//------------------------------// // Chapter 8 // Story: Star Wars EQG: Episode 1, Harmony of the Force // by Banshee531 //------------------------------// The Planet of Canterlot, where the Jedi call home. The planet, which was one large city, had many different areas in it the hosted a bunch of different business. One such business was a small cafe that was a quaint little spot compared to the surrounding metropolis. One individual was currently sitting at a table outside the cafe, enjoying some of its best drinks and buns. Cadance was sipping her coffee whilst reading from a tablet, looking up from it every now and then as if waiting for someone to arrive. Eventually, someone did. That someone was Shining Armor, who arrived from down the street and sat opposite her. "Sorry I'm late." "It's fine," she assured him. "You're a Jedi teacher now. It's natural for you to get wrapped up in training your student." "Err...yeah. That's what I was doing. I didn't lose track of time trying to beat the new record on my favourite game." Cadance gave him a look, "what? I said I didn't lose track of time doing all that. Totally Flash's fault." Cadance sighed as she sipped her coffee. "So, how are things going with Flash. He living up to your expectations?" "Mostly," Shining nodded. "He works hard, follows directions and doesn't try and be a big shot hero when we're out on missions. But he's still got a lot to learn." "Well to be honest, a Jedi is never finished learning. I've been a knight for almost four years and I'm still learning new things. Like what it's like to be a teacher. Even a year on, I'm still facing new challenges whilst training with Thorax." "Speaking of. If you're here, I'm guessing you gave Thorax the day off." "He's been working hard lately. He deserved a bit of a break." She sipped her coffee again, "and Flash? Is he enjoying a day off?" "Pretty much. Twilight invited him to tour the city area around the temple with her. Since he didn't grow up here, he doesn't really know the place like we do." "Oh?" Cadance smiled a knowing smile. Shining rolled his eyes at this, knowing that look. "Nothing's gonna happen between them." "Really? How can you be so sure?" "Because Flash knows if he tries anything, he would probably need several robotic prosthetics. One of which I don't think actually exists yet." Cadance sighed, knowing how protective Shining could be. "Besides, this is Twilight we're talking about. She's way too busy trying to learn everything she can about The Force. She'll never be interested in boys." "I wouldn't be so sure," Cadance smiled. Shining stared at her, wondering if Twilight had told her something. In another part of Canterlot, Flash, Twilight and Springer were making their way through one of the surface streets of the planet. These surface streets were a large number of platforms built atop the lower areas of the planet, connected by foot bridges and other ways of getting from one place to another. Most people that lived on Canterlot got around by flying on speeders or other means of aerial travel. But for a simple Jedi Padawan, they were stuck taking the long ways around. Springer flew ahead of the pair, interested in seeing what was further along. "Don't go too far," Twilight told him. "Canterlot isn't exactly crime free. If someone sees you and things you're on your own, they'll grab you without a second's notice." "Got it," Springer waited for them to catch up. "So where are we going?" "Yeah," Flash was also interested, "what exactly does a Jedi do on their very few days off?" "There are lots of things you can do," Twilight smiled as they arrived at a street that housed a building almost as large as the Jedi Temple. "This is one of my most favourite locations. Canterlot Library. One of the biggest records of knowledge throughout this area of the galaxy. Every book that was ever written can be found in here." "Really?" Flash was amazed. "I always figured every book ever written would need an entirely planet for a library." "Oh, they do. This library has digital copies of every book ever written. If you want the actual paper books, you need to go to the Cal Sector." She let out a sigh, "I've always wanted to go there. But I never got the chance." Flash wondered what would happen if she did get to go there, though assumed she would likely end up screaming for joy the entire trip." "I've never been much of a reader." "That's just because you never got the chance to do much reading. Trust me. Once you've found a story you really like, you won't be able to to stop reading." Flash wasn't so sure about that. But Twilight had taken time out of her day to show him, so he didn't want to be ungrateful. However, as they headed towards the building, a sound caught Flash's ears and made him head over to the edge of the section they were on. He looked over the edge, down into the depths of the city where the less successful members of the planet's populace lived. And down there, they saw a bunch of high speed vehicles racing through the gaps between sections. "Wow!" Flash cried, seeing that they were speeder bikes similar to the one Flash had used to chase after the Storm Brigade. The speeders shot through the air, swerving back and forth in order to get around the many obstacles and take the lead from those they were racing. "Awesome!" Springer cried, looking just as interested in the race as Flash. Twilight didn't appear so excited, in fact looking down right annoyed. "I can't believe they're racing in the middle of the day like that. They're just asking to be caught." "You know those guys?" Flash turned to her. "Only by reputation," Twilight sighed. "They're street racers that go around competing in illegal races throughout Canterlot. Every two or three weeks, you hear about one of them getting killed or killing someone else in an accident." Flash still felt like they were pretty awesome and watched as one racer shot through the air, moving at an incredible speed. As she did, Flash thought he noticed something about them. They were wearing a helmet, but their hair seemed to be sticking out the back. And said hair was rather unique. So unique, Flash had only seen it one other place. "Hey, Twilight? What does Rainbow usually do one her days off?" "I'm not sure," Twilight looked confused. "Why'd you ask?" "Oh, no reason." As he said that, he heard a siren and looked around to see some kind of black and white speeder car flying through the street after the bikes. "What's that?" "Canterlot security," Twilight replied. "They're always trying to catch the racers before they cause an accident." Flash nodded as Twilight pulled him towards the library. "That's not what we're here for. Come on." Flash frowned, but followed her into the library anyway. In another part of the city, the speeder bikes were racing through the streets attempting to be the first one to get to a designated area. One such bike had the rider with the unusual hairstyle Flash had seen, that hairstyle having every colour of the rainbow in it. And the blue skinned racer laughed as she flew through the street. "YEAH!" She cried, as she dived down into one of the lower levels in an attempt to circumvent some obstacles in front of her. It also kept the security force from following, as she zoomed through several narrow passageways in an attempt to outrun them. The security cruiser tried to follow, but had to pull up when it reached an area it couldn't fit through. The racer laughed as she pulled up and flew through an industrial area. And as she did, another speeder raced up from behind. The two riders stared at one another, the other racer's face hidden behind a helmet and leather clothing. They then shot forward and the rainbow haired racer laughed. "Oh no you don't!" She gave chase, as they entered a section of the industrial area that had multiple power couplings. Bolts of multi-coloured energy zipped between sections, creating arcs that would be dangerous to fly through. As such, the two speeders zipped up and down, left and right. All over in an attempt to dodge them. Then they saw an entire wall of energy right in front of them, which would be impossible to miss. The pair stared at each other, neither backing down as they pushed their speeders to full speed. They moved towards the wall and didn't appear like they had any intention of pulling away, even though they knew flying through it would most certainly mean crashing. At the last moment, one of the racers finally pulled away whilst the rainbow haired racer thrust her hand forward. And to the other racer's surprise, a hole opened up between the many strands of lightning. "HAHAAA!" She rushed through the hole seconds before it disappeared, allowing her to fly straight ahead until she pulled up and returned to the main street. She kept flying and eventually came to a deserted area that acted as the race's finish line. And as she rushed towards it, the other racer appeared behind her and tried to catch up. But they were too far back and couldn't make up the speed. As such, the rainbow haired racer shot between the two towers acting as the goal and cheered as she pulled her speeder to as top. "VICTORY!" She cried, as the other speeder rushed between the towers. The two suddenly started circling around one another, heading downwards until they were hovering right above the ground. That was when the speeders cut out and dropped the last foot or so, hitting the floor with a load bang that jiggled the riders. The losing racer got up and rushed over to the winner. "No fair!" They cried in a female voice. "Using The Force like that!" The winner removed her helmet, Rainbow Dash smirking at her. "You know you totally would have done the same thing if you could. Not my fault you're not good enough to manipulate energy like me." The other racer reached up and removed her helmet, revealing a blue skinned girl with silvery white hair. "Trixie demands a rematch! And this time, no using The Force." "You sure you wanna do that?" Rainbow asked. "I'm pretty sure I felt you using The Force a lot during the last race. You probably would have crashed four times if you hadn't used it." Trixie glared at her, clearly not liking that she was completely right. "But sure, if that's what you want. I'll be happy to whoop your butt again." But as she said that, sirens filled the air and they looked up with a gasp at the sight of the security cruiser flying towards them. "New plan," Trixie put her helmet back on. "We see which of us can escape security first!" She revved up her speeder and took to the air, Rainbow flying off with her. "Geez," Rainbow laughed. "You don't have to be so terrified of getting caught." "Easy for you to say!" Trixie cried. "Your mentor lets you get away with whatever you want!" The two swerved into another alleyway. "If Luna finds out I've been street racing, she'll have me cleaning the temple floor with a toothbrush. My toothbrush!" Rainbow couldn't help but laugh at that. Luna could be a seriously strict mentor, even though Rainbow had heard stories of her Padawan days that included her getting in serious trouble. The pair raced through the city, knowing they needed to get back to the temple and hide their speeders before anyone noticed them. Flash sighed as he looked through each and every aisle in the library. Twilight was searching for the next volume in a book series she was a big fan of, leaving him to look around and find whatever he might be interested in. But so far, he couldn't find anything he might find fun to read. Springer was also there, floating beside him as he searched the different allies. "Mommy!" He looked over and saw a little girl rushing over to a woman, clutching a pad in her arms that she held up to the woman. "I found a book! I found a book!" She held it up to the woman, who looked at the info on the pad and smiled. "Alright. We'll try and read it together tonight." The girl cheered, hugging her mother's leg. Flash smiled, the sight of a child and its parent something heartwarming to see. However, it also brought up very painful memories. Memories Flash would rather not remember. Years ago. A five year old Flash was sitting in his makeshift bed, his parents on either side of him as they held a tablet in their hands. Flash was doing his best to read the words on the tablet, which was that of a children's tale that he was learning to read with. "And...they la...lived hap...hap..." He turned to his mother, who smiled. "Happily," Misty told him. Flash nodded and turned back to the tablet. "And they lived happily ever...after." "Well done," Trail Blazer smiled as he switched off the tablet. "You're really coming along. In no time at all, you'll be able to read anything you want without even needing to try." Flash smiled, happy his parents were proud of him. "Alright, time for bed. You've got training with Grand Hoof in the morning." Flash nodded and laid down, his parents on either side of him. Misty smiled as she rubbed her hand through his hair. "Good night, my brave little Jedi." Flash felt truly comfortable in his parents embrace, never realising that a day would come where he would never get to feel it again. "Flash?" The Padawan was pulled out of his thoughts by Twilight's voice, the blue haired teen turning to her. Twilight noticed an upset look on his face, "are you okay?" "Yeah," Flash nodded. "Just...happened to remember a...bittersweet memory." "Oh," Twilight nodded, "okay. Do you wanna talk about it?" "I'm fine," Flash assured her. "Don't wanna waste your day off listening to me whine about something." Twilight watched him walk off and she could sense something was wrong, but knew it wouldn't do any good to pry. "So, any idea what the other Jedi do during their time off?" "Well I know Pinkie enjoys going to a children's fun-house." Flash and Springer gave her a confused look, clearly wondering what the heck she was talking about. "It's a place for kids to spend their days, when they're not in school and their parents are still working. Mostly for families who don't have the funds to afford childcare." In one part of the city, a large building was playing host to a bunch of rugrats. In said building, a certain girl was dressed like a clown. She was currently balancing on a balloon, using it to roll around the place whilst she juggled a bunch of items in her hands. The kids watching this laughed as she suddenly started floating. Or, more accurately, the balloon she was on was floating and she was using her amazing balancing skills to stay on it. She then threw the balls she was juggling into the air, as they started flying around the place as well. This entertained the children, making them happy to be there. "And Fluttershy likes to spend her free time up on Fengari." "The farm? But I thought she was in the Medical Core?" "She is. But she really loves animals. So whenever she gets the chance, she goes up and enjoys herself in the woods. She even uses her medical training to make sure all the animals are healthy and happy." In one of the farms, Fluttershy was using a stethoscope to check on one of the farm's many nerfs. "Hmm," she listened to its stomach as Heather stepped into the barn. "Yup. Everything seems healthy." She stood up and moved over to the nerf, "your little baby's gonna come out real soon. Aren't you excited to be a mother?" The nerf mooed, as Applejack and Big Mac stepped into the room as well. Both smirked at Fluttershy, happy they had her tending to their animals. "What about Applejack and Rarity?" "I don't think Applejack's ever taken a day off in her life." Twilight laughed. "That girl doesn't know the meaning of relaxation. If she's not doing her Jedi training, she's working on the farm or doing whatever else the masters need her to do. Her endurance is insane." "That's nuts," Flash cried. "How can she keep going like that? There were days I wanted to keep training, but Grand wouldn't let me. He told me if I didn't get any rest, I'd hit burn out." "Yeah, we tried to get her to take a break. But she can't sit still to save her life. If she's just sitting around, she gets seriously antsy. I think it might just be a trait of her race. Applebloom seems to have the same problems and Big Mac never seems to relax either." Flash nodded, "and Rarity?" "She enjoys making clothing. Half the Jedi wardrobe is full of her creations. Actually, I think you might be wearing some of her cloths." Flash looked over the blue and gray clothing he had gotten when he arrived. He had to admit, they had been really good. Light, flexible, but durable enough to survive him falling through a rock slide and a fight with a bunch of robots and soldiers. "A Jedi Padawan did this?" "Yup. Rarity's always had a keen eye for fashion. When the Masters saw this, they got her some sawing equipment. They always like helping Jedi explore their talents outside The Force. Ever since then, she spends her free time coming up with new clothing designs for us." "Cool," Flash nodded as he wondered what Rarity was dong at that moment. He had to guess that not every Padawan was having a day off. Some were probably still training. In one of the Jedi training rooms, Rarity was waiting patiently. As she waited, she was checking her clothing to make sure there were no frays or anything. Then, the doors opened and a woman stepped inside. She was a pink skinned woman with dark red hair. On her forehead was a red gem the same colour as her hair, a similar gem being on the back of each of her hands. "Rarity," she smiled at the cat girl as she stepped inside. "Master Ruby," Rarity nodded. "Are you ready to begin?" A Lightsaber appeared in front of her, being a simple gray one with gray one with a black grip section. She picked it up and ignited the blue blade, pointing it at her apprentice as Rarity summoned her own Lightsaber. The sight of it made Ruby's eyebrow twitch. Rarity knew her master wasn't a fan of the fabulous design she had given her Lightsaber upon its construction. Ruby had always been in the belief that a Lightsaber should be a humble weapon that didn't try to look amazing. Rarity had never been able to understand that, believing that a little beauty shouldn't be looked down upon. "Begin!" Ruby rushed forward and swung the blade towards her apprentice, who blocked it with her own Lightsaber before attempting to counter with her own attack, Ruby blocking it herself and using some fancy footwork to move around Rarity and attack. Rarity dodged with her own skilful manoeuvres, the pair continuing to dance around each other in an attempt to strike each other. Their blades clashed again and again, Ruby smiling at Rarity's skill as the humanoid feline thrust her sword forward in an attempt to strike her chest. She lent back and Rarity spun around, attempting to cut Ruby in half whilst she was still off balance. But Ruby held up the back of her hand and the gem on it glowed. The light flew out and formed a shield, which Rarity's blade struck and bounced off. "Not bad!" Ruby leapt back. "You've really been working hard on your saber skills, haven't you?" "Yes." Rarity spun her blade around and got back into a ready stance. "I lost against someone who was only ever trained with the basics of sword skills." "You're talking about that new Padawan," Ruby stated. "The one Shining Armor is teaching?" Rarity nodded. "Yes, I can see why losing to someone who has such little formal training can feel annoying. I'll have to thank this Padawan for putting some fire in you." She charged and Rarity did the same, the pair colliding in the centre of the room and striking one another with several quick and speedy strikes. That was their style of battle. Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee. Back with Flash and Twilight, they had finished their trip through the library. Twilight had gotten the book she was after, along with another six that would probably last her about a week, whilst Flash had gotten a few random books that he hoped would be interesting. Now, they were walking through the city towards a place Twilight liked to go for a bite to eat. Flash expected some big fancy place that would have portion sizes smaller than his thumb. But to his surprise, Twilight took him to a section below the surface area. To some kind of food truck. The alien running the truck smiled at Twilight, asking what she wanted in his own language. "Two servings of quaw quaw, with extra vlok on mine please." He nodded and got to work, Flash wondering what the heck he was about to eat. Soon enough, they were each handed a plastic bowl with a strange pink noodle-like substance covered in yellow sauce. Chunks of meat were also in it, Flash raising an eyebrow as Twilight quickly dug in. Deciding to trust her, he grabbed some of the noodle and stuffed it into his mouth before he could think. And to his surprise, the noodles and sauce tasted great. "Wow," he smiled before taking another bite. "This is great!" "I know, right!" The pair continued to enjoy their meal, as they continued to walk through the under section of the city. "I remember when Shining brought me here the first time. I thought we were going to get in so much trouble." "Why would you get in trouble?" "We were both younglings back then," Twilight replied. "And younglings aren't allowed out of the temple unsupervised. We snuck out and explored the city together, but I barely enjoyed it since I was sure we were gonna get in trouble." "Huh," Flash smirked. "You need to learn to live a little." "I do live," Twilight shot back. "I just don't like breaking rules. Is that a crime?" The pair laughed at this, Springer floating behind them as they found a stairway leading back up to the surface. "You, I can understand younglings not being allowed out on their own. But I'm amazed the rest of us have so much freedom." Twilight looked confused. "Grand never really told me much about temple life. But a few other people on the moon told me stories they'd heard about Jedi. One said that Jedi weren't allowed to do anything fun when they had free time. If they weren't working or training, they were supposed to meditate and do nothing else. Anything else would be seen as a waste of time." Twilight thought about this and laughed as they reached the surface. "Actually, they're not wrong." Flash looked confused. "Growing up, we are taught how to meditate and were made to do it a lot. Most young children take naps during the day. We were taught to meditate. But as we got older, we're allowed to expand our interests and search for what makes us happy. Sometimes our Core work can act as enjoyment. But if we find something else, we're not denied the chase to follow it." "But we're still supposed to meditate?" "When we can," Twilight nodded. "It helps us stay centred with The Force. But it's not a requirement. Not anymore, at least." "Anymore?" "The Jedi Order you know, wasn't always like this. About two hundred years ago, maybe a bit longer, the order was much more regimented. Anything other than Jedi work was prohibited and any free time a Jedi had was to be spent meditating. Celestia told me all about it." This confused Flash and Springer, with Springer asking the question. "I thought you said this was over two hundred years ago?" Twilight nodded, making Flash raise an eyebrow. "I know I probably shouldn't ask this," the blue haired teen announced. "But-" "Celestia's over three hundred years old," Twilight stated. "She recently celebrated her three hundred and thirty third birthday." Flash just stopped, Springer slamming into his back, as he tried to process this information. "What about Luna? Aren't they sisters." Twilight nodded. "Luna's two hundred and thirty. She was actually Celestia's first Padawan. I heard it was quite a problem when Celestia chose to take Luna as her student. Since this was back when the Order looked down on personal connections. The Jedi back then believed that love and a connection were paths to the dark side." "What changed?" "Two hundred years ago, the Jedi order was in shambles. Many young Jedi Younglings and Padawans were turning away from the order, hating how restrictive it was." She tried to remember more details. "It all started with one Jedi Knight, about the same age as Celestia. He chose to leave the order and start his own version of the Jedi. One which was less restrictive. Many of the Jedi that left the order joined him." She leaned in closer, "I think Luna might have also been one of them for a time." "Wow," Flash could barely believe that. "What happened?" "Honestly, I'm not sure. Celestia and Luna never talk about it. All I know is the two Jedi groups went to war with one another. Luna eventually chose to return to the Order and the war ended with the new group being disbanded. But the war took a toll on our Order and many masters were lost. Celestia was forced to take over and when she rebuilt the order, she realised changes had to be made." "So now the order's much more flexible about how we spend our free time." "Not just that. The old order use to condemn any form of romantic relations. I'm willing to bet that was why most of the Jedi left. They fell in love and couldn't deny it. Celestia never believed in that rule, so she and the new council abolished it when they rebuilt the order. Now Jedi can love and marry whoever they want, so long as they don't allow those feelings to interfere with their responsibilities as Jedi." "That's good," Flash smiled. "I'm not saying I intend to get married someday, but it's nice to know the options open." Twilight nodded, as the pair finished their food and threw the containers into a nearby trash can. "So, what's next on the agenda?" "I'm not sure," Twilight shrugged. "Guess I expected our library tour to take longer." The pair laughed at this, as Twilight looked around and seemed to realize something. "But hey. Do you mind if we head somewhere close by? There's someone I wanna go see that I haven't had the chance to in a while." "Oh, sure. No problem." Twilight smiled and they began to make their way over to a section of the city, that was full of large buildings Twilight stated were apartment buildings. Surrounding them were large grassy areas full of trees and plants, which was basically a giant shared garden surrounding the many complexes. They stepped into one of the buildings and rode the elevator up to the second to last floor, where they stepped out into a hallway with a flight of stairs leading both up and down. The hallway also had a single door, which Twilight stepped up to and knocked on. A few moments later, the door opened and an equestrian woman was standing behind it. Said woman had gray skin and hair that was both white and purple, being dressed in a black shirt and pink skirt. As soon as she saw Twilight, she gasped and pulled her into a hug. "Twilight!" Twilight hugged her back, "you haven't come to visit in so long." "I know," Twilight smiled. "Sorry about that. Been really busy." The woman nodded and pulled back, then noticed Flash and Springer behind her. "And who's this?" "This is Flash Sentry," Twilight explained. "And his droid, Springer. Actually, he's Shining's new Padawan student." The woman looked surprised by this. "Flash, Springer. This is my mother. Twilight Velvet." "It's nice to meet you," Flash held out a hand and she happily shook it. "It's nice to meet you too. Please, come in." She stepped aside and allowed them in, Flash and Springer looking around to see the place was quite large. All they could see at the moment was the living room and a large kitchen, but the entire back wall was a giant window with a door that lead out to a balcony. Four doors, two on either side of the room, Flash assumed lead to the bathroom and bedrooms. Based on the size of the living room and kitchen, they had to be huge bedrooms. "Is Dad home?" "He's just returning some tools he borrowed from the neighbour. I think-" A dinging made them look back and see the elevator open again, revealing a blue skinned equestrian man wearing a dark blue jumper over a white white and yellow pants. As he walked out of the elevator, he spotted his daughter and smiled. "Twilight." He rushed over to her and they hugged, the man then noticing Flash and being introduced to him. The man, Night Light, shook Flash's hand as they all sat down and Velvet went to get some drinks. "So, you're Shining's new student?" "That's me," Flash nodded. "The poor sap your son's been running ragged ever since he took me under his wing." Everyone laughed at this, whilst Velvet returned with the drinks. "But I am grateful he agreed to train me. I'm not sure many other Jedi would have taken a student as old as me." "Yes," Night nodded. "I did think you were a little old to be a new Padawan." "Flash is a special case," Twilight explained. She began to tell them how they met Flash and how he was trained whilst marooned on a forest moon, her parents amazed to hear this as they listened intently. "That's quite the story," Night stated once the story had ended. "You've been on quite a journey." "Yeah," Flash nodded. "And I think it's just the beginning." They nodded in agreement, as Flash turned to Twilight. "I thought Jedi weren't supposed to have any contact with their parents." "Of course not," Twilight stated. "Applejack spends time with her family up on Fengari." Flash realised she was right. "But it's a sad truth that most Jedi don't get to spend time with their families. Most of them come from families that can't afford to travel across the galaxy and visit their children as they grow up. Others come from families that just didn't want them and more choose not to contact their families. In the old times, it was forbidden for it was believed that an attachment to others would only lead to the dark side." Velvet took a sip of her drink. "I remember being terrified when Shining was discovered to be Force Sensitive. We feared we'd never get to see him. But the Order promised that Shining could come back and see us whenever he wanted to. Although, after we gave him to the order, we didn't get to see him again until he was four years old." Night nodded. "At the time, it felt like we were strangers to him. But slowly, we managed to build a relationship with him whenever he came around. But then Twilight was born." Velvet laughed. "Honestly, we should have expected it. Her connection with the force was so strong, Celestia could feel it the moment she was born. Barely a few hours after bringing her in to the world, I was told I might have to give my daughter up." Flash could see the upset look on Velvet's face, Twilight getting up and sitting down besides her. Flash could tell the family didn't like speaking of this event, but it clearly had to be done. Watching the trio sit together, as a loving family, Flash was suddenly reminded of his own parents. And when he thought about them, he frowned as a memory flew through his head. A memory he didn't want to remember. "I...I think I'd better go." Flash got up before Twilight or the others could stop them. "It was lovely meeting you all. Hope to see you again sometime." Flash bowed and headed out of the apartment, Springer flying off behind him. Once they were gone, the three equestrians shared a look. "Was it something I said?" Velvet asked, Twilight unsure how to answer that. She could tell something was up. But what was it? As Flash stepped out of the apartment, Springer floated behind him. "Flash!" He cried, "what are you doing? Why'd you just leave like that?" Flash sighed as he walked through the park-like area around the apartment buildings. "I don't know. I...I just couldn't be in there. Watching Twilight with her parents...it hurt. It made me remember...things I don't wanna remember." Springer instantly put the pieces together. "Oh," he nodded. "You're thinking about your own parents, aren't you?" Flash flinched, not wanting the memories to resurface. "You're never gonna get over it, if you don't let yourself feel the pain." "I did feel the pain," Flash told him. "And you remember what happened." He found a bench and sat down, "I almost lost control and ruined everything." "That wasn't your fault," Springer pointed out. He floated over and sat down besides him, "and none of us blamed you. How could we, after what happened." Flash said nothing and looked up. "Maybe the Jedi were right about us not making connections. They're great when we have them...but when we lose them..." He closed his eyes and finally, after so long, he remembered that day." Five years ago. A twelve year old Flash was in his usual training ground, Grand and Springer there with him. Grand was leaning against a tree, whilst Flash and Springer were staring one another down. Springer then fired a laser at Flash, who deflected it with Grand's Lightsaber. He deflected another blast, then another and another. After blocking the four and fifth blast, he let out a whoop and looked pretty proud of himself. "Did you see that?" "Yes," Grand nodded. "You did quite well. But that's only because you can see." He then took something out and moved over to Flash. That something was a long strip of cloth, which he tied around Flash's eyes. He then tied the ends around his head two more times. "I can't see a thing!" "That's the whole point," Grand announced. "Your eyes can deceive you. Don't trust them. Let The Force be your eyes." Flash didn't look so sure about this. "Springer. Go for it." "Are you sure?" Springer asked. "You turned your laser down, didn't you?" Springer nodded. "Then even if you hit him, all he'll get is a light burn. Nothing he can't walk off." Flash gulped as he raised the Lightsaber and tried to sense the incoming attack. But when he heard the laser fire, he tried to deflect the attack but felt it hit him in the leg. "Gaaah!" He cried, leaping up and bouncing on the spot. "Owww!" "Try again," Grand stated. Flash once again took the stance and waited, once again trying to sense the laser. And when it fired, he swung the blade around but missed, the laser hitting his shoulder. "You felt that one," Grand told him as Flash rubbed his arm. "You were just a little off with the counter attack." "This sucks!" "Oh, grow up. You may one day find yourself in a situation where you can't see. If you let yourself become too reliant on your sight, all the enemy needs to do is take it away and you'll be in trouble. Now, try again." Flash groaned and took a stance, as Grand watched him. "I know this seems harsh, but it's important. Your connection to The Force is one of the strongest I've ever seen. But if you don't learn to harness that connection, it can dissolve and grow weaker." "I know," Flash sighed. "But why do I have to train this much? It's not like I'm gonna be getting off this planet any time soon." "You never know. A ship could arrive in orbit any moment." Springer fired a laser and Flash actually blocked it, then blocked the next one and the one after that. " "YES!" He cheered as he blocked another laser, only to then get hit in the arm. "Gaaah!" "And that's what happens when you get over confidant!" Flash frowned, but prepared to try again. But before he could, a voice cried out to them. "FLASH!" They looked around, Flash removing his blindfold, seeing someone from the village rushing towards them. "Grand!" He reached them, panting as he was clearly having trouble breathing. "It's...it's your parents." Flash gasped and instantly began running towards the village, Grand and Springer chasing after him. As they ran, Flash's mind raced with what could possibly have happened. Eventually, they arrived back at the village and saw a huge crowd surrounding something. Flash ran towards it and began pushing his way through, until people noticed him and let him past. "MOM!" Flash gasped when he reached the centre, seeing his mother lying on the ground. "Dad!" Trail Blazer was also lying, the pair not looking in best shape. They both had large gashes in their sides, as their best doctor worked on trying to save them. Grand turned to one of the gathers, "what happened?" "We were out collecting fruits when we ran into a Rage Horn." Rage Horn was the name given to a creature that lived on the moon, a six legged creature covered in spikes that have a horn covering most of its head. They called them that because they had a tendency to attack the moment they saw someone. Flash stared at the injuries his parents had received and even with his limited medical knowledge, he knew this wasn't something they could heal. If they weren't stranded on a forest moon and had an actual hospital, they might be able to save them. But... "Mom," Flash started tearing up, "dad." His parents opened their eyes and looked up at their son, both bringing their hands up to place on his cheeks. "Flash," Misty cried, "it's okay." "NO!" Flash cried, "don't go. Please." He turned to Grand, "isn't there something we can do? We have The Force. There has to be a way we can save them." Grand frowned. "I'm sorry. Force Healing is an ability almost no Jedi alive can use. Even in the Medical Core, the power the heal wounds this great does not exist." Flash couldn't believe this. He had been told the Jedi were the most powerful beings in the galaxy. But he couldn't even save his parents. Misty and Trail both coughed, blood spilling through their mouths. Flash stared down at them, as they smiled at him. Trail then turned to Grand, "take care of him." Grand nodded, as they looked into his eyes. "It's okay. This is just...the Will of the Force." Flash kept crying. "Be strong, Flash. Keep training. Keep doing what you know is right. And you'll be an amazing Jedi. I'm sure of it." "We love you," Misty stated. As they said that, they reached over with their empty hands and grasped one another. And as soon as they did, their eyes slowly closed and their both breathed their last breath together. Flash watched as their life left them, both their hands falling from his cheeks. He closed his eyes and grasped their held hands, as a cry of pain filled the air. Grand sighed, knowing his student was likely feeling great sadness. But little did he realize how great the pain was. For in that moment, a powerful force push exploded out of Flash's body. One that sent Grand and everyone less flying backwards, many screaming in surprise whilst Springer was barely able to keep himself from smashing into a tree. "What's happening?" One of the villagers cried, as more and more wind began to swirl around the pre-teen and his parents. Flash seemed completely oblivious to it, the twelve year of simply continuing to cry out as he felt his heart being torn apart. "Flash!" Grand cried, but he knew the boy wouldn't be able to hear him through his grief. He let out a groan and started pushing his way through the wind, which began ripping up trees and throwing them around. Several houses were knocked down, whilst metal was sucked into Flash's vortex. It wasn't easy and Grand was sure he would likely end up getting stabbed by something inside the tornado. But he kept pushing forward, using The Force as best he could to protect himself. And by the time he finally reached Flash, the tornado threatened to suck everyone else in. Grand grabbed Flash and pulled him into a hug, holding him tightly and pulling him away from his parents. "It's okay!" He clutched him to his chest, "it's okay." Flash kept crying, "please calm down. Don't let your pain spread to those around you. I'm here." Flash seemed to respond to this, as the wind and force around him began to slowly die down. Slowly, the vortex faded away and Flash continued to cry into Grand's chest. The Jedi Master looked around and saw nobody was hurt, but Flash's power truly was a sight to see. And without control, Flash could very well cause untold devastation. In the days to come, Flash would mourn his parents away from everyone else. Grand would be there for him and when Flash finally stopped crying, his master had to stop him from leaving the village in an attempt to hunt down and kill the Rage Horn. Flash learned an important lesson that day. Revenge was not the way of the Jedi. But for the remainder of his time on the moon, people knew not to use the word Rage Horn around Flash. It would do nothing but upset him. Present day. "Grand said I had amazing power," Flash sighed. "But if I let myself lose control, that power can run wild and do a lot of harm." Ever since that day, he had done everything he could to keep himself from losing control again. Even when Grand died, he didn't let himself lose control. If he did and went too far, there might have been no coming back. "Flash?" He looked up and saw Twilight standing over him, looking worried. "Are you okay?" Flash made sure he wasn't crying and nodded. "I'm fine," he told her. "I'm sorry I left like that. I hope I didn't upset your parents." "No," Twilight sat down, "they were just worried." Flash looked away, "I'm sorry." He turned to her in shock, "I should have known seeing me with my parents would remind you of yours." Flash sighed. "It's not your fault. You shouldn't have to deprive yourself of being with those you care about, just because of me. It's my problem." "No," Twilight told him, "it's our problem. Because we are part of the same family." Flash looked to her, shocked. "They and Shining might be my biological family, but they're not my only family. The order is my Family as well. And it's your family too. I grew up alongside Rainbow, Pinkie and the others. We're all like siblings. We're a family. And even though you didn't get to grow up with us, that doesn't change the fact. We're family. The moment you joined the order, we became bond through The Force." Flash sniffed, as he felt himself being overwhelmed by Twilight's words. "Thanks. But...maybe it's best that I don't have a family." "What?" "When I lost my parents, I lost control and kicked up a storm that could have hurt a lot of people. If I lose control like that again..." "Then we'll be there to help you." Flash turned to her, "you're not the first Jedi to lose control. I've lost control more than my fair share of times. But with the help of others, I was able to regain control and everything was fine." She placed a hand on his shoulder, "you don't have to block your feelings. Loss is a powerful pain and without others around to help you through it, you'll likely fall to the Dark Side. That's why the Jedi work together, to support one another the way a family is supposed to." Flash couldn't help but smile at this, nodding as he understood. "Thanks, Twilight. For everything." Twilight smiled back before getting up. "Come on. Let's head back to the temple. I've got some new books to read and I'm sure you're itching to read yours." "Um...yeah. Totally." The three of them laughed as they headed back towards the castle, Twilight continuing to show Flash the different sights of the city as they headed there. And as the temple came into view, Flash remembered what Twilight had told him earlier about how the order used to be. "You said Celestia and Luna were around during that whole civil war thing?" "Yup." "So did they ever mention who the guy that started the new order was called?" Twilight tried to think, but clearly she was having trouble remembering. "Som...something. I'm not sure. I think they only mentioned it once and I got the feeling it wasn't something they wanted to remember." Flash nodded, still curious about who that guy could have been. When they arrived at the temple and headed up the stairs, they noticed a Canterlot Security Cruiser was parked in front of the building. "What's that about?" "Oh no," Twilight frowned. "Not again." Flash and Springer wondered what she meant by that, as they spotted the cruiser's own standing in front of the temple. It was a man wearing a brown leather uniform, his jacket and pants being light brown whilst his boots and gloves were dark brown. On his chest was a dark brown metal chest with leather straps running up his shoulders, the straps appearing to have pouches on them whilst a dark brown belt around his waist held a blaster holster. In his arms was a brown helmet that looked like it covered his eyes along with everything except his mouth and chin. His skin was yellow and his hair was white, with yellow streaks. Two Temple Guards stood in front of him, the pair holding up their double-edged Lightsabers that had an interesting feature to be collapsible. "Sir," one stated, "this is your last warning. If you attempt to enter our temple, we will have no choice but to consider you a treat." "She can't hide in there forever!" The man growled, looking rather upset. "I demand she come out here, right this second or else." "Hello, Lightning Blitz." The man spun around and saw them approaching, "what seems to be the problem this time?" "The problem, is you're harbouring a known criminal." Twilight raised an eyebrow, "Rainbow Dash. Bring her out here, right now." "And why would I do that?" "Because she was competing in illegal street racing. And don't try and say it wasn't her. That hair colour of hers was a dead giveaway. I want her and her conspirators out here, right now." Twilight crossed her arms, clearly not happy with what he was saying. "Jedi. Think you can do whatever you want with no consequences. Well there are consequences. And when I catch Rainbow racing the next time, she will be in for a world of hurt." "Well until that day, non-Jedi aren't allowed in the temple. So if you want to catch Rainbow, you'll have to wait out here. Come on, Flash." Saying that name got a response from Lightning, who turned to him. "Flash Sentry?" Flash looked at him, puzzled about why he was staring at him. "Yes." Lightning kept staring, then finally put his helmet on and turned to leave. "What was that about?" Flash asked as Lightning got into his cruiser and flew off. "That's Lightning Blitz. He has...I wouldn't say an unfounded hatred of Jedi. He's always trying to catch Jedi doing something illegal to make us look bad. But Jedi don't break the law, so he's never had anything to charge us with." "You might wanna have a chat with Rainbow about that," Flash stated as they walked into the temple. "But I meant, what was with the stare of death he was giving me." Twilight frowned as she thought about it, eventually sighing. "Probably because of his grandfather." Flash and Springer gave her a curious look. "Lightning Blitz is actually the grandson of your former mentor." Their eyes went wide. "Grand Hoof?" Twilight nodded, making Flash look up and watching the cruiser fly away. Flash had never thought about Grand having a family. Lightning barely looked any older than him, maybe three or so years older, which meant he couldn't have been very old when Grand left. Many questions filled his head. Questions about Grand's past and what it would mean for Flash's future. In another part of the galaxy, near a planet with many different biomes, a ship had just come out of hyperspace. Said ship was full of armored figures, many of them insect themed in appearance. Some were flying the ship, whilst others were standing guard. And in the centre of the ship's bridge, sitting atop a fancy looking chair, was the young Sith known as Solara. The armored woman was wearing her helmet, staring at the planet as she did so. "It had better be here," she stated as they flew down towards the planet.