As the days progressed, Rainbow Dash continued to train under Princess Luna. Each night, she learned new skills, while improving those from before. The Sonic Rainboom was the first thing they practiced, and eventually Dash could pull it off on-demand, effortlessly. After that, more advanced techniques were readily available for her to master. Luna coached Dash all the way through, developing her student's body and mind. Night after night, they worked together, uncovering the secrets of speed magic.
"Feel the energy. Become it. You are no longer a pegasus. You are speed incarnate. You are energy, and energy transcends solid matter. Obstacles cannot stop you, nothing can block your path, because you are speed."
"The source of your speed is your wings. Speed flows through your wings, making them stronger, giving them power. You must feel that power in them, and bring it out from inside of you. When you do that, it will surround your wings, and because it is energy, they will become like razorblades."
"Remember how, last night, I told you to feel the energy in your wings and bring it out? Tonight is the next step from that. This time, you must feel the energy across your entire body, and bring it out. But you need not attempt to achieve the intensity you did last night. We only need enough energy to bend light, not slice through tree trunks. Picture the energy as a liquid metal, surrounding you, shining in the light. Now separate yourself from it, but leave it in your shape. Place it to the side of you, and give it color. Make it look just like you."
Even though the master/apprentice relationship was very well-established, and the subjects they were focused on were serious and complex, lessons seemed like anything but to Rainbow Dash. It was more like she was working out with a great friend, discovering the subtle nuances necessary to perfect her art. And when said nuances involved tearing apart trees and destroying forestry in every way imaginable, well, this was a school she should've been in a long time ago!
Miraculously, the same could be said of her standard classes. Even Coldheart was warming up to her, strange as it was. Each week brought in a new set of instructors, each with a unique field of military expertise to share. This week's slots were filled by Knife and Blade Training, Stealth and Infiltration, and Fieldcraft and Survival. Explosives still trumped all, though, especially for the day they got to test their own bombs out in the Everfree. That day had resulted in a new manestyle for Dash, her mane being blown straight back in spikes by a misfire blast. But she decided she liked it anyway, and started to spike it back before every night's classes.
But beyond the classrooms and training field, "Dash" (having dropped the front part of her name to better suit her new life) found herself at home with the Shadowbolts. Each one of them connected with her almost immediately. Except Stratus, of course. He mostly just stood around, looked tough, and occasionally grunted. She found it better to follow suit. But that was the one exception; she could hardly get Blueball to leave her alone about racing, Charger would swap stats and tips with her for their fantasy racing teams, and even Starry was opening up to talk about the news from Cloudsdale. And Nightshade, well, what could Dash say about her? She was acting almost like a sister. It turned out she was also an orphan, having to grow up on the streets of Manehatten. And she was one of the few ponies who could match Dash in Wonderbolts trivia. They took turns leading point on flight exercises, Nightshade helping Dash ease into the role of leading a squadron. But Luna did say she had put Dash in a "crash-course", and the team's first taste of real action came sooner than they might have liked.
Having broken off from a series of acrobatic maneuvers, the Shadowbolts ran a patrol around the camp, watching for potential intruders. Far below, they could see the other recruits marching in file and working out on the obstacle course. But on the horizon, three neon-blue-and gold figures were approaching the perimeter at alarming speed. A few seconds later, it became apparent that they were Wonderbolts. Dash, leading the formation, signaled her team to hover, and watched the three pegasi as they flew closer. Based on mane color and style, she could tell Spitfire was definitely at the lead, with Soarin' and Aces High behind.
"Those are Wonderbolts! What are they doing here? If they get any closer, they'll discover our camp!"
Nightshade fluttered to her side, calming Dash's nerves.
"It's alright, Dash. We know what to do. You just hang back and we'll take care of it."
"Wait a sec, Nightshade. I think I have an idea for how to run them off, and since Luna wants me to start being more of a leader..."
"Alright, you take the reins. What do you want us to do, Dash?"
"Good. Here's the thing: two of them know me, and if they see me, they're going to start asking some questions I'd really like not to be answered. But the Wonderbolts already know you five as troublemakers, so one more incident isn't going to set them off. Listen, Blueball, start flying to Canterlot. Tell Luna what's happened and see if you can get her down here."
"Okay, awesome, Dash! Great plan! I'll go faster than ever to get there, like I've never raced before! I can't wait to..."
"Go, Blueball! Okay, Starry, head down to the camp and get all our soldiers into cover. Tell them we have incoming aerial surveillance, red alert, and they need to get out of sight, ASAP."
"Well, as long as I don't have to dirty my hooves fighting those three, I suppose I could do it."
"Alright then, Stratus, Charger, you two are our powerhouses. I want you to be the frontline; make sure the Wonderbolts don't get past you."
"Hmmph."
"You got it, Dash."
"Nightshade, you go below them, cut off any chance of them sneaking under us."
"What about you?"
"Like I said, they can't see me, or my cover's blown clean out of Equestria. I'll take advantage of the natural cloud cover, if you know what I mean. Here's what we do: you three set up to block their path, and we'll see what they do. Whatever happens, don't let them by you. If they don't turn back, I'll drop a thunderbolt on them. The explosion and noise should make them scatter. Then we split up and run them off individually. Charger, you go after Soarin'. That pie-munching fatbody shouldn't be much trouble. Stratus, you've got Aces High. She's a tricky one, agile but not tough. Just stay on her, and bat her around a little if you have to. Nightshade, you and I have Spitfire. She's the leader for a reason, but between the two of us, we'll have her beat."
"Awesome. That lousy backstabber gave the final signature to kick me out, and I've been looking for some payback."
"Don't hurt her. If we beat them too badly, they'll come back, and in force. Just tail them, maybe get in a small hit or two, but get them away from here somehow. I'll stay on Spitfire above the cloudline, so just know that even if you can't see me, I have your back. Alright, we're good to go. Let's get down there and take care of them before they get any closer."
The four of them broke apart, stationing themselves for the ambush. Dash took cover above a thunderhead, and moved it into position just in front of the others. Only yards away, Spitfire saw the three pegasi obstructing her team's path, recognizing one as Nightshade. The two had never been on exactly friendly terms since Fillydelphia, so this chance encounter couldn't mean good news for her.
"What are you doing here, Nightshade?"
"Hey, Spits, just hanging around. Nothing in particular, you?"
"If you really have to know, we are running fire patrol for the Everfree Forest. Now if you'll just let us by, we can get on with our job."
"Oh, now why would I want to let you do that? After all, since you kicked me off the Wonderbolts, I've never had the chance to have some fun with you!"
If that isn't a dead cue for a thunderbolt, thought Dash, I don't know what is.
She gave the cloud a strong kick with her back hooves, and instantly a flash of electricity fell upon the group. The crack followed almost instantaneously, and the combined sensory overload sent the surprised Wonderbolts scattering. Each Shadowbolt broke off to pursue their target; Dash locked on to Spitfire and Nightshade, watching from the clouds.
"What is this, Nightshade? An ambush?"
"What, don't you like hanging out with my new friends? If nothing else, I've found they can at least keep up with us!"
They were darting about each other, until Spitfire suddenly pulled up. She made a tight flip, tighter than any Dash had ever seen her do. It almost seemed to bend her spine, and she came downward right on top of Nightshade, slamming her into a pack of low-hanging clouds. Spitfire broke away from her, hovering above as she pulled herself back into the open air.
"Whoever they are, they're just like you: substanda-"
Before she could even finish the insult, Spitfire was sent spiraling by an imperceptible cyan-blue flash. She flapped furiously to right herself, but as soon as she was stable, the flash appeared again, knocking her to the ground. The bruises told enough: two clean hits, one in the jaw, the other on the forehead. The latter had sent her unconscious, and Dash and Nightshade dropped down beside her corpse-like body.
"Well at least they don't forget who their real friends are. Thanks for the help, Dash."
"I never thought I'd have to knock her out, but now I realize Spitfire wouldn't ever have just given up and flown off."
Turning her eyes skyward, Dash spotted Soarin' scrambling away from Charger, and opposite them, Aces High was struggling to stay airborne as Stratus batted her about.
"Let's get her somewhere else in the forest, before she comes to. There's no way any of them could remember exactly where in the forest they were tonight."
Craning under her neck, Dash helped to lift Spitfire's body onto Nightshade's back, and signalled her to take off. As the two pegasi climbed above the treeline, Dash lifted her right hoof to find it blood-spattered, and a sudden realization occurred to her.
That was Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts.
I just hit her out of the sky
I just beat Spitfire.
I just beat the captain of the Wonderbolts.
But even that was not the most startling thought crossing her mind.
And I... liked it!
Silently cracking open the door, Fluttershy poked her head into the library, only to quickly withdraw it again. Less than a second later came the rattle of wood on hinges. Shortly after, Twilight pushed the door open, finding a poorly-concealed Fluttershy cowering behind an irritated Angel. Beside her, Spike, having been plastered to the door's interior, slid to the ground.
"You'd think after all these years I'd be used to being thrown into walls and falling on my face. But nope, it still hurts like the first time."
"Ah, Fluttershy! Sorry if I startled you. Number 63 didn't go exactly like I'd hoped. But come in, I'm glad you could make it!"
"You, umm, uh, wanted to see me?"
"Yes, but only for a second. Actually, I really wanted to ask you about Rainbow Dash."
"Oh, Rainbow Dash? What about her?"
"Do you think she's been acting kind of, maybe a little, weird lately?"
"Weird? Oh, well, um, I... uhh.... YES! OkayIsaidit! I do think she's been acting weird lately!"
"Good, I just wanted be sure it wasn't me. Have you noticed how she's always skipping out on parties and things like that?"
"Um, yeah..."
"And how she seems to be focused on nothing but getting faster, even more so than usual?"
"Mmmhmm..."
"And how she even broke my meteorological data-recording instruments?"
All Fluttershy could do was nod, but with a sudden thought, she changed her mind and shook her head.
"What instruments did she break?"
"I commissioned her a few weeks ago to go fly above the Everfree Forest and collect data about the climate patterns. I had her wear this harness, and the instruments on it would collect data for me as she flew. But a week-and-a-half later, she brought it back to me, every instrument broken. She said she'd hit a bad patch of turbulence, but my data said it should've been a perfectly calm night. And even then, would Rainbow Dash go down just because of turbulence?"
"No, no, I don't think she would."
"Exactly! And here's the funny thing: all of the instruments are frozen where they were when they broke. Why would she'd lie to me just for some broken instruments, and a bad lie at that? I really don't know what to make of it, but I intend to find out."