All was quiet and peaceful in Ponyville. It was just after dawn on what promised to be a beautiful summer's day. The birds and crickets were chirping, the butterflies were beginning to flit about, and a few clouds drifted lazily through the azure sky, still tinted with bits of pink and orange from a marvelous sunrise. A sense of calm and tranquility reigned over the land.
Any sense of tranquility was shattered when two blue and purple streaks shot past, grazing the top of a tree, and sending a gust of wind rippling through its branches. Birds swooped out of the way, and animals on the ground dove for cover, as a vicious gale tore through the tall grasses, whipping against anything in it's path.
At the head of the twin streaks, a pegasus and an alicorn raced through the sky, each determined to outdo the other.
“Is that...all you've got...Rainbow?” asked the alicorn, panting for breath.
“Are you kidding, Twilight? I'm still warming up!” The pegasus replied, smirking. In a sudden burst of speed, she pulled ahead by several lengths. “You can't really expect to beat the fastest flier in Equestria in your first air race!”
But Twilight wasn't done yet. Mustering her strength, she flapped harder than ever before, pulling even with her cyan competitor. A shocked expression crossed Rainbow Dash's face as her inexperienced friend passed her by on the home stretch.
Gritting her teeth, Rainbow pressed forward mightily. “Oh. No. You. Don't!” She screamed, shooting ahead and regaining her recently lost ground.
The two were neck and neck as they approached the finish line, a hastily constructed cloud ring. Both friends pressed in and fought for every bit of air. Their outstretched hooves wavered back and forth, each just inches away from a lead.
The ring was only seconds away when Rainbow spread her wings wide, gave one powerful flap, and tore ahead at an unprecedented pace, crossing through the ring instantly, and leaving Twilight far in the dust.
As Twilight crossed over the line and slowed down, Rainbow looped back, laughing hysterically. Twilight pouted, out of breath, “Hey! You were...holding back...weren't you?”
“Duh! Of course I was holding back! C'mon, Twi, I can break the sound barrier, traveling straight up, less than two seconds after liftoff! You've never even raced before!”
“I did pretty well for my first time!”, Twilight shot back, catching her breath.
“Yeah, I'll give you that. You learn fast.”
“Heheh. Still the same old Twilight, even with these.” She replied, gesturing at her wings.
Rainbow grinned. “Don't think you're done training, though. I want you to give me a real challenge by the end of this summer!” Looking to the skies with a far-off expression, she continued, “We're gonna fly higher and faster than anypony's ever dreamed!”
Twilight gave her a quizzical look. “Higher?”, she asked, “Have you really gone higher up than anyone?”
“Yeah,” Rainbow blanched, as if this should have been obvious, “I hold an official record and everything!”
“You do?”
“Yeah!” Rainbow exclaimed, flying into the air and acting out a scene. “It was years ago. I flew way up, and this astrononomer guy watched me, and used some measurey stuff, and he said I was higher up than any pegasus in recorded history!” Coming down from her performance, she settled into a slower flight alongside her friend. “I can't believe you never heard of it. I mean, it's probably written in some book.”
“Well,” Twilight grinned sheepishly, “I tend to read more scientific things than books of flying records.” She paused, looking up at the clear blue sky, which was fading to a light blue as the sun rose higher toward it's peak. “I wonder what's up there?” She mused, a dreamy look in her eyes, “Is it just the Moon, Sun, and stars? Or are there other planets, like ours? Are there other creatures out there, maybe intelligent ones?” She grew more excited as he went on, eliciting a grin from her friend.
“I dunno, Twi. All I see is a bunch of blue. As long as I can fly wherever I want in it, I don't really care what's in the sky.”
Twilight continued gazing upward, barely focusing on her path. A long silence descended between the two friends, as they stared up into the deep, blue infinity.
“Hey Twilight.” Rainbow started, breaking the silence, “You wanna try going up there right now?” Twilight brought her gaze down to meet hers, as Rainbow continued, “Why don't we see just how high we can go?”
This brought a smile to Twilight's lips. She nodded. “Sure, let's go.” And they were off.
Higher and higher they climbed, up into the ephemeral blue. Clouds fell away at the edges of their vision, and any sound from below died away. Still, they kept going. The air began to thin out, forcing them to labor for each breath. Still, they kept going. A biting cold gripped them, causing frost to form on their front hooves, as the wind bit into their faces, nearly forcing their eyes shut. Still, they kept going. Eventually, Twilight began to slow. Rainbow looked over at her, concerned. Twilight looked back, face set in grim determination. Still, they kept going. Twilight's wings burned with a pain they had never known, as her lungs screamed at her to stop. Still, they kept going.
“Alright,” Rainbow declared, teeth chattering, eyelashes frosted over, windswept, sweat-drenched mane freezing into a block of ice, “T-that's high enough.”
“No.”
“T-twilight!”
“N-no! I c-can do t-this!” Twilight pressed on, ever higher.
“T-twilight, you're gonna w-wear yourself out! W-we have t-to get down!”
Still, her friend refused to give up. In desperation, Rainbow swooped over, and grabbed Twilight around her midsection. Too exhausted to resist, Twilight allowed her friend to drag her down, down back to safety. The air warmed up, and breathing became easier. The clouds came back into view, and the sound of the bustling town could be heard once more.
As they set down on the ground again, Rainbow turned on her “You've only had your wings for a month! And you're already pulling stuff like that!”
“Rainbow, you pull crazy stunts all the time!”
“That's because I know what I'm doing! I never just threw myself at flying like that! I know my limits!” She fumed, “And until you learn yours, you are not pulling something like that again, understand?” Rainbow gave Twilight her sternest look, daring her to talk back. Twilight sighed, giving in to reason, “Okay, okay, I won't do something like that again until I've practiced flying more.”
This seemed to satisfy her friend. “Good.” Rainbow nodded. “Now, let's go get some chow. All that flying before breakfast really takes it out of ya!”
Twilight agreed, and they set off to Sugarcube Corner, to see what delectable sweets their favorite party pony had prepared this morning. But Twilight's mind was elsewhere. She couldn't think about breakfast, only what she had seen, way up in the sky, up where flying had become an unbearable ordeal, just before Rainbow Dash had saved her.
She had seen the stars.