Sky Strike awoke early the next morning and headed to the gym. He wanted to do some last-minute training before his sparring match with Swift Sprint. He was nervous that his first 'test' as a guard would come so soon, but he was also eager to prove himself to everyone else that was in training. He spent his morning training and reviewing all of the tactics he had learned in order to become a guard.
Swift Sprint, on the other hand, had a nice and leisurely morning. He made himself a healthy breakfast and conversed with his friends before the match. Even though Sky Strike was strong, Swift was sure that his speed and experience would be no match for the newbie.
Swift reflected on his history: An exceptionally fast colt in Van Hoover, noticed by some Royal Guard members. Soon he was asked to join, which he quickly accepted. But being here was different than he had imagined. He felt that he constantly had to prove that he was the best, to everyone else and to himself. He would be devastated after losing a sparring match, and would hold a grudge against the victor for a while. Eventually he got sick of losing and decided to eliminate those who had beaten him. He would find little things to do, things that drove them crazy, and most of the time they left on their own. For more resilient opponents, he would frame them for doing something wrong, resulting in them quitting or, in extreme cases, expelled from guard training. But Swift liked his new roommate's spirit, and he didn't want to have to get rid of him.
The moment came where the two guards-in-training met in the sparring ring, with nearly the entire barracks there to watch. Swift Sprint was confident and cool, while Sky Strike was excited and focused. Shining Armor met them in the center and explained the rules. "Now remember, this is just a sparring match. Whoever lands a blow with their sword first wins." The roommates nodded. Shining Armor smiled. "Okay, begin!"
Swift and Sky dashed to the center and crossed swords. Swift began to dart around and make quick movements with his sword, but Sky was able to block them and predict where the next one would be coming from. Sky found out his pattern and started adding strikes of his own sword. Swift dodged and jumped around these with relative ease. Swift took a different approach and tried knocking Sky's sword loose, but Sky held tight. Their eyes met for a moment, and a steely gaze of competition was shared. Swift jumped away and then back in to attack. Sky blocked again and pushed him away. Swift was impressed with his opponent's skill and determination, but he decided it was time to end the battle. He charged at Sky, but instead of a quick strike, he flipped over the pegasus. Sky had seen this tactic in one of the many strategy guides that he had read, and he knew just how to combat it. When Swift landed, Sky took to the air, jumping over Swift's sword and forcing his own onto his roommate's back.
Shining Armor blew a whistle and held up Sky's hoof in victory. Everyone spectating cheered. It was a brilliant battle of speed versus strength, with strategy coming through in the end. Sky Strike was enjoying himself and all of the cheering for his accomplishment. He walked back to his room in high spirits with many new friends to talk to.
Swift Sprint lay where he had been defeated for a moment. How could he have lost? He has much more experience than Sky Strike, and speed usually beat out strength. He got up in pain and went to the bathroom to think. He had failed. Swift was known as the fighter who never lost, and here he was, defeated by a rookie. What would the other guys think of him? All of the work that he had done here could be lost by this one fight. But this is not the first time he had been in this situation. He calmly looked in the mirror and thought up a plan.
Sky Strike was walking on cloud nine for the rest of the day. He got so many congratulations and high-hoofs that he lost count. Some of the more elite guards-in-training even conversed with him. Sky felt like a celebrity, but he wanted to share this feeling with his roommate, too. He hadn't seen him since the match, so Sky set off to look for him.
However, Swift was busy with something else. He had formed the plan to get even with Sky, and was taking the first steps to executing it. He was glad that he was such a neat freak. It made getting hoof prints very easy…
Swift finally showed up at the room later that night. Sky approached him with a worried look.
"I've been looking for you all day! Where have you been?" he said.
"Oh, this is what I normally do after a loss," Swift said with a smile. "I never fully congratulated you on your victory. Your use of strategy was unexpected and well executed."
Sky blushed. "Thanks. Everyone has been congratulating me today. It feels really good. I hope there aren't any hard feelings about me beating you?"
Swift put on a fake smile again. "Of course not! I'm not one to hold a grudge, and you did win fair and square."
Sky looked relieved. "Whew, that's good. I thought you might've been mad, seeing as you left, but I'm glad that we're still friends."
Swift looked at the clock. "Well, it's getting a bit late, and I'm starting to get tired. I'm heading in."
"Oh, okay. See you in the morning," Sky replied.
˜˜
Sky was woken up rudely by two of the Castle Guards. Their stares down at him told him that they were not there for a friendly wake-up call.
"Is there something wrong, officers?" Sky stammered as he rubbed his eyes.
They looked at each other and turned back to Sky. "By order of the Princess, you are under arrest for theft of the Royal Jewels! Now get up and come with us."
He tried to comprehend what he was being told. Theft? Jewels? He had stayed up late celebrating, but not that late. "What do you mean?" he finally asked.
"Your hoof prints were found on the door to the Crown Room, and most of the Jewels were missing this morning. Fortunately for us, there were a couple left behind, also marked with your hoof print. You are to be held in custody until a trial is able to be held." They helped him up and cuffed his hooves and wings.
"I didn't do any of that!" he shouted at the guards.
"Then you won't object to a trial," one of the guards said.
They took him out of the room, still in his pajamas. From the top bunk, Swift Sprint smiled coyly.
˜˜˜
Sky Strike was left a while to think. He tried to recall last night. He had spent some time celebrating in Shining Armor's room, but wanted to turn in before it got too late. Swift Sprint was asleep by the time he got back, so he just went to bed. There's no way he could've stolen the jewels, even if he had wanted to! He was confident that the issue would be resolved shortly though.
The trial was held the next day. It was run entirely by the elite members of the Royal Guard. Most of the training barracks were there to watch. They seemed to be in disbelief that such a wonderful guy could have stolen the Royal Jewels, and they hoped that he was innocent.
The trial began, and all the evidence that worked against him was brought up. It was hard to explain the hoof prints on the door and the dropped jewels, but Sky was sure there was a logical explanation. He was more relieved when they brought in Shining Armor as a witness. He started to explain what he knew.
"Well, Sky was in my room celebrating with a lot of us. He left early because he was tired, but thanked me for the party and left," Shining explained. "No one saw him afterword, and it's possible that he swiped the jewels after he left."
Sky was shocked that he would even say that! Sure, the evidence was stacked against him, but he was someone to be trusted! Shining Armor shot a glance of disappointment toward Sky as he left the witness stand.
But his fears were relieved again as Swift stepped up to the stand. He was sure that his roommate would stick up for him. He listened closely to the testimony.
"I was sleeping in my room, when a loud noise woke me up. Sky was trying to sneak into the room late at night. He tried to come in sneakily, but I heard him enter the room. He was looking awfully secretive, like he was hiding something. There is a keypad to enter and leave our room, I can prove the time that he came back, and I'm sure it was long after he left Shining Armor's party. I just can't believe that such a promising prospect would do something like this. I'm disappointed and a bit ashamed, Sky." Swift stepped down with his head low.
Sky's jaw dropped. How could his roommate throw him under the bus like that? He knows very well that none of that ever happened. He was dumbfounded, and didn't know who he could trust anymore.
After the reports from Swift's keypad were brought up, there was no escaping Sky's fate. The jury voted unanimously against him, and he was removed from the guard training program and put in jail. He was shocked at how much changed in such a short time.
˜˜˜
Swift returned to his room later that day. After he was sure the door was closed, he reflected on the job he had done so well. He was able to sneak out late and use Sky's hoof prints to frame him. He knew to leave a couple of gems behind so that the guards had more evidence. He was able to use his speed and stealth so that nobody noticed him. He knew enough about his keypad that he could change the information to frame Sky. And after a considerable amount of time had passed, he would "find" the jewels and look like a hero. Swift was sorry to see him go, but he couldn't let the rookie show him up anymore.
˜˜˜
Sky spent weeks in jail. Every single day of the same routine got boring, and all he could think about was him being framed. It haunted every hour that he was awake, and he relived it in his nightmares. He started to lose his cheery disposition, and slowly became cold and distant.
He thought critically, and figured out that Swift Sprint had framed him. Of course there was nothing he could do about it now; no one would believe him after what had happened. He started to believe that there was no one that he could trust. Everyone is just looking out for themselves, and it was time that he started doing the same. Every day he grew more untrusting and mean.
Sky knew that he couldn't very well look out for himself while he was in jail, so he started thinking on how he could get out. After the first few weeks, the jail guards started to pay attention to him less. He figured that he could overpower a couple of guards at a time, so he just had to plan his escape carefully.
He got his opportunity one night, when he noticed the shortage of prison guards. While being taken back to his cell from dinner, he struck back at the guards. After knocking them on the floor, he made his break for the nearest exit. As soon as he was out, he flew away, not caring where he went. He heard the sirens behind him, but he knew that in a couple of miles that he would be safe. He breathed a sigh of relief. This is the first day of a new life, he thought. I'm not going to give it away again.