We finished up dinner quickly because we were all pretty hungry, and also considering the fact we used up everything we could talk about on the way here. And after that we decided to play some games and stuff.
"Check and mate!" Twilight said with a smile all over her big face.
I grumbled at my misfortune. I guess there was no real way to escape that last move. Twilight had some chess and we decided it would be a good idea to have a tournament. Pinkie Pie arranged the matches and she couldn't help but make me face Twilight. I buried my face in my hoofs, laughing. I was going to win, I was soooooo close! But I messed up and gave Twilight an easy victory. I suck.
"Well, I'm gonna have to say it anyway. Good game, Twilight."
"Good game." And we shook
I helped reset the board so Rarity and Fluttershy could play. "I bet you're rooting for your mare-friend." Rainbow Dash said, mockingly.
"Here we are again, Rainbow." I said, rolling my eyes.
I watched the game for a little bit, Rainbow would nudge me every time Fluttershy made a good move. After a while, though, I kind of lost interest and backed out without anyone noticing. I looked out into the woods, reminiscing about my misadventures with Icarus. I wonder, though, why they're coming to me in dreams now. But so far, I kind of liked it.
Astheno landed on my head and snuggled up. She's cute, I wish I knew who to thank for her. I remembered the fist day-er night I saw her. And whatever happened to Twilight? I don't know. And that led me to think of the storm, and the weird things that was happening after that. Maybe, just maybe, I could control it somehow. I aimed my foreleg at a tree, pushed it forward and... nothing.
I tried again, nope. Again, nothing. Astheno flew off my head, I watched as she landed right on Applejack, who was leaning against a tree, watching how pathetic I looked. "What are ya doin'?" she asked.
I must have looked stupid before and after I realized Applejack was watching me. "Uh... you know, nothing." I said, still looking dumb.
Applejack giggled. "Sure didn't look like nothin'." she said.
"Well," I said. "It must have been a pleasure to watch."
Applejack walked over to me and circled around. It reminded me of a hawk looking for mice. "It was." Applejack said.
She started to look at my flank. She put a hoof on her chin and observed. Now, as you could imagine, this was uncomfortable. It reminded me of pedophiles. "So, checkin' me out, huh?"
Applejack looked up quickly, scaring Astheno off her head. "I was just wondering' what your special talent might be. Ya don't have a cutie-mark yet."
"Well, not everyone gets a brand. My special talent could be being a jackass. Though I would have my brand already?" I said.
Applejack laughed at my little joke. "Well, yer funny, I'll give ya that. Why do ya say everythin' differently?" she asked. "Instead of sayin' some-pony, ya say someone, You say brand instead of cutie-mark, What gives?"
"Well, my old friend, Lightweight taught me that saying "some-pony" was stupid. And I say brand instead of cutie-mark because... Well, think of the name, now think of the place in which the thing is seen."
Applejack stood there, thinking. "Okay, so It's on yer flank, it's called cutie-mark...oh...ah see, wow. That's... that's kinda scary, actually."
"Yep," I said. "Pedophile paradise," I decided to do a little demonstration."Just imagine, alright. A stallion throws a teenage filly on a bed and this filly doesn't have a cutie-mark. So the stallion says: Hay! You wanna a cutie-mark? How 'bout this? Spank, spank Spank!"
Applejack covered her mouth, not believing what she heard. "Dear Celestia!" she said. We both started laughing. Okay, a little sick, but hay? What are you gonna do? It seems to happen every day now.
"So anyway, what are ya doin' out here again?" Applejack asked.
"Really just trying to do something stupid."
"What kinda stupid thing?"
"Well, you know how that lightning stuff keeps flying out my body?"
Applejack tilted her head to the side. "Yeah, kinda. I wonder what that's about. It sure is strange."
"Yeah, well I'm just trying to see if I can just control it or something, ya know. Maybe I could be some kinda superhero or something." I said
"You? A superhero? That'll be a day." she said jokingly.
Really, though, I could be a superhero. That would be pretty cool. I can come up with a cool superhero name. Something that isn't anything like Mare-do-well. Dumbest name for a superhero. And her dynasty only lasted, what, three weeks? More or less. I wonder who it was, anyway. I did like the suit though, bad-ass.
"So what are ya gonna go with the whole "With great power comes great responsibility" thing or something?" she asked with an obvious smile one her face as she mimicked the popular saying.
"Ya know what I think about that?" I asked "I think it doesn't mean to use your power for good, I think it's more like fulfilling what you would call a responsibility, good or bad."
Applejack thought about this. She shrugged "Ah don't know." she mused.
We could hear Pinkie Pie calling out Applejack's name, it was her turn and she had to play against Rainbow Dash.
"Well, I guess I'm off. Good luck doin' somethin' stupid." and she ran to Rainbow Dash.
Once again, I stuck out my hoof. Once again, nothing. Astheno pecked my head.
"Hay! What gives, Astheno?"
She just sat there on my head again looking innocent. I rolled my eyes and looked at my hoof.
"How the hell do I do it?" I asked myself.
Astheno pecked my head again. A little harder now.
"What the hell? Would ya stop?" I said.
Astheno pecked me yet again. Now I was becoming vexed.
"What!? What do you want?!"
Astheno held out her wing and rubbed her head against it. If she was telling me something, I wasn't getting it. Maybe I should ask her.
"Is there something you want to tell me?" I asked
Astheno chirped.
"Hmm"
I rubbed a hoof on my chin. Thinking what she was trying to tell me. She was pecking my head. It must have something to do with my head, but what? Let's see, stuff about heads... they contain faces. I don't think she's saying I'm ugly, wouldn't blame her though. Anyway, heads... skulls. Skulls hold eyes, jaws, brains. Brains...
"Do I have to think of something?" I asked.
Astheno hopped and chirped.
Okay, I have to think of something. Wait, maybe lightning? That is what I was trying to do. Get the lightning to jump out of me again. That's it!
"So, hold on. I have to think of lightning, right?"
Astheno hopped and chirped again.
So that's what I had to do. I had to think of the lightning inside me to generate it. Might as well try. I held out my hoof slowly. All I was thinking about was lightning. I aimed at a tree and thought about the lightning shooting out my hoof. I pushed forward. Buzz... That's it? A little buzz? What about all those other times it wasn't just a buzz?
"Maaaaaaaaaaaaawww" I shouted annoyed as ponyly possible.
Well, that was an absolute waist of time. I guess no superheroes here. I felt more than pathetic as I slapped my hoof on my forehead. Pinkie Pie burst out and tackled me for most likely no reason at all. I hit the ground with extreme force.
"What happened? Is everything okay?" she said, observing the area.
Everybody else came out and all they saw was me out on the ground and Pinkie Pie looking under rocks, trees and bushes with one of those old fashioned detective hats on and smoking a pipe. I think Pinkie might have hit me harder than Malice, actually.
"Are you okay Volt?" Applejack said lifting my head off the ground.
"I might be." I said.
"Darn it!" Pinkie shouted, throwing her magnifying glass on the ground. "Who ever attacked Volt got away and left no evidence. This will be troublesome." she put a hoof on her face in disappointment.
"Pinkie," Twilight began." I don't think-"
"Wait!" I said cutting off Twilight. "I got a good look at the guy. You good at drawing?"
Pinkie Pie pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil. "Give me a precise portrayal of this pathetic pony who pummeled you, and I'll put 'em in prison!"
"Okay, it was a female, she had blue eyes, pink fur, puffy hair almost like cotton candy!"
Pinkie started drawing. "Did she have a cutie-mark?" she asked.
"Yes! It was a balloon! No, three! Three balloons!"
Pinkie kept drawing. When she finished, she gasped in horror. "No! It can't be! It's... it's Twilight!?"
Everyone looked up at Twilight who seemed a bit shocked. "I'm sorry, what?"
"How dare you, Twilight! Injuring a poor, defenseless pony! I never would have thought. I thought you were better than that."
Applejack played along, too. "What a shame. I guess Twilight ain't such a good apple, now are ya?"
Rainbow shook her head. "I can't even believe it."
We all started laughing, even Twilight. It was late. It was about time we all had to go to bed. But I didn't want to sleep. Because tomorrow, we would be on the road again.