Chapter Two
Broken Dream, New Beginning
Once they arrived Trixie fell over with the shock of appearing high on the clouds, her surprise however turned to anger as she saw Rainbow Dash zooming through the air. Gaia immediately put up an invisible barrier hiding them from prying eyes but not before Dash caught a quick glimpse, but after rubbing her eyes and not spotting them again she decided that she was just seeing things and continued her training.
As they entered the lonely barracks crying could be heard in the corner from a lone light green Pegasus with a light yellow and orange striped main, she was packing a suitcase. This Pegasus who had a cutie mark of a lightning bolt was crying over a Wonderbolt Academy T-shirt “Who is she?” Trixie asked Gaia.
“Her name is Lightningdust and she is one of the latest victims of Twilights friends, but this time it cost her career and dreams of being a wonderbolt.”
“Shame, I know how she feels.”
“You know I can hear you talking, I’m not deaf!” Lightningdust replied “and how can you even know how I feel?!” imagine her surprise when she turned around and saw nopony there to have been talking. Just as Lightningdust was contemplating her own sanity Gaia ended the invisibility spell making her jump into the air. “What in Celestias name are you trying to do? You almost gave me a heart attack!”
“I assure you that is not my intention” Gaia replied.
“Well not like it matters” Lightningdust replied. “My life is over anyway, and it’s all that Rainbow Dashes fault!”
“Yes, it was quite unfair to throw you out for trying to push yourself beyond your limits. Dashes friends weren’t even supposed to be there, its restricted airspace, this is a training ground for goodness sake!” Gaia replied.
“I know! I was in the right. We come here to get stronger not fly in circles while others try to keep up” Lightningdust replied.
“Spitfire should have more common sense than what she did.”
“Excuse me” Trixie called raising her hoof as if for a question. “But can somepony please tell me what’s going on?”
“I thought you knew what happened” Lightningdust replied. “Sounds like your friend was here to see it though.”
“Actually we just teleported here” Gaia stated.
Lightningdust turned to Trixie “Then how did he...?”
“I don’t know either, he just knows things, it’s infuriating!” she took a step closer. “By the way my name is The Great and…” a sudden look from Gaia made her stop “err I mean Trixie, my name is Trixie.”
“Mine is Lightningdust please to meet you Trixie and you are…?”
“Gaia.”
“Please to meet you two, now tell me what on Equestria do you want? As you can probably see I am busy packing for my trot of shame back home.”
“I am here to simply give you a choice” Gaia replied.
“What choice is that?”
“The choice to as you said go back home in shame or to come with us and continue your training.”
“What do you get out of it if I come with you?”
“Somepony who can beat Rainbow Dash in a race and help me humiliate Celestia’s champions.”
“Forget it bud, I’m not interested.”
“If that’s your decision, we will not trouble you any further” Gaia started walking away with his very confused apprentice trailing behind him.
“Wait!” Lightningdust called dragging her luggage in her mouth. “Can you really improve my skills?”
“exponentially” Gaia coolly replied.
“And I will be able to defeat Rainbow Dash and Spitfire in a race?”
“Yes.”
“Well it’s not like I have anything better to do, fine, if you can do what you say I will come.”
“Welcome to the team then Lightningdust” Gaia said with a slight smile and teleported them from the barracks just as Rainbow Dash was coming in. Again she rubbed her eyes and not seeing the three ponies she thought she saw there decided that she trained to hard and needed to lie down for a while.
“How about a warning next time buddy!” Lightningdust yelled more from surprise of being teleported than anything else.
“Sorry, but time is of the essence and we must start your training immediately if you hope to take down Rainbow Dash and a veteran such as Spitfire.” Gaia replied already stepping outside the castle floating clouds around in the air with his magic.
“Listen, I don’t know what you are thinking; the academy’s obstacle course is more of a challenge that a few clouds in the sky.” Lightningdust stated watching him work. “I could show…you… What is that you’re spelling?”
Trixie almost burst into laughter; she knew what was coming for Gaia made her do this type of training before. Once the clouds were in place this is what it read. “Dragons Dragons full of lice, dragons dragons have no life. Dragons smell that they do, even more than my left shoe!”
“What the hay?!” Lightningdust yelled as Gaia teleported her up to where the clouds were. “Hey pal what are you doing?” she demanded. However the only response she received was Gaia creating a huge magical dome around the castle grounds so she could not leave. The sudden growl from underneath in the woods made her gulp as she looked down only to see three huge dragons flying towards her. She let out a scream and dashed away from the clearly enraged dragons. “Listen I didn’t do it! I didn’t write that in the sky, I was framed!” The dragons were not having any of it and kept on her hoofs breaking their formation and flanking her everywhere they could.
“You certainly love using those dragons Master Gaia don’t you?” Trixie stated.
“Why not? They are the most ferocious creatures in Equestria after all. If she can dodge a dragon, she can dodge anything.”
“I don’t want to do this anymore!” They heard Lightningdust cry as she speed past the castles window. She of course could not get into the castle itself for she was also held out of it by Gaia's magic.
“I almost feel sorry for her” said Trixie.
“Almost” Gaia agreed. “Keep an eye on her Trixie, I’m hitting the sack.”
“What?! She’s being chased by three dragons! You can’t take a nap, what if she is caught?”
Gaia looked at Trixie with a slight smile “You still know that spell I taught you?”
“Yes” Trixie replied not liking where this was going.
“You will be fine.” With that Gaia teleported away leaving an anxious Trixie and a very distraught Lightningdust to the dragons outside.
“Ok, Trixie you can do this” she said to herself as she watched Lightningdust fly with amazing grace dodging the dragons after her. “Please don’t get caught” she thought to herself.
Four hours Lightningdust flew in the sky and for four hours the dragons were after her. As time sped by the writing in the sky had attracted seventeen more dragons to the area and even though they could not leave the barrier Gaia’s magic did let the new arrivals in. The sky was alive with dragon fire and sparkling scales as they chased poor Lightningdust who was nearly spent. Suddenly she was clipped by a dragon’s wing and went spiraling towards the ground but she never hit the ground no, she fell into a dragons open claws.
“Lookie here I caught me a little birdie!” the dragon called as he landed in front of the castles gate. Lightningdust struggled to break free of the dragons grip but was easily overpowered.
“Good job Snog, now we can teach this rodent a little lesson for her writing in the sky.”
“What should we do to her?”
All the dragons chirped in their opinions but they finally decided on Grogs who was a particularly foul and large red dragon. They were going to singe her mane until she was bald.
“No please!” Lightningdust pleaded “I didn’t do it…I didn’t…”
“That’s enough!” Trixie’s voice could be heard. She even used the Canterlot voice that Gaia taught her to put extra umph into her demand.
The dragons backed away that is all except for Grog “Another little pony wanting to play, you better get out of here pipsqueak before you get hurt. Trixie didn’t respond but was busy forming the magical snakes around all the dragon’s legs.
“Aren’t you going to answer him…you…little (yawn) troubllllllleeezzzzzzzzzzzzzz” Snog said as he fell asleep.
“(Yawn) Snog this is no time to be napping. We…need to…zzzz” Grog followed him and soon after all the dragons were fast asleep.
Lightningdust pried herself out of the dragon’s claws clearly worn from the day’s activities. “Thank you Trixie, I thought I was a goner.” She said looking at the dragons with a new found respect for their flying abilities and ferociousness.
“I’m just glad that they stood still for me to cast my spell” Trixie replied a little shaken from the experience.
“Where is Gaia? I want to give him a piece of my mind.”
Trixie bit her lip “napping in his room.”
Lightningdust’s draw dropped “What?! He left me out here alone to fend off all these dragons which by the way he sent after me and he has the nerve to take a nap!”
“You weren’t actually alone you know” Trixie replied sounding a little crossed.
“Yes” she blushed “thank you again but I don’t think that I can do this, you know. This type of training is a little much.”
Trixie shook her head “I thought the same thing at first but give Gaia some time. His methods are odd, insensitive, and sometimes downright horrific nightmares but it gets results. I wouldn’t be the mare I am today if it weren’t for him.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well” Trixie replied thinking about her answer “I was in a bad spot, much like you, when Gaia found me lost in Everfree. He saved me from the woods and even from myself, he gave me a home and a purpose, I owe him everything.” She then told Lightningdust her story and in turn Lightningdust told her story. Both seemed to have a similar goal to not only become better but to defeat Twilight and her friends. During that conversation a friendship was formed between the two girls.
Lightningdust kicked at the dirt “Alright Trixie, I will give Gaia a chance.”
“Excellent!” Trixie exclaimed giving Lightningdust a hug “I am glad.”
“Me too.”
Gaia who was perched on top of the castle roof watching the whole ordeal for the last four hours to see the progress of his two protégées and to make sure they remained safe, gave a slight warm smile. “Way to go Trixie” he said silently to himself “Good job Lightningdust.” He then waited for the two girls to go inside then cleared the castle grounds of the sleeping dragons then he himself went to sleep.