Rise of the Republic

by Commandobrony

Chapter III: Illusions

The day had been cold, the fact that he had just participated in a performance and had a high core body temperature made the air feel colder. Everything had a purple tint to it and everything looked soft, unreal. This was the last show of the year before off rotation, and they still hadn't made any progress on the mission. Bide, Infiltrate, Weaken and strike when vulnerable, those were the things he kept telling himself.

He was settled now, he still wanted to take the blue costume off when ever he got the chance, but Canterlot didn't make him uncomfortable any more, and the Wonderbolts themselves were enjoyable to be around. Yet everything about this made him grit his teeth.

He was alone in the small locker room, the team had already been and gone, but he lingered in the shower. The warm water running down his mane which was matted down in front of his eyes. Suddenly he heard the door click open. Somepony had entered.

“Hello?” Icarus called out

He heard was a playful laugh from outside the showers and the light tapping of hooves against the tile floor. He stuck his head out of the stall.

“Helloooo?” he said again

Confused he turned around and turned off the tap before walking out to the change rooms.

“Jade, if that's you; I'm not in the mood.” He called out as he walked the isles

He heard it again, that soft laughing and careful tapping of the hooves.

“Fine, I'm not playing your game!” he said with finality before turning around

“Now that's no fun.” The voice of the fiery mare jumped out from behind him

“Spitfire? What do you want?” His voice losing it's hostility and gaining confusion as he spun quickly back

Nothing was there

“Oh, this and that.” She said cryptically, her voice coming from farther away now

Icarus sighed with exasperation “Ma'am, with all due respect -”

Spitfire seemed to materialise in front of him and pressed a hoof hard against his shoulder, forcing him into a locker with a thud.

“Such formality in your tone Commander.” She said glaring at him with some kind of pure animal power “And here I thought we knew each other better.”

“Its – uh – professional relationship Ma'am.” Icarus stammered, unsure as where to go

“Is it? I've seen you looking at my flanks” She said running that hoof forcing him against the locker down his front leg

This is a lie

“What did you say?” Icarus asked confused

The golden pony laughed playfully “You heard me” she said, thrusting a playful hoof back into that same shoulder

This is a lie, you need to wake up

Icarus looked around “You don't hear that?”

“All I hear are to ponies... alone... I wonder what might happen?” she said seductively as she leaned in, her lips moving close to his ear, he heard her take a soft breath before starting to whisper.

WAKE UP!

***

Icarus awoke in the guest bed with a start, yelling out of shock. His mane was damp from sweat. A breeze from an open window cooled him. He smacked his hoof down beside him out of frustration.

“Goddess damn it” he said with an exasperated sigh “First erotic dream in six months, interrupted by...” He stopped, realising he didn't quite know what had interrupted it. He sighed again before throwing the doona off him and climbing out of the large soft bed in the guest chamber. "Buck it" he said with a sigh.

He walked slowly off towards the ensuite to wash his face. As he passed the window he paused to open them, only to be meet with the invasive brightness of the mid morning light. He took a second to adjust, squinting to filter out some of the light. Looking down, several animals in the royal garden were frolicking through the well kept grounds and a few platoons of royal guard were out on morning parade. Beyond the gates of the citadel he could hear the hustle of market and commerce and a gentle cool breeze kissed his face, slowly pushing his unkempt mane out of his eyes.

With a content sigh he made his way to the bathroom. He turned off the tap just as he heard the bedroom door click open

“Yeah, just come on in” he said sardonically sticking his head out of the bathroom

“Don't mind if I do.” It was Spitfire “You ready?”

Icarus put his hooves on the surface in front of the mirror and sighed “No question”

“Really?” Spitfire called out “You don't want to finish any errant dreams?”

“I forget; the walls in this palace have ears.” He said, making the fact that he was rolling his eyes apparent in his voice

“Yeah.” She laughed back

Icarus stepped out of the bathroom with a towel drapped over his neck, spitfire was resting against one of the pillars of the large bed with a mocking smirk.

“So? Were you having dirty thoughts about anyone I know?” She asked with a seductive smile

“If I did, I wouldn't go telling you, you'd probably try and set up a date.”

“And that's how little you know about me” She said shaking her head with a mocking smirk “Come on” Lifting her head to meet his gaze “We want to see what you can do.”

***
It was midday before the 'make up team' finished with him. As he suspected they spent a very long time cutting his feathers down. He hadn't realised he was so shabby; the head beautician, somepony with an odd accent, a ridiculous skirt and the in ability to hold on to a thought for more than half a second (not to mention a tail that whipped him across the face every time she changed her thought) kept complaining about accumulated dirt in his coat, some stray feathers in his wing and the length of his mane. Though she was impressed with his wingspan, size counts apparently.

Finally with a “You are now perfection embodied” he was allowed to leave the... he wasn't sure where that was... somewhere Stallions were not meant to tread.

So in his new blue body suit, with goggles around his neck, he stepped on to the desolate show ground, the stadium empty save for five wonderbolts and two princesses. Several obstacles were in the centre of the stadium, all made out of clouds.

“Ok.” Spitfire's voice bellowed from a megaphone “Before we try any synchronised flying I want you to show us what you can do on your own”

Icarus nodded curtly. He slid the goggles around his neck off and onto the ground; they broke his areodynamics. He began to walk at a fast pace, and he did that for about 50 metres

“Uh, Night, are you ok?” Spitfire asked

As she did he looked at her with a smirk, unfurled his wings and swept down once. He still moved his legs like he was walking, like he was walking up on air. The speed of his assent was slow, and he began to fall backwards when he got to about 10 metres. He swept his wings in reverse, pushing him self up while he was upside down, back to about 10 metres before he righted himself. He brought his wings up and then forced them down as hard as he could, shooting off with a starting acceleration almost unheard of in pony kind, the sheer displacement of wind bellowed against the ground below. He was off, one circuit of the stadium in about four seconds, the second in about two and a half. Then flying down the middle he approached some pillars made out of clouds. Sacrificing little speed he weaved in and out of them with ease before coming to a quick stop and charging in the opposite direction at the hoops. He built up speed before hitting them where he just spread his wings out and glided through them. Pulling his body up with the first loop, forcing it to bank to the left with the first turn, thrusting his wings down to pick up a bit more speed and then bringing them in as he hit a cork screw. His trajectory sent him straight at the spectators. At the last second he pulled his wings back out and banked gracefully out the way, though undoubtedly frazzling some pony’s hair with his tail wind.

He did one more lazy circuit of the stadium until he came to a stop on the track in front of the spectators before taking a bow.

“Speed, control and flair are good” Spitfire said

“Cocky little foal ain't yah?” the pony Icarus identified as Soarin' added

“Soarin', every pony's seen you fly.” Icarus said comically

“Oh yeah, whats that supposed to mean?”

“Somepony's gotta try and take the spotlight from you, and I'm the only stallion that has a chance to do it.”

“I'd like to see you try.” the challenge had a respectful infection, one that seemed to go over Spitfire's head

“Colts, settle down.” she said firmly “Icarus, you have any special tricks?”

Icarus sighed with a superior smirk “You guys have heard of the Sonic Rainboom and our Spitfire is a master of the Solstice Trail Blaze, right?”

“Yeah”

“Have you ever heard of the Eclipse?” He said cryptically

Celestia closed her eye's and smirked “It had a different name once upon a time.” he knew that, but he felt she already suspected something was off about him “Its very dangerous to do, you'll be careful won't you.”

“No promises your Majesty.”

Again he unfurled his wings and took off, though not as quickly. The Canterlot stadium was already on a high mountain, he would need to climb to a really high altitude to get the speed necessary to hit the boom, but then he wasn't called Icarus simply for the metaphor. The air got thinner and thinner the higher he went, but he was used to this. Long deep breaths to get the oxygen in and pure concentration when that was no longer enough to stop his mind fogging. Just as his limit, as the blue of the sky had darkened and he could begin to see the star field of space he pulled his wings in and fell backwards. For 30 seconds his acceleration was constant, but as the barrier approached the air compression in front of him began to accumulate. Carefully he extended his wings so as not to break his aerodynamic and forced himself forward as hard as he could. He began to shake as it came closer and closer. Finally with a deafening boom he broke the barrier. The way the air flowed over him caused it to compress, either to the point of a singularity or to the point where Dark Matter became visible, because behind him a streak of black light formed made from something so dense that if light didn't bend around it, it couldn't escape. As the ground approached, Icarus began to pull back, pulling up at the last moment. The black streak of energy ripped the earth up from the ground, leaving a narrow trench in the centre of the Stadium. He flew out, making sure to keep his distance from the buildings of Canterlot and passed close to the waterfall that flowed down from the top of the mountain. The energy pulled the water in, vaporised it causing a rainbow to form in the most strangest way around the beam of energy, before atomising it inside. Where the beam dissipated what was left behind detonated, becoming alight and flaming. He pulled back up and headed back towards the stadium, slowing right the way down and causing the beam to dissipate completely before coming to a stop.

“How... was... that?” he asked, panting heavily

“Kind of amazing” Spitfire said with her eyes wide and her jaw dropped

“Did you... Did you see the bit... with the waterfall?... I didn't know it could... do that.” He asked, the panting doing nothing to diminish his amazement

“T'was quite impressive” Luna said with a smile

Icarus nodded respectfully “So... am I... in?”

Spitfire and Celestia looked at each other with an almost sinister smile on each of their faces “Indeed you are, Leuitennat.” Celestia said with a soft smile.

Comments

[TheBlackPanda]

Someone paid attention in physics class...

[Commandobrony]

388114

Not really, Just far too much Star Trek... and no Q will not be making an appearance, and his name IS Q, I don't know where people are getting this discord nonsense

I mean the idea that an un-aerodynamic object travelling faster than the speed of sound would cause an air compression behind said object so intense that if forms a singularity/forces darkmatter into our universe is ludicrous, however so is the idea that breaking the speed of sound with break the light spectrum.

[Cobalt Shine]

388606 no Q?!?! . rage ooh btw im also making a new one! My 2nd Fiction Q will be in it
if you have the time can you take a look, ugh i havnt edited yet nor has my mate helped me yet, but he's editing it voluntarily so he can take as long as he likes

[Commandobrony]

392622

Q doesn't need to be in EVERY friggin' story, especially one where Celestia is the antagonist...

Saying that one could argue that the Protagonist is an agent of chaos... I dunno, I'm kindo of split on the themes of the narrative my self and I KNOW how it plays out, I would expect (Hope) that it would polarise the audience, but then I don't think I'm good enough to pull that off.

Worth a shot though!

Oh, and plug much!?!