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Chapter 3

10 years later

“Come on!”

“Do I have to?”

“It’ll be fun!”

“We both know I’m faster than you, you lose every time!”

“Not this time!”

“You do know that you can only get into The Wonderbolts if you graduate from Flight School?”

“Well I’m going to be the exception!” Static turned and grinned confidently at her friend, “You might be fast, but you’re terrible when it comes to doing tricks!”

“Don’t get your hopes up!”

“Are you going to race me or not?” She nudged him gently with her hoof, “Please, Vesuvius, you know how much this means to me!”

His expression softened when she said this, and he nodded, “Fine, but I won’t go easy on you like the last few times!”

“Pfft!” Static laughed, “We’ll see!” She looked up at the sky, Princess Celestia was already beginning to lower the sun, but Static was competitive and she wouldn’t be satisfied until she had won this race, “How about we race to those dark clouds over there? First one to get to that big one in the middle wins!” She pointed up to where a group of heavy, black clouds were gathering.

“You mean the Weather Factory? That’s a pretty long way.” Vesuvius frowned.

“Ah, we can make it there and back in plenty of time!”

“I don’t like the look of those clouds!”

“It’ll be fine! Three . . . Two . . . One . . . GO!”

Static took off at a speed which surprised even her. She beat her wings relentlessly against the air, accelerating faster than she had ever done before. The wind pulled through her hair and her eyes watered, but she kept on pushing herself to go forward.

She heard Vesuvius’ wings beating furiously behind her, then caught a glimpse of his bright red mane from the corner of her eye. She couldn’t get distracted. Her wings heaved as she flew higher, trying to outmanoeuvre him.

They were halfway already. Static knew she had wasted her energy on a swift start, but she had wanted to prove that she could do it; more to herself than to Vesuvius.

Faster. She forced her wings to keep pushing against the evening air, despite how breathless she was becoming. She was more focussed than ever, and as she briefly glanced back, she realised that she was in the lead. The dark clouds were growing nearer as each second passed, and she was determined that this time she was going to beat him.

“Hey Static!”

She looked around as Vesuvius kicked a small cloud in her direction. There was no time to swerve, and although Static flew straight through the cloud, the cold shocked her and caused her to slow down, leaving enough time for Vesuvius to take the lead.

“Cheat!” She shouted, shaking off the water droplets and beginning to pick up speed again.

“You need to always be prepared for obstacles!” He shouted back with a chuckle.

“You’ll regret that!” She pounded her wings even harder than before, fuelled by her anger. She couldn’t let him win now. She felt the adrenaline rush through her as she caught up to him. They were now neck and neck, both with the same determined look on their face. However fast Static flew, Vesuvius matched her. She narrowed her eyes, the finishing point now only feet away. They were still side by side, and no matter how much Static tired, she couldn’t break into the lead.

They hit the cloud with incredible velocity, causing parts of it to break away.

Panting, Static got to her hooves, “You dirty cheat!”

Vesuvius laughed, “We still drew, didn’t we?”

“I would have won that time if you hadn’t kicked that stupid cloud in my face!”

“And then what?”

Static looked up, confused, “What do you mean?”

“Well what’s the goal then? Once you beat me? You’ll have nothing to aim for!”

“You’re the fastest flyer I know! Once I’m sure I can beat you, I know I’ll be able to ace The Wonderbolts’ tryouts!” She smiled just at the thought.

“Static . . . be serious.” He wasn’t laughing anymore, and he took a step closer to her. He looked concerned.

“I am being serious!”

“Nopony who hasn’t passed Flight School has ever made it into The Wonderbolts. In fact, I’ve heard that they get banished from Cloudsdale!” He put his hoof around her softly, “Static, you can’t try out for The Wonderbolts! If they see you haven’t been to Flight School, you’ll get kicked out of the city!”

“Says who? I have what it takes! I know I do! And when they see what I can offer, they’ll want me to join regardless of whether or not I have any stupid qualifications!” She pushed him away; hurt by what he said despite knowing deep down that it was the truth.

“Listen to yourself . . .”

“Is this because you don’t want me to leave? Because you’re happy living in this dump and so expect me to be? I don’t want to live on the underside of society all my life! Why shouldn’t I at least try to make something more of myself?”

“Static that’s not what I meant!”

“So what is it then? Are you scared that if I make it, you won’t have me all to yourself anymore?”

“I don’t want to see you get your dreams crushed. Ponies like us, we don’t get to be Wonderbolts . . . we don’t get to be anything!” Vesuvius sat down and gestured for her to do the same.

“I thought that-” Static stopped herself, feeling a tear roll down her cheek.

“What? . . . Static?”

“I thought that if I have enough money and influence, I might be able to find my father.” She wiped away her tears, ashamed that Vesuvius was seeing her like this.

“Static I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to hurt your feelings; I just want to protect you from getting hurt.” He hugged her again, and this time she didn’t push him away.

“I know you’re right really, but I need to know what happened to him. Ponies don’t just disappear, and every time I ask my mother about it she just shouts at me. I have to find him!”

Vesuvius sighed; he wasn’t very good when it came to things like this. He tried so hard to think of something comforting to say, but he knew words were not likely to fix this.

He looked around, “The Weather Factory is pretty creepy at night!”

Static was relieved at the change of subject, “Yeah, I wonder what makes these clouds so black! They’re not like the other clouds . . . they kind of smell weird.” She inhaled deeply, “Can you smell that? Like . . . burning?”

“They come from the Upper Level, I think.”

“Upper Level?”

“Yeah, I think they make rainbows there . . . or something like that. Everything there is top secret. Nopony knows what they do in there!” Vesuvius lowered his voice to a hushed whisper, as if he was telling a ghost story.

“You’re right, it is creepy. We should leave!”

“Not scared are you?” He teased.

“No! How about you?” She grinned.

“. . . Maybe a little.”

“Race you home?”

“You have got to be kidding me!” He rolled his eyes, but Static was already flying back. Vesuvius smiled and took off after her.

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Newt

Newt #1 · Jul 26th, 2014 · · ·

U need some help in writingit's unprofessional to have chapters less than 1000 words

Static Shimmer

Static Shimmer #2 · Jul 27th, 2014 · 1 · ·

4755081 I appreciate your concern, however I don't think that anyone who says 'u' instead of 'you' really has any place to criticise. Also, as an A* English student, I can categorically state that chapter length is completely up to the author. As a writer, I can finish my chapters when I see fit, and what is appropriate to the story. The first chapter ends where it does because between Chapter One and Chapter Two there is a time jump, and the beginning of Chapter Two has a change of tone which I deemed unfitting for the middle of a chapter. Chapter 2 ends where it does due to the fact that it is a small glance into a window of time, like a flashback, and the events will be slowly revealed through short insertions throughout the rest of the story.

A short glance at your profile reveals some appalling grammar, so I think you actually have a lot of nerve to criticise me. That comment is not constructive in any way, and I would appreciate it if you would no longer leave any more comments on my work.

Newt