//------------------------------// // Rebel // Story: From the Ashes // by Ruki44 //------------------------------// Rainbow Dash was supposed to be clearing the skies today. Emphasis on supposed to be. Instead the cerulean mare had stretched herself across the clouds, using them as a makeshift bed like the one she had in Cloudsdale If she had been in Canterlot, or any other major city for that matter, she would be punished for her rather lackluster attitude in doing her job in the timeframe dragons felt was "reasonably prudent." Something which Rainbow Dash disagreed with due to the fact dragons liked to keep a tight control of their environment to the degree they had specific times for everything. For example, according to her schedule, Ponyville was supposed to get a rain shower at 3:23 p.m. - which was 20 minutes ago incidentally. But it didn't really matter. She lived in Ponyville where no dragons bothered coming to. There was nothing really in Ponyville of any interest to the dragons for them to deem it worth their attention. The biggest thing the small town had going for it was Sweet Apple Acres and Rarity's boutique, but Applejack and Rarity went to Canterlot each month to sell their wares, so there was no need to come to Ponyville for the goods. Rainbow rolled over slightly and peered over the edge of the cloud to watch the ponies below go about their daily routines. She noticed Selene out of the corner of her eye, and grinned a bit. The unicorn pony stuck out like a sore thumb. Her cloak helped a lot, but Rainbow knew a rebel when she saw one. Her grin grew even wider when Selene suddenly turned and looked right back at Rainbow Dash, and Rainbow didn't have to be on the ground to know Selene's electric blue eyes were boring into her magenta ones. She gave a lazy wave and Selene, after a moment's hesitation, waved back. Yup, definitely a rebel. Rainbow Dash wouldn't mistake one of her own. Twilight noticed the interaction between the two because she looked up and frowned when she saw Rainbow Dash goofing off. Again. "Rainbow Dash, we were supposed to have a rain shower 20 minutes ago!" Twilight yelled up to her, worry betraying her irritated tone. Even after living in Ponyville for these past three years, Twilight still couldn't get used to the slow pace the small town operated on. "I know! I'll get on that," Rainbow assured her. As if to prove her point, she hit the cloud she was perched on with her hoof, dumping the water all over Twilight and Selene. While Twilight Sparkle glowered at her, Selene didn't seem to mind as she simply shook her mane, water droplets landing on the ground below. "See! Rain shower!" "You will never get into the Wonderbolts at this rate!" Twilight shouted back even though both knew if any pegasus had the best chance of being the next Wonderbolt, it was Rainbow Dash. Everypony knew this. At least, everypony in Ponyville. One of the major downsides of living in a small town was it was hard to get your name out there. Selene turned to Twilight and asked her something, which Twilight responded to with an eye roll and a slight shake of her head. Rainbow was slightly curious to know what they were talking about, but based on the conversation it no doubt had to be about Rainbow's dream. She wondered idly if Selene knew about the history of the Wonderbolts. The Wonderbolts weren't always a racing team which flew for the amusement of the dragons and other races. They used to be the ace aerial force back during the Great War. They were super important, especially when the alicorns started to be hunted down. The pegasi were the one of the few races that could actually fly, and any pony who could fly at the speed of the alicorns was considered invaluable. The Wonderbolts used to be lead by the alicorn Natsu of the Summer before she was grotesquely murdered by the dragons in the fight of Seaddle. After Natsu of the Summer's fall, the leadership went to her younger cousin Luna of the Moon who lead the Wonderbolts up until her mysterious death at Shimmerwood. Luna of the Moon's body was never recovered. For many years there had been rumors that Luna was still alive and in hiding, but after 500 years of searching the dragons decided that she was dead; the explosion she was involved in was massive and even managed to burn through dragon scales - which were quite thick at the time - and she was always a bit of a hot head. There was no way she would keep quiet for all this time while ponies were suffering. That and the whole fact when they stormed Canterlot, her elder sister, Celestia of the Sun, was beside herself with grief. Apparently the moon had risen by itself. That was a sure sign of Luna's death; once an alicorn died, whatever they were in control of wouldn't need a pony's guiding hoof anymore. After the war, the Wonderbolts in an act of humiliation were forced to race around a track and perform tricks for the amusement of others. The once proud aerial fleet was nothing more than a prestigious racing team was now nothing more than a glorified circus act. That's why Rainbow Dash wanted to join the Wonderbolts. She wanted to return them to their formal glory as the aerial force of the ponies. She wanted to lead them in a rebellion against the dragons, proving once and for all that ponies, especially the pegasi, were a force to be reckoned with. She had even done the research in order to draw up the old uniforms of the Wonderbolts. It was still a work in progress, but Rainbow wasn't worried. She still had plenty of time. She still needed to get into the Wonderbolts and become its captain. By that time, the design would be finished, and be 20 percent cooler. Maybe Selene would be interested in helping, Rainbow thought as she watched the two walk towards Sweet Apple Acres. After all, she knows a lot of stuff about the Great War. Making the note to stop by the library later to harass the unicorn, Rainbow Dash stretched, the bones in her wings cracking. Looking around, she smirked a bit. While catching up with her duties as weathermare might leave any lesser pony stressed - especially after wasting away half the afternoon - Rainbow was more than up to the challenge. I'll have everything done in 10 seconds flat. -o--o---O---o--o- "Hey eggheads!" That was the only warning Selene and Twilight Sparkle got as Rainbow Dash kicked open the door to the library. The weathermare snickered as the books enveloped by the pink glow of Twilight's magic lost their hue and crashed on the librarian's head. Selene merely glanced up and the books which now covered Twilight like a coat of fallen snow glowed blue as they were stacked neatly next to Twilight. "Rainbow Dash, right?" Selene asked with a small smile tugging at her lips as Rainbow sauntered in, looking around. "What can we help you with?" "Yes, what," Twilight huffed as she jutted out her lip and blew her mane out of her face. "Well, as Twilight probably mentioned, I want to join the Wonderbolts," Rainbow started off as she pulled a rolled up piece of parchment from the woolen bag she commissioned Rarity to make for her some years back. Spreading the paper out in front of the two unicorns, the carefully drawn designs - although they were still rather crude since design was never Rainbow's forte - of the old Wonderbolt's uniform came to their attention. "My dream is to become captain and return to them to their former glory." "You mean the aerial force against the dragons?" Rainbow looked at Twilight, her brow furrowing as her lips pulled into a frown. "Of course. I don't plan on living under the dragon's rule for the rest of my life," she snapped as she hit the paper with her hoof. "That's why I need to make sure the uniforms reflect the Wonderbolt's awesomeness during the time when they were respectable and not some circus act!" "That is a dangerous senti-" Twilight's warning was interrupted by Selene. "You are mixing up the design." Both ponies turned their eyes to the bard who only looked up at them, only then realizing she spoke aloud. Giving a sheepish smile, she pointed to the coloring of the costume. "When Natsu of the Summer was in charge, the uniforms were indeed a crimson red like you have drawn here. This was to elicit fear in the dragons and represent their blood being spilt. However, after her death and Luna of the Moon's subsequent take over, there were some changes to the costume, which you can still see in the Wonderbolt's attire today. The most notable being the change from red to a dark blue. The reason for this was to better conduct raids on the dragons during the middle of the night. However, the armor you have drawn was more reminiscent of Luna of the Moon's reign. You have also mixed in some of the more modern attire - notably the goggles." "Really?" Rainbow asked as she nudged Selene out of the way, lowering her head as her eyes roamed across the paper. She supposed it made sense considering the only real references she had to go off of were old paintings. "Well, which was the best?" "Both had their merits, but if you are going to lead your own uprising, you should develop a costume which you think is best instead of copying that of the past," Selene suggested as Twilight looked aghast, her mouth wide open and moving, yet no words came out. "How can you encourage her?" Twilight yelled finally, her eyes looking ready to burst from her face. "A small group of pegasi will not be able to fight off all the dragons by themselves! They'll be slaughtered!" "You don't know until you try! Besides, dragons have grown weak and flabby after a 1000 years of uninterrupted rule. One surprise attack, and we can take this land back for ourselves! I don't want to live in fear anymore Twilight!" Rainbow roared, her voice growing louder, neither party noticing the entire library had begun to glow a light blue. "I don't want to see you die, Rainbow Dash!" Twilight screamed right back, her violet eyes glistening with tears. The admission caused Rainbow to falter for a moment. She didn't think Twilight Sparkle liked her, let alone cared about her fate. Twilight's shoulders shaking, Rainbow could only watch in shock as Twilight slid to the ground as snot dripped out of her nose like a leaky sink. "By Celestia, Rainbow Dash, do you ever stop and think? You are always slacking off or charging into things - you will be slaughtered before you can make a difference. This isn't like the Great War where we had alicorns by our side - we are all alone!" "That's not true, Twilight," Rainbow said, her voice getting softer as she took a step forward, hovering awkwardly over the now sobbing mare. She never did well when people started crying. Waterworks always made her uncomfortable. With Fluttershy at least it was beat the crap out of whoever was bullying her. This situation was new to her all together. "We have each other. Come on, stop crying. Please?" Regardless Twilight ignored her plea and Rainbow looked over to Selene for help. The other mare just shook her head. "I'll walk you home." Rainbow looked to the sobbing Twilight, whose fur was beginning to get waterlogged, before turning her attention to Selene and nodded. Rolling up her design and slipping it back into her bag, she allowed Selene to pass her by, following her outside into the clear night sky. "I hope nobody heard that," she admitted after a pause, looking nervously back at the library. She was caught up in the moment, but now that her head had cooled some, she realized how much danger she not only put herself in, but Twilight and Selene. "Worry not. I put a silence charm on the library," Selene assured her, and the while the uncomfortable beating of Rainbow's heart did not diminish, the tension left her body. "Nobody besides us three heard a thing, and I doubt any of us will turn in the other for what was discussed. After all I am an underground bard, and Twilight clearly has an interest in the time before the dragons. I don't think Twilight is against your dream, just-" "My way of going about it. Yeah, I got that much," Rainbow snapped before sighing again. "Sorry. That wasn't fair to you. By the way Selene, what made you decide to become a bard anyways? " "Well, the minute we forget our own history is the moment we truly have lost," Selene replied, her voice slow and thoughtful as if she hadn't been asked the question before and was only now just thinking up an answer. "That makes sense," Rainbow lied but decided it wasn't really worth thinking about too much. Selene's reasoning was her own, and as long as it made sense to her, that's all that really mattered. "Anyway, I guess I'll see you around. Thanks for all the help, and tell Twilight I'm sorry for making her cry and shit." "I will and don't mention it. I'm glad I could help. It gives me hope for the future that maybe we truly will regain our freedom," Selene said wistfully as she stared up at the moon. Rainbow followed her gaze, looking at the mare shaped pattern which had been etched into the moon's surface for as long as she could remember. Legends said after Luna of the Moon's death at Shimerwood, her spirit was sealed on to the moon. Rainbow thought it was bullshit of course, but if she was honest there were times she dreamed Luna of the Moon came back to help fight the dragons. "We will, Selene," Rainbow said confidently as she flapped her wings, lifting herself in the air. "We will."