//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: The Gathering Storm // by WiskeyMikeOne //------------------------------// The Gathering Storm By Carwyn Williams Prologue The excitement flowed through me as I listened to the instructor welcoming us to our first day of flight school. I was only a little colt with dreams of flying high and soaring through the air faster than anypony has flown before. But until then I had to pass. There were about 30 of us on that first day in a large group in the middle of the court yard of the Cloudsdale Flight School. The cloud under my feet was hard and unforgiving, just like the structures that surrounded us. The buildings seemed enormous to a little colt and they were a little daunting at first, but I knew that if I could fly up to the top of the school tower, I could do anything. “All right kids, find a partner!” grunted the instructor, he blew into his whistle that was tied around his neck on a well-worn piece of string. It seemed pointless as we were only two feet away from him. With the sound of the whistle still ringing in my ears, I turned to find a partner. Looking at friends who had already found a partner made me feel a bit left out as I began searching through the crowds of ponies. I had been living in Trottingham since birth; my mother and father were Pegasi, just like me, but this was my first time away from home. I had no friends in Cloudsdale and I was beginning to think I would never find any. “Hay Whirlwind!” I turned to the direction from which my name was being called out. Right at the back of the crowd I could see a pale blue hoof waving frantically, trying to get my attention. I made my way through the crowd to find a pale blue pony with a rainbow mane and tail. “Hi Dashie!” “Hay Whirl, what are you doing here?” “The same reason you’re here, duh.” Rainbow laughed and beckoned me to join her. It had been a few years since I had last seen her but we remained in contact; she hadn’t changed a bit. We started talking about what had happened in both our lives since we last met. Rainbow was living in Cloudsdale whilst I was moving to different towns and cities throughout Equestria. My dad has to move a lot with work so I have no time to make new friends. The life of a son whose father is in charge of the snow in Equestria is not fun, but I do get to see many places and many new ponies. Our conversation was interrupted by the instructors whistle. “Fall in with your partner, it’s time to see who can fly” I froze but Dash nudged me to follow the crowd though the tall archway. As we both caught up with the rest of the group the wind picked up, gasping could be heard from the ponies out in front. “Come on, let’s go see” said Dash as she ran into the crowd Not wanting to be by myself I followed reluctantly, for I knew what was coming. My dad told me about what was coming next before I got on the griffin that brought all the Pegasi living on earth to Cloudsdale. The courtyard was just for show, the school was on the other side on a separate cloud with a 100ft distance between them. “Right you kids this is the first test - team work. You and your partner must make it to the other side to secure a place in the school. If you fall, you and your partner fail and have to come back next year.” “There won`t be a next time!” shouted a little voice behind me. “Calm down my little ponies” said the instructor, “I`ll catch you, and so will the other instructors.” Flying above the gap were the other instructors, our lives were in their hooves. “So who`s first?” asked the main instructor. With that all the ponies backed away except Dash who stood at the front, head held high. “And what is your name, little filly?” “Rainbow Dash!” Quick as a flash, she took off, and made for the other side! “Wait!” shouted the instructor. Dash stopped and turned to face the instructor. “You forgot your partner.” “But I thought he was right behind me.” The instructor looked down at me, his brown eyes beaming. “Name?” he asked “Whirlwind” I answered “Ah, you're Mane Stream’s son aren’t you?” “Yes, sir.” “Well get out there, this should be a trot in the park for you” I walked up to the edge of the cloud, looked at the school in the distance, and then at Rainbow Dash who was half way between myself and the school. She was waving at me to come and join her. I swallowed my nerves, closed my eyes and jumped off the edge. The ground was now visible, hurtling towards me. I hadn’t flown in years; when you live on earth you hardly use your wings. My wings were glued to my body, unable to spread. I could hear the sound of wings behind me. “That would be the instructor coming to save me then” I thought to myself “Whirl, you do realise that you are falling not flying, right?” I looked to my left; it was Dash flying quite casually next to me but with a look of disappointment. “Come on, Whirl, fly for Equestria`s sake. I know you can do it, I`ve seen you do it!” Not wanting to let Dash down I nodded my head, closed my eyes and opened my wings. The acceleration took be my surprise; I swooped up just missing the tree tops of earth and shot upwards towards the school, passing the five shocked instructors who were coming to my rescue. A small cloud was in my way but that was not going to stop me. I shot through it, bringing most of it with me in my slip stream. I landed on the cloud with the school on and looked over to the bewildered group of ponies. If their mouths could reach the floor they would have at this point. Dash landed next to me, a massive cheer came from the ponies on the other side of the gap. Dash and I exchanged a glance but she was more focused on my wings “Err, Dashie, my eyes are here, what`s wrong?” “Your wings… they're huge!” I looked back, she was right. My wings were huge! Bigger than a fillies wings but the same size as adult Pegasus’s wings. All the instructors landed in front of us, their faces fixed on my wings. “Congratulations you two, you’re in flight school” said one of the instructors “But... but... my wings, look, they're huge!” “We know, we can see them” laughed the instructor “Aren’t you shocked?” piped up Dash “No. Your father was exactly the same” “What‽” Dashie and I said at the same time. “Your father had adult wings when he was a colt, I should know because he was in my class. We all had a feeling that you would turn out like your dad, let’s just hope you can live up to his name” * Months passed, in that time Dash and I became inseparable. We did everything together and we were the best in the class. We received a lot of awards for skill, team work and perseverance. Everypony knew our names in the school, from the newest student to the headmistress, we were unstoppable. Rainbow Dash did outshine me at one stage, the time when she got her cutie mark. She was the first in the class, typical Dash, always first. Finally I had a new challenge: get my Cutie mark. Day by day I practiced my flying skills but still nothing. Maybe my skill was not flying, it could have been anything. The summer before the last year of flight school I returned home to Trottingham, my parents were so happy to see me and so proud of my accomplishments but I was still upset about not getting my cutie mark. To cheer me up, dad took me to his workplace, at the Cloudsdale Weather Factory. Seeing how the weather was made was fantastic. Rain, sleet, snow and, of course, the rainbows. I thought to myself “I wonder if Dashie would like this job?” My dad took me to the Snowflake Production Facility that he was now in charge of. It was nice to see my dad working but it was quite dull. The factory was a no fly zone because the slightest breeze would blow all of the snowflakes away setting the workers back months. When the lunch bell rang I took my opportunity and took to the sky. Being inside a factory all day when you want to be flying is a nightmare. But my dad was passionate about his work. “Work is essential,” he used to tell me every day. That piece of advice will stay with me for life. Whilst flying above the factory, I failed to hear the back to work bell. The turbines used to suck in air for the wind generators kick back into life. I was trapped in a torrent of air being sucked in to a huge turbine with razor sharp fins. I fought against the current but, being only a colt, I was too light and I was getting pulled closer and closer to the fins. With my tail just inside the mouth of the turbine, I changed direction from flying away from current of air, to flying into it. The wind pounded my face but I kept going, if I were to stop or slow down I would be dead. I kept gathering momentum, I got faster and faster. I was getting dizzy, flying in circles for about five minutes is not good for your balance. I felt like giving in but then I heard a crash and a bang. I looked around to see the factory getting further and further away from me. The turbine was a smouldering wreck. “I’m in trouble” I thought to myself. The security from the factory came to recover the wracked turbine that was now in bits. The damage was unbelievable; the air intake was smouldering, it looked like a peeled banana, the sharp fins were imbedded into the walls of the factory. "I did this? How?" I asked myself. News crews were everywhere taking photos of the wreckage and interviewing staff. I was taken to the office complex of the Weather factory where my dad was waiting for me in the main lobby with the director of the weather factory and the headmistress of my school. I hung my head in shame but all my dad could do when the guards let me go was hug me. “Oh son, I`m so glad you’re alive” he never hugged me like this before. Our hug was interrupted by the director clearing his throat. “Ahem, Mane Stream, we have got some questions to ask your son,” My dad loosened his grip on me. “What should I tell them dad?” “The truth.” When the questioning was over, the director opened the door to let me and my dad out. Greeting me was my mum sitting nervously in the lobby, which felt more like an imperial coliseum than a room with chairs and old magazines on the cloud table. I walked over to her, the sound of my hooves clopping on the hard floor echoed. When I reached her, my mum leaned forward in the chair to hear what I had to say. “Well?” said my mother trying to hold back the worry in her voice. I mumbled a response. “What was that son?” Again I mumbled the same words. “He`s just too upset to tell you out loud. Come on, tell your mother, Whirlwind” said my dad with his hoof on my shoulder. I leaned my head forward and whispered into my mum’s ear. “I`ve got my cutie mark...”