//------------------------------// // I Can Return? // Story: Tristan's New Life // by ShadowVoltstreaker //------------------------------// It had been a month since we finally killed Buckshot, though I can’t technically say killed since he’s in Shadow’s mind… I still have no idea what happened to my other self… He hasn’t spoken all this time though, nor have I seen him while I dream… strangest thing is, I can’t even materialize him anymore, it’s like he’s been wiped from ‘existence’ or something. No matter, I am going to miss talking with him, well, me; but it won’t be that much of a change since I still talk to myself… I just feel even crazier now than ever befo- Moving on. Two weeks ago I took Dash and Scoots to a Wonderbolts show, we needed something to enjoy after all the craziness… and I think my ear has finally recovered from the screaming. After the show Spitfire saw Dash and called her, me, and Scoots over to chat with them. And I may not have had a total Fanboy moment while I was watching them perform… (mostly because I contained myself) but as soon as I was face to face with them… I fainted. Woke up 10 seconds later and screamed, “YOU GUYS WERE AMAZING!” little did I know, Scoots completely mimicked me… it was the most amazingest thing that could have ever happened. Anywho, after talking with the Wonderbolts for a while we said our goodbyes and made our way back home… A while later we got back home and decided to just call it a night. ~2 Weeks Earlier~ Shadow’s POV “Ok. So with these formulas you gave me I should be able to replicate that spell correct?” I asked Buckshot who was still in my head… but he’s a lot more responsive now. “Yep! And actually, this was the spell that Slipstream had no idea I could perform. Even with his knowledge of most of the grimoires that I hold.” Buckshot confirmed. “Well then this should be quite an interesting invention…” ~DreamWorld, Present~ Me and Dash were sitting on a cloud, high in the sky. Looking over the edge, I couldn’t even see the ground… mostly because it was covered by a thick layer of clouds, but whatever. “So let me get this straight…” I turned back to Dash, “You want me to jump off… and try to do a Sonic Rainboom?” Dash nodded furiously, “Yes! Though it won’t be a Rainboom. Now stop being such a baby and jump!” Looking over the edge again I sigh, “If I die, I’m sooo going to haunt you.” And jumped off. The descent was brutal, the wind whipped at my face and mane, sending them backwards…. The whole time during this descent I did what Dash said, continuously fly at a downward arched angle and keep my wings at my side. After a while I could just barely see something beginning to form… it looked like an arc of air. But, from the episodes I knew that to successfully create a Sonic Rainboom I had to break through this. Pushing harder and harder the arc widened and darkened. I pass through a layer of clouds and I think I’m getting close to the ground, ignoring it and flapping my wings one time with everything I have makes me pass through the arc… I hear a loud boom as my body zooms forward, inches before I hit the ground I redirect myself and get sent soaring through the air. This speed was amazing! I had never felt anything like it before, nor did I want it to stop! I look behind myself at the trail I created… instead of a Rainbow trail however, I see that it’s a red and gold trail… “Interesting, I wonder…” I smiled, focused, and activated my Veil at it’s max. I then look back at the trail… Red, a darker shade of red, gold, and black… “The Ardourian Surge… Perfect!!” ~Equestria~ I slowly open my eyes and smile at what I just did… even if it was in a dream. I then look over at Scoots who’s staring at me… dead in the eyes. Next thing I knew, I was on the floor for no particular reason… except almost having a heart attack. But not the good kind, if there is one. “Scoots… why?!” I gasped, putting a hoof over my heart to stop it from jumping out my chest. “Rainbow Dash told me to.” She giggled, “she said it would be funny.” As soon as Scoots was finished, the accused stuck her head over the edge of the bed, stifling a laugh, “H-hey!” she then burst out in a full on laugh. 15 minutes later After almost dying, taking a shower, and eating some breakfast I open the door, close it behind me and fly towards Shadow’s house, which was actually a few houses down from the library. I get there in no time and walk in, like he told me to. “Uhhh hello? You here Shadow?” “Ah yeah, just a moment!” Shadow calls up from what I assumed was the basement. “Actually, could you just come down here? It’d be much easier and quicker that way!” “All right.” I mumbled, made my way to the basement door and opened it up and stared at the stairs… Now I’d been here in Ponyville for a really long time, and I have yet to conquer these descending arches of doom on hoof… I always just fly over them and land at the bottom… not today though. I take a deep breath and ease my left hoof onto the first step, “No problems yet…” I then move my right hoof onto the second step, “Still good…” lifting up my front hoof and putting it on the next step I put my back right hoof and place it on the first step. “Buck…” I always mess up at this point. I could feel the sweat start to form on my face, deciding to just go for it I take my right hoof and move it, then it happens… Shadow quickly opens up the door and shouts, “What’s taking you so long?!” effectively destroying my concentration and sending me rolling down the stairs. What I thought would happen is me and Shadow would end up rolling through the door and into the basement… That isn’t what happened. A moment before we collide, he slams the door shut and I ram into it, “Ow…” he then re-opens the door and I fall to the ground. “W-why?” “Well I didn’t want you to run into me…” he responds and helps me up. As soon as I’m firmly on my hooves I rub my head, prodding at the newly formed bump. “Now then, I think you’re wondering why I’ve called you here.” “Yeah… what’d you need to show me?” I ask, looking around his… lab? It was rather organized, not exactly what I expected. He started to chuckle as he made his way to a table that had a cloth covering something, “This!” he shouted as he lifted the cloth. Underneath was… I gasped loudly, “Oh my Celestia! This design, this smell... The sheek finish you’ve applied! Do you even know what You’ve made?!” “Yeah. It’s a-“ “You made a pen! Extraordinary!” Shadow just simply slammed his hoof into his face, “No you twit… It’s a trans-Dimensional Transporter… with this, I can travel to-“ “Any known or unknown area in the universe?” “…Yes… How’d you know?” “Internet.” I replied simply. “so, with this you can go anywhere… even, Earth?” “Yes… that is what it’s designed to do afterall. Why do you ask?” “Well, I told the princesses that I didn’t want to go back to earth if it meant leaving everypony that I love here… but, if your invention works, then I can go back, get a few things, see some friends, see my folks…” “Ahh yes, I see… But I would have to travel with you, I designed my… Pen, to only respond to me. So you’d be left there without me.” “Fair trade… Hey, can we take along everypony else too? I’d love for them to see how my home looks.” “I don’t see why not.” Shadow replied and smiled. Thinking about earth got me thinking about video games and made me wonder why I haven't gone insane and hoof-carved a controller yet. I clear my thought and continue thinking about all the luxuries that Earth has: like TV, Airplanes, Cars, eBooks, and... wait; ebooks? “uhm, on second thought, let’s take only the guys along…” “Why the sudden change?” “Well… in a few things I’ve read on Earth, when the girls go to Earth they get insanely hot… and while I really, and I mean really, want to see how Dash looks… I’d rather not take the risk. People on Earth will do some… Vulgar and deadly things if they see the girls, and I don’t want anything to happen to them.” Guns and rapists? They may be strong and we may be there with them, but I really don’t want to take the chance… “I see… so you won't take the girls but you'll take the guys?" "Yeah." "To a land filled with guns and rapists?" "That's the plan." "Your friends?" "Do you not want to go to a place where people travel in spaceships and store data on the internet and where the Wunderwaffe basically originated?" "Well when you put it like that... how can I refuse?” I smirk at him, “Thought so. Now, it’s me, you, Night, Crossback, Fortune, and Solar since we haven’t spent much time with him that'll be going.” “Sounds good. Tell them to be ready in two days, I’ll just do a few more tests to make sure everything will run correctly." “Roger that, I’ll see you in a few days.” I turn around and walk towards the stairs and stare at them… “One day…” I shake my hoof at them in anger and proceed to fly up the stairs, take a left and fly out the open door, effectively closing it with the wind that passed by it. “This is going to be SO AWESOME!” I shout as I fly around in circles and do a few flips and a double axel corkscrew. A while later I get back home and walk inside. Dash is laying on the couch with a glass of Cider. As soon as she hears me she turns her head and smiles, “Hey there.” “Hey yourself.” I respond, flop down on the couch and crawl my way to her and place my head on her lap, activating my most devastating attack. Puppy dog eye mode. Dash sighs, places the Cider on the table and crosses her hooves, “What is it?” I flutter my eye lashes and reply, “Whatever do you mean?” “You always do this when you want something… so what is it?” She knows me well… almost too well… Just as a counter measure I flutter my eye lashes again and say, “Shadow built a machine that can send things across dimensions and I wanted to visit Earth for a while and say goodbye to a few things.” Dash’s eyes widened for a moment and she responded, “No…” I lifted my head off her lap and got down in front of her, “Please Dash… there are some things that I need to do, and now that an opportunity to do them has come, I can’t just ignore it.” She bit her lip, “But what if you can’t ever come back?” “That won’t happen, Shadow’s inventions have never failed before. And they won’t now.” “But-“ I put my hoof over her lips. “No buts. Don’t worry I won’t be long, there’s no way I can stay away from you for long… I’d go crazy!” “Guess that means you’ve already decided I wouldn’t be going…” “Yeah. I don’t want you to get hurt, Earth isn’t like Equestria… people dying and going missing on Earth is a part of society. And I wouldn’t always be able to protect you there.” She lowered her head, avoiding my eyes. “How long.” “A few days at most. Then I’ll be back… We leave in two days.” She let out a heavy sigh and finally looked me in the eyes with.. a forced smile, “Ok.”