> Go!
>  by Closer-To-The-Sun
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1: High
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 1: High

It was a bright and sunny day in Cloudsdale. It matched the attitude of a certain little filly. She was eager and excited beyond anypony’s imagination. Because after begging and pleading with her parents, they finally allowed her to attend camp. This wasn’t just any weekly camp for colts and fillies. On the contrary, it was a special camp for pegasus’ and other flying creatures. It was Junior Speedster Flight Camp and it was the young blue filly’s dream to go there. Trotting through the front gates, the little pony was living her dream, and to say the least, Rainbow Dash was excited.

Making her way to the table in the front with a banner reading ‘Junior Speedster Flight Camp Sign In’, Rainbow looked to the ponies on the other side with a bright smile on her face and a bounce in her step, “Hi, I’m here for the flight camp!”

One of the pegasus’ smiled back and nodded, “Excellent, name please?”

“Rainbow Dash!” her enthusiasm was hard for her to keep down.

Looking on a clipboard, the pony replied, “Alright, Rainbow Dash. You’re checked in! Here is your packet with your information for the week. Now just head over to the common area over with the rest of the attendees and you’ll be instructed of what to do next. The welcoming ceremony is about to begin.”

“Awesome, thank you!” Dash said as she hurried over to where she was instructed. She was careful with her galloping, as she didn’t want to lose anything out of her duffle bag, which included some keepsakes from home and a few items that her parents packed for her.

Arriving in the common area, Dash was looking at her new surroundings among the campers of pegasus ponies and other flying creatures such as dragons and griffins. She finally took a grasp of where exactly she was. She recognized where she was because of all the flight training films she watched, the camp was taking place at the Wonderbolts’ own personal air field. It made her even more excited at the thought of being at the same place where Wonderbolts were not only trained, but also selected to fly high up in the sky.

However, Dash was snapped out of her day dreaming when she heard a loud, booming voice.

“Alright, trainees! Line up, front and center!”

No pony questioned from who or where the voice was coming from. All of the campers were quick to line up in a single file line on the clouds. As all faced forward, a white pegasus with a tan hat and shirt stepped before them all and began to pace in front of the campers.

“Welcome to Junior Speedster Flight Camp, campers,” he began, “I am Lee Merry, personal trainer to the Wonderbolts. I am here today to personally welcome you to a small taste of what it means to fly among the ranks of the best flyers in all of Equestria.”

Rainbow Dash heard a mare a few spots over whisper, “This is going to be so much fun!”

This caught the attention of Lee Merry, “Fun?” he quick trotted over to the pony who spoke, “You think this is going to be fun, filly? I hate to be the weight on your wings, but this camp isn’t about fun, it’s about pushing yourself to your limits. It’s about turning your weak spirit into an iron strong bond that will turn you into candidates the Wonderbolts will be unable to refuse.”

’Now that’s what I’m talking about!’ Dash thought with a smirk on her face.

The pony he was talking to was now shrinking back and frightened. Lee backed away from the pony and continued pacing in front of the ponies, “This camp isn’t a vacation, it is for training! I hope you are here for the right reasons, because if you are not, you can leave right now and spare yourself from a week of trial.” The white pegasus continued his pacing and narrowed in on Rainbow Dash. He moved forward and brought his face uncomfortably close to her, “What is your name, filly?”

“Sir, Rainbow Dash, sir!” the blue filly replied. She knew how to address drill instructors thanks to her father teaching her.

“Rainbow Dash? Where are you from?” Lee shouted right back.

“Cloudsdale, sir!” she replied.

“A local, huh? What brings a small little filly like you here? You’re wings don’t seem to be all that strong. Are you trying to make me laugh with that?” his words were insulting to Dash, but she bared with it.

“Sir, no, sir!”

The instructor shouted right back, “Then what brings to flight camp? Is it because your parents bought your way in?”

“Sir, no, sir! I want to become a better flyer! I want to become a good enough for the Wonderbolts, sir!”

Lee backed his head off slightly to scan Dash from her hooves to the top of her messy mane, “Well, that’s a big dream for a small little punk like you,” he turned his head, “And you got yourself no cutie mark. How do you expect to join the Wonderbolts without even knowing if this is something you can do?”

Rainbow Dash answered quickly, “I will try my hardest, sir!”

“You got a lot of guts for a small filly, Dash. Let’s see if you can keep that up,” Lee left the blue pony and moved along down the line, continuing his speech.

Dash took a sigh of relief. She felt proud of herself and she thought her dad would also be proud of her. If she was able to talk her way with a drill instructor shouting at her, it was already a victory for her. Rainbow then returned to listening to the instructor. However, it seemed that he found another target for his shouting.

“A griffin? You’re quite the rarity up here in this area. What’s your name?”

“Sir, Gilda, sir!”

“Gilda? What brings a griffin like you here to Junior Speedster Flight Camp?” Lee looked closely at her.

Without missing a beat, Gilda replied, “To become faster, sir!”

“Faster, huh? What for?”

“So I can push myself to be the best flyer than any pegasus pony, sir!” Gilda’s voice sounded arrogant.

“Well, it looks like we got ourselves the one who will be at the top of the class,” Lee spoke out for all to hear, “Now you all know who you have to beat in every race! I like your moxie, griffin, but we’ll see if your wings can keep up with the words you speak.”

“They will, sir!” Gilda smirked.

Lee Merry continued his speech to the line up of the campers. “Alright, you fresh meat, listen up. You will start tomorrow with your training. You will all be working in pairs throughout the week. You will success as pairs or you will fail as pairs, it is up to you and your partner. You all have been assigned dorms and are paired with your dorm mate, and the details are in your packets. I wish you all the best for the upcoming week, if you survive the week that is.”

With that, Lee Merry flapped his wings and took off from the area. The campers all took out their packets to look at their assignments before scrambling off to the dormitories.

Dash joined the massive crowd to her home for the week. Once inside the dorms, she was quick to find her room. She opened the door, finding the entire room empty save two desks, two beds, two dressers, a window on the far edge of the room, and a door to the bathroom. She quickly claimed the bed near the window and placed her duffle bag on the mattress. She opened the bag, and started taking the items out. A few pieces of clothing were placed in the dresser next to the bed. She then took out a picture frame of her family, her parents and herself, and placed it on top of the dresser.

On top of her next pile of clothing, Rainbow saw a piece of parchment that she had not put in her bag. Grabbing it wither hoof, she took it out and unfolded it. Inside, it read ‘Do your best and have fun at flight camp, Rainbow Dash! We’re proud of you!’ The small letter brought a smile to the filly’s face.

The sudden opening of the door caused Dash to panic and shove her note into the top draw of her dresser with her clothes. She was quick to turn her head and see a griffin in her.

“W-Who are you?” Rainbow Dash was a little shaken up by the griffin’s sudden appearance.

“The name’s Gilda, and it seems I’ll be crashing with you for this week.”

> Chapter 2: Little Wing
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 2: Little Wing

Rainbow Dash finally took a good look of her new roommate. She was about the same size as the pegasus filly, just maybe a feather or two higher. However, Dash had never met another than was not a pony. The feathers that covered her where brown all over her body save the white and purple ones that encompassed her head. A bold yellow color painted her beak and the talons on her front limbs.

“You wanna take a picture? It’ll last longer,” Gilda remarked slightly annoyed.

“Oh, sorry. It’s just I’ve never seen a non-pony before,” Rainbow Dash admitted.

Gilda seemed to brush it off, “Eh, I’m used to it. So, yeah, I’m Gilda. Who are you, pint-size?”

“I’m Rainbow Dash,” she spoke, firm in herself.

“Oh, you were one of the others that instructor yelled out during the welcoming ceremony,” the griffin recounted.

“Heh, yeah,” Dash rubbed the back of her neck with one of her hooves, “that’s me.”

“Hey, don’t sweat it, I was too,” Gilda took her bag and placed it on the other bed, starting to unpack.

The little filly could not help but stare at the griffin’s body. To her, it was strange and alien, as if a number of different animals were just shoved together into one creature. What Dash took most note of were the wings on Gilda’s back. They seemed very large on the griffin. Dash then looked at her own wings, which were very small on her.

Gilda noticed Rainbow had been staring, “Hey, what’s with you?”

“Huh?” Rainbow stopped looking at her own wings.

“I said what’s up? It’s kinda obvious you were looking at me. If you wanna say something, say it,” she explained.

Dash bit her lip slightly, “Well, it’s just that your wings are really large….for your size that is.”

Gilda looked at her wings, flapped them twice and then replied, “Yeah, they kinda are. They grew really fast. My dad says it runs in our family.”

This remark kind of made Dash a little depressed when she thought about both of her parent’s wing sizes.

“You know wing sizes don’t exactly make or break flyers, right?”

“I know….” Dash mumbled, “I just don’t like mine that much.”

The griffin paused for a moment to think and then replied, “You want to try to become one of them Wonderbolts, right?”

Dash nodded.

“Well, don’t stop trying at it. I mean, just because you have small wings doesn’t mean they won’t grow later or anything like that,” Gilda tried her best to comfort her new roommate.

“I guess you got a point,” Dash smiled slightly, “So what do you want to? Why are you here, Gilda?”

She just finished packing her stuff anyway as she heard the question. “Me? I wanna fly fast and hard,” she explained, hopping up on her bed, “I wanna be the best flyer around. I wanna make pegasus ponies wish they were as good as me. No offense or anything to ya.”

“None taken.”

“But I want to make fillies and colts look at me flying and say ‘check that griffin out’. I wanna push myself harder than I ever had before and reach new speeds,” Gilda raised a claw and imagined it as if it were her flying through the air.

“Wow, that’s some dream,” Dash commented.

“And I’m gonna make it happen. So, I’m going to give it all,” Gilda’s voice was proud and strong.

“Well, let’s make an unstoppable team this week so we both can reach our goal of being awesome!” Rainbow Dash raised her hoof up in the air.

Gilda grabbed the hoof with her talon and gave a determined smile right back to the pegasus, “Totally!”

As the two shared a moment of camaraderie, the moment was interrupted by the growling of their stomachs. The two looked at each other in a moment of awkward silence before they realized it was time for dinner.

“Shall we hit the mess hall?” Gilda was the first to speak.

“Yeah, let’s.”

The two roommates left the dorms and followed the mass exodus of campers to the mess hall for their first meal of camp. It was here that Rainbow Dash saw a few more other non-pegasus ponies present. There were a few other griffins, a couple dragons, and even a manticore, which surprised the filly. Another aspect that Dash noticed was the ages of all of the campers in attendance. While a good number were young fillies and colts, some older ponies were also present, those with and without cutie marks.

“Hey, hurry up, we don’t want to be last in line,” Gilda nudged Dash as they continued inside of the mess hall.

Rainbow and Gilda got in line for their food. The two made small talk as they waited, looking around at the different campers that were present. After getting their food, the two sat down at a table.

“What is this?” Gilda looked at the food on her tray.

Rainbow peered over at her food, “Grass and potatoes. Guess they weren’t expecting too many non-ponies to attend.” Rainbow pointed over to a dragon looking depressed at his tray.

“How do you ponies eat this stuff?” Gilda said in a huff, “What I wouldn’t do for a chocolate milkshake.”

Rainbow Dash ignored the griffin’s sourness and started to eat. This lasted only so long, however, as the pegasus was pestered by a voice she remembered.

“Well, if it isn’t Rainbow Crash!” a voice called out.

Without turning towards the voice and with her mouth full, Dash spoke softly and full of distain, “Oh sweet Celestia, why are they here?”

“Who?” Gilda asked before moving her head up to see two colts moving towards their table.

“Hey, Rainbow Crash, what are you doing here? I thought this camp was for ponies with talent!” the light brown stallion looked over Rainbow’s shoulder.

“Leave me alone and let me eat in peace,” Dash stated, holding in her disgust as best as she could.

“Why? Do you want to eat alone like the loser you are? The same loser who has such small wings?” the stallion with the darker brown coat asked.

“I don’t think so, Dumbbell, she just wants to be alone with her loser friend!” the other replied.

“Hoops, Dumbbell, just go away. I’m not in the mood for your stupidness right now,” Dash finally turned around and spoke to the two face to face.

Hoops chuckled, “I get it, you want to be alone with your friend.”

Dumbbell also snickered, “Figures that you would befriend a griffin, Rainbow Crash. Only they could put up with a loser like you!”

Gilda, who had been silent the entire time, finally lost what little patience she had and lunged at two colts. This caught everypony by surprise as the griffin began to hit the two ponies. Rainbow Dash couldn’t help but smile as she watched Gilda beat up the two bullies she had known for years. Getting excited, Dash joined in to help Gilda, as Hoops and Dumbbell were starting to fight back.

By this time, the entire mess hall was watching the fight before them. Some were shocked to see something as such unfold before them. Some others, however, were cheering them on, wanting to see how far the fight could go.

A few minutes passed before a few counselors stepped in to separate the two girls from the colts they were beating up on. It took five of the camp counselors to separate them along with a chorus of shouts along the lines of “Break it up!”, “Stop it!”, and other phrases in effort to stop the violence. All four of them were breathing heavily as they were pulled away from each other. Each of them had bruises of their body and even some blood from the bloody nose that Hoops received from Gilda smashing her talon into his muzzle.

One of the counselors spoke, “What happened here?”

Dumbbell spoke, “That griffin! She just went crazy on us!”

“And you deserved it, you little punk!” Gilda bit back at the colt, trying to break free from the counselor that was restraining her.

“Yeah!” Dash chimed in.

“Stop it, all of you. I don’t know who started this, but you all were fighting and you all are in trouble,” the counselor spoke, “But let’s just get you to the nurse first.”

The four were led out of the mess hall to the nurse station where they were all patched up for their injuries. The only major issue was the bloody nose on Hoops, but overall the aftermath of the fight was, as the nurse put it, ‘just a schoolyard scuffle’.

Afterwards, the four were sent to the head counselor of the camp. First the colts were sent in, leaving Gilda and Dash sitting outside of the office on the wooden bench. A strong silence was between them as they waited.

“Hey,” Dash broke the silence.

“Yeah?” Gilda replied, turning her head towards the filly, showing the patch on her face.

“No matter what happens in there, I want to say thanks for standing up for me. It’s really the first time anypony has done that for me,” the pegasus smiled warmly. 

Gilda couldn’t help but smile back, “Eh, it was nothing. You’d do the same for me, I’m sure.”

“In a heartbeat. You’re an awesome friend, Gilda.”

The griffin paused for a moment before replying, “Thanks, Rainbow Dash. You are, too.”

Dash laughed, “We sure got them good, though!”

“Yeah, we did! Though it did really hurt when that stupid Dumbbuck or whatever his name is bit my wing,” Gilda said, looking at her right wing.

“Pfft….come on, we did far worse to them. And if the injuries aren’t enough, they won’t live down that it was from a couple of girls!” Dash laughed, looking at the bandages around her left limb and around her torso.

Gilda joined in the laughter. Their moment was cut short by the sound of the opening door. Trotting out were two colts. Dumbbell’s wing was wrapped entirely in bandages and so was his back left leg, while Hoops had paper towels in his nose to stop the bleeding and neck brace on. The two left the area quickly and in silence. From inside the office, a voice spoke.

“Gilda and Rainbow Dash, please enter.”

The two did as instructed and trotted in. The office was very plain and dull to the senses. Two chairs were placed before the desk, which had a very disgruntled stallion behind it. His green coat and dark blue mane stood out most in the room.

“Please, have a seat,” he offered. The two sat down and he began to speak, “I’m sure you two are well aware of why you are here. I must say I am disappointed that such an incident has happened, particularly when it is not even the first day of camp. Do you have anything to say for yourself in your defense?”

“It wasn’t our fault! Those two idiot colts start it all when they started bothering us!” Rainbow Dash was very vocal with her statement.

“I am aware,” he replied, “They admitted that they were in the wrong, however this does not mean you are completely innocent here.”

“Huh?” Dash was puzzled.

The head counselor continued, “Just because you did not start these chain of events does not make you entirely blameless. Particularly you, Gilda. If I am correct, you are the one who jumped at the colts at the colts first, correct?”

The griffin was silent.

“Miss Gilda?”

“Yes, yes, I did,” she finally spoke.

“That’s all I need to hear from you. I will be lenient with the two of you jut as I was with the colts. You won’t be kicked out of camp, but I don’t want to see anymore mischief from any of you, understand?” the head counselor’s displeasing glare pierced through the two girls sitting before him.

“Yes, sir,” Dash was quick to reply.

Gilda, however, took more time with her response, “Yeah, yeah, I get it.”

The look on the counselor face grew softer and then had a small smile appear, “Good. I hope I don’t have to see you two in my office again. I wish you the best in your activities this week. You are dismissed.”

With that, the two roommates exited the office and returned to the dorms. Despite the very rocky start her Junior Speedster Flight Camp experience, Rainbow Dash was ready to take on the first day of camp.
> Chapter 3: Cyclone
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 3: Cyclone

The brightness of Celestia’s sun woke up the training camp in Cloudsdale at an early hour. Throughout the dorms, pegasus ponies, griffins, dragons, and the rest of campers slowly moved themselves from their warm beds and rooms out into the chilly morning and to the mess hall. Among them, Rainbow Dash was with the masses, near the end of the mass of campers. She was not a morning filly. In fact, it was a miracle she managed to get up and out of her bed on her own will. With a yawn, she trotted along to follow the large group for breakfast.

Inside the mess hall, Dash got in line for her food and quickly sat down at a table. Her entire body seemed to be moving without input from her brain, as if it was just responding to the environment around her. Her eyes were half open as she looked down at her tray yawned again.

“Oatmeal and apples….” she mumbled to herself. Dash repeatedly tried to keep her head up, but ultimately failed as her head fell right into her bowl of oatmeal. She had fallen right back to sleep.

A few moments later, Gilda arrived at the mess hall and quickly got her food from the counter. The griffin arrived to the table with the sleeping Rainbow Dash. Gilda sat down and hit the table with her talon to startle the blue pegasus awake.

“I wasn’t sleeping, I swear!” Rainbow Dash blurted out of habit. She quickly looked around to realize she was not where she thought she was, “Oh, right, not at school….”

“Rise and shine, Dash,” Gilda spoke as she began to eat her oatmeal.

Dash took a sigh of relief, “Oh, it’s just you. For a sec, I though I was sleeping in class again.”

“Nope, just me.”

Rainbow Dash rubbed her eyes and got a better look at her roommate, “How can you not be tired? What’s got you so bright eyed and bushy tailed?”

Gilda raised the talon that did not have a spoon in it and spoke, “One, my tail isn’t bushy, and two, how can you not be? We’re starting our Junior Speedster Flight Camp today.”

“Yeah, I’m stoked and all,” Dash replied with a yawn, “But why does it have to be at the crack of dawn. Can’t we just wait until, you know, noon or something?”

“Taking a wild guess that you’re not a morning pony?”

“What gave it away?” Dash finally began to eat her breakfast.

The griffin shook her head, “I just thought you might be as stoked for this as I am. I mean, I already did a few laps of the air field this morning.”

“Well, that answers my question of where you were when I woke up.”

“By the way,” Gilda spoke with her mouth full, “you know what we are doing today?”

Rainbow Dash thought for a moment to remember the schedule, “I think we have a speed race this morning and then a class for the afternoon.”

Gilda simply nodded as the two friends continued to eat their breakfast.

The campers were led out from the mess hall to the air field. It was there that most of them began to start stretching on their own. Rainbow Dash, in particular, was finally starting to wake up to her normal self. With one last yawn, the blue pegasus stretched out her limbs and wings. She then looked at her little wings, a bit crestfallen. However, she then began to flap them at a very fast speed, warming them up for the day. This changed her attitude and caused a big smile to appear on Dash’s face.

“Listen up!” a stallion counselor began to speak over the chatter amongst the crowd, “As you are aware, we will be doing a speed race this morning. Nothing to extravagant, just a base time trial to see where you all stand on speed.”

“Speed? That’s one thing I got!” Dash proudly boasted in a hushed tone.

“You will be working with your partner to try and get the lowest combined time,” he continued, “Remember, this is not a race. It’s a time for you to improve upon later in the week. The course is simply the air strip we are on.”

“You ready to blow these chumps out of the water, Dash?” Gilda gave a confident smile to her partner.

“Totally!”

“Pair up and wait for your names to be called!” the counselor finished as other counselors helped him gather the campers together and to one end of the airfield.

The first pair to test their speed were a pair of pegasi. Following them was a pair that included a dragon and a peagsus. As time went on, all the campers were able to see how fast each of them were. Rainbow Dash and Gilda were sitting on the sides, watching each and every creature fly down the runway. They would make notes of the speedy flyers and often mock those who were slow, mainly the flyers who could not keep up with their partner.

“Next up: Rainbow Dash and Gilda!” the counselor called out their names.

Dash stood up on her hooves, “Alright, let’s show these slowpokes what it means to be fast!”

The two got to the starting position and knelt down. In both of their eyes, there was a strong determination to speed of.

“Ready, go!”

The instant the word left the counselor’s lips, Gilda and Dash were already off the starting line. In fact, the combined starting speed of both of them caused a very small cyclone behind them that caused the papers on the counselor’s clipboard to fly off.

As for Dash and Gilda, the two were speeding off at the same pace down the runway. The air whizzed past their ears as they kept going faster. As for who was in the lead, it was almost impossible to tell. One moment Rainbow would be in the lead by the tip of her nose, and the next moment Gilda would be ahead by the tip of her yellow beak.

The spectators could only stare in awe at the fast speed the two were going. Many of the campers had their mouths open in shock of the speed the small filly could go with others were amazed to see Gilda live up to the words she spoke just the day before.

At the end of the runway, Rainbow Dash and Gilda crossed the finish line in a blur of speed. The counselor, however, admitted he could not make out a clear winner between the two. He scribbled down on his clipboard as he shook of the surprise from his face and prepared for the next pair to go down.

Rainbow and Gilda, however, were unable to slow down fast enough and ran into a cloud. Two camp counselors rushed over to check on the two. Inside the cloud, they heard laughter from both Dash and Gilda, who had a soft landing, but ran into each other within the cloud and were starting to wrestle each other.

The rest of the time trials went off uneventful compared to the two speed demons that were Rainbow Dash and Gilda. With the break for lunch, the times were posted for the campers to see. Campers gathered around the board and looked to see their times. Written at the top spot, Dash and Gilda’s names were there with their combined time of being the best by far. A special note was written next to it, reading “unable to determine fastest of the two”.
> Chapter 4: Aces High
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 4: Aces High

After the classroom work that accompanied the day’s flying exercises, the campers were free for the day just as dinner was being served in the mess hall. There was a lot of clamor amongst the campers about the next day’s activities. Two campers in particular were excited about the next day.

“So, you excited for tomorrow?” Rainbow Dash asked, taking a bite of her fruit.

Gilda was sitting across from her, slightly annoyed with the salad and fruit on her tray, “Other than that I’m looking forward to breakfast in the morning, yeah, I am.”

“Individual time trials, this is what I’ve been waiting for! A chance to prove I am the fast pegasus around!” Rainbow’s excitement and energy caused her to bounce slightly in her seat.

“Heh,” the griffin chuckled softly.

Rainbow raised an eyebrow, “What’s so funny?”

“Oh, nothing, nothing….just what you said is all,” Gilda took a bite of her salad.

“What about it? I am going to be the fastest!” Dash proudly claimed.

“Fastest pegasus, sure. By a long shot you will be,” Gilda spoke with her mouth full, “but fastest over all? That honor will be going to me and me alone, pintsize.”

“Hey, you’re only a little bigger than me! And what makes you say that?” the pegasus was trying to figure out what her friend was hinting at.

“Come on, you know that we totally beat everyone else today, but going one on one, it’s a different game. It’s only yourself against all the other racers,” Gilda stated.

Dash wouldn’t back down, “That doesn’t mean you are going to win!”

Gilda got up from her seat, placed her talons on the table and leaned forward, “Is that a bet I smell?”

“Totally! I’ll take you on!” Dash did the same, getting up from her seat and leaning forward towards Gilda with her hooves on the table.

“Winner gets eternal bragging rights?” Gilda set the wager.

“You’re on!” Rainbow put her hoof forward to meet with Gilda’s talon and the two shook on it, “Just don’t cry when you lose.”

“Pfftt….as if.”

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

The next day came quicker than either of them expected. The two roommates had spent the night arguing who would be faster and other sorts of bickering topics. Among the other campers, Gilda and Dash waited for the camp counselor to announce the day’s event.

“Okay, good morning, campers. Today, we will do the ever-popular individual speed test. Now, I know most of you think this is all that matters. Well, it’s not. In fact, don’t stress about it. The important thing to do is get through this test. At the end of the week, we will have another individual test to see how much you have improved,” the counselor explained, looking down at his clipboard, “The track is pretty straightforward. The starting stretch is from the line to the end of the runway, then a sharp lefthoof turn along the camp border, then through the group of buildings along the far side of the camp, then over to the mess hall and then zig-zaging through the dorm fields as the cones indicate and straight back to the starting point. There will be plenty of markers along the way. And remember, while it is about speed, it is not about first place.”

“Hmph, well, see about that!” Gilda was itching to start flying.

“All campers to the starting line and wait for the signal!” the counselor announced as he directed the mass to the beginning of the track.

Along the starting line, the campers were all ready to start their flying through the course. Some were very relaxed about the time trial while others were nervous that they might not do well at all. At the front of the mass of campers, Gilda and Rainbow Dash were at the starting line, crouched down and ready to take off.

“Go easy on your little wings, Rainbow Dash. They might not be able to keep up with your mouth!” Gilda mocked with a laugh.

“Let’s see if you really are as good as you think you are, Gilda,” Rainbow Dash gave a determined smile as she stared down the runway.

“Ready?” the counselor’s word caused all of the flyers to ready their wings, “Go!”

At his word, the entire crowd of flyers left the starting line. Some were going at an easy and nonchalant pace. Dash and Gilda, however, were not one of those. The two were already far from the rest of the group.

The two barreled down the runway at a fast speed. The two were trading off first and second place frequently as they started coming up to the first turn at the end of the runway. Dash eased up on her speed to make the turn a simple glide and then gain more speed. Gilda, on the other hoof, kept her speed high and recklessly turned left at the corner. Her speed gave her the lead, but it almost caused her to crash into the fence that surrounded the camp. The griffin used her front talons and her back paws to run along the fence to allow her to not lose momentum and to keep her rank.

Rainbow Dash saw the maneuver that her roommate did. She was really shocked with how careless she was with her speed. ‘She’s crazy with her speed….’ she thought.

Not to be outdone by speed alone, Dash quickly caught up with Gilda and even past her along the border of the camp. The pegasus smiled happily as she gained the lead. “Hey, Gilda,” she yelled out behind her, “how does my dust taste?”

The two kept their pace as they reached the next marker where they turned sharply into a building courtyard. The two followed the marker toward the mess hall and dorms. Dash and Gilda were comfortably ahead the pegasus who was in third place. But to the two friends, this race included the both of them and no pony else.

Rainbow’s lead was still the same amount as it was before, however, as she reached the dorm field, she saw the cones and markers laid out in an odd formation. Undaunted, she sped up and began her sharp turning amongst the cones. These turns, however, caused Dash to lose a lot of speed. With each turn, she could feel Gilda right behind her.

The griffin was not far behind. In fact, she was not losing as much speed as Rainbow was with each turn. Her wild flying style was helping her catch up with the blue pegasus.

The two finished the maze of cones and markers as close as they were at the start of the race. Again, they were trading off the lead by the tip of Dash’s nose and Gilda’s beak with every millisecond. The finish line was only a little further ahead.

Dash’s body was beginning to hurt. She had pushed herself before, but for some reason she did not know, her wings were reaching its limit and fast. Letting out a squeal in pain, she pushed herself more in an attempt to gain the lead.

It was in vain. Gilda won by a few milliseconds.

> Chapter 5: Last Place
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 5: Last Place

Rainbow Dash was stunned, confused, and out of breath. It was hard for her to consider the notion, much less experience the truth first hoof. But there was no way around it. Rainbow Dash had come in second place.

“Aww yeah! Still the fast thing with two wings!” Gilda gloated, breathing heavily. The feathers on her head were coated with sweat, proof she pushed herself just as hard as her pegasus friend.

One of the counselors trotted over to the two and commented, “Well, it seems we have some early finishers on our time trial. You gals know it was just a simple test to figure out your average, correct?”

Gilda quickly responded, “Yeah, but where’s the fun in not pushing yourself to go faster? Right, Dash?”

The blue pegasus didn’t respond. She sat on near the finish line with her head staring down at the ground, still unable to fathom what had happened.

“Yo, Rainbow Dash, you alright?” the griffin asked, waving a talon in front of her face.

“Huh?” she snapped back to reality, “Oh, yeah….fun….” Her words were detached and seemed to be forced out of her.

Gilda shrugged, “Whatever.”

As more of the flyers crossed the finish line, they noticed the times that were posted, showing how close of a race it was for first between Rainbow Dash and Gilda. Many of them went up to the griffin to congratulate her on the time in which she finished as well as her coming in first place. Dash, however, was ignored by the crowd as she sat on the empty bleachers. It was probably best that she was, as she was mad at herself.

’I can’t believe you, Rainbow Dash, how could you mess up so badly!’ she thought to herself, hitting her head with both of her front hooves. She turned see the crowd around Gilda. The griffin was showing off her wings to others. ’How could you lose to her! You are the fastest pegasus around!’ her thoughts kept beating herself at her failure.

One of the camp counselors trotted over to the small filly. With blue and white hat and shirt contrasting against his green coat and mane, he spoke, “Hey, Rainbow Dash, you really pushed yourself out there. You certainly got some speed under your wings. Lee Merry would certainly be impressed your performance, and so would the WonderBolts.”

Rainbow was silent, not even so much as looking at him. She didn’t even bother to wipe the sweat that was slowly moving down to her muzzle.

“You alright there, Rainbow Dash? You need to see the nurse?” the counselor asked as he moved around as to see if he could get into Rainbow’s line of sight.

“I lost….”she mumbled.

“Come again?”

“The race….I lost to Gilda.”

“It wasn’t a race, Rainbow Dash, just a time trial to test everypony’s speed, that’s all,” he tried his best to reassure the filly.

“But I didn’t win….” her head still had not moved except for her muzzle as she spoke.

“Well, no, I guess not, but you did come in a close second.”

Rainbow’s head finally moved, quickly snapping towards the counselor, “Second place is the same as last place!” Her words were filled with anger and sorrow, “I might as well be the first loser!”

“Rainbow Dash, it’s just a race. It’s not the end of Equestria,” the counselor insisted.

“But it might as well be to me! When I race, I race to win, and to only win! If I come in second, I might as well just not race at all and save myself the humiliation!” Rainbow Dash stared fiercely at the counselor.

“Is winning all that important to you?” he asked, keeping his tone calm and collected.

“Of course! I have to make my family proud with what I do! My dad is a racer, his dad was too! My mom….” Dash paused herself slightly at the word before continuing, “….was a racer….it’s in my blood!”

“If it means that much to you,” the counselor shrugged.

“It does! And it just bothers me so much that I lost to her,” Rainbow Dash turned her head to glare at the crowd that encompassed Gilda. “She’s good, I give her that, but I know I’m better.”

“Do you really?”

“I know I am!” Dash became defensive, even sulking at him, “I’m the fastest filly there is! Just look at her. Her large wings must have given her an advantage, that must be it! How else could have it happened? If it wasn’t for my tiny wings, I would have had her!”

The counselor sighed, “I think you’re over reacting, Rainbow Dash.”

“I think you’re not reacting enough!” the blue filly quickly replied, not completely thinking of what she just said.

“Well, so you know, I can help you get better if you want,” the counselor stated.

“What are ya talking about?” Rainbow Dash was finally wiping the sweat off her face.

“I’m saying I can help you with your flying with some one-on-one if you want. I’m not going to force you or anything, just offering it if you want it,” the counselor explained.

“Thanks, but I don’t need any help from a stallion whose, like thirty or whatever.”

The counselor seemed to take offense to the filly’s statement, “Hey, I’m nineteen, alright? And I don’t have to do this, you know.”

“Then don’t, cause I don’t want it,” Rainbow Dash stood up, “And I don’t need it either. I’m perfectly capable of getting better on my own.”

“With the way you beat yourself up? I highly doubt that, squirt,” the stallion expressed his concern.

“Don’t call me that!” Dash blurted, “And I’m perfectly fine on my own, thank you!” Rainbow Dash hopped down from the bleachers and trotted towards the mess hall.

“The offer stands, Rainbow Dash. If you change your mind, meet me here at midnight any day this week,” the counselor called out as Rainbow Dash trotted away.

“Whatever….” Dash didn’t care what he had to say. She just wanted to get as far away from anypony or anything and not be bothered.

> Chapter 6: Shadows Of Ourselves
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 6: Shadows Of Ourselves

Rainbow Dash was lying awake in her bed. Everypony else was fast asleep, but her wide eyes stared up at the dark ceiling above her. A few small sounds could be heard, which was mostly her griffin roommate rolling slightly in her sleep.

She was still thinking of what happened earlier in the day. She had come in second behind Gilda. Rainbow loathed herself for not coming in first and, to her at least, it is what kept her up.

“I have got to get better. Much better. Faster than anypony else,” she whispered aloud.

Gilda tossed in her sleep, mumbling something that the blue pegasus could not make out.

“Faster than any griffin, too….” Rainbow added.

Sitting up in her bed, Rainbow Dash looked to see some light coming in to her room from outside. Peering out the window, she saw a figure walking under the security lights that were placed along the walkways. Dash quickly looked to her clock and noticed in was a couple minutes past midnight. She looked back to see the figure move toward the empty bleachers.

Sighing, Rainbow Dash hopped off her bed and exited her room. Armed with only her room key and a light scarf, she trotted down the dorm hallway. She opened the doors to the outside quietly, careful to not startle or wake anypony. Moving quickly, she went to toward the track that the campers were at just earlier that day.

Once there, Rainbow saw the figure again. The moonlight was bright, making it fairly easy to see amongst the darkness. On the bleachers sat the counselor that came up to her earlier that day.

“So, you decided to show up, huh?” he asked with a smile on his face and in his voice.

Rainbow was defensive, “Shut it. It’s not like I have anything better to do. Frankly, I’m surprised you’re here.”

“Why? I told you I would be here,” the counselor began to stretch out his front limbs.

“I thought you were just being stupid,” Dash commented.

“Well, if you are done with the insults, you should start warming your body up,” the green stallion spoke.

After taking off her scarf and placing it with her key on the bleachers, Dash began to do the same with her front limbs, stretching and warming them up, “So what’s going on, you just come out here every night and wait for colts and fillies to come out or something?”

“No, I do this myself and I offer others to join in, too,” he explained as he moved down from the bleachers and on to the ground, beginning to stretch his back limbs.

“What’s your name anyway?” Dash asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Call me Windy Skies. Or just Skies. Whatever suits your mood,” he replied warmly.

“Can I call you stupid?” Dash smirked.

“How about you finish your stretches up?”

Rainbow and Skies continued stretching their bodies up to warm up. The little blue filly continued harassing the counselor pony. Finally, after stretching their wings out, the two ponies were ready to start flying, or so Dash thought.

“So, what are we going to do? Laps? Loops? Speed runs?” Dash asked with confidence.

“What makes you think you’re ready to fly?” Skies answered.

Rainbow was confused, “But we just finished stretching and all that.”

“Yes, but we can still do more to warm up.”

“Huh?”

Windy Skies had a smirk on his face, “Flying is more than just about speed. It is also about endurance.”

“I got endurance. Didn’t ya see me out there this morning? I kicked flank,” Dash complained.

“What I saw was an exhausted little filly,” the green stallion spoke, “When you arrived at the finish line, you were gasping for air.”

“Yeah, so?”

“You can improve from that. The more endurance you have, the better at flying you can be.”

Rainbow pouted with her face. She didn’t like being proved wrong or anything of that sort. However, she knew she was defeated with that logic. “Fine. What do we have to do?”

“Gallop.”

“What?”

“You heard me, gallop.”

The little pegasus was confused. “But I have wings….”

Skies nodded, “Yeah, I know. And so do I. But we still have hooves, right?”

Rainbow lifted one of her front hooves, “I guess….”

“So what’s the problem?” he asked.

“I….don’t get it.”

Windy Skies laughed as he flapped his wings for demonstration, “You see, wings are a peagsus’ most valuable assets, no doubt about that.” He stopped his wings and the continued, “But if you want to be good with them, you have to be just as good, if not better, with the other parts of your body.”

“I think I get it….” Dash commented.

Skies smiled as he pointed, “Then start galloping! I’m right behind you!”

Rainbow Dash began to gallop at a steady pace. While she was used to using her hooves, it still felt alien to her not using her wings. Nevertheless, she kept galloping forward. Behind her, Windy Skies was going at the same pace, leaving a window between them. He then quickly closed the gap and galloped along side her.

“How is it going, Rainbow Dash?” he asked, between breaths.

Rainbow looked at him and his green mane, “It feels really weird.”

“You’ll get used to it. Just don’t trip now.”

Her face gave a determined look as she nodded.

The two continued trotting around the track multiple times. Often, Dash would have to stop to catch her breath. Skies would offer to have them take a break, but she would flatly refuse to stop for more than a couple moments. An hour or so passed before the stallion decided to end the practice. Back at the bleachers, he and Rainbow were cooling off with a few more stretches.

“How are you feeling?” he asked, taking a sip of water from a bottle.

Dash was rationing her breathing, “Tired, exhausted….”

“Wanting to call it quits?”

“I never said that!” she bit back with a grin, “I’m feeling much better after that galloping stuff.”

“Heh, knew you would warm up to it. It certainly is a helpful exercise for pegasus ponies,” Skies said.

“And with more endurance, I can show Gilda up and all the others just how fast I am!” Rainbow Dash was excited.

“Whoa, hang on. That can’t be the only reason you’re out here tonight. Just to show up Gilda, is it?” the green stallion gave a concerned look to Dash.

Of course! I’m sick of being in her shadow, or anypony’s shadow for that matter. I wanna show them who really is number one.”

Windy Skies started, “Rainbow Dash, flying isn’t all about winning. Sure, races can be exciting and placing first is one of the best feelings a pony can get, but it’s not all that there is to it. Let me ask you something, why did you like flying so much when you were younger?”

“Because I was fast.”

“What else?

“And it ran in my family.”

“Come on, Rainbow Dash, there has to be more than just that. Think back to when you first flew. When you opened your wings for the first time and felt the air move between your feathers. Describe that feeling to me.”

Rainbow paused and remembered her first experience. That time was with her father. He often would hold her up so that she could feel the air through her wings. It was a magical moment. “It was….with my dad,” she spoke, “he would lie down on his back to put me up on his hooves. I would open my wings and it was like I was flying. It….was amazing. Just a small breeze going through my wings like that. I just knew I had to keep flying….”

“That’s it. That’s what flying is to you: a passion, not a competition,” Skies explained.

“I….I think you’re right, Skies,” Rainbow stated.

“When you fly, you should focus on that,” he continued, “Not winning, not speed, but the passion you have for flying.”

Rainbow felt changed with this new revelation brought up to her. She sat on the ground, stunned and dumbfounded. Windy Skies, however, had to shake her out of this trance.

“Hey Rainbow Dash, you should get back to your room and rest.”

“Oh, right,” Dash shook her head to come back to reality, “Sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Skies smiled as he gathered his bottle and small bag from the bleachers, “By the way, thanks for coming out and doing this with me.”

Dash wrapped her scarf around her neck and grabbed the room key, “Hey, I should be thanking you for helping me out.”

“Not a problem. Just remember why you wanted to fly in the first place. And don’t get caught the shadows of your self-doubt,” Skies began to trot off in a different direction, “I’ll see ya when I see ya.”

“Yeah, smell ya later!” Dash waved as she trotted back to the dorms.

In her mind, Rainbow Dash was replaying her old memories with her family. She thought of the times when both of her parents would fly with her, often racing with her for fun. She smiled remembering the past like silent films playing from an old projector. Dash even had a single tear roll down her cheek as she thought about the times she and her mother would playfully wrestle. Wiping the tear away, she entered her dorm. Quickly looking at Gilda who was still fast asleep, Rainbow Dash opened up her dresser drawer. After a moment of digging, she pulled out a piece of parchment that was underneath some clothing. Looking at the picture frame on the dresser itself, Rainbow smiled. In the frame, the past smiled back in the form of a young Rainbow Dash, her father and her mother. She then looked back at the note and read it to herself.

‘Do your best and have fun at flight camp, Rainbow Dash! We’re proud of you!’
> Chapter 7: Flying In A Blue Dream
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 7: Flying On A Blue Dream

The next morning came to the flight camp. After the usual business of the campers pulling themselves out of their dorms and to the mess hall for breakfast, they were led out to the runway where they were just other day. However, among the runway, there were a number of different obstacles set up. From hoops to a ramp to low hanging clouds with flags set upon them and various other items were assembled up and down the runway. Many of the campers started to talk amongst themselves, curious of why they were there. A few of the counselors were standing in front of the group and spoke.

“Welcome to the second to last day of camp. I know this week seems to have gone by quickly, but we hope it gives you just a small taste of what it means to fly among the Wonderbolts.” The lead counselor spoke, looking out at the campers before him, “Today, we will be doing a personal favorite exercise of many of the past Wonderbolts, the obstacle course. As you can plainly see, the course is set up right here on the runway. Different stations will require different tasks for each flyer. Some might not be even completed by some of you, but that’s perfectly fine. In fact, this is not a time trial. It is to test both your capability as not only a flyer, but as a thinker.”

As the counselor spoke, many of the campers became confused.

“Fear not, for I believe you all will do just fine overall. A counselor will be at each station to instruct you on what to do,” he continued his speech, “Now, we will break you all up into different groups for different stations. Pair up with your roommate and we will go from there.”

The campers began muttering among themselves as they paired up. Some of them looked at the different obstacles and began to worry. Some of the larger campers, such as the large pegasi and the dragons were worried about avoiding certain obstacles and performing well for the counselors.

Gilda and Rainbow Dash looked to each other. “How you feeling about this, Dash?” the griffin asked as she stretched out her large wings.

“Totally gonna rock this with flying colors!” the blue pegasus replied with a lot of pride in her voice.

“Heh, feeling better than yesterday, I take it?” Gilda noted.

“Much. Now, let’s show them how to do this!”

The two roommates were paired up with two other groups. Among them were two pegasus ponies, an orange male and a grey female, a female dragon with red scales, and a male griffin with a white coat of feathers that covered his body. Their group was placed at a station with three hoops that were lined up vertically and held up by a single support. Each hoop seemed to be about two meters apart from each other. The counselor quickly explained that the goal was to fly through each of the hoops twice, once going up and once going down.

Dash looked at the hoops and smirked with confidence. She turned to see Gilda keeping her wings close to her and looking troubled. In her head, Rainbow could see that the challenge could be difficult for her griffin roommate with her wingspan.

“Who would like to start first?” the counselor asked, looking at the small group.

Rainbow Dash stepped forward, “I got this!”

Flapping her small wings fast, the little pegasus took off toward the first hoop. She flew through without a problem. Tilting her body upwards, she banked and flew through the second hoop upside down before twisting her body to make herself level. Dash then bolted for the top hoop and passed through. Making a quick turn, Rainbow flew back through the hoop and nosedived through the middle hoop and finally out the bottom after tilting her body’s direction to slip through each.

Each individual seemed impressed with Dash’s ability to navigate through the obstacles. Without a single error, she managed to complete the task flawlessly, something that all of the others were unable to do. Gilda, in particular, had trouble with her large wingspan that she would have the tips of her wings hit the hoops as she flew through. The dragon had the same problem as well due to her large size.

A whistle blew, signaling the switching of stations. The next for the group was the ramp that was about a meter off the ground. Rainbow Dash noticed the counselor who was overseeing the station was Windy Skies. He nodded to her with a smile as they arrived.

Skies wasted no time with his instruction, “This is what we call the hang-time ramp. It’s pretty simple. You run up the ramp as fast as you can, open your wings and glide for as long as you can. It really tests your wings strength and endurance.”

“That’s it?” one of the female pegasus’ asked.

“It’s not that fancy or anything like that, no,” Windy Skies answered.

Gilda huffed, “Well, that sounds dumb.”

“Looks like we got our first volunteer. Want to come up and do it?” he directed the female griffin to the ramp.

With a roll of her eyes, Gilda ran up the three meters of ramp and jumped up from the top and opened her wings up to soar downward. Her large wings allowed for a very gentle and easy glide.

When she landed, Windy Skies took note of the distance, “About 28 meters in a glide. Very impressive.”

“Hmpf, of course it would be. I am kind of awesome,” Gilda boasted.

Rainbow Dash looked discouraged after seeing her roommate do such a long glide. She looked at her small wings and flapped them quickly. Her small wings seemed to vex her with their lack of power.

“Next up?” Windy Skies called.

“Me,” Dash proclaimed as she trotted to the ramp.

Skies smiled, “Alright, just remember to keep the wings steady. You got this.”

Rainbow Dash nodded. She looked up the ramp and galloped up the incline quickly and jumped with all of her might. Opening her small wings, she kept them locked in gliding position as she began her descent. It hurt her small wings to keep it up, but she didn’t want to give in so easily. The muscles in her wings were growing tired fast as the ground was coming closer to her. Finally, her hooves touched the ground. Almost tripping over them, she landed and held her place. Taking an assessment of her distance, she noticed she wasn’t near Gilda.

Trotting up to the blue filly, Windy Skies checked the distance, “19 meters. That’s very good for a young filly like you. Just wait until your wings finally grow in, you’ll do even better. You really got some endurance in there.”

“Ha, thanks….” Dash said, trying to move her wings so that the stiff pain would go away.

The counselor smiled warmly to Dash as he turned his attention to the rest of the group to complete the challenge.

The rest of the day went well for Rainbow Dash and the rest of the group. The obstacle course challenges, while some proved to be harder than others, were all completed by Rainbow. She found a new sense of happiness in not only her performance, but also her flying.
> Chapter 8: Rainbow In The Dark
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 8: Rainbow In The Dark

Night had fallen across the camp. In the dormitories, all the lights were turned off and the residents were fast asleep. One blue pegasus was still awake in her bed. Just like the night before, Rainbow Dash was unable to sleep. This time, however, she was awake not because she was restless, rather she had plans.

Turning her head, the filly saw the clock read ten minutes until midnight. Sitting up in her bed, she looked out the window into the black night. Despite the darkness, she could see the bleachers along the runway. A smirk came across her face as she moved off her bed. Putting her scarf around her neck and the room key tucked in the scarf’s folds, she quietly slipped out of her room.

Rainbow Dash moved quickly and with a slight bounce in her trot. She exited the dorms and headed straight to the bleachers. The metal seats were empty and cold to the touch. Setting her key and scarf down the metal, Rainbow Dash began stretching her limbs. While doing so, she looked up high into the sky, seeing Princess Luna’s moon and the multitude of stars shining down on the camp.

“Evening, Rainbow Dash,” a relaxed voice called out.

Dash turned around to see Windy Skies, “Oh, hey.”

“Come back for some more practice?” Skies smiled as he placed a few of his own items on the bleachers.

“Don’t get a fat head, I figured if it worked, might as well make use of it,” Rainbow explained herself as she sat on the ground to stretch her limbs more.

Skies laughed slightly, “That’s why I offer it to others to give it a shot. A little can go a long way.”

“Enough chit-chat, what are we doing tonight?” the blue filly wasn’t in the mood to waste time.

“Ooo, looks like somepony is eager to start, aren’t they?” Skies joked, “Well, it’s the same deal as last time, stretching first and foremost.”

“Yeah, yeah….”

The two ponies continued warming their bodies up. Windy Skies brought up Rainbow Dash’s improvement earlier in the day, “I have to say, you really stepped up your strength in those wings today.”

“Yeah, well, kinda had some help,” Dash looked away from the stallion, not wanting to admit he was right about something.

“Nah, that was all you! Your wings might be small, but you have speed, something most large winged peagsi don’t have. You just have to learn how to use it right.”

“Use it right?” Rainbow raised an eyebrow.

“Yeah, it’s all about how you use your talents.”

She was still puzzled, “You mean like if I use them for good or evil?”

“What? No, not like that!” Skies waved his hooves in front of him as his head shook, “I mean how you use your talents and advantages in your flying. All flyers have different traits that can help, or hinder, them when they fly. Some don’t have great endurance, some have excellent reflexes, others might have a good hearing during flight, like myself, or might be built for speed, like you.”

“I’m….built for speed?” Rainbow echoed.

“Yup. You might be small, and even frail if you get into a collision, but your body is ideal for pushing your speed limits. Just like earlier today, you pushed yourself with the endurance glide. Not exactly an easy task for one with small wings, but you still did stellar!” the green stallion explained, standing up and opening his wings out.

“So, I got to use these ‘advantages’ or whatever,” Dash began, using air quotes, “to improve myself.”

“That’s right.”

“And this has nothing about me using them for good or evil?”

“No! Geez, you think this is some sort of comic book or something?” Windy Skies raised a hoof to his head.

“What?” she shrugged, “I’m just checking and all.”

Skies moved the hoof and looked to the blue pony, “Anyway, are you done with your stretching?”

“Yeah.”

“Then get ready for speed.”

Rainbow stood up on her hooves, “Huh?”

“Tonight, we are doing what I call ‘spurts’,” Skies stated.

Rainbow edged on, “And those are….”

“Well, what does it sound like? You short distance flying at a quick pace. What will happen is that I will time you on fifty meter tests. The goal is to keep the time low after each time,” Skies explained.

“Pfft….that’s so easy!” Dash brushed the thought aside.

“You have to do these one right after another,” the stallion added.

“Say what?”

Skies elaborated, “That’s the point of spurts, you keep your speed up, your time low, and make use of your energy wisely.”

“N-No problem….” the filly said nervously.

With a confident smile, Skies spoke, “Don’t worry, just try your best. That’s all that matters.”

On the runway, Rainbow Dash lined up at the marked line. On the other side, Windy Skies was waiting with a stopwatch. The green stallion looked at the small pony at the starting line and raised a hoof in the air.

His voice called out, “Ready?”

“Not really….” Dash mumbled to herself.

“Go!”

Rainbow’s wing flapped as fast as they allowed, pushing the little filly along down the runway. She was quickly nearing Skies and the end line. A happy girl came across her face as she zoomed past the stallion. Returning her hooves to the ground, Dash gasped for air quickly. However, her ears perked up.

“Ready?”

“Again?” she managed to mutter.

“Go!”

Now with her goal being where she was a mere moments ago, Rainbow moved her wings quickly. Her wings carried her back to her staring position. The pain and tiredness was already starting to hit the little blue filly.

She crossed the line and turned around to look back to Windy Skies. Breathing heavily, her face grew more determined.

“Two down, many more to go! Ready?”

“Bring it….” she spoke through her teeth.

“Go!”

Letting out a squeal of both ferocity and soreness, Rainbow Dash pushed herself off of the ground and flew back towards Skies. Her speed was picking up and her time improving as she crossed the line again. She turned around and readied herself again.

“How are you feeling, Dash?” he asked, looking at the already exhausted filly.

“Don’t talk. Say it,” she replied, sweat starting to form on her brow.

Skies smirked, “Determination, that’s what I like to see! Ready? Go!”

Rainbow took off again.

For ten full minutes, Rainbow Dash kept this up, pushing her body’s limits. Her body was pour sweat from it, but it did not phase her. All she seemed to care about was going faster, beating her time. Her determination seemed to keep pushing her.

“Alright, Rainbow Dash, that’s it.”

Dash looked to the green pony, “That’s it? We’re done?”

“We’re done.”

“There’s no way, Skies. I mean, I still got plenty of energy in me,” Dash quickly flapped her wings, which caused her to flinch in pain slightly.

Skies replied, “I’m not denying that you have energy left.”

“Then what’s the deal?”

Skies paused for a moment before replying, “Well, how do you feel?”

“I feel great. Like I can wrestle down Princess Celestia herself,” Rainbow bragged.

“Are you tired?” he asked.

“Well, duh. You just made me go through a nightmare of training,” she stated.

“Then, there you go.”

“Huh?”

“Describe to me how you feel, Rainbow Dash.”

Rainbow paused before replying, “I feel great. I mean, yeah, I’m, like, really tired and all, but I feel like I can just take on the world. It just feels so awesome. It’s, like….magic or something.”

“And that, my dear Rainbow Dash, is what’s called the joys of flying. Pushing yourself to not only do better, but to be better and get a feeling like no other,” Windy Skies explained.

“This….” Dash stopped trotting, “This is the feeling that I felt with my dad back then….”

“Your first time flying?”

“Yeah….it’s the same feeling….” she seemed to be frozen in her new found relevation.

Skies smiled, “It’s your passion for flying and your passion for speed becoming one. Weird, huh?”

Rainbow nervously nodded, “Very….but, I like it….”

Turning, the stallion gathered his things from the bleachers and trotted off back toward the dorms, “Now you can really fly to your full potential.”
> Chapter 9: Speedway
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Chapter 9: Speedway

The final day dawned. With all of the campers waking up, they had to pack up their items from their dorms before breakfast. In Gilda and Rainbow Dash’s room, the griffin was randomly throwing her items in her bag with no organization whatsoever. She quickly zipped it up and placed it on her bed.

“Hurry up, Dash, I want to get something in my gut before we have our time trial,” Gilda spoke.

Rainbow as carefully folding her clothing as she placed it from her dresser to her bag, “Go on ahead, I’ll be done soon.”

“Suit yourself, pint-size,” the griffin moved out the door, leaving the pegasus in the room.

Looking around to make sure she was gone, Dash reached back into the dresser to pull out the last piece of clothing. Pulling it out, a piece of parchment fell from it. Picking it up, Dash looked at the words written on it. It was the note her father wrote to her before she left for camp. She took a sigh of relief, happy to have found it.

Quickly folding the last piece of clothing and packing it away, she grabbed the note and the picture frame of her family that still rested on the top of the dresser. Looking down at them both, she smiled. The three ponies in the snapshot smiled right back at her. Turning her attention to the note, she read it one last time.

‘Do your best and have fun at flight camp, Rainbow Dash! We’re proud of you!’

“Don’t worry,” the filly spoke softly, “you will be plenty proud of me, just you wait.”

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Out on the bleachers, the campers sat, waiting for instruction for their final day of camp. Gilda and Dash sat next to each other, chatting about what they thought it would be.

“What do you think will happen later on? I think we’ll have some sort of awards thing after the time trial today,” Gilda stated, “where, you know, they’ll say I’m the most awesome flyer in the camp.”

Dash replied with a snicker, “I think you’re right, up until that last part where you are the most awesome flyer.”

“Oh, come on, I’m totally the best around,” the griffin stated.

Rainbow Dash grabbed the nearest of Gilda’s wing and examined it, “Huh, strange….”

This puzzled the griffin, “Huh? What?”

“I just don’t know how your wings can fly with both you and your big ego attached,” the blue pegasus joked.

“Laugh it up, shorty, but we’ll see who wins this!”

Just as Gilda finished speaking, the camp counselors appeared in front of the masses of ponies and other creatures. One of the older counselors began speaking, “Settle down, campers. I want to congratulate you all for making it to your final day of Junior Speedster Flight Camp. We have seen excellence amongst you campers, and we are proud to have helped you hone your skills here. Now, for the moment most of you have been waiting for all week: The Speed Time Trial. Rules are very simple: cross the line in the quickest time possible. It will be similar to the individual speed test we did the other day, however, the goal is improve from your previous time. The map layout is same as last time. Best of luck to you all. And, without further adieu, line up!”

With those words, the entire mass of campers left the bleachers and eagerly moved to the starting line. On the line, Gilda and Rainbow Dash stood next to each other. They readied themselves by crouching down and opening their wings. From here, they also started trash talking.

“Ready to eat my dust?” Dash asked with an evil smirk.

“Ha. Please, you’ll be enjoying mine,” Gilda spoke.

“What’s that? I can’t understand you. I don’t speak second place,” the blue filly mocked.

“We’ll see who speaks second place!”

The head counselor’s voice was loud, “Racers, take your marks!” Every flyer was on edge, waiting for the word. He finally shouted it, “Go!”

The entire group of flyers took off and began their race. Unlike the first time, where Gilda and Rainbow Dash had relative ease claiming the lead of the pack, the two had some challenges reaching the front. Gilda found it easier for her to soar above most of the other racers while Dash was quick as she zigged and zagged between all of those who surrounded her.

The massive group moved down the runway in unison. Gilda quickly moved downward and claimed her spot near the front of the crowd. Rainbow Dash, on the other hoof, was having trouble with her maneuvering between the others. She, however, found a window of opportunity and took it. With a burst of speed and energy, Rainbow rocketed herself away from the large group and reached the front of the pack, near Gilda.

As they reached the first turn at the fenced border, the top five racers, that included Rainbow Dash, Gilda, a red stallion, a white mare, and a green dragon, were trading off their ranks. Out of nowhere, it seemed, Gilda gained a burst of speed and moved into the lead, passing the others. Not to be out done, Dash followed suit and attempted to catch up. The stallion seemed that he didn’t want to be left out as he did the same. 

Passing through the courtyard and the mess hall, the racers came up to the dorm field, where they had their sharp turns. The three continued their exchanging of placement, often coming close to hitting each other whether it be on purpose or accidental. The three began their turns. Gilda was careless with her turns, losing almost no speed with each and every turn. The stallion’s slowing down cost him his placement with the girls. Dash, surprisingly to herself, was keeping up with the griffin with each twist and turn.

Exiting the twisting maze of cones, Gilda and Rainbow Dash were neck and neck with each other. Both the griffin and pony looked extremely exhausted as they continued on. Each of their wings were beginning to hurt badly for them. Both made painful sounds as they pushed themselves for the lead.

As they neared the starting line, one of them fell back as the other took the lead. It was Gilda who won.

Coming to a screeching halt, the two finishers looked at each other, drained of energy. With sweat falling down her face, Dash breathed heavily as she glared at Gilda, knowing that the griffin had beaten her again. Suddenly, her expression changed to a smile, “That was another close one, Gilda,” she said, trying to catch her breath.

Gilda smiled back, also gasping for air, “Yeah, you really didn’t want me to win without a fight.”

“Of course not,” the filly laughed slightly, “I’m not just going to give it to you!”

The two roommates laughed as they went to look at their times. Both improved from the previous race, but only by a few seconds. The two seemed very happy by their results.

“I’ll be right back, I’m going to get some water,” Gilda said as she flew away from Dash.

“Alright,” Dash replied. It was then she turned to see Windy Skies coming up to her, “Hey, Skies.”

“Hi Rainbow Dash, great work out there,” the stallion congratulated the blue filly.

“Heh,” she started, “yeah, well, apparently I’m built for speed.” She looked up to Skies and smiled, “Thanks for your help. I couldn’t have done it without ya.”

Skies chuckled, “No need to thank me or anything.”

Rainbow Dash insisted, “Come on, you reminded me why I loved to fly to begin with. And you gave me more of a reason to do better. In my book, you’re an alright pegasus. You know, for a stupid stallion.”

“Well, if you’re going to keep up with that attitude, I guess I don’t have to say that I’m looking forward to you coming back next year,” Skies teased.

“Next year?” Rainbow’s eyes grew wide.

“Yup! I expect to see great things from you next year, Rainbow Dash,” he stated, “Think you can live up to those expectations?”

“Totally!”

END