//------------------------------// // Race 10 // Story: My name is Barry Allen and I'm the fastest pegasus alive // by Kaliann25 //------------------------------// Race 10: My name is Blue Blood, and I’m not the pony I used to be. Not any more. My name is Blue Blood. I spent four years, trapped on an island of Tartarus, with only one goal: survival. During that time, I realized I couldn’t go back to my old ways; I couldn't in good conscience go back to who I was. But, in order to protect the ones I love, during the day, I have to pretend, pretend to be the pony I'm not, the pony I used to be, the pony I've grown to hate. When darkness falls, I become myself again, trading the mask of respectability for the mask of my true self as I take care of the illnesses of society. My prey are those who lay beyond the reach of the law, those protected by influence, by wealth, by power, those who abuse their position to take advantage of the weakest among us. In order to defeat them, I have to be more than a pony. I have to be everything this bit of cloth has come to symbolize. I have to become the Arrow. The Arrow was jumping between roofs in silence, always in silence, as he followed the frightened hoof falls of a certain drug dealer. Below, in the grimy alley, the dealer was checking in every direction before making any step, every direction except up. He darted from shadow to shadow, avoiding the pools of lights cast by the dim streetlamps. Was he really that frightened? Maybe this was a trap. The Arrow grinned. A trap would be a welcomed diversion. The chase, however, was getting boring. He shot an arrow at the dealer's forehooves, prompting the criminal to stop. "I'll admit you've given me a pleasant evening, but I find myself in a bit of a rush," said the masked vigilante. "Your boss is rotting in jail, your regional boss, at least. But, the drugs still keep flowing into Canterlot. Who is your new boss?" “I rather be dead than rat out!” shouted the drug dealer. "Perhaps I can change your mind," said the Arrow, shooting at the drug dealer. The projectile pierced the criminal's right forehoof. "To be blunt, you're small potatoes. If I intercept the shipments before they reach Canterlot, I couldn't care less what you do." The Arrow shot again, piercing the thug's left forehoof. "Where are the drugs coming from?" The drug dealer gave a forced grin. "This is going to hurt you a lot more than it hurts me. Did you really think you could just waltz in here and push us around? You fell right into our trap. GET HIM! NOW!!" The Arrow waited patiently as the dealer concentrated on a spot above and behind the Arrow. The crickets serenaded the ponies as the moments ticked by. The dealer shouted, "NOW!! I SAID, 'GET HIM NOW'" A look of horror came to the dealers' face as a red and gold streak appeared beside the vigilante. The Arrow's hood did nothing to hide the predatory grin that came to his face. The red and gold streak materialized into the Flash. The speedster looked at the thug and said, "You know, I thought you'd set a better trap than this, especially now that you know about me." The dealer opened and closed his mouth like a stunned mullet. The Arrow calmly stood, shifting his aim to the drug dealer's heart. "You were saying?" The criminal gulped. “Crystal Empire! The operations center is on the Crystal Empire! That’s all I know!” he cried. “I think you're holding out on me,” said the Arrow, shooting again. “NOOOO! WAIT! DON’T KILL HIM, PLEASE!” shrieked a voice. Everyone turned to the voice; it was Rarity Belle, the Element of Generosity herself. The drug dealer wasted no time, grabbing her with his magic and putting her between the Arrow and himself. As he levitated a dagger to her throat, a cyan blur surrounded the two. A moment later, the drug dealer was lying on the ground, nursing a cracked horn, while Rarity and Rainbow Dash stood beside the Flash. “Miss me?” asked Rainbow Dash. The Arrow face-hoofed and glared at Flash. “Did you actually have to bring your student?” “What? No!” said the scarlet speedster. “She must have come, following her friend.” The Arrow ground his teeth in annoyance as he drew another arrow, shooting it into the ground in front of the drug dealer. A cloud of blue smoke blanketed the area. When it cleared, the drug dealer found himself bound and hanging upside down from a lamppost. The vigilante and his companions were nowhere to be seen. Blood family’s abandoned factory/Arrow’s headquarters: Despite the decrepit facade, the Arrow's headquarters was comfortably appointed. Baffles kept light from escaping while allowing air to flow through. Rarity and Rainbow Dash sat on the floor facing the Arrow while the Flash sat between Rainbow Dash and the Arrow. The Arrow glared at the mares as he pushed back his hood. Rainbow Dash gasped in recognition as Blue Blood looked at her. "You, I understand. I knew after you got your powers, it was only a matter of time until you followed Allen to me." He turned to Rarity and glowered. "But you! You are just an idiot! What in Tartarus were you even thinking! Are you begging for someone to kill you?!" Rainbow Dash returned Blue Blood's glare. "Hey! Nopony threatens my friends!" Blue Blood shot back, "If she's your friend, then you keep her out of my way! I can't have some helpless mare throwing herself at dangerous criminals. If it hadn't been for you or Allen, I don't know if I could have saved her." Rarity’s gaze moved to the ground as Rainbow Dash looked at her. “Well, I hate to admit it, but Blood has a point, Rares, and not just his horn. Why did you come, anyway?” “Because, when the Cutie Map guided you to Flash, it guided me to the Arrow. That means I have a mission with Blue Blood; and I have a feeling that it’s to make sure he doesn't kill, not anymore.” Blue Blood groaned. "You all know who the Arrow really is. Tell me, do you really want to dive into this cesspool I'm trying to clean?" Rarity flicked back her mane. "I wasn't sent here to save Equestria. I was sent here to save you from yourself." Blue Blood sighed. “You are the most annoying pony I've ever met. But fine, if you want to play with fire so much, come to see me tomorrow morning. In the meantime, I'm going to sleep. It's been a long night.” “Fine!” said Dash, then she turned to Flash. “So, that mean I can join your crime-fighting?” “If you want to.” Flash smiled. “And also, I’ll make sure, the Arrow doesn’t kill any more.” Blue Blood sighed. “I have enough super-fast babysitters, thank you very much." “But I won’t be with you for much longer, Arrow,” reminded Flash. “I have to go back to Central City.” “Whatever,” groaned Blue Blood, heading upstairs. “You know?” asked Dash, as she watched Blue Blood retire. “Of all ponies, I’m surprised that he is the vigilante who protects the innocents.” “Being on that island really changed his life,” said Rarity softly. “He had done awful and selfish things in the past, but he didn’t deserve that punishment.” Flash shrugged. “God knows why he does things. Remember my friend Oliver Queen, Green Arrow? He had the exact same experiences as Blue Blood, and the result was exactly the same. It was hard, and he still has much to learn. But have faith; with the right guidance, he’ll change soon enough.” The two mares nodded in silence, when Blue Blood stuck his head through the doorway of his bedroom. “Hey, new speedster!” “My name is Rainbow Dash!” “Fine, Rainbow Dash. If your friend doesn’t stay me tomorrow, you make sure to keep her as far as possible from me.” “Why me?” “Because you are her friend, and all I’m trying to do is to keep her alive,” he said before disappearing again. Rarity looked at Rainbow Dash. “Rainbow . . .” “Huh, sorry Rares, but I’ll listen to him this time. Now, we better go back to Ponyville. Bye, Barry!” “See you tomorrow Rainbow Dash!” “Okay. Rarity, hold!” Rarity jumped onto Rainbow’s back, and everything around her turned into a blur. Her mind could not keep up with what her eyes were showing her. Her stomach roiled at the overwhelming sense of wrongness. When things snapped back into focus mere moments later, they were already inside Carousel Boutique. Sporting a greenish tinge, Rarity staggered to the bathroom and shut the door. The wooden panel hid nothing. Moments later, she came out and glared at the speedster. "By Celestia, Rainbow Dash, please be more careful when you're carrying passengers." Sheepishly, the pegasus replied, “Sorry, my mistake” The white unicorn sighed. “Anyway, why were you in Canterlot tonight?” “Well, first, because I saw you getting on the last train to Canterlot, and I had the feeling you’d run into trouble. Second, because I kind of wanted to help him.” “Help Flash?” “Yeah, don’t you see? Flash is great, he's been through a lot, but still he remains loyal to his friends and to himself. So yeah, I want to help him, to be like him. I’ve never admired nopony so much before. Or human, or meta-human. You get it, right?” Rarity smiled at her warmly. “What a big change in so little time. However, I think I understand.” Rainbow nodded. “Hey, do you think you can help me with something?” “Sure, with what?” Rainbow Dash disappeared in a multi-colored streak, mostly cyan, and returned with a drawing of a uniform. It looked like the Wonderbolts', but this one was of a darker blue, and it had a stylized version Dash’s cutie mark on the flanks. “Help me with this, my own speedster suit!” Rarity giggled. “You really want to be like him, right?” “More than anything.” “Fine! I’ll take your measurements tomorrow evening. But right now, I must rest. I have a feeling that I have a long day ahead of me.” Rainbow agreed, and flew back to her home. She muttered to herself. "I still don't get it. Why does the Flash stick around ponies as dangerous as the Arrow -- the Arrows? I don't know if I'll ever understand. Next day: Blue Blood woke to soaked sheets. There were fates worse than death; he could attest to that personally. He had relived a particularly traumatic interrogation at the hooves of the terrorists. As he sat up, he casually ran a forehoof over the tapestry of scars hidden under his fur. Each was a souvenir of the four years that had torn his life apart and rebuilt it. He snorted as he dismissed the nightmare. There was nothing to be gained in brooding. After a quick shower, he went to his gym to start his morning training. Hanging on a bar by his hind legs, he did fifty sit-ups while holding his weight in tungsten between his forelegs. After he finished his strength training, he turned on a modified tennis ball launcher and shot the balls out of the air. He then moved to the next exercise. Two hours later, Blue Blood heard Barry receiving someone at the door while Blue Blood was cooling down in the shower. As he toweled himself dry, he heard Barry say, "I see you two came!" Blue Blood groaned. "You fools," he muttered. "Why couldn't you just stay where in your own world, where it's safe?" Rainbow Dash said, "I did my best to keep Rarity out of this, but . . . " “What I do with my life is my own business Rainbow Dash. If the Cutie Map sent me to the Arrow, then I need to see this through to the end.” Blue Blood groaned again. But still, he walked out of the shower, and took a quiver of arrows; and waited. “Good morning, Blue Blood! I came just as you asked!” said Rarity as she went downstairs to his gym. “Good!” said Blood, shooting several arrows at her. Rarity shrieked and tried to duck. A cyan blur obscured her vision. It resolved into Rainbow Dash, holding a mouthful of arrows. She spat them out and said, "Are you crazy? Is that your problem?" “I may be crazy, but your friend is an idiot!” said Blue as he released another arrow. Dash caught the arrow again. Her eyes widened as she felt the shock wave approach. Startled, she let it push her onto the wall. Blue Blood turned back to Rarity and unleashed a barrage of concussion arrows. Rarity winced with each explosion. Near misses left painful burns. Her once-white fur was being painted a sooty black. “Ouch! What are you doing?!” shouted Rarity. Blue Blood lowered his bow and looked to the doorway. Rarity turned to see Barry holding Rainbow Dash back. Rarity shrieked, "Why are you two just standing there? Aren't you going to do anything?" With sadness in his voice, Barry replied, “No, because I know what is he trying to do.” Blue Blood nodded and put aside his bow, only to kick Rarity on the gut. The fashionista bent in pain, and looked at Blue Blood with tears streaming from her eyes. Blue Blood just gave a small shrug. “Unless you find the way to turn all your shrieking in an actual superpower, I have no choice but teach you to defend yourself.” Then, the prince offered a hoof to Rarity. “This is your last chance to decline,” said Blood. The white unicorn accepted the hoof and nodded. “No, you’re right; I’ve been so careless the last days. So, I think a little training won’t be such a bad idea. After all, who better to teach me than somepony who knows what it's really like to fight.” Blue Blood nodded, and then threw Rarity to the other side of the room. He pounced on her and held her in a full nelson. “First lesson, don’t EVER let your guard down.” Rarity screamed in pain. “I told you! Screaming won’t help you. Find the way to get free!” commanded Blue Blood. "Don't surrender to pain! Take its strength!" Rainbow Dash made a move toward the pair, but Barry placed a forehoof on her withers. He slowly shook his head when she turned to look. Gesturing toward the stairs with his head, he said, “So, tell me Dash, want to practice how to do your daily activities, without your speed getting on your way?” “I suppose. But, I don’t know; I don’t like to see Rarity like that.” “This is what she wanted. Boss Blood did warn her.”. “I know; I know; so, what should we do first?” asked Dash. “Let’s go easy first, a short trip to the library,” suggested Barry. Rainbow nodded and followed him, but not before sending Rarity and Blood one last worried look. In the meantime, Rarity still struggled to break free from Blue Blood’s hold, but she could not. Finally, the prince released her, and kicked her in the ribs. “I was defeated already!” cried Rarity. “Be thankful it was a kick and not a knife,” said Blue Blood, as he traced the frog on one of her forehooves on a horrid scar he had under his fur. “Compared with that happened to me, I’m being gentle.” Rarity gulped, “Sweet Celestia!” “This is no game! If you’re going to get in my way, at least try to consider what's at stake.” The white mare nodded. “You really don’t want me near you. Do you really hate me that much, Blue Blood?” “On the contrary, I don’t want you to get hurt because of me. Why is that so hard to understand? The Arrow is doomed to stain his hooves with the blood of those who have failed Equestria. Why does an Element of Harmony, a symbol of hope, want to get involved with a pony like me?” Rarity grinned. “So, you actually care about others. And all this time I thought you were trying to prove something to yourself, to erase your mistakes from the past.” “That is part of it. I’ve hurt so much people, and, as much I try, I cannot go back to my old ways. I simply can’t pretend I don't care.” Then he reconsidered for a few seconds. “Or maybe I haven’t changed as much as I want to believe; after all, here I am, teaching you how to fight instead of doing the right thing, and forcing you out of my life.” “Blue Blood, you answered your own question. I am here because there is hope for you.” “Forget what I said, and let’s continue this!” Blue Blood lunged, but Rarity dodged. And so, they continued training.