Chapter 4: The trials (Rainbow Dash vs. Pride) what awoke her pride.
As Pride was done talking the scenery dissolved along with pride, the last thing Rainbow saw were her dark ominous eyes. There was something about them that just didn’t sit right with her, she just didn’t know what. The scenery then changed into what looked to be like cloudsdale again, only this time she was at her old flight training school.
Hey I know this place Rainbow thought to herself as she slowly walked toward the coliseum entrance, as she did she heard what sounded to be like the laughter of a filly behind her. She turned around to see that it was, in fact, herself as a filly trotting happily along the clouds, she remembered how thankfull she was that she was a pegasi, the clouds had always had always had a special place in her heart when she was a filly, she didn’t exactly remember for what reason she enjoyed them so much she just remembered that playing with them and feeling their soft fluffy structure beneath her hooves always made her smile not matter what mood she was in. Rainbow couldn’t help but smile at the nostalgia she was feeling. Just then a voice rang out from behind the filly
“RAINBOW DASH, front and center! what are you doing playing in the colt damn clouds for, you are pathetic you know that? You’re lucky your father has a special place in this school, otherwise we’d kick ya out in a heartbeat.” The little blue filly hung her head and proceeded to walk towards where the voice came from; as she did she slowly disappeared into thin air.
"I wonder what that was all about" Rainbow said to herself, still standing near the entrance of the junior speedster’s academy. Just then another memory seemed to project in front of her again, it was a memory of her old home in cloudsdale, a big blue stallion with a red mane was seen sitting, looking out the front window of their cloud home.
“ook-addy-I-ade-oo-uhmthing!” The filly Rainbow said the best she could while holding a hoof drawn picture of her and her father holding hooves and smiling. The father didn’t look back as he replied
“If you didn’t get a faster lap time or manage to discover a new maneuver in your flight training, I don’t want to see or hear it Rainbow Dash.”
“But…Daddy, look at the pretty colors.” The filly Rainbow said, her eyes lighting up, hoping her father would be just as ecstatic as she was at her picture.
“No buts Rainbow Dash, you either at least try to honor our family’s name or I disregard you as my daughter. Simple as that, you’re lucky I’m in a good mood otherwise I’d burn that picture you made and make you go fly laps around cloudsdale again.”
“Daddy p-please, I really want you to see my picture…It’s really good, really I promise. Please won’t you at least look at it?”
“This better be good Rainbow dash.” The father then swiped the picture from Rainbow, tearing the top and looked intensely at it.
Rainbow bit her lip and dug her hoof nervously in the cloud floor, wondering if her father liked it or not and why he seemed so upset. Her father hung his head and he began to tremble, he crumpled the paper and threw it into the fire place to his left, Rainbow stared at this for a moment in disbelief, tears were welling up in her eyes as she saw the happy pair of ponies that was drawn on the paper crumple into black. She looked back at her father and was about to say something until her father spoke first.
“That was the most PATHETIC picture I have ever had to lay my eyes on, I don’t know where you get off thinking that you can just disgrace our family’s bloodline by suddenly wanting to draw these pieces of trash you call “art”. Go fly laps around cloudsdale…till you puke, and I don’t want coming back here until you do.”
“B-but…Daddy”
“GET OUT NOW RAINBOW DASH!”
Rainbow looked away, she remembered that day and she remembered how many times she flew around cloudsdale till she puked, it was in the middle of the night when she had succesfully fulfilled her father’s orders. She remembered how scared she was flying at night with nopony but herself to look out for her.
Tears began to escape Rainbow yet again until she looked back and noticed that the scenery had changed again, it was the junior speedsters academy again. Rainbow was a little bit older this time, everypony was seen having fun with their parents, all except Rainbow that is. She was seen standing upright and firm next to her father.
“Now do you remember what we talked about?” Rainbow’s father asked leaning next to his daughter.
“Yes father, it’s all about making yourself more aerodynamic.”
“That’s my girl, now get out there and show these amateurs what you’re made of.”
Rainbow nodded in affirmation and preceded to the starting line, the race fast forwarded when she was at the neck of the finish line, she was neck and neck with another Pegasus. The Pegasus was smiling and Rainbow had a dark expression on her face, she nudged the Pegasus sending him off balance and letting Rainbow successfully cross the finish line, little did she know at the time that she actually sent the Pegasus crashing into a nearby coliseum, causing massive head trauma.
Rainbow saw this and almost dropped her jaw, she didn’t realize until now that she had injured that poor Pegasus at an event that was only for fun. She felt terrible but she continued watching the scene before. She saw herself standing next to her father smiling, and for the first time in a long while, her father was seen smiling too.
“I’m proud of you Rainbow Dash; you made all of us proud.”
“Y-you really mean that?” Rainbow said looking up at her father in disbelief at what he had said, her eyes began to light up and some tears were coming too.
“Yes my prodigy, you made me and your family proud.”
The scene then ended and Rainbow Dash reflected on what had happened, she remembered how happy she was that her father actually acknowledged something good she did. But she hated herself for not realizing at the time she may have caused a pegasi to never fly again because of it. It was her pride that blinded her good sportsman ship.
“Th-this is where my demon came from didn’t it?” Rainbow asked to herself. Just as she did the black she was in began to spew a dancing flame, the flames then arranged themselves in front of her, spelling the word “correct”. Rainbow Dash gasped as she stepped back looking at the odd sight that was before her.
Rainbow then starred at the flames for a moment, trying to think of something else to ask it hopefully receiving a response as well. She placed a hoof to her chin and began pondering all the possible questions she could ask. Finally, a question came to mind and she spoke up.
“Is this the end of my trial?”
The flames circled around and danced before spelling “Do you think you are ready?”
Rainbow Dash nodded and said “Yes, I am.”
The flames then proceeded to ask Rainbow Dash a question “What have you learned?”
Rainbow pondered this for a moment but replied the best she could “Well, this has all been really confusing to me, but since my demon is pride I think this whole thing has been a reflection of where it came from, like how my pride blinds me from being the pony I should. I never realized how corrupt I became until you showed me. Also, I think that my demon also somehow chose me as I am the element of loyalty and she is pride. The two seem to be opposite and I think that’s why all of this was set up, I think this was set up as a warning that my element could be corrupted if I let my pride get the best of me.”
The flames danced for a moment and Rainbow began to think that she had failed when just then she saw what looked to be like a door, opening. Rainbow Dash looked at this and noticed that light was piercing out from behind the door, she squinted a bit as she was still not used to the bright light. She looked to side and noticed that the flames spelled the word “proceed”. Rainbow nodded and went into the bright hallway ahead of her.
*end of Rainbow’s trial. Next chapter, chapter 5 Fluttershy’s trial (fluttershy. vs. Wrath)