Night and Day

by BlueLgihtening

Chapter 5: Recruitment Pt. 2

Pov: Unknown

My feet hit the ground as I ran down the dirt road, the rocks beneath my feet spraying out behind me as I jogged. The early morning air was crisp, a slight chill warning of winter, which remained many months away. The feathers on my back were light, my wings not quite big enough to cause a problem whether it be sports or even just sitting down. Stretching out the red-tipped feathers felt good, the stiffness of sleep still in the joints. I stopped as I approached a fallen tree that wasn't there before. Remembering the storm the night before, I grumbled angrily and I began pushing on the trunk. The tree slid across the dirt, the branches slowing the movement down to snails-pace.

"Oh, c'mon you stupid tree, I need to get you out of the way," I grumbled, it was in these moments I wished just slightly that I was a guy. It'd definitely make stormball easier, not to mention moving a tree five times my size.

"Give me a break," I hissed under my breath as one of the branches caught on a rock. My rust-colored bangs moved out from behind my pointed ear and into my face, only serving to make me angrier.

"Gah! Why won't you just move?" I said as one of my hands alighted with flame, the orange Empa glowing. I stared down at my hand and then looked around, no brother or water in sight to help me.

"Fire Flight! I swear I will not hesitate to throw you to the sharks if you torch my property again,' said a man's voice from somewhere behind me.

I twirled around on my feet, blindly punching at the air behind me, the fire sputtering out as it left my hand. Looking in the direction of the voice, I saw a very shocked man with hair green enough to make the grass tremble with fear and eyes so blue they could’ve been made from the ocean. Smiling sheepishly, the slight glow of Empa left me, my orange eyes becoming a tamer shade of the bright color.

The teen’s expression soon transformed from one of shock to one of exasperation, “Did you really just try to set me on fire?”

“Sorry, Lightning, it isn’t my fault you have the step of a Windago,” I replied, crossing my arms and smiling at my friend ,”We should consider buying you a bell from the market- oh wait, I forgot, I don’t have any money.”

“Complain to my sister about your poverty, she always wanted to be rough and tumble and live without guards or money,” replied Lightning as he relaxed, his gold and purple silk clothing showing his rank.

I played with the bottom of my burlap and twine shirt,”Well, didya get the draft order? we are pretty much on the same level now with that.”

“Wait, a draft order? Why?” asked the Aeros, his mouth hanging open in shock.

“I dunno, you guys have the radio, not me,” I replied, my thoughts drifting to my father,”I wonder what Dad is doing, is he on the front lines, or sitting up in Canterlot wearing silk and eating with the Princesses?”

“Probably neither, last I heard, Cobalt was being stationed in Stalliongrad. Although that was two years ago...”

“I haven’t got a letter from Dad in about a month, he was in Canterlot then.”

“Anyways, a draft order?” Lightning asked, causing me to put a hand up, telling him to wait.

“Yeah, it went out a week ago,” I said, remembering something, “We got a stormball game tomorrow, so are you gonna stop being such a lousy runningback?”

“First off, I am not a lousy runningback,” I snorted, causing him to glare at me,” and secondly, since it’s been a week since the order, we have to go to the military offices tomorrow.”

“Bad timing, very bad timing. Are you sure? If so, bad timing by the Princesses."

“Do not question them, they are the reason we are even still a country.”

“They’re also the reason I live in a wood house and wear potato sacks all the time,” I said sarcastically,”It would be great if they, I dunno, got rid of the unequal rights of men, provided better education, get rid of the diarchy so the rest of the country can voice their opinion, and make more jobs for us who weren’t born rich.”

“Well, everyone our age is drafted, so there is your job,” Lightning Hoof replied,” And you shouldn’t be speaking that way, you have always been a lousy bum and a slacker, you haven't done an ounce of work in your life.”

“I-I.... Uh! What the hay, that was a low blow.”

“Why? I was only stating the truth."

“Well, maybe sometimes I like to forget the truth."

Lightning sighed, changing the conversation, “So where are you heading, anyways?”

“I heard that the Elements of Harmony arrived yesterday on important business, so I was going to see them,” I said with a shrug, "that is, after I ran out here to see if you wanted to go with me."

Lightning’s eyes bugged out and he glanced nervously at my hands. Grabbing some bandages out of the bag on his back he handed them to me.

“What are these for?” I asked, staring down at the cloth in my hands.

“You are special and you don’t need to accidentally light on fire.”

“I’ve always been able to light on fire. Sure, once it starts, I can't control it like Grasshopper or Dad, but it's not a big deal,” I said, running the strange new fabric between my fingers,” Wait, is this cotton? Doesn't this light really easily?"

“It's rare for an Aeros in Equestria and quite truthfully, I don’t know what I’d do if they took you,” He said, ignoring my question,” Just put them on, I’ll even help you.”

"I thought you weren’t allowed to touch those outside of the one class rule,” I replied, as I unrolled the bandages. The one class rule, which applied to all accept royalty, allowed a certain class to interact beyond talking with those one class above and below them. Hence why The Farmer-Merchant class could talk to or even hug the Traders and Warriors.

“We are both soldiers now, so we are the same class,” Lightning said as he took the other bandage from me and started wrapping it around my arm.

we sat in silence at Lightning Hoof wrapped and tied the cloth into place. The touch was weird, for he had never even shaken my hand. It was actually pleasant, to have someone help me and not be afraid to come near me. People tended to be wary of me and my inability to control my Empa beyond activating it, avoiding me except for a few of my friends, who all couldn’t even hug me or shake my hand because of our class difference. Lightning made a face as his hands brushed my hands.

“Why doe the hands feel the same as the rest of the skin?” He spoke to himself as he finished tying the knot on my right wrist, stepping back to look at his work,” Celestia, that was weird.”

“Meh, I agree with you,” I smirked as I opened my arms wide,”Now I get to hug you.”

“What!?” He squeaked, his voice going up several octaves.

“Haha, I was just kidding, but can I at least shake your hand since we are the same class?”

He stuck out his hand stiffly and I shook it.

“Why are your hands so rough?” He asked.

“Why are your hands so soft? It’s like shaking a newborn hairless cat.”

“What’s up with you and your similes?” He asked, beginning to walk down the road towards the tree.

“I said I was poor, not under-read.” I replied, walking up to the fallen tree and hopping over it in one swift motion.

I heard Lightning land next to me and we walked on together. The fields soon turned into forest as we neared the coast. I looked through the trees and saw the start of town, a small guard house hidden among the trees. The trees thinned out as we neared the town center, the sand and gravel of the beach visible from the road into town. Fishing boats sat lazily in the harbor, the fishermen most likely sleeping on the job. Picking up the pace, me and Lightning ran down the road and into the town center, where a crowd was beginning to gather.

In the middle of the crowd was an automobile, its sleek black walls and roaring engine a strange sight in our small fishing village. A man stepped out of the automobile, his dark cloak making impossible to tell who it was. He walked through the crowd and up to one of the small houses in the town center. It suddenly dawned on me that that was my house from the simple fact that is was made of wood rather than stone, unlike the other houses in the area. I watched closely as he knocked on the unpainted wood of the door.

Mom was at work right now, so the only other person at home right now would be-

“Grasshopper.”

My brother opened the door, his black hair neat as usual and his red eyes half-lidded behind his bifocals. He worked weird hours being a night guard at a local fishery, so he was usually home most of the day and left for work late in the evening. His eyes widened as he looked at the cloaked man and back at the automobile. Grasshopper nodded and walked back inside, closing the door.

The cloaked man walked over to the automobile and opened one of the back doors. A girl not much older than me stepped out of the automobile, her neat violet-streaked dark hair, ears, and wings signalling her as royalty. Out came a nervous young woman after her, her yellow and blue clothing showing her as a possible Trading-class. Next came a farmer, her blonde hair in a loose ponytail and her green eyes sparkling. Lastly, a young girl who would be exactly my age jumped out of the car, her multicolored hair and leather flight jacket giving her the air of a warrior-class.

They walked to my house, following the cloaked man as he opened the door for them. The door shut behind them and I ran up to it. Lightning ran right on my heels and looked nervously at the front door.

“Um...”

“Come on, you’re not gonna die from going in my house,” I said as I fished the key out from my pocket.

“Fine,” Lightning said, his lime wings slouching in defeat as I opened the door.

I sucked in a breath as I walked in, letting it out in one long yell,” Hey, Bro! I’m back! I got Lightning with me and we saw you had guests!"

The people from outside stared at me blankly as I ignored them, instead choosing to wait for my brother to reply. Looking around, I quickly noticed that Grasshopper was missing, most likely in one of the two other rooms of the house reading a book or something. I shrugged and walked over to the only bookshelf in the room.

I browsed through the books and soon realized nothing looked very interesting. I heard someone walk up next to me as I fished one of the old books out of the bookcase and sighed, turning to face them.

“Hello, I’m Twilight. Do You..... Live.....Here...” the violet-eyed girl trailed off as I held the book up in her face and tapped on the cover incessantly.

“Yeah, I live here, and you are royalty, did you forget the one class rule?" I said as I tucked the book under my arm, "Have you ever read one of the old books on the military history of Gryphus and Equestria? They are actually pretty good."

“Wait, this idiot is the so-called Fire Aeros?” said the rainbow-headed girl as she alighted next to the violet girl.

“I also happen to play on the stormball team and am friends with some of the Nobles,” I said, my speech pattern becoming clearer as I glared at the Aeros.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re not impressing me,” said the girl as she waved her hand at me, “save it for someone who actually cares.”

“why don’t I just set your hair on fire and then you tell me how impressed you are,” I mumbled, setting the book back on the shelf.

Little did I realize that my hands were on fire and the cotton bandages had already burned away and failed their mission. I looked down at my hands, a surprised look crossing my face. The rainbow girl had an eyebrow raised and Twilight had a look of complete fascination. I shook my hand in a vain attempt to set out the fire, but naturally it didn't work.

I looked desperately around the room, looking for something to stop the flames. The cloaked figure was starting to pull their cloak off, but I ignored them. The pink-haired girl looked a bit scared and the farmer just stood there with her arms crossed. Turning to Lightning, I faintly noticed the red mark beginning to grow on his forehead.

"Um, Lightning, help me, I can't remember how I set them out last time," I said with a begging tone, causing Lightning's open hand to meet his forehead.

"Didn't you punch something?" He asked, causing me to shake my head in frustration.

"The house is made of wood."

"Water?" Someone suggested, though I didn't bother to look and check who.

"Maybe, could someone- Grasshopper!" I nearly cried in relief.

Grasshopper walked out of one of the back rooms and stared at me and my flaming hands. He shook his head and walked up to me, grabbing the fire off my hands and making them into a little ball in his own. He then forced his hands away from one another, the flames dispersing into nothing. He nodded and walked away in the direction of the kitchen, waving awkwardly at the four girls and Lightning as they gawked at him.

Twilight shut her mouth and got a focused look on her face, “But there are two Fire Empas here...."

“Um, I think you mean three?" I said, causing an even more confused look to cross her face.

“Fire Flight?” said a voice from the other side of the room.

I looked over, forgetting the confused Teraruni and the annoying prismatic girl next to her. My eyes widened as they settled on the somewhat familiar figure of my Dad. He had left when I was thirteen, he never was stationed close enough to come home. He looked so much older, it was actually saddening to see wrinkles beginning to form in the corners of his eyes.

"Dad?" I said quietly as I walked towards him

"Dad?- wait, Cobalt is her dad?" I heard the voice of the rainbow girl say, quickly followed by the sound of a hand connecting with her head and what I could only assume was the voice of the farmer telling her she was as dumb as a hay bale

"It's me, Fiery," He said with a tired smile, a snort sounding from the direction of Lightning.

"Heh, Fiery, looks like someone has a new nickname," he as I groaned.

I looked back at my father, a glare falling across my face," You, Cobalt, abandoned us."

A hurt look crossed his face, a frown and scrunching of the eyebrows signaling slight confusion.

"You left us, to go and be a hero, you forgot about us. I haven't even seen you since I was thirteen. And you expect me the forgive you, well I'm sorry to offend you, Captain, but I don't."

"Wait, Fire Flight!" Dad called after me as I took off out the front door, flying away towards the boats sitting in the harbor.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I could feel the tears stinging my face as I landed aboard one of the vessels. I heard footsteps approach me as I sat down on the wooden deck, trying to stop the tears that ran down my face.

"Hey, you Aeros, you ain't allo- Fire Flight, what's wrong?" Asked a feminine voice, a hand grabbing my shoulder.

"Hey Mom," I said, standing up and turning to look at the shorter woman.

Her blue eyes flashed with worry, her dark brown hair done up in a bun. She hugged me as I cried, not quite ready to speak.

"So, what's wrong?" She asked after a few minutes, stepping back from me.

"D-dad came back today, I got mad and said a bunch of nasty things."

The Uni sighed, shaking her head, "I've told you before and I'll say it again; he did not abandon you."

I nodded, wiping the last of the tears from my eyes. She always told me the same thing, he left to fight for Equestria, to provide food for us, and to follow his destiny. I never quite believed her, instead assuming he had just abandoned us.

I sighed," I know."

"And with this war, he probably wanted to make sure he saw his children one last time, in case he didn't return."

"B-but me and Grasshopper have to go, too," I replied, rubbing my hands together,"The newest Teraruni and her friends are at our house right now, I don't know what they want."

Mom got a contemplative look on her face as she studied me, "You are telling me we have the Elements of Harmony at our house, and you are sitting out here on a fishing boat crying to your mother."

I nodded, my face flushing with embarrassment, "I should probably go back, shouldn't I?"

"Fire Flight, I believe you are destined for greatness, but your mentality of running when something gets tough is going to hold you back. It already has, unfortunately, so you better go, find out what the Elements want, and do something great."

I smiled and nodded, opening my wings and taking off, back towards home.

-------

“So, why are you here?” I asked, relaxing in the chair as everyone else piled onto the wood bench I called the couch.

I had flown in not five minutes earlier. Dad was standing in the corner and wouldn’t meet my gaze. Not that I would forgive him that quickly anyways. The Elements, minus two, looked on, Twilight with a look on her face that signaled she was thinking.

“We were actually looking for soldiers for the Seventh,” Twilight replied.

“I’ll join, so will Lightning, Solar, Grasshopper, Prism, and Lily,” I said, listing off the names of my friends who were drafted with me.

Grasshopper walked out of the kitchen, looking at me with a ruffled expression,” I never said I would join.”

“Neither did I,” said Lightning as he sighed,”But I guess I could.”

Grasshopper shook his head,”I will join because you and Dad are going. I am sure Cloud, and Zypher will be fine with Mom. “

The blonde farmer smiled from where she sat next to the rainbow-haired girl,”There ya go, Twilight, now we jus’ have t’ go back t’ Ponyville, get some more draftees from th’ military offices, an’ go an’ train.”

----------------Pov: Twilight

“It’s not that simple, remember, Rarity and Pinkie are discussing the papers with the Garrison right now, they won’t be able to attend boot camp with us until it is done. Plus, we don’t have any soldiers until the paperwork goes through,” I replied, sitting back in the surprisingly comfortable burlap chair.

Looking at the girl across from me, I took note of her appearance. She was younger than me, probably around the same age as Rainbow Dash. Her bright orange eyes shone with intelligence and arrogance. Her hair hung loosely in a quickly done ponytail, the rusty brown becoming lighter at the ends.

Looking back around the room, I glanced at Cobalt. This Fire Flight girl reminded me of a ruder and more arrogant version of him. Although I couldn’t have guessed that Cobalt came from a smaller and less noble family, it explained why he cared about his children so much. Nobles tended to ignore their children, letting servants and guards watch over them. The lower classes usually had to take care of their children, making them more attached and protective of them.

A young man stood off near the entrance, slight discomfort thrown across his square face. His blue eyes looked on curiously, his green hair reminding me of Spike in the way it stood. He was probably not much older than Applejack, but clearly lived a more comfortable life than the farmer. Despite his more well fed appearance, it was easy to tell he was an athlete.

Focusing back in on the conversation, I heard Applejack comment that we could always leave them out of training.

I huffed,” No, they will train with us, we still have to do paperwork, gather together the rest of the Cohort, and find other guards willing to train us.”

Cobalt nodded, “ We will be heading up to Fort Landbridge near The Windago border for training, It is a two day journey by train, but first we need a Cohort to send there. It will be about a week before we have everything together, so we will wait.”

The words of Fire still confused me, there were three Fire Aeros here, but who was the third?

Glancing over at Cobalt, My eyes widened. He was dancing fire across his hands unconsciously as he listened in on the conversation.

“Wait, wait, wait. I have a life that need to be living in the next week, I can’t just sit around and wait for two people I’ve never even met,” commented Fire Flight, shaking her head.

“It looks like your life is going to have to wait, we are at war, if we want to be able to have a life to go back to, you will be patient,” Said Cobalt to his daughter, a stony expression settling on his face as the fire disappeared from his hands.

Author's Note:

Yay, new characters!

But yeah, more old chapters will be posted soon.

Comments

[BlueLgihtening]

6194325
woah, chill. I fixed it, no need to get all wound up. But anyways, I'm not in the military, mister hotshot, if you have not noticed. I'm 15 for Christ's sake. So seriously calm down, your advice is helpful, but you need to work on delivery.