As the band continued along the path Rainbow slowed down and started to hover again. This was not unnoticed by the rest but this was not really touched upon. As the rain seemed to have stopped. “Well, it looks like the weather is letting up,” Twilight commented.
A crack of Lightning.
Rain started to come down tenfold.
“Spoke too soon, didn’t I?” Twilight asked.
“It’s comedy, Twily. Pain and timing are absolutely critical.” Pinkie Pie answered as she pulled out an umbrella and had it hover over to cover Twilight, which for some reason was lavender with her Twilight’s mark. For some unrelated reason, her hat was her normal one again. “Oh, you might want this.” Pinkie Pie said as she pulled Twilight’s bag out of nowhere, the one she left in the library.
“Um… thanks, Pinkie,” Twilight said as she accepted the bag. Pinkie Pie gave a big smile as she hopped over to place umbrellas over each of the others, which all had a strange coding along with each of their individual marks. Twilight reached into her bag and pulled up a book that said ‘Earthborn Observations’ took a quick look at Pinkie Pie and shoved the book back into her bag and pulled up what was she sure was a clean book, which thankfully it was devoid of marks (at the very least the cover and spine didn’t have anything written on them, or any marks of any kind really), she opened and skimmed it to make sure it wasn’t marked in. When she closed the book its cover had changed from cherry red to the same shade as Pinkie’s attire and had a set of large-sized Bubble Text words that read ‘Pinkie Pie Notes:’ it looked like after that it cut off, almost like the writing was incomplete. “Okay…”.
“Sugarcube, we got to move.” Applejack said and the group picked up the pass. Twilight put the book back and picked up her pace. Now was not the time to try to make any sense concerning Pinkie Pie. There were other things she needed to focus on, like getting across the moat safely.
Nightshade looked over the jam in the gears, she smiled as she destroyed a few more gears. “That will make things more interesting,” she said while a grin started to grow on her face. She went back to her roost hidden in the shadows she had long adopted, all the Nightborn, those born in the shadows could see her as she embraced the full power of her element, Darkness. It was once water, but she had found a way to change her elemental specialty when she had come across accounts of Elementalists practicing forbidden, and very powerful, techniques in the Wonderbolt archives during her tenure among them. She was always one to go looking for a competitive edge, to her, all that talk about working together with a little friendly competition was a massive load of garbage in her opinion (the Wonderbolts were military fliers, warriors, something everyone seemed to forget, even her mentor Wind Ryder), all that working her wings off and all she got after her years with them and helping train newbies, was being given the shaft. Who cared if she was a little too aggressive, or that she held the support staff in contempt, and could care less about what was “too dangerous for the crowd”, none of that mattered, it was all about looking amazing and scoring points with fans, filling the seats at each event and getting sponsors to make sure they all knew who you were.
As she waited she thought back to the day it all started to go downhill, twelve years ago, she hadn’t thought things going downhill could ever actually take over a year before the events set in motion that day.
She was at the recruiting office for the ESM, specifically the station for the airborne, she had just finished another one of her tours in the Wonderbolts proper. It was nearing the closing of the day when a younger female Skyborn entered the building. “Ma’am, I am here to enlist,” she said. She had fiery red and orange hair and was dressed to impress.
Nightshade looked this girl over. “How old are you kid?” She asked with a weird mix of being amused and bored.
“I just turned eighteen, Ma’am.” the fire-haired younger woman answered.
“First, don’t ever call me ‘ma’am’. It’s ‘sir’, I am a commissioned officer. Second, it’s clearly not the military life you want, you want to be a Wonderbolt, I see it in your eyes.” Nightshade answered after looking into the girl’s eyes.
“Yes, sir.”
“What’s your name?” Nightshade asked.
“Spitfire. I have actually been a big fan of yours for the last eight years, Nightshade. The way you managed to incorporate everyone’s primary element into the routine, that was just… Awesome!” Spitfire then squealed like a girl much younger than her.
“You got good taste, kid. Who knows maybe you’ll make it to Captain of the Wonderbolts one day. You’re not old enough to apply for the academy, but I know a place you can be stationed until you’re old enough…”
Nightshade stopped her stroll down memory lane, “Damn that backstabbing little bitch… I made her great… I trained her for two years before she even set foot in the academy… I pushed her to her limits… I poured as much blood, sweat, and tears into...,” she muttered a tear in the corner of her eyes formed. But she stopped and allowed anger to show, “Soon Spitfire… I am coming home to roost.” She fell silent as she heard the sound of voices from the other side of the gorge.
“I think we reached the moat.” came a younger and extremely happy female voice. “I wonder if I can echo in this fog.” The owner then took a deep breath.
“ECHO!” Pinkie Pie shouted. Three times the voice was repeated each time the voice faded somewhat until it stopped. “Yep, we’re at the moot. And is it just me or is the fog thickening.”
“Well, Twilight said something about the air temperature reaching the dew point a while back before it started to rain.” Applejack recalled.
“Nah, it’s just amateur level elemental magic. It’s nothing we can’t survive.” Rainbow Dash said very dismissively.
“Now we need to find the bridge and cross it. We are one step… Fluttershy, darling, what is it?” Rarity said noticing the silence of the druid.
Fluttershy was feeling the earth with her hands and feet, “Um, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, could you two feel this patch of earth.”
The jester and paladin complied, “Feels sort of dead like somethin’ was compressin’ it for a long time.” Applejack commented.
“Totally, like the drawbridge ended here and was risen…um we are going to need to find another way across.” Pinkie informed.
Rainbow Dash walked closer to and looked over the ledge. She kicked a rock in. They all heard the sound of the rock clashing with the metal. “Okay, so climbing down and back up is out of the question.”
“Do you think that you and Fluttershy can carry us across?” Twilight asked as she tried to peer through the fog.
“No, I am not very good at flying. And Rainbow and I, being Skyborn, don’t have the constitution to take two trips carrying other's.” Fluttershy answered somewhat defeated. “And I am not very skilled with mist and fog.”
“Alright, I cross the moat, lower the bridge and be on our merry way.” Rainbow Dash said as she prepared to fly across the gorge.
“Wait, Rainbow Dash, you know you will be on your own and as Rep said they have an elementalist Skyborn.” Twilight pointed out.
“And given what he said that person was called a Shadowbolt. If that is anything like a Wonderbolt, you’ll have a scuffle on your hands, Darling.” Rarity pointed out.
“Please, that has to be some sort of knock-off or reject.” Rainbow Dash said as she flew into the fog and mist. The others could one stay and watch save Applejack, who genuflected and started to pray.
Rainbow Dash did not have an easy time flying in the mist and fog, it took all her effort to fly in a forward motion let alone stay straight. Something about the mist was enchanted to make it hard for anyone but the caster to fly in. “I take it back, this is some seriously powerful elemental magic.” She commented as she found a place to land. She looked and found that she was far off from the building that housed the drawbridge. “You gotta be kidding me.” She took to flight again and found a window to get in. “So much for defense.”
“I wouldn’t just rule anything out, especially in a place like this.” Came a voice, it sounded female and older, like almost two decades older and yet hauntingly familiar but Rainbow Dash could not place it.
Rainbow Dash took out her bow as her fingernails started to glow like a rainbow and readied it to fire. “Show yourself, you coward!”
“Aren’t you the brash one.” the voice said still lingering in the shadows. Rainbow Dash started to fire in every direction she could. Each shot only hit the stone and wood of the building. “I love your tenacity kid. Too bad the Wonderbolts wouldn’t know what to do with it.”
“How would you know that?”
“Few elementalists would pass on the chance to be one, it’s a path I too pursued.” The owner of the voice appeared right in front to Rainbow Dash, far enough away to not be caught off guard by Rainbow Dash is she tried to attack with her fists, but close enough to negate the effectiveness of the bow. Rainbow Dash lowered her bow, she may not have been the most intelligent person, but she knew she was putting her bow at risk if she kept it out. Rainbow Dash could not see the woman’s face, the flight suit covered all but her mouth and the goggles she wore were so yellow-tinted she could not see the eyes. Even her hands were gloved, covering of the fingertips. Making hard to tell her element unless she was manifesting an extremely powerful arrow. Rainbow Dash could also tell that in a straight up physical fight the other woman had the advantage, the flight suit hid the face, but developed muscles not so much. Rainbow Dash could tell this older woman was examining her, but she could not tell why. She did see a smirk grow on the masked woman.
“You don’t really want to be a Wonderbolt, do you?” She asked. “You want to be the greatest elementalist and flier in Mystica’s history.” The statement caught Rainbow Dash off guard. Everyone just accepted that all she wanted was to be a Wonderbolt. Yet if Rainbow Dash was truthful to herself, that deep down, the Wonderbolts were a means to an end, a stepping stone. Before Rainbow could attempt to deny it. “I see the fire in your eyes. I have seen it before. When I was your age, every time I looked into a mirror.” Rainbow knew those words, but she couldn’t place where.
“Who are you?” Rainbow Dash asked under her breath.
“I am the first of new league of an aerial elite, one with higher standards than the Wonderbolts. One more in line with the original military nature of the ESM. Shadowbolts is the working title, but nothing is set in stone yet.” the woman answered.
“So what do you want, lady?” Rainbow Dash asked in her near typical dismissive-ness.
“The question is, what do you want? To follow a fool's errand and likely die?” The woman then pulled a bow out of her quiver, it was a magnificent bow clearly a lot more advanced and more powerful than her current bow. “Or take up the arms of the team more likely to win?” The bow was offered to Rainbow Dash.
“We have a plan to beat Nightmare Moon, even though we only have five of the Elements of Harmony, we have a plan.”
The woman smirked, “I may not be the most historically inclined or most well versed in folklore, but last I checked you needed all six Elements in order for them to work.” The woman answered. “And according to the old story, the Element of Magic shattered into oblivion after vanquishing Nightmare Moon.”
“Twilight…”
“What do your instincts say?” The woman cut Rainbow off. “You’re being offered a chance to surpass any Wonderbolt; Spitfire, Wind Ryder, Wing, even the legendary founders; Easy Glider, Purple Dart, Fairy Flight, Sherbet Burst, Flash, even the awe-inspiring Firefly. To make your lasting mark.” The woman continued. Rainbow Dash was starting to hesitate on what she will do. “It’s a simple choice, stick with to a plan that will more likely fail, or stay true to your dream.”
Rainbow Dash was not sure what to do, but that statement struck a nerve. She was not stupid, she needed to lead the older woman into a false sense of success. “Thank you.” She said. The older woman grinned. “For the offer anyway.” The older woman froze as Rainbow Dash stepped away and aimed her bow at the chain holding the drawbridge up. “But I got a promise to see through first.” As she was about to fire she was kicked in the side and knocked away.
“I would advise that you reconsider my offer. You and those deadweights that cling to you are trying to fight a force of Nature and you are being given the chance to be in the conqueror's good graces. To see your dreams come true.” The older elementalist then walked up to Rainbow Dash. “It’s not too late.”
“I will not backstab my friends.” Rainbow Dash said as she tried to get back up, only to be kicked in the chest back down.
“If they were your friends, then why did they send you on your own?” The elementalist asked.
“They trust me to lower the bridge on my own. Also, I am awesome enough to manage this on my own.” Rainbow Dash answered as she used her hands as a fulcrum point, rocked back and kicked the other woman with both legs right in the gut. The blow forced the Shadowbolt back and almost lose her balance. But both were on their feet before either could take advantage of the other’s lack of footing.
“Not bad. But you’re going to need to do better than that.” the Shadowbolt said as she moved to tackle Rainbow Dash. Swiftly she managed to grapple the younger elementalist and hold Rainbow’s arm behind her back as she held Rainbow’s neck within her elbow. “It takes more than natural talent with the bow to be a great elementalist.” Rainbow Dash tried to wiggle her way out but it was to no avail.
“You think that’s all I got?” Rainbow Dash said as she relaxed her legs forcing the Shadowbolt to let go because of the change in the distribution of Rainbow’s weight catching her off guard. However, the Shadowbolt responded faster than Rainbow Dash foresaw and was able to get a kick in as Rainbow tried to roll away.
“Don’t sell yourself so high, kid. You got talent, but I have skill honed over years.” the Shadowbolt replied as Rainbow Dash got back on her feet. “What do you plan to do?” the Shadowbolt.
Rainbow Dash looked around as she put her bow back into her quiver, she knew she could not outfight the Shadowbolt and that she could not outmaneuver her either, but maybe she could use her inexperience in her favor. Rainbow thought for a moment. She looked and saw that the lever was broken and thus rendered useless. She needed to break the chains holding the bridge up. Rainbow then smirked, “I am only getting warmed up.” Rainbow then charged her opponent her nails glowing with the seven colors of the rainbow. The Shadowbolt sidestepped, grabbing Rainbow Dash and used her momentum to cause Rainbow Dash to collide with the actual bridge. In the process, Rainbow used her elemental power to convert the air around her fingertips to become plasma and cut one of the links in the chain closest to her before she was knocked back due to the rebound on the actual bridge.
The Shadowbolt was amused at this feat. “Clever, making me assume you were charging at me head-on. But that trick only got one of the chains.” She said as she tackled Rainbow Dash, pulled her away from the gate, flew up carrying the younger elementalist and dive bombed, letting go of Rainbow Dash and pulled out before making an impact. Rainbow Dash was barely able to pull out herself. Rainbow Dash looked up to the Shadowbolt as the other elementalist hovered. Rainbow Dash could not help but noticed that the wings were avian-like hers, but while Rainbow Dash’s wings were akin to falcons the Shadowbolt’s were more like a large eagle.
Rainbow Dash looked up to above the Shadowbolt and started to form another plan. She jumped back up into the air and collided with the Shadowbolt forcing the two to collided with the drawbridge again, this time, she sent another bolt into a link in the other chain. However, as Rainbow Dash started to pry off as the bridge started to fall, “No on my watch, bitch.” the Shadowbolt said as she grabbed Rainbow Dash and tried to pin her down onto the bridge.
“Buck,” Rainbow muttered as she noticed that the drawbridge was lowering much faster than she expected.
As the drawbridge came down with a thud the elder elementalist fell off the bridge into the mist. Rainbow Dash only barely hung on. But she was able to get back up. “That was intense.” She muttered as she walked the rest of the way.
Twilight and the other came running towards her, “Rainbow are you okay?” Twilight asked. Fluttershy placed her hand on Rainbow as she cast a healing spell. The rain seemed to have shifted, not to hail or sleet, but started to become snow. It was far from accumulation, but it was still snowing.
“I’ll be fine. I may not agree with this plan, but I am seeing this through.” Rainbow said as she was fully restored. “I am too awesome to leave my girls hanging. We better get going.” Rainbow Dash said as she and the others started towards the castle proper, finally in sight.
Twilight thought about it, ‘Why do I get the feeling the Rainbow will always question my plans. But she didn’t leave us hanging.’ At that moment Twilight’s tome grew. She turned to the newly written page. ‘There must be a pattern,’ Twilight asked herself as the entry showed a spessartite garnet and the Element was that of Honesty and it’s bearer. As before the last sentence was not punctuated with a period but with a stylized apple. As Twilight read it as she thought back on Rainbow Dash and while she seemed to be a good match but much like Applejack when the element of Loyalty was revealed something felt a little off with Rainbow Dash being the bearer of the Element of Honesty. They had all exited the building that housed the drawbridge mechanics when they hear a very pronounced scream of wrath. They all turned back to see what the source of the scream was.
“THAT’S IT!!! No more miss goody-goody! You’re on the fucking list, you little skank!” Came the voice of the older Elementalist as she emerged from the mist and fog clearing it as she rose. She hovered in the center as the mist and fog gathered around her into a ball of ice almost impossibly dense and grabbed it. Everyone turned to face the irate elementalist, her flight suit was torn revealing more of her flesh, and the top to let her hair flow free, her goggles were busted showing her left eye and the fingertips of her right hand were exposed. She threw the ball of ice so hard it almost broke the sound barrier.
The six mages barely dodged it but the impact did affect their footing save Rainbow Dash, as she hovered. “That could have killed us all.” Rarity stated.
“That was the point, you stupid, little brat.” the Shadowbolt said in wrath as she took her bow out of her quiver. Rainbow Dash watched as the elder elementalist drew her bow, she seen that draw before, but she could not place were. “I killed Celestia, I will kill you all!” She roared as five arrows manifested, in a midnight black color (clearly not the typical coloration you expect from an Elementalist).
As she fired her shot, the arrows were sent off course by Rainbow Dash’s own arrow intercepting the cluster. “Go, I got this.” Rainbow Dash said as she charged the Shadowbolt.
“Rainbow...” Twilight called out as they all got back on their feet.
“We gotta go, girls. Rainbow may need a few servings of humble pie, but this is her fight.” Applejack said cutting Twilight off. “Dash if ya die, Ah'll kill ya!” Applejack shouted as she grabbed Twilight and led the rest of the crew on.
Rainbow Dash gave a small chuckle as the distance between her and the Shadowbolt closed.
Rep continued his flight, stopping at the river. He noticed that the satyrs had come to and were about to attack a river dragon. He swooped down and right in the middle of the fight. “Halt.”
“Out of the way, we have a score to settle with this dragon.” one of the satyrs said.
“Is that the truth? From where I stand Grogar is the one you should be furious with. He led you on this errand. He cast the spell that killed your kin. He left you here to clean up a mess that was not your own.” Rep pointed out.
“But what about the theft of the bell?” another satyr asked.
“What about the bell? From my understanding, only Grogar and his line can use it, and has he not been a tyrant to you and your people?” Rep asked.
The satyrs paused and thought about the reptile’s words. “So what do we do?” one asked.
Raise up and throw off the yoke. They all heard. They all turned, even Stvenmgynt, and their mouths dropped open in awe, save Rep who only nodded in respect.