Sassaflash and her friends cautiously walked down the alley. Trashcans were literally everywhere around them. It was also very dark, with rats skittering around Sassaflash and her friends sometimes.
"Hello? Lightning Dust? Are you here?"
Sassaflash's call echoed off the walls of the alley. Water started to drip onto Cloudchaser's head from the roof of a house.
"That feels very cold!"
Cloudchaser shivered as Flitter helped her get back on the path of the alley. Suddenly, the sound of water splashing could be heard.
"Lightning Dust?" Sassaflash called out. "Is that you?"
"You're going to have to find out..."
The sound of laughter could be heard all around Sassaflash and her friends. They backed up against a wall of the alley as the sound of laughter echoed all around them, taunting them to find the cause of it.
"I think that's Lightning Dust alright..." a shivering Medley told Sassaflash.
"We're not giving up," Sassaflash spoke determinedly, "not yet."
Sassaflash got off from the side of the wall and motioned to her friends to follow her. When they also finally got off from the side of the wall, they started to follow her in the seemingly endless alley. After about two minutes of walking, they suddenly stopped in their tracks.
"What is it, Sassaflash?" Flitter asked Sassaflash. "Who or what do you see?"
Sassaflash pointed to the silhouette of a pegasus mare standing on top of a dumpster. She leaped off and started to slowly walk towards Sassaflash and her friends. Walking towards the lighter area of the alley, the pegasus mare silhouette was revealed to be none other than Lightning Dust herself.
"I knew you were coming here, Sassaflash."
"You don't need to taunt us, Lightning Dust," Sassaflash bravely told Lightning Dust. "We knew that you stole the electric division machines the entire time."
"You're right, Sassaflash," replied Lightning Dust to Sassaflash. "I in fact did steal the machines. I don't even feel the tiniest bit sorry for anypony. I guess they'll have to cancel the Grand Galloping Gala after all."
"Sunny Rays," Medley began, "however, did tell us that you were wearing some sort of disguise when you were stealing the machines from the electric division."
"You mean Scarlet Rose?" Lightning Dust asked Medley. "She's my disguised self in anything and everything. I posed as her to get back into the Wonderbolts Academy, to start fresh with dating somepony, and to work in the cloud division at the Cloudsdale Weather Factory."
Lightning Dust glared at Sassaflash menacingly as Sassaflash gasped.
"I can see it now!"
She walked over to a sky blue pegasus mare with auburn eyes and a sleek, red mane.
"Um, excuse me," Sassaflash asked the pegasus. "I'm the Electricity Production Supervisor for the electric division of the Cloudsdale Weather Factory. What division are you working in?"
"The cloud division," the pegasus replied with a flat voice. She walked away to the cloud division building soon afterwards.
After that flashback in Sassaflash's mind, Lightning Dust began to walk in circles around Sassaflash and her friends.
"So? What are you gonna do now?" she taunted to Sassaflash and her friends. "You might as well give up and let me 'win'."
"We're not gonna back down without a fight!" Cloudchaser yelled in defense of her friends.
"Ooh!" Lightning Dust taunted. "Looks like somepony wants to, y'know, give up!"
Lightning Dust flew up so high in the air that she was above the dark alley. She then flew down, divebombing Cloudchaser. Cloudchaser got up, but her wings were twitching.
"Ouch," she whimpered. "You injured my wings."
"Ready to give up?" Lightning Dust replied.
Inside Sassaflash, her emotions, which seemed like they were sealed in a bottle of pop, were about to explode and fizz everywhere. Sassaflash growled like an angry dog defensive of his territory.
"What's that?" Lightning Dust asked Sassaflash. "Did I hurt your friend? Oopsies!"
Suddenly, Sassaflash finally snapped. "You do not go around living your life while hurting and manipulating other ponies along the way! You hurt one of my most trusted friends, and for that, my friends and I will report you to Cumulo Nimbus! THREE WEEKS EARLY!"
"That won't be as easy as you could imagine," a smug Lightning Dust replied.
"How?" a confused Cloud Kicker responded.
"You'll have to chase me in order to get true justice," Lightning Dust replied.
Sassaflash growled very loudly. "Well, I'm gonna-"
Lightning Dust was gone. Sassaflash turned around to speak to her friends.
"Let's go chase down Lightning Dust! Flitter, you're going to help Cloudchaser fold her wings in properly without injuring them any further! Medley, Dizzy Twister, and Cloud Kicker, you follow me at your own pace!"
Sassaflash and her friends began galloping to chase down Lightning Dust in the dark alley.