. "That's good news for us—means the griffons won't be able to see 'em either."
"Not exactly what I meant," Rainbow muttered. She trotted after him, weaving through the towering pines.
The other pegasi started gathering clouds together, obscuring the stars above from view. Within a few minutes, the ground below was engulfed in near darkness. Softly at first, it began to rain. Little pitter-patters surrounded Rainbow as rain hit the pine needles, and she began to smell the rain's earthy aroma. The tranquility didn't last long. The sprinkling turned into a shower and then into a downpour. Scars of blue-white light split the air, and deep rumblings became constant.
"Remember," Soarin' said, his voice barely audible over the din, "what we're looking for is a small hatch, about a yard wide."
"And once we clear it out, we just launch the flare?" She gestured to his back. "Won't that attract the griffons too?"
"I don't think the griffons are gonna be concentrated on the ground that much. Besides, even if they do notice, a lot more pegasi will." He looked ahead. "The hatch shouldn't be much farther, less than a quarter mile away. They said it was buried in one of the hills. I bet we'll actually start seeing a barrel poking out soon enough."
They continued walking up and around the trees and hills. After a few minutes, Soarin' looked up at the sky. Rainbow, catching a flash of lighting, saw a gigantic fur-ball illuminated in the sky, pegasi and griffons duking it out among the clouds.
"Good," Soarin' said. "The distraction's working."
"So far," Rainbow said distantly. She could see figures falling from the sky with each flash.
They walked for a few minutes more before Soarin' spoke again. "C'mon! Where's that damn hatch?" As soon as he said it, the ground opened a few feet in front of him, three griffons flying out at top speed. The hatch slammed shut with a resounding clang.
"Well," Rainbow said. "There ya go." Soarin' went up to the hatch, Rainbow catching up behind. She squinted at the metal disk and noticed it had been marred by scratches, dents, and was coated in rust. She looked at Soarin'. "How's it already so banged up?"
He shrugged. "Don't ask me. C'mon, let's get this thing open." They each grabbed a side and lifted. To Rainbow's surprise, it opened without so much as a creak. She saw a dimly lit tunnel plummeting downwards into blackness. Soarin' hopped inside, descending slowly, and Rainbow followed in after him, shutting the hatch quietly.
When they reached the bottom, they were greeted by a metal door reminiscent of the hatch they had just entered through. Soarin' took off his helmet and pressed his ear against the metal. He waited a few moments, then, nodding to Rainbow, put his helmet back on and slowly cracked the door open.
Rainbow could see a rather large but lone griffon in the room. The wall in front of him was covered in consoles with lights, switches, and dials. On the wall opposite of them was an open door, but it was much larger, and it was very thick, as though it were made of five metal doors sandwiched together. The griffon's helmet lay on the console nearest to him, accompanied by what Rainbow smelled to be a mug of coffee. The griffon seemed to be typing something, but they couldn't see what.
Rainbow realized with a lurch she would have to kill again. Greta's eyes flashed in her mind, and she shook her head, cursing herself. Why was she being this way? Why couldn't she get over this? Why was it so hard for her? Rainbow tried to silence her feelings and listen to reason. She knew she what she was doing was right. Gwen killed Celestia, and this griffon in front of her had shelled who knows how many more ponies. This war had to be fought. It had to be fought so it could one day end. What she was doing was right.
"You ready?" Soarin' whispered, knocking Rainbow out of her thoughts. She nodded, a bit reluctantly at first, but then with conviction. Soarin' took a deep breath, kicked the door open, and charged.
Soarin' slammed the griffon against the consoles. The griffon, momentarily dazed, grabbed his throat and threw him aside. Rainbow came and punched the griffon in the beak. Grabbing the mug, Soarin' smashed it on the griffon's face. It shattered into hundreds of green fragments, sending the griffon screeching and reeling backwards. Rainbow leapt onto him and held him down. Blindly, the griffon kicked Rainbow up into the air, causing her to hit the ceiling. Soarin' went to tackle him, but the griffon kicked him away.
The griffon shook his head, wiping away the coffee from his face. His eyes now red, he dove after Rainbow, pinning her to the wall. Soarin' came from behind, grabbing the griffon's claws. He held them behind the griffon's back, pulling him away from Rainbow and exposing his chest. Rainbow leapt to drill the griffon's chest, but the griffon, using Soarin' as a support, hopped and bucked her in the head, sending her flipping.
The griffon ran backwards, hitting Soarin' against the wall near the large door, knocking the wind out of him. Rainbow, shaking away stars in her eyes, flew towards the griffon and tackled him against the same wall. The griffon, seeing they were near the door, grabbed Rainbow by the throat and hurled her outside.
Once she had her balance in the air, Rainbow couldn't help but look around the room she was in now. It was enormous, far larger than even the gala hall in Canterlot. The room reminded her of a hallowed-out slice of pie, with her at the crust's end. The ceiling, which was lit dimly by a light bulb every dozen or so feet, was uniformly flat. Behind her, where the door was, the wall curved downwards to the floor. The floor then angled upwards, running along the walls until they all met at a single point at the far wall.
In the middle of the room was suspended a colossal metal cylinder which reminded her of a telescope aimed backwards. With a start, she realized this was the cannon. It had to have been over fifty yards long, she guessed. On the thinner end, the cannon was attached by an equally large hinge, and the muzzle seemed flush with the far wall. The thicker end was connected to the opposite wall with what looked to be large rails, two sets running horizontal and one set vertical. Suddenly, with a lurch, it began to move away from her, slowly clicking along the tracks.
Remembering the fight, she looked back at the open door. The griffon was attempting to shut the door, but unbeknownst him, Soarin' had regained himself, and he tackled the griffon from behind through the doorway and into the chamber. Rainbow flew towards them, aiming for the griffon's head. The griffon ducked downwards, and Soarin' continued to fly forward. The griffon made a loop and headed back towards the door.
Soarin', seeing Rainbow, pulled to the side, just missing her as she passed. She corrected her trajectory and tackled the griffon, pinning him to the wall just below the door. She kicked him just below the chest and began punching him without hesitation. The griffon pushed off of the wall and head-butted her. Rainbow grabbed onto his head, and the two started spinning in the air, clawing and punching one another.
The griffon managed to land a kick on Rainbow's stomach, and she curled up, clutching it. As the griffon turned around, Soarin' grabbed him from behind, pinning the griffon's wings to his back, and flew towards the slowly moving gun's muzzle and away from the door and Rainbow. The griffon wrestled free of the grip and elbowed Soarin' in his visor, clutching his elbow with a yell. The griffon managed to kick Soarin' in the chest, making him spin and hit the far wall.
Rainbow caught her breath and flew towards the griffon once more. The griffon turned around and, upon seeing Rainbow, flew towards her. Right before they met, he swerved and stuck out his front leg, and the limb caught her throat. She began spinning backwards in the air, struggling again to breath. The griffon stretched out and clutched her tail, turning and slamming her against the gun barrel alongside them. Her head suddenly felt full of thousands of pins. She tried to escape the grip, kicking at the griffon's claws, so he turned around and slammed her against the other side. She could barely keep her eyes open.
"Dash!" Soarin' yelled. He flew at the griffon, his right hoof pulled back. The griffon smiled and threw Rainbow down to the ground far below them. Soarin' dove, slowly catching up to Rainbow. He grabbed around her stomach and pumped his wings hard, missing the ground by inches. The massive gun continued to slowly clink into place. Behind him, he heard a claw swipe at his head. In one swift movement, he pitched downward, holding Rainbow close to himself, and tumbled on the ground. The griffon overshot and hit a far wall, now dazed.
"Dash," Soarin' said, "are you alright?" She muttered something and shook her head. A loud clunk echoed in the cavelike chamber—the gun had finally settled. Soarin' picked Rainbow up and quickly took flight again, speeding towards the door to the control room. Out of the corner of his eye, the griffon raced along the wall. Soarin' cut him off, landing inside and kicking the griffon in his beak, sending him back down.
He gently set Rainbow down, taking care not to hit her head on anything. He turned and faced the large door. With some exertion, Soarin' pushed against it until it hit the wall with a clang. A split second later, a second clang sounded from the other side, and the door began to open again. Soarin', now using the opposite wall as a brace, pushed back against the door until it shut again, and he hastily wrestled with its lock.
The griffon began pounding on the other side, saying words Soarin' never heard. The door clicked, and Soarin' backed away from it. A moment later, a deafening bang shook the entire building. Soarin' staggered, feeling as if his eyes were shaking too. Regaining his balance, he stared at the door. There wasn't a sound after that.
Soarin' stood for a moment, slowly becoming aware of the bruises and cuts he had sustained. With a jolt, he remembered Rainbow. Cursing himself, he turned around, her limp figure worrying him. He crouched down, rolling her on her side. He flipped her visor up, took his helmet off, bent down to her face, and listened. After a tense moment, he heard her breathe, and he quietly thanked Celestia. He shook her a bit, trying to wake her up, but she was completely unconscious.
He put his helmet back on, his wings and legs tingling from the adrenaline easing away. He walked a little away from Rainbow towards the consoles lining one of the walls. He began the task of trying to make sense of it all. There were rows and rows of switches, dials, gauges, slides, and lights. He chuckled to himself. "Would it've killed them to label these things?"
One section of the panels was raised higher than the rest. Hoping for the best, he hovered over a few feet to see what it had for him. A gigantic screen shone at him, showing a green vector rendition of Equestria. He could make out the Griffish Isles in the top right corner and a star in the center of the map, which he took to be Canterlot. There were smaller squares where towns and cities were.
Two horizontal and vertical lines crossed where Fillydelphia was, and he wondered with a shudder if the shell had already hit. He noticed Apploosa and other newer towns in southern Equestria weren't present. A thin outline reminding him of a pie slice was on the map. Its tip extended outwards from the Griffish Isles, and its curved edge went as far west as Canterlot. He didn't know what it meant at first, but then it hit him; that was the cannon's range.
Something else caught his eye. He looked above the screen and saw a small number three painted in white. He landed, now confused by this number. He looked around for some context. Perhaps this was the third screen, or the third raised station. When he saw no such things, he walked up and down the consoles, looking over them all. The one thing he could find of note was an intercom near the screen. As he looked at it, he noticed a dial with the numbers one, two, four, and five on them. He only had to think for a moment before he put the pieces together. There wasn't one cannon. There were five.
Remembering the flare launcher he had in the first room, he ran towards the door leading to the hatch. Grabbing the flare, he flew up, opened the hatch to the torrent of rain, and saw the fur-ball had moved much farther away from him. He jumped out of the hole and set up the launcher. He aimed it towards the sky, pulled the string with his mouth, and a brilliant purple streak shot out.
Suspended high above him was a bright purple ball, gently falling down towards the forest again. Soarin' stayed by the hatch, blinking in the rain, waiting for ponies to come and help him. He craned his neck and saw a group separate themselves from the fight and fly towards him. With a clarifying lightning flash, he knew they were friendlies. Soarin' flew back down the hole to get Rainbow. Biting her back collar, he carefully pulled her out of the bunker to the surface and waved down the incoming six pegasi. After a brief exchange, the pegasi relieved Soarin' of his flare launcher, and Soarin' carried Rainbow back to Thunderhead.
Rainbow was greeted by a bright light when she awoke. She was in a bed at the hospital wing but still wearing her uniform. She saw someone at the side of her bed. Blinking away her tiredness, she realized it was Soarin', who was resting his head. He too wore his gear from the mission.
Rainbow softly nudged Soarin' with a hoof. He jerked up but smiled upon seeing her. "Oh, good. You're awake." He yawned, resting his head again. "How're you feeling?"
"A little sore, I guess, but that's normal. How long was I out for?"
"I dunno, not long. We just got back a few minutes ago."
She smiled. "Thanks for, y'know, swooping in and saving me there."
Soarin' chuckled. "No problem."
"So, uh," she cleared her throat, "everything went alright then? Kinda blacked out after we got back in the room."
"I think so. I told the pegasi who responded to the flare about the other cannons, and I think everything's alright."
"Wait, cannons? As in more than one?"
"Yep. They had five, apparently." He stretched his wings. "The doc looked you over once I brought you back here, and—"
"You flew me here? By yourself?"
Soarin' nodded, blushing somewhat. "The doc said you were alright..." he yawned again, "but he wanted to monitor you until you woke up."
Rainbow smirked. "And you wanted to monitor me too, huh?"
He blushed harder and laughed nervously. "Uh, heh, I was just, uh, worried... was all."
She smiled. "Well," she tapped her front hooves together, "am I good to go, or...?"
"I guess so. Lemme run and get the doc." He stood, stretched again, and walked out of the room, returning a minute later with a maroon pegasus in medical garb.
The doctor checked her eyes, shining a flashlight into each one. "Have you anything to complain about? Ringing ears, dizziness, blurred vision...?"
Rainbow smiled. "Nope."
The doctor nodded. "Good, good." He examined her wings and ribs, consulting a few x-rays on the adjacent wall. He checked some items off of his clipboard, nodded again, and cleared his throat. "You're free to go, Miss Dash." Rainbow leapt out of bed. The doctor turned to Soarin'. "And are you sure you're okay'?"
Soarin' nodded. "Can't complain. Thanks, doc!" He put a wing over Rainbow, and the two walked abreast out of the room. "D'you think the mess'll let us have some pie before the debrief?" he asked her. "I've been starving for some pie."
Rainbow laughed and nudged him playfully. "Are you ever not?"