//------------------------------//
// Episode 22: Clash for Cloudsdale! 
// Story: EoH Evolution: Season 6 
// by Bahamut0 
//------------------------------//

Cloudsdale, the home of the Skyborn. Normally, one would be met with the sight of many Skyborn flying about the cloudy expanses happy and free. If you were lucky, you just might catch the Wonderbolts flying by. Unfortunately, the skies were empty and the city was silent save for the screams of the Valkyrie units' engines as they patrolled the sky. From Cloudsdale's prison, Spitfire glared as the robots hovered around the skies of her home.

"It's hard to believe that it all happened so quickly." Spitfire sighed as she slid down the wall of her cell. "And so fast too. . . "

Spitfire closed her eyes as she remembered the Lancers' take over of Cloudsdale. It wasn't long after Blitz Surges declaration of expanding and cementing his rule. The forces under his command that got their job done the quickest were Lightning Dust and her legion of Valkyrie units. Spitfire had scrambled any able-bodied Wonderbolts to lead the defense of Cloudsdale. The Wonderbolts fought valiantly against the Lancer forces that were sent to subjugate their home, but in the end, they were all shot down. The Valkyries were faster, and had a serious advantage in firepower. Even Spitfire, with her flaming wing blades, was shot down by a hail of micro-missiles and a spear stab to one of her wings. And when Spitfire struggled to get to her feet, she was met with the unpleasant sight of Lightning Dust smirking arrogantly at her.

'I can still remember that degrading offer she made me and the others after her overgrown piles of nuts and bolts shot us down.' Spitfire scowled as she gaze hardened. 'We would be able to fly again, but ONLY if we were her subordinates and SHE was put in charge of the Wonderbolts! As if I'd let a reckless, arrogant Skyborn like her head the Wonderbolts! So, that's why I'm in here now, and why she's out there.'

Spitfire turned her attention to the small television set in her cell, and couldn't help but scrunch her face in disgust at the broadcast. Ever since Lightning Dust had taken over, she'd not only jailed all the Wonderbolts, but she'd forced civilians to gather at Cloudsdale stadium and watch her reckless stunt shows. By now, Spitfire had lost count how many times civilians had been nearly sent flying out of the stadium or had a close brush with injury. And seeing it made all the Wonderbolts sick to their stomachs.

'Our shows are meant to entertain the audience and show what we can do. But above all, our top priority is to make sure the audience is safe while we perform!' Spitfire thought angrily as she clenched her fists! Desperately fighting the urge to smash the TV in front of her! 'It looks like kicking her out of Wonderbolt training wasn't enough of a wake-up call for her. Rainbow Dash, wherever you and your friends are, I hope you come here and put her in her place while taking back Cloudsdale!'

Meanwhile at the stadium, Lightning Dust was whooping in sheer elation at her takeover of Cloudsdale! A squadron of Valkyries serving as her co-stars for her performance. Seeing the Wonderbolts who'd kicked her out get beaten so easily by the Lancer forces under her command filled her with a vindictive pleasure. The only down side in her mind was that she didn't get to knock them out of the sky herself. It would've been possible with a special item Hax had made with her in mind, but she was saving it for a certain someone who'd been responsible for her being kicked out of the Wonderbolts training: Rainbow Dash.A scowl briefly crossed Lightning Dust's face as she once again pulled off a reckless stunt that nearly blew some crowd members out of their seats. The Skyborn Lancer shook her head to clear her thoughts! 

'Rainbow Dash and those other elements are in hiding because they're scared!' Lightning Dust thought with an arrogant smirk as she barreled through the air of the stadium! Gathering up clouds in the center of the stadium and using her Skyborn magic to send out massive bolts of lightning that just barely scraped the stands! 'So what if she's an Avatar now? If she's hiding, it just means she doesn't have the guts to face me! But I hope she does so she can see that I'm better than her! What better way to pay her back for ruining my shot at glory than crushing her in front of an audience?!'

But as Lightning Dust fantasized about her triumph, she failed to notice three silhouettes flying up towards Cloudsdale stadium! One of the figures unsheathed a sword, and fired a series of blade beams at the Valkyries before channeling their magic and skewering them with sword constructs! The second figure raised their spear, which was modeled after a dragon from the heavens, and called down a blast of thunder that fried the Valkyries! The last figure channeled their magic as their wings glowed an icy blue before beating them and sending out a miniature blizzard the froze the utterly trashed Valkyries in mid-air! But before the mangled mechs could fall to the ground, a loud boom was heard as a rainbow-colored blur streaked by! A sonic rainboom echoing throughout the entire stadium and shattering the frozen Valkyrie units! The icy chunks that slowly fell from the aftermath reflecting the rainbow of light, leaving the captive audience truly in awe! All the while, Lightning Dust watched dumbfounded as she was upstaged!

The source of the sonic rainboom came to a halt in the middle of the stadium, and was hovering above Lightning Dust after bursting through her clouds! When the debris cleared and the spectacle concluded, the figure was revealed to be Rainbow Dash and the ones who'd accompanied her were Steel Edge, Shadow Thunder, and Arctic Ace!

"Nightfall showed me a few of your sorry excuses for shows, Lightning Dust." Rainbow Dash stated as she crossed her arms. "Doesn't your audience ever get bored of you constantly endangering them? It's no wonder you got kicked out of training."

"YOU!" Lightning Dust shrieked as her pupils contracted in anger! "How dare you upstage me like that!"

"Hey. I'm just doing what these people want: a show where they can have fun and aren't endangered." Rainbow Dash said as she narrowed her eyes at the rejected Wonderbolt. "And where they're captivated by the spectacle. NOT held hostage by an army of robots."

"Want us to curbstomp her together, babe?" Steel Edge asked as he brandished his Duelist Arms. "It'd make for a fun little battle date."

"No." Rainbow Dash shook her head. "She's mine. You and the guys can have some fun trashing her grunts. I'm sure Ace is dying to test out his new Duelist Arm."

"Alrighty then!" Steel grinned! "C'mon guys! Let's bash some bots!"

"Excellent." Arctic Ace smiled as he concentrated on a snowflake-shaped charm in his hands! The charm then shifted into a crystalline cannon made of ice! "I get to try out my weapon's cannon form." Shadow just waved politely as he joined his fellow Elements of Heroism in demolishing Lightning Dust's forces.

"Have fun boys!" Rainbow Dash called out as Steel and his fellow Elements of Heroism vanished from view to battle the Valkyrie units. The Avatar of Loyalty taking a deep breath before turning to face Lightning Dust! "I'd apologize for stealing the show, but there wasn't much of one to steal."

"So you finally decide to show your face, huh?" Lightning Dust smirked while she panicked internally. "Are you and the rest of the elements done being cowards?"

"No. I just wanted to wipe that smirk off your face." Rainbow Dash retorted. "Best time to strike at the badguys is when they think they've won. Why else do you think Burst's little pop-up and the princesses escaping happened when they did?"

"If you're so sure you and your lame friends are gonna beat me, then why don't we settle it here and now!" Lightning Dust snapped! "Or are you too afraid that your entire hometown is gonna see a goddess crash and burn?"

"I couldn't think of a better time than now." Rainbow Dash replied with a frown as she crossed her arms.

"Just what I wanted to hear!" Lightning Dust said with a crazed grin as she launched herself towards Rainbow Dash! Ready to ram right into her! "HERE I-!"

"HOLD IT!" Rainbow Dash cried out as she remained hovering in place! "I agreed to take you on, Lightning Dust. But I didn't agree to fight you here. There's a way more fitting place for us to throw down. Where all your 'troubles' began. Why don't we finish our business there?"

"Ending our little rivalry where it all began, huh?" Lightning Dust cocked a brow in interest before an evil smile spread on her face! "Fine. It's perfect actually. A chance to bring you to your knees at the same place where you humiliated me and ruined my shot at joining the Wonderbolts? That's something I refuse to pass up!"

'Somehow I knew that'd work.' Rainbow Dash thought to herself. "Then come and get me!"

Rainbow Dash flew off towards Wonderbolt HQ, and arrived only moments later. As she landed on the runway, Rainbow briefly reminisced about her fateful meeting with Lightning Dust. It was when she'd been accepted as a trainee for the Wonderbolts. Nothing had filled her with more joy than a chance to prove herself. That's when she and Lightning Dust first met. Lightning Dust was also eager to prove herself. Rainbow Dash was honestly impressed at the prospective Wonderbolt's record on the Dizzitron. However, it was soon revealed that Lightning Dust's skill was eclipsed by her recklessness. 

During the training, Lightning Dust accidentally clipped another trainee without so much as apologizing or showing concern! But what really took the cake was the tornado Lightning Dust had careless generated in an effort to impress Spitfire and the other Wonderbolts by clearing away clouds faster. A tornado that soon went out of control and would've hit a bunch of junior Wonderbolt recruits. Thankfully, the tornado was stopped before any damage was done. But Lightning Dust was promptly kicked out of the Wonderbolts Trainee program. And ever since that day, she'd had a score to settle with Rainbow Dash.

'And it all comes to a close here. Where it all began. Pretty funny.' Rainbow Dash thought to herself as she heard something come screaming towards the runway. When she turned to face the source of the noise, she was met with a sneering Lightning Dust. "You sure took your time."

"Forgive me for savoring the moment." Lightning Dust snapped. "I've been waiting a long time for this! Ever since you got me kicked out of Wonderbolts training!"

"You've only got yourself to blame for that. Same for what comes next." Rainbow Dash countered calmly as she looked at Lightning Dust with disappointment. "I thought you getting kicked out would be a wake-up call, but I guess I was wrong. But your refusal to accept the fact it's your own fault for what happened just further cements you aren't ready to be a Wonderbolt. I won't lie, I can be a little reckless too. But I accept when I've messed up and learned from it. It's the only way to become better."

"SHUT UP!" Lightning Dust screamed! "First you humiliate me by getting me kicked out, and now you're a goddess who's lecturing me! I'VE HAD IT! Now. . . " Lightning Dust pulled a vial filled with a strange serum from one of the pockets of her Lancer uniform. "It's payback time!" And with that, she popped off the lid of the vial and gulped down the serum! Her body briefly seizing up before she slightly bulked up! Her veins pulsating within her enhanced muscles!

"What was that?" Rainbow Dash asked as she summoned her boomerang to her hand and took a fighting stance! "Just what did you put into yourself?!"

"A little something to boost my performance!" Lightning Dust smirked as she shot towards Rainbow Dash! Her speed having doubled after drinking the serum! "Hax made it especially for me at the request of Blitz Surge! I figured that I wouldn't be much against you. But with this, I can handle you easily!"

"Reckless AND arrogant." Rainbow Dash groaned as she dodged! "Plus, you don't even know what side-effects that serum has! For all you know, the strain it leaves could kill you!"

"It doesn't matter!" Lightning Dust snapped as she wildly punched and kicked at Rainbow Dash! However, none of her blows managed to land a hit! "As long as I can finally bring you down!"

"Not gonna happen!" Rainbow Dash powered up her magic, and channeled it into her boomerang! Wrapping the weapon in a sharp aura of wind! "Aero Slicer!" Rainbow Dash hurled her boomerang at Lightning Dust! While her enemy avoided the initial throw, the boomerang scored a direct hit on Lightning Dust's side on its return trip! Rainbow was about to close in and follow up with a physical attack, but stopped herself just in time when Lightning Dust had a foot aimed at her head with a somersault kick! "What the heck?! How are you not hurting right now?!"

"Funny you mentioned side-effects earlier!" Lightning Dust smirked! "The serum I took inhibits my pain! Now I can keep going no matter how many hits I take!"

"And you'll also never know when you can't take any more punishment!" Rainbow Dash cautioned! "But I get the feeling you aren't going to back down at all no matter what I say."

"HRRRRAAUUGH!" Lightning Dust roared as she bolted towards Rainbow Dash! Swinging even more wildly due to her frustration! Her efforts had about the same efficacy as her last attempt.

"Alright. If you aren't going to listen up, I'll take you down!" Rainbow Dash cried out as she got up close to Lightning Dust, and flipped herself over the enraged Lancer with a flap of her wings before landing a chop to Lightning Dust's neck! Stunning the Lancer! "Now to finish this!" Wasting no time, Rainbow Dash threw herself into a series of punches and kicks while flying around Lightning Dust at high speeds! She moved so fast that she became a cyclone around Lightning Dust! And to finish the onslaught, Rainbow Dash flew out of her cyclone and began gathering magic to wrap her right leg in thunder before coming down with a kick onto Lightning Dust in the eye of the whirlwind! "STORMBREAKER!"

A thunderbolt crashed in the eye of the miniature storm as Rainbow Dash achieved impact! When the storm cleared, Lightning Dust lay bruised and battered from Rainbow Dash's barrage. The Avatar of Loyalty sighing as she took in Lightning Dust's defeated form.

"Why. . . can't I move?" Lightning Dust groaned as she tried to move her busted body. "I. . . don't. . . hurt. So why. . . can't I move?"

"Because your body knows it's done." Rainbow Dash answered. "And so's your hold on Cloudsdale. Pretty soon, we'll be coming for you boss. I hope you've learned something from all this, Lightning Dust. Because I hope to Faust I don't need to teach you a third time. If I remember right, there should be a nice cozy cell waiting for you after you recover."

". . . Why? Why don't you just drop me in the middle of the stadium for everyone to shame me?" Lightning Dust scowled.

"Because I don't care about the glory." Rainbow Dash answered. "Like you, I always wanted to be a Wonderbolt. But it was never because I wanted to be the best. It was because I wanted to inspire others. Because I wanted to do something awesome for other people. You only ever thought of yourself. And in the end, that'll leave you with nothing." And with that, Rainbow Dash grabbed the broken and battered Lightning Dust before teleporting back to the stadium. Steel and the others were waiting for her.

"Well, the place is littered with robot corpses." Arctic Ace informed Rainbow Dash. "But given that no civilians were harmed and you've got Lighting Dust in custody, I see this as an absolute win."

"It sure was." Rainbow Dash smiled before addressing the now liberated people of Cloudsdale. "A WIN FOR US ALL!" All of Cloudsdale cheered in triumph! 'I wonder how my parents are gonna react to this?' Rainbow Dash's thoughts were interrupted when Steel brought her in for a victory kiss. 'Eh. I'll worry about that after Blitz gets knocked off the throne. . . '