Flash Sentry Chronicles: The Legend of Everfree

by Banshee531

Be the Legend You Were Meant to Be

Specks of green light rained down from the sky, the final after-burn of the the battle for Camp Everfree. The camp had been almost completely restored to its original state, though it was again lacking a dock...and needed a severe cleanup of roots and vines. But what was important was that the day had been saved, with those trapped now free from Gaia Everfree's clutches.

The doors of the meal hall opened with Celestia and Luna running out, followed by the rest of the students inside. They all breathed a sigh of relief as they saw everything was back to normal, especially seeing the students that had been trapped now free. Bulk was hugging Trixie and Sandalwood while the Royal Knights ran over to help those that had been trapped in the bulb cages.

Timber Spruce had recovered from his previous retina assault and now saw everyone was okay. And then, he spotted a familiar someone passed out on the ground, the teen quickly running over to his sister. He kneeled down and placed a hand on her shoulder, "Gloriosa?!"

He began to shake her, the girl not responding. But as he did this, one of the green specks of light flew down and landed on her head. It vanished, the woman's face glowing for a second before her eyes began to flicker open. "What..." She lifted her head, "What...happened?"

"It's okay," he replied before pulling Gloriosa into a hug. "It's gonna be okay." Holding her tightly, he then glanced up and saw the ones who had saved her and their home. Flash and the Rainbooms were staring at the camp, smiles on their faces before the magic that made them float began to wear off. They descended to the ground, the eight now seeing their fellow campers cheering for them.

Spike and the Royal Knights ran over to them, Spike leaping into Twilight's arms as the others took in their new looks. "You did it!" It was then that he noticed the geodes embedded into their clothing, the puppy commenting, "Whoa. Nice bling." The others looked down at the source of their new power, Applejack being the first to to ask the obvious.

"What...What are these?"

"I'm not sure," Sunset responded, "But clearly we have some kind of connection to them."

Iron reached out and put his fingers on Flash's, then held his hands up and grunted. The others raised an eyebrow until he stopped. "Just seeing if it could give me some powers."

The others laughed as Flash took it back. "I don't think these things will be giving anyone else any powers." He turned to the others, "Like Sunset said, they're connected to us."

They nodded in agreement, Rarity then chiming in, "I almost don't care what they are. They are gorgeous!" She then gasped as stars appeared in her eyes, "And will totally go with the other collection I was working on for the camp fashion show!" She giggled with excitement before looking around at the others, the group giving her deadpan stares, making her slump over, "That's probably cancelled, isn't it?"

The group turned to the camp, all seeing the mess from the battle, "This is gonna take a lot of cleaning up..." Flash commented as Rainbow let out a sigh.

"Come on!" she fell onto her butt. "We just saved the place! Can't we get a few minutes rest?"

"We helped break it," Applejack replied before moving over to the fallen totem ball. "We help rebuild it." She reached down and used her super strength to push it back up so it was standing upright. Flash chuckled and used his wings to fly above it, and as Applejack held it steady, he used a little of his power to increase his strength and stomped the totem down into the ground.

The others smiled at this and all began to get to work, the rest of the campers following suit. Soon enough, the camp was getting tidier by the moment. All the busted pieces of wood were quickly gathered while others swept the smaller pieces of wood into a pile. And by this time, Gloriosa had recovered and remembered what she had done.

She moved over to Celestia and Luna, showing a giant frown, "I am so sorry. I only wanted this to be the best week Camp Everfree has ever had." Celestia and Luna shared a glance as she continued, "And instead, I've made it the worst." Gloriosa looked away at this, "Maybe it's for the best that I'm losing the camp to Filthy Rich."

"No," Gloriosa turned to Celestia, the woman glaring at her, "It's not." She gestured to the surrounding area. "This camp has meant so much to so many people, my sister and me included."

Luna nodded at this, "Why do you think we wanted our students to come here?"

"We can't let Filthy Rich take this place away!" They turned to the voice, seeing Twilight standing with the rest of her magic wielding friends. "If camp meant so much to you two, maybe it meant as much to the other campers who came here in years past."

Sunset nodded, placing a hand on Twilight's shoulder. "And maybe we can get them to help save it!"

"Oh!" Applejack smiled, putting the giant log she was carrying down. "Like a fundraiser?"

"Or a ball?!" Rarity gasped, dropping the twigs she was carrying to hold her face.

"Our band could play!" Rainbow added as Fluttershy clapped.

"I could help write a new song just for the occasion!"

"Count me in!" Heather chimed in as Iron and First nodded.

"Me too."

"Me third."

"Haha!" Flash cheered, "This is gonna be sweet!" The rest of the campers all gave their own statements of agreement, all wanting to help save the camp that they had had so much fun at.

And as this happened, Gloriosa could only smile at this...only to frown, "Those are all good ideas, but where would we hold it?"

Sunset instantly replied with an idea, "We could hold it in the crystal cave!"

Rarity gasped at hearing this. "A Crystal Ball! I love it!"

"The place is already pretty looking," Flash added, "And with a bit of decoration, it'll be awesome." The others nodded, but Gloriosa grimaced at this.

"I admire everyone's enthusiasm. Really, I do." She then placed her hand on her head. "But I-I-I just don't know how we're going to plan a ball by tomorrow and just invite everyone." However, Flash and the girls all looked down at their geodes. If these gave them the power to build a dock and defeat a power mad nature spirit, they could do anything with them.

They all smiled at her before stating the same thing in unison. "WE GOT THIS!" Flash and the Rainbooms all turned to one another and placed their hands together, promising that they would make this ball work before getting to work.

It started with the rest of the students continuing to clean up the camp, Timber now showing Twilight a list of all their alumni from the last twenty-five years. Since they were on a time crunch, they excluded anyone who couldn't possibly make it to the ball by tomorrow night. And while that got rid of a lot of them, there were still more than enough in the local area they could invite. So, with her telekinesis, she began creating invites and placing them in envelopes ten at a time.

As that was going on, the others began working on cleaning up the crystal cave. Flash and Applejack's super strength came in handy, allowing them to pick up the bigger rocks blocking the cave. Iron, Bulk and a guy named Valhallen stared at them in amazement before looking down at the much smaller boulders they were struggling to pick up. Iron huffed at this and just threw his rock behind him.

Once the entrance was clear, they began clearing out the sharp and loose rocks that were either naturally formed or created because of Flash and Gaia's match. As that was happening, Fluttershy began working on a new song while Rarity started making dress clothes for everyone who didn't have one.

Meanwhile, Flash and Rainbow headed out to deliver the invitations. While not able to move as fast as her, Flash was still able to keep up as they entered the town and started shoving the letters in mailboxes. Flash even had the idea to put up a few posters, in case other people wanted to come and show their support for Camp Everfree. Once they were done, the sun was now beginning to set and they raced back to camp. Rainbow won of course, and headed off to go practice the song Fluttershy had written.

While this happened, Flash strode around the place, now seeing everything was now back to normal. The only thing it was missing was a dock, but other than that, it was perfect. He then spotted Gloriosa, standing at the edge of the lake and looking out at the forest and water, only to see Timber walking up to her and hugging her. Despite what Flash thought of him, it was clear Timber did care for his sister.

The next day, everyone began decorating the crystal cave. Fluttershy's animal friends were a big help in tidying up and flying the decorations up to hang from the ceiling spikes. Sunset directed everyone on where to set up the food, music, dance floor and anything else that might be needed, while Pinkie got to work making the food needed to make this the best crystal ball ever. Rarity then used her magic to create a crystal chandelier that hung from the ceiling, which Flash hit with a bolt of energy. The two magics united, causing the chandelier to light up, but also the excess energy flew out and started charging up the rest of the crystals in the cave. The students inside were mesmerized by the sight, Flash blushing at the unintended beauty he had made.

But then he felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to Twilight, the two smiling at one another before getting back to work. Eventually, everything was ready minus a few finishing touches. And since they had done about eighty percent of the work, the rest of the campers told Flash and the Rainbooms to enjoy the rest of the day while they finished up.

Not wanting to argue, the Rainbooms agreed and decided to spend the day doing several fun activities. This included fishing on the lake, a nature hike and simply laying on the grass, watching the clouds up above them. Eventually, it neared the time for the Crystal Ball, and they headed back to camp and got changed. Flash had to admit, his suit was pretty good, and when he saw the girls and the rest of his classmates in their attires, he couldn't deny that Rarity had outdone herself.

And as the sun began to set, multiple people began to arrive. People like Canter Zoom, a famous film director, arrived and was more the happy to help the camp he loved so much. And he wasn't the only one. Many people who once went to Camp Everfree arrived, each of them happy to help. It was here that the last of the invited guests arrived, the Rainbooms jumping onto a makeshift stage and began playing their many songs. Hours passed, with the camp alumni meeting the other former campers and trading stories about their time at Everfree. Every now and then, the girls would take the break, the Royal Knights there to fill in for them, and their songs were just as well received.

But eventually, the time came for the Rainboom's final song of the night, the one Fluttershy had written and they had all practiced in secret. And as they stepped on stage, Flash moved to the front of the cave near the entrance and smiled as he watched Twilight lead them as they started singing. All the fear, all the panic was completely gone. All that was left was joy, confidence and calm.

Flash watched as almost everyone in the cave danced, either by themselves or with a partner. Timber and Gloriosa were dancing side by side, Heather and First too. Iron was like him, leaning against a wall but also bopping his head. It was clear everyone was having a great time.

If this didn't save Camp Everfree...nothing would.

And as the song came to an end, Gloriosa got up onto the stage and accepted a microphone from the girls. "Thank you all so much for coming!" She told everyone in the cave, who all cheered back. "And for helping us raise enough money to..." She waited a moment, making everyone hold their breaths until she exclaimed, "Save Camp Everfree!" The crowd cheered once again, ecstatic that they could save the camp that they loved so much.

The only one not happy was Filthy Rich, who let out a huff and stomped out the cave. Flash chuckled at the sight before turning back to see Gloriosa say something to the Rainbooms. "Thank you," she told the girls, "For everything." She let out a long sigh, "If I'd just asked for help in the first place..."

"Hey," Rainbow interrupted her, "Don't sweat it. It's kinda what we do."

They all nodded as Gloriosa gave them a giant smile, "Either way, thank you. All of you." She glanced around, "I should probably thank Flash as well. Where is he?" The girls stared at the cave, Twilight knowing she had seen him near the entrance, but they couldn't find him.

But as the girls got off stage, the light from the crystals around the room began to dim. It appeared the power Flash had given them was starting to die down. Twilight agreed to help put up some more lights, using her magic to lift them up and wrap them around the spikes in the roof. And when she reached the entryway to do the same thing, she saw Flash leaning against a tree outside, staring up at the stars.

She reflexively started to walk toward him, only to hesitate. Memories of the past few days now going through her head, she looked away, a big frown on her face. That is, till Timber's voice called out to her, "Not to brag or anything," She turned to see him walking up, "But it's pretty cool how I saved all those campers from those Rubus fruticosus." She didn't reply, now seeing a huge grin on Timber's face as he continued, "Blackberry brambles."

"I'm familiar with the genus," she replied, only to glance back at Flash. She saw he was now staring at them, a long frown on his face...only to slowly morph to a small forced smile. The sight made Twilight go wide-eyed, only for a hand to grab her shoulder.

"Hey." She spun around at this, "You okay?"

"I'm...not sure," she muttered out, looking away again. Timber followed her eyesight, now seeing Flash as he began to walk away. He glanced back at Twilight, now remembering what Flash had told him the other night. He saw the look on Twilight's face, also remembering Twilight going out of her way to defend him after the terrifying encounter that other night. He then saw her look away, taking this chance to clench his face up, trying to hide the giant frown on his face.

And as he fixed his face, he slowly said, "Twilight," she glanced back at him, "It's okay."

"Huh?" She barely responded.

"If uh..." His eyes darted away for a second, "If you want to be with him, then do it. I promise I won't be mad."

"Timber..." Twilight gasped, putting a hand to her mouth, "Are...are you sure? Yesterday you-"

"I admit I might have been a little too harsh on him before, but...he did save my life, helped free my sister and stopped our camp from being closed down. I guess he can't be all bad." Twilight slightly smiled at this as she saw an uncomfortable frown on his face as he continued, "Besides...it doesn't mean we can't still be friends. Maybe you, me, Flash and whoever else you wanna invite can hang out. We could all go to the amusement park...or see a movie."

"Um...yeah," Twilight replied with a small nod, "I'd really like that." The two smiled at one another, but then Twilight looked away almost instantly. She let out a whisper, "Thank you."

With that, she ran off into a sprint, making Timber sigh at the sight. That is, till Gloriosa walked up to him and said, "That was a very mature thing you just did."

"Yup," Timber smirked as he crossed his arms, "Mr. Mature right here." Gloriosa giggled. "I told Flash I probably wouldn't be able to give someone up, even if it would make them happier to be with someone else. Glad to know I actually can do that. Guess that puts us on equal moral ground." Now Gloriosa rolled her eyes. "Besides, they're young. Everyone knows high school romances never last. When the inevitable happens, I'll be right there to help her through the break-up. And a few weeks later, the two of us can finally get together and live happily ever after."

"Sure you will," Gloriosa groaned, "Now come on. There are some donors I really want you to meet. They were good friends with Mom and Dad." Timber nodded and let her pull him away, turning to give one final look at Twilight as she reached Flash.

The teen was fiddling with the geode that now hung from his neck, having transformed into a necklace when he reverted back from his superhero persona. Twilight found herself coming to a stop behind him, not moving as she saw him staring out into the distance. She felt her heart now racing, taking a deep breath as her brain began to go over scenario after scenario to get his attention.

That is, till she took another step and accidently tripped over a root. "Aah!" She yelped as she began to fall, staggering around before grabbing a nearby tree. The sound made Flash turn back to her, now seeing the blushing girl as she mumbled out, "Oh uh...hey."

"Hey," Flash replied as he saw get her balance back. Seeing this, he looked away, "I figured...you and Timber would be hanging out the rest of the night."

Those words made Twilight's blush go away, now showing a small smile as she walked up him. "Timber's fun, but I'd rather spend some time with my best friend."

"Best friend..." Flash repeated, still looking away, "Right."

Twilight's mentally smacked herself for her words, taking a deep breath as she responded, "Sorry. I don't...mean it like that. You are my best friend. But...maybe...it could...we could...I uh...um..." Flash turned to her at this, now seeing her stumble on her words. That is, till she started scratching the sides of her head, "Oh...why can't there be a book on this kind of thing?!"

"Twilight? You okay?" Flash asked.

"No!" Twilight barked back, making Flash slightly flinch. This made Twilight flinch as well, her blush returning as she said, "I mean...sorry. I didn't mean it that way, I just...um...want to be...with you."

Flash slowly raised an eyebrow at this, "What...are you talking about?"

Twilight opened her mouth to reply, only to sigh, her mind telling she should have known Flash would be slow on something like this, just like her. She took another deep breath, her face growing even redder as she mumbled out, "Flash...I don't want us to be just best friends." Flash blinked at her, his mind slowly turning gears as those words repeated in his head. And then, he began to blush as she continued, "I admit...I've been a little confused about how I feel about you since I heard you talk to Timber. But...you've always been there for me." She looked back up at him, now staring in his eyes, "You've protected me. Helped me when I'm down, and always know how to make me laugh. I just..." She glanced away at this, "I just wish I'd seen it sooner."

Flash's blush slightly went away as he replied, "Twilight...I didn't do any of that because I wanted to be with you." He looked away while scratching the back of his head, "I just...wanted you to be happy."

Twilight saw his expression, a big smile now forming on her face, "That just gives me more reason to pick you." She glanced back at the cave. "Timber and I have a lot in common, and we'd probably be really good friends and maybe more in another universe." She turned back to him, her smile now brightening up Flash's heart. "But it wasn't Timber that helped me throughout my life. It wasn't Timber that leapt into a portal to save me from myself, and it wasn't Timber who helped me find the courage to embrace the magic within me."

But as she said these words, Flash's brain was still slowly moving, making him just now ask, "You really...wanna be with me?"

Twilight did a slow nod, "I wanna try." She hesitated for a slight second, taking a breath as she knew this next part was something she had to word absolutely perfectly. "I...I don't know if what I feel for you is romantic love, but I do love you. And I wanna see what happens if we take our relationship to the next level."

Flash found himself fully blushing now, his mouth moving on its own, "I wanna see what happens too."

Twilight nodded again, only for her smile to vanish, "Just promise me something." Flash raised an eyebrow. "If...if our relationship doesn't work out that way, promise me that it won't ruin our friendship. Promise me that we can go back to how things were before now, and still be a part of each other's lives, even if it's just as friends."

Flash nodded back, "I promise. Nothing will ever stop us being friends." Twilight shined her smile again before walking up and hugging him, Flash embracing her back. The two held one another for several moments, basking in the warmth that they felt with one another. And as they did, several pairs of eyes were now watching.

"Ooooh," Heather squealed as she, First, Iron and Sunset all watched from the mouth of the cave. "It's happening!"

"Ha!" Iron laughed, "I can't believe he pulled it off."

Heather clapped her hands as the two pulled away. "Now come on...kiss!"

"I do not think it is that simple," First chimed in, "They just realised they like each other. It may take time before they are ready to move on to that stage of their relationship." Heather growled at this, only to hiss as she saw the two look away from one another.

"No!" she moaned before glaring at First, "You jinxed it!" First rolled his eyes while Sunset just giggled.

"So what now?" Twilight asked, "How do we do this whole...couple thing?"

Flash replied with a shrug, "We've still got a few days of camp left. We could spend some of it alone together. Then, when we get back home, we could go on a real date."

Twilight smiled and nodded one last time, "I like the sound of that." She grabbed hold of his hand and held it tight, then pulled him toward the cave. "Come on. Let's get back with the others."

"Actually," Flash smirked as he pulled his hand free, "There was something I was thinking of trying out before heading inside."

Twilight raised an eyebrow, now seeing him backpedal before looking up at the sky, then slapping his hands together before pulling them apart. The lightning surged between them before he thrust his hands into the air. The energy shot into the sky and eventually exploded, unleashing a surge of lights and cracks that gave them the appearance of fireworks. Twilight gasped at this, everyone inside and around the cave now running out to stare up at the light show.

Flash fired another blast, creating more and more fireworks. Though since his blasts were the same color, he risked boring the crowd, though luckily Pinkie and Applejack were on hand to help. Pinkie pulled out a cupcake and charged it up before handing it to Applejack, who used her super strength to throw it a good fifty feet in the air before it went off.

This coupled with Flash's explosions put on quite the show for the people watching. They all thought the Rainboom's song had been the perfect ending, but this was even better. Twilight watched the display and turned back to Flash, seeing the smile on his face as he saw everyone's mesmerized expression. That smile, created by making others happy, made Twilight's chest swell, knowing she had made the right choice.

The show went on for about a half an hour, with Flash getting exhausted while Pinkie ran out of cupcakes. "That was so fun," Pinkie said as they headed back into the cave so Flash could get something to eat and drink to replenish his energy.

"That was pretty cool," Sunset added.

"You know what else is cool?" Rainbow asked, then spoke up before anyone could try to answer. "Our awesome new superpowers!" She then zipped all over the cave, stopping between two groups of campers. "I handed out like, four hundred fliers!" she zipped over to the stage. "Set up the stage," she zoomed over to them, now holding a delicious smelling box. "And still had time to pick up pizza! I love my super-speed!"

The others all laughed, Sunset now staring at her geode, "About that...I think the crystals are the source of the superpowers."

"You're not gonna ask us to give them up, are you?" Fluttershy asked with a whimper, about to produce puppy dog eyes.

"No," Sunset replied, "In fact, I think maybe we were meant to have them all along."

"Me too," Twilight added while the others all gave their own cries of agreement.

"There's one thing I know for sure," Flash grabbed his. "These geodes might give us similar powers to our pony selves, but we're gonna use them in our own way. Because it's possible more Equestrian magic could show up..."

Sunset nodded in agreement, "And when it does, we'll be ready." They all nodded back, now knowing their destiny to protect their world from Equestrian magic. Even if they didn't want it to be, they were the only ones that could control the magic and not be consumed by it. So they would do whatever it took to stop any other type of magic from causing mayhem.

The hours passed and as more people began to leave the camp and head home, Twilight picked up and drink and looked over at Flash. He was talking to the Royal Knights, all having a fun conversation. Not wanting to ruin it, she chose to head over to the entrance where Sunset was leaning against one of the decorated boulders. As she reached her and drank her soda, Sunset's face became a frown. "There is one thing I'm still wondering about, though."

"What's that?" Twilight asked before Sunset stared up at the sky.

"Where did the magic that hit this cave come from?" Twilight looked up at the starry sky as well, unable to answer her question.

Canterlot High School...

Everything was calm in the city, as the currently deserted school appeared peaceful and serene. But despite this, the damage caused during the Friendship Games had yet to be fully repaired. The Wondercolts Statue, which had been completely destroyed during Midnight Sparkle's rampage, and was still missing. Mainly due to the fact that stone horses were expensive and near impossible for a public school to get more than once.

And so, the pedestal that also acted as the gateway to Equestria was left with nothing atop it. On the top of the pedestal, right where the horse statue once stood, a large crack ran down the stone. And from beneath this crack, a bright light seeped through into the human world. This was followed by another light of a different color, then another and another and another.

Eventually, the lights shot out of the crack and morphed into shining balls of energy that flew in multiple different directions. Equestrian Magic was once again free, now looking for something or someone it could empower. But would those people use the magic for good like the Rainbooms, or to fulfil their own selfish desires?

The next day...

Flash and the Rainbooms sighed in relief at the sight of the now completed dock, glad they had gotten it finished before leaving camp. "Third time's a charm," Rainbow sighed, "Or is it fifth? I've lost track."

Rarity smiled as she crossed her arms. "All that matters is that the runway is finished."

Applejack rolled her eyes, crossing her own arms. "Ah think yah mean...the dock?"

"Oh," Rarity waved her off, "To-mah-to, tomato." The others nodded as Pinkie pulled out a bunch of confetti and marshmallows.

"LET'S CELEBRATE!" She screamed before throwing the party stuff into the air. Flash chuckled at this, only to grimace as he saw the marshmallows now glowing as they landed on the dock.

"Oh no," was all he could say before-

KABOOM!

An explosion of pink filled the air and hit them in the face, the cloud soon fading to reveal a destroyed dock and several very distraught teenagers with windswept hair. Rarity broke the silence, letting out a cry of horror as she held out her hands. She then fell back, fainting while Flash let out a sigh.

"I'll go get the wood," he groaned as he walked off. Their time at camp had certainly been one none of them would ever forget, for more reasons than one. But where would life lead them from this point? Only time would tell.