Title: The Seventh Element
Rating: T
Chapter: Chapter 18 Lies and Sky Light
AN: Alright. Granny is now resting in peace. She will be the only one, along with another, that I shall feel remorse for the death of. So I guess you all now know, ponies shall die in this fic. No exceptions. If they end up dying, too bad, they die. If they do something to piss me off, they die. If I seriously can’t find anything else to do with them, they shall die. This is my law. *stares at them* So you’d all better follow my rules. *All the ponies and OCs nod*
WHO’S READY FOR A BITCHIN LONG CHAPTER!? OH YEAH!
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Beau and Rarity were both walking through Ponyville, the grief over Granny Smith was heavily hanging over their heads. Beau, with every step he took, was starting to make him want to drop down and bawl his eyes out until he had no tears left. Rarity would pat his arm from time to time to remind him that they have a mission to do. They needed to contact Mr. Waddle.

“Beau, this isn’t right. Apple Bloom deserves to know about Granny Smith’s death-”

“And we made it perfectly clear, that we ain’t doin’ that. She’s a little filly, y’all know she won’t be able to handle Granny’s… d-death…”

“But that’s why she has you! Big Mac and Apple Jack as well. To get her through this tragedy.” Rarity reasoned.

Beau shook his head, “Y’all know that Granny was the one that raised Apple Bloom. Apple Bloom was just a little foal when ma and pa died.” Rarity flinched at the thought, “she had ne’er known anypony else as ‘er parent. Granny was the only one Apple Bloom had to take care o’ ‘er.” He sighed, “Me, Big Mac n’ AJ all had to work the farm while Granny took care o’ Apple Bloom.” He teared up, “if Apple Bloom finds out, she’ll break. Ah know she would. So we don’ wan’ ‘er to suffer.”

“But-”

“But nothin’ Rarity. Rarity, ah think o’ you as my sister, as do we all. But ah’m sorry, but this is somethin’ that y’all can’t butt into.” Beau stated. The way he said it to her, made her stop anything else that came out of her mouth. When somepony uses that kind of tone, you know better than to mess with them.

“Well… What are you going to do with Mr. Waddle?”

“You’ll see.” Beau replied.

They finally came to the small chapel of Ponyville. The chapel was made of plain wood painted white with a black slate roof. A couple had walked out of the chapel, both had huge smiles on their faces. Mr. Waddle was not just a regular Earth pony, he was the local priest of Ponyville, working with spreading wisdom to ponies in doubt of themselves, and working with ponies who have passed on.

They entered the chapel, and there was Mr. Waddle in black robes and white priest’s collar with his black thick rimmed glasses and comb over. He had a smile on his face as he was straightening up the alter. He looked up and noticed that Beau and Rarity were standing at the doors. “Ah! Beau and Rarity! It’s so good to see you two again!” He came towards them and shook both of their hands, “I’m glad to see both of you are taking this change in a positive attitude!” He grabbed his glasses and wiped them on a piece of cloth and wiped his glasses. He licked his lips as he put his glasses back on, “now, uh, what can I do you for?”

Rarity was going to tell him, but she stayed quiet feeling that Beau should tell him the terrible news.

Beau sucked in a breath then said as calm as he possibly could, “Mr. Waddle, mah granny passed away this mornin’. And we came so y’all could put ‘er to rest.” He slightly shook as the urge to cry out in misery started to hammer his head. “We’d gladly pay y’all-”

Mr. Waddle took his hands and gave them a gentle squeeze, “now ah don’t need any o’ that. I’ll gladly do it. When do you want the funeral?” He asked gently.

Beau shook his head, “ah know ah’m gonna get it this time, but we can’t have a funeral. We haven’ told Apple Bloom yet. We don’ wan’ ‘er to suffer. Can y’all come by after we’re gone to get her and put ‘er to rest?” Mr. Waddle stared at him, not a hint of judgment was in his gaze.

“I understand. At least pick out a casket and stone.” Beau nodded, it was usually Big Mac making the big decisions around the family, him being the head of the household and all, so it was a new experience for Beau to do it. Funny how the first time he acts like a Stallion, is the time his Granny died. “I’ll be sure to put her to a peaceful rest.” Beau nodded, the tears starting to pour out again.

In Filthy Rich’s villa…

“Ah’m tellin ya! They started it!”

Apple Bloom crossed her arms over her chest, her lower lip protruding. Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, both covered in mud and plenty of bruises and cuts, both sniffled as they edged away from Apple Bloom.

“Daddy! Apple Bloom hit me first!” Diamond Tiara whined in a high pitched voice. Filthy Rich sighed as his daughter whined, making her injuries seem worse than they are. “Apple Bloom hurt us really bad daddy!”

“That’s cause y’all started it! Y’all shouldn’t have said all those things abou’ Sweetie Belle!” Silver Spoon stayed silent, keeping to herself and rubbing her wounds gently. “Y’all could’ve just walked by, not even look mah way, but ya jus’ had to say somethin’!”

“That’s not true! She insulted me first!”

“You dirty little liar!”

Filthy Rich rubbed his temples, he knew that his daughter was lying through her teeth, but its one thing if there was no physical contact. “Girls. Both of you quiet now.”

Diamond Tiara didn’t like the tone her father was using, so she desperately said, “Daddy, you know that I’m not guilty-”

“Diamond Tiara, everypony in Ponyville knows that is not true.” He almost wanted to just tell Apple Bloom to just head on home and they could just get this over with. But he is a father. He must take action. “Now Apple Bloom, fighting with my daughter and her friends is not a good thing. You have to learn that fighting out your issues with your hooves is not the way to go about it. Now, I’m going to call up your family and we’ll have them pick you up and we’ll have a long talk about what happened.”

“But Mr. Filthy-” Filthy Rich stared at Apple Bloom tensely, “oh… a-ah mean… Mr. Rich-” He perked up, “-me an’ my family are gonna be out o’ town for a long time. And we leave this afternoon! We can’t be late!”

“well, then I won’t keep you. Just remember, just because a pony antagonizes you-” He slapped Diamond Tiara upside the head, “-doesn’t mean you should always lash out at them. Most of the time, they do it because they want to feel bigger. Now, I want you to get on out of here, and the next time you’re home, you are to behave yourself! You wouldn’t want to make your dear old Granny worry would you?” Apple Bloom shook her head, “good! Now go on and get home.”

“B-But dad! She attacked me!”

“And you deserved it.” Filthy Rich responded as he sipped a cup of tea.

As Apple Bloom exited Filthy Rich’s Villa, she jumped with joy. She got away with beating the crap out of Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon! Apple Bloom was so happy, she began to run back down to the market, she had a hankerin’ for some of Carrot Top’s Carrots! When Apple Bloom had bought the carrots, she saw that Beau and Rarity were exiting the chapel with Mr. Waddle in tow. She ran up to them, “Howdy Beau, Rarity, Mr. Waddle. What’re y’all doin’ here?”

Rarity and Beau quickly thought of an excuse to tell her. Both were practically jumping out of their skins. Suddenly Rarity had a perfect excuse.

“Oh Apple Bloom. Beau here was feeling so ashamed of himself, so I brought him here to Mr. Waddle. He felt so sad because he still can’t get any kind of Magic out. So we brought him to Mr. Waddle for one of his, ‘motivational speeches.’”

Apple Bloom nodded then hugged her brother, “don’ worry Beau! Ah think you’re just right the way ya are!” Beau shot Rarity a dirty look, but hugged his sister back.

Mr. Waddle looked at Rarity, “don’t say a word.” She said lowly. Mr. Waddle just threw his hands up.

“All things will be right under the powers of Celestia and Luna.”

“It’s Lunar now.”

“Celestia and Lunar.”

Sweet Apple Acres…

Beau carried Apple Bloom on his shoulders, with her talking animatedly about her fight with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. Rarity was fanning herself, “oh Dahling! That is truly barbaric!”

Beau laughed, “nah, it seems pretty funny! Tell us again how you smack her in her kisser!”

Rarity scoffed, “but that is not how a lady is to act! Oh Apple Bloom, didn’t you apologize?”

“no.”

Rarity covered her face, “what is this world coming to? Young fillies are fighting like they’re colts.” Rarity groaned. Apple Bloom just shrugged, she was just happy to have gotten away with something like that. Rarity shot a look at Beau, Beau sighed.

They both were keeping something from Apple Bloom that she had every right to know. Guilt was practically pulling them apart already.

How are they going to keep this for more than just a day?

As they asked themselves this question, they had arrived at the farm, Big Mac had already packed up the bags and already had them loaded in the wagon. When you looked closely at him, you could tell he was really pushing himself to work extra hard. He was sweating heavily and was practically gasping for air, like he wasn’t able to stop. Apple Bloom saw her big brother in this condition, but with everything she knows, she simply thought that maybe they were all behind schedule. “Hey Big Mac! The castle’s not gonna move is it!?”

Big Mac flinched, but after a few seconds he yelled back, “No, but we need to hit the road! We’re burnin’ dayligh’!”

Apple Bloom lowered herself from Beau’s shoulders, “alrigh’, alrigh’! But ah wann’ say bye to Granny first!”

Apple Jack had just exited the house with a box in her hands, the box was filled with family photos. “Uh, Granny is still sleepin’ actually.” Apple Jack couldn’t believe that this lie was flowing out so easily from her lips, “Granny has been really tired an’ all, so she’s sleepin’. It really wouldn’ be wise to wake ‘er.”

Apple Bloom shrugged, “well that’s okay. I can at least kiss her good bye!” Apple Jack blocked the door.

“Uh no. Granny, uhh- Granny-”

“Granny Smith is using this new darling medicine for better rest!” Rarity added. Apple Jack was relieved that Rarity was good at lying. “Granny last night told that she has been having trouble sleeping, so while Beau and I were in town I picked up this herbal medicine. It reeks terribly, but it gets the job done.” Rarity patted Apple Bloom’s head, “I really don’t think you want to smell your Granny like that.” The older Apples all thanked Celestia that Apple Bloom bought the lie.

“Well, ah know y’all don’ wanna leave without sayin’ bye to Granny, but Granny needs ‘er rest.” Big Mac said to Apple Bloom as he lifted her and placed her in the wagon. Apple Jack climbed in and placed the box by her feet. “Now y’all get com-fort-able. We’ll be leaving soon.”

Big Mac helped Rarity in the wagon, she set herself next to Apple Bloom, and let Apple Bloom use her as a pillow for the long trip. “Big Mac, ah brought carrots fer the trip.” Apple Bloom showed the bag of carrots.

Big Mac smiled softly and nodded, “That’s mighty sweet Apple Bloom. Ah’m sure we’ll all like em.” As Beau and Big Mac strapped themselves to the wagon, Apple Bloom turned her head towards the farm house. She really had wanted to see Granny before they left.

Once Beau and Big Mac were strapped in, they pulled the wagon up and started to pull it towards the Celestial Palace. Apple Bloom stayed still as she watched the farm grow smaller and smaller with each passing minute.

Before the farm was out of sight, Apple Bloom noticed the box by Apple Jack’s feet. “AJ? What’s the box for?” Apple Jack tipped her hat down and leaned back, ready to nap.

“Granny told us she always wanted to be with us. So she told us to take some old photos with us. S-So we’ll never be alone…” Everyone older than Apple Bloom used everything they had to not just break down crying right then and there. But they calmed themselves down. At least enough to stop them from crying in front of the little apple. With that, they pressed onwards, leaving behind the farm and their Granny. And most of them knew, that they would never see her ever again.

On the way to the Celestial Palace…

Big Mac and Beau both ignored their screaming bodies, begging for rest. How could they rest while they carried the dark secret they hid from their little sister? Both of them and Apple Jack all wanted to tell Apple Jack that her Granny, the granny who raised her when their parents died, the granny who baked sweet apple pies and brewed up Zap apple Jam and read her stories was now gone? How could they tell her that there is no Granny waiting for them to come home after the whole predicament?

They all felt like the lowest scum on the face of the planet.

Rarity felt no better, she had to keep her mouth shut. Like Apple Jack told her, or rather screamed at her, that this was a family affair. No pony else. She stroked the sleeping Apple Bloom’s hair gently, she had dozed off during the trip after eating her share of the snacks. No one else touched the snacks, all too sick to their stomachs about their cowardice and selfish desire to keep Apple Bloom happy, for them to eat. Almost positive that Apple Bloom wouldn’t wake up, Rarity couldn’t take the heavy atmosphere any longer. “Everypony…”

Apple Jack looked up at Rarity, she had taken quite an interest in the wood planks that made the wagon. “Y’all remember what ah said…”

Rarity groaned and rolled her eyes, “I know dahlings… But this is crazy!” She whispered, making sure not to wake up the sleeping Apple Bloom.

Big Mac kept on with Beau, both keeping up a fast pace, he growled under his breath, “Rarity, don’t y’all say a word…” Rarity shut her mouth, she knew better than to ever, and I mean ever, talk back to Big Mac when he was angry. She sighed and continued to stroke Apple Bloom’s head.

“What will you tell her?”

Apple Jack scowled, “Just shut yer trap Rarity!”

Beau whipped his head around, “AJ! Y’all shut yer trap! Ah don’ want to see more fightin! Rarity, please just keep quiet. And AJ, ah don’ want to hear another peep from ya! Got it!?” Beau threatened. To make it worse, he raised his voice to make it like he was going to wake up Apple Bloom. “GOT IT!?”

Both females nodded in reply.

For the rest of the trip, all ponies were silent.

As this was going on, back in Ponyville, a certain bubbly blonde Pegasus was making her way to her home.

“Wow. Today was haaaaarsh…” Derpy exclaimed to no one in particular. She was excited to go home and dive into the muffins Beau had given her, and curl up in her own bliss o the warm buttery baked goods. She was almost home, when her whole body went rigid, her nostrils flared and her eyes crossed even more. “MUFFIN.” Was all she said as she made a complete 180. She flew almost motionless, as her body turned in sharp angles. She had never smelled a more perfect Muffin before!

But where was it!?

She must find it!

With amazing speed, she dashed through the lands, her nose never losing the scent of that Muffin. Not caring that she had muffins in her bag, she dashed around, trying to find the heavenly Muffin that was beckoning to her.

Without even knowing it, or rather, not caring, she sped through CloudsDale, knocking over others. She sped through the buildings, effectively knocking down many, chasing the alluring arouma.

Air Valley of the Void…

Sky Light was looking over the envelop that this guard actually dared to give him. He never accepts mail. Never.

“Princess Celestia has requested for us to deliver this message to you, General Sky Light! The urgency of this apparent and we request for you to seriously think over the message within.” The Guard gulped audibly, he had no idea how to handle the General. Should he just continue being polite? No, if he did, then Sky Light would get suspicious. Maybe he should try being casual? No, then Sky Light would reprimand him for being so uncouth as to address his superior like that.

You never knew with this pony!

Sky Light glanced at the Celestial seal on the envelope. His face didn’t betray any emotion as he looked on with his lone eye. The blood red eye shot up to the lone guard, who in turn flinched backwards slightly. With his gaze still hardened, lone wing flapping in the air, keeping his whole body weight midair, and with a low voice, slightly raspy from the underuse.

“Get the fuck out of my sight.”

The guard stopped himself from making another noise, he just dashed away not only from Sky Light, but from the coldness that was the Void Elementals that were starting to make their way towards him. Sky Light looked up into the face of the Void Elemental that had appeared in front of him, it let out a low moan, as if it was only the wind. Sky Light didn’t even flinch, he knew they wouldn’t attack him.

They accepted him as one of them.

The Elemental could now no longer smell the intruders. It turned, and moaned again, flying off to return to its own little empty space in the air valley. With the Elemental now gone, Sky Light flew into his cloud home, opening up the envelop. Inside was the letter, written in the Princess’s golden ink.

General Sky Light,

As you know, over night we had transformed into these forms. And with recent research, we have found out that it wasn’t just Equestria, but the whole world. The Land of Mordor, the land of the Minotaurs has been affected, GrandsDale the kingdom of the Gryffins, Chimera territory, and even the territories of the dragons and other races have changed as well.

But that is not the reason I have summoned you. The reason I seek you out now, is because I have a feeling things are going to take a huge turn. I believe that a force threatens our lives, and the lives of the kingdoms. I know this is a long shot, but I feel it would be better to have a trained General here in the palace, then be without.

I already have two of the Wonderbolts, Soarin and Spit Fire in our ranks, I’m sure you would love to be here with your comrades.

Please, really do consider this offer. If you choose to accept, please arrive to the palace in the next three days after getting this letter. We shall provide sleeping quarters for you should you agree.

Princess Celestia

Sky Light finished reading the letter, then threw it onto the table. “So the princess wants me to go to the palace cause she feels something is going to go wrong?” He walked over to the mirror, and took in his appearance.

Sky Light had not really changed that much from his pony self. His skin was a dark tan from being in the skies above the clouds, his hair was wind washed and was the color of navy blue with white streaks of age. His eye was a piercing dark red that held no light of happiness inside, and over his right eye, was an eye patch that covered his blind eye. His body was taut and lean with muscle from his excursions in the air, and finally he stretched out his lone wing. His wing was a cyan color, while the other was just a nub on his back.

He hated the way he looked every time he passed a damn mirror. When he did, he was reminded of his lone wing and blind eye.

Then his eye landed on the scars all over the right side of his body were scars, burn scars, cut scars, you name it. He growled and punched the mirror as hard as he could, shattering it into tiny shards that fell to the floor, then slowly faze through. With just a glance and common sense, there were tiny shards stuck inside his hand, the blood streaming down his arm and dripping off his elbow. But even with his hand bleeding, he felt no pain. He felt nothing.

After cleaning his hand and wrapping it, he thought back to the letter, “So the Princess…” He laughed humorlessly, “doesn’t feel safe so she calls for me?” He started to pack a bag of food for his trip. “Well, who am I to refuse a calling?” He then thought back, “and the letter did say that Soarin and Spit Fire would be there…”

“Well, now I can finally see if they are sticking to their exercises.” He closed the bag then was about to start the journey to the Celestial Palace, but he suddenly remembered an important little fact.

He was naked.

Sky Light grumbled to himself, remembering that the guards who dared come to his home were wearing much more armor now. Especially over the love muscles. He began to think if he had anything to wear, when he suddenly remembered it. He sighed and went into his room and switched his lantern on, all over his walls were snippets of the Wonderbolts on the daily newspapers. If it mentioned the Wonderbolts, it would be there. On the shelves, they were littered with old mementoes of the Wonderbolts and the Air Force. Goggles, belts, anything that had to do with the two.

Finally, in the back of the room, held in a special glass container, was a Wonderbolt uniform.

Sky Light felt sick as he opened the container and started to tear it in half, right across the belly. He earned this suit with all he had. And he was now shredding it. He slipped the bottom half onto his lower half, the fabric magically stretched to fit his form, being that is was made from specially enchanted fibers to fit all sizes of ponies. The top half, he ripped open and made it into a sort of jacket. His cutie mark then finally shined through the fabric. It was a lightning bolt, cracked, with a long wing covered in bandages with the cloud in the back a dark rain cloud.

Once he was clothed, he grabbed his bag and opened his door, coming face to face with a blonde haired, cross eyed pegasi. “What in Celestia?” Sky Light stammered out, thoroughly surprised to see another pegasi at his doorstep. He lives in the Void! Why is there a Pegasus here? Does she have a death wise?

“Muffin.”

He blinked at her, this Pegasus was on his doorstep, saying Muffin? “What?” He ground out. She refused to move.

“Muffin.”

He tried to glare at her, but to no avail. She sniffed, and her head darted to look at his bag. He opened it and brought out a Muffin. “You braved the journey to the Void, you crossed the Void and found my hidden home. I’m impressed.” He pulled the Muffin out of reach as Derpy dashed forward t try and capture the beautiful muffin in his hand. “No brave young one. This is part of my rations. Find your own.” He threw it back into his bag, “And I suggest you find somewhere to hide or leave altogether. The Void Elementals don’t like visitors.” He talked slightly gentler to the female, his amazement at her brave acts to find his muffin having effect.

He shook his head and jumped off his home, stretching out his lone wing and dashing through the air with high speed. He flew through loops in the clouds, over Elementals, and through the grey rainbows, all with the speed and agility of the Wonderbolts. When he was out of the Void, he saw from the corner of his eye, that the female had copied every single of his movements, with the exact same speed as him!

Truly fascinating.

He whirled around to face her, and she stopped in a split second. “How did you accomplish those moves? And with my speed!?”

“Muffin.”

He pinched the bridge of his nose in annoyance, “will you say something other than…” He trailed off, realization dawned on him. He produced the same muffin from his bag and held it out, Derpy’s eyes crossed more with want as she tried to snatch it again. “You follow the muffin…” He threw it back in his bag. “Well then… You gave me some useful information.” He smirked with challenge, “Alright. I’ll give you one of my rations… If you can keep up with me.” With that, he flipped back and sped off in the direction of the Celestial Palace, all the while, making sure he made full use of all obstacles in the terrain that they passed, to truly test her abilities.

The Celestial Palace…

The Apple Family had just arrived at the palace. All of them excluding Apple Bloom were even more on edge from their trip. It was just supposed to be a trip home to collect themselves, cheer them up, and enjoy each other’s company.

How did it turn out so badly?

When they parked their wagon, Rarity shook Apple Bloom awake, “we’re here.” Was all she said to the drowsy girl, “Wake up now. We’re back at the palace.”

Apple Bloom sat up and stretched, “we’re here already?” She looked down sadly, “ah hoped to see Granny before we left.” Practically everyone flinched at those words, but thankfully, Apple Bloom did not see it. “Oh well. When this is all over, we can all see ‘er again.” With that said, she climbed out of the wagon, with Apple Jack practically jumping out with her bag and dashing off somewhere. Apple Bloom watched with a confused look on her face, “what’s with Apple Jack?”

Big Mac stiffened as he grabbed his bag and helped Rarity off the wagon, “ah think AJ is… is just excited to be back with all ‘er friends.” With Rarity on the ground, he grinned at Apple Bloom as he ruffled her hair, “now don’t y’all worry about nothin’ like that.”

Apple Bloom blushed as she pushed her brother’s hand off her hair, “anyway, what’s with y’all and Rarity?” She grinned cheekily as Beau had gotten his and Apple Bloom’s bags, “are y’all each other’s…” she leaned forward slightly and whispered, “…special some ponies?”

Rarity and Big Mac both blushed, they were relieved to get off the subject of Granny Smith, but still uncomfortable with the current topic. Beau thankfully came to the rescue with a, “Apple Bloom? Y’all know it isn’t good tah mess aroun’ in other ponies’ business.” Apple Bloom pouted, wanting to know more, “y’all remember what happened the las’ time y’all messed aroun’ in yer brother’s love life?”

Apple Bloom then remembered the whole incident with the love poison and her teacher Ms. Cheerilee. “Ah remember…”

Finally, the four of them made their way into the palace, and not two seconds later, they heard the loud booming voices of Twilight and Lunar.

“I don’t want to continue working with a horrible monster like you!”

“Doth thou wisheth to anger me further!?” Lunar puffed up and stood at full height, “If thou remember, I was the one who gave you those clues! I could have just thrown them away! But I didn’t! I came to you!” He stepped close to Twilight, glaring.

Twilight glared back and pushed him backwards, “get away from me you freak! I don’t want you near me ever again!” She started to storm off, but the voice of Lunar stopped her.

“Thou surely doesn’t mean it? Thine knows that this wasn’t my bidding!?” He screamed at her, tears budding his eyes.

“Of course you meant it! I hate you! I hope you rot in the lowest levels of Tartarus!!” She ran from the room, leaving behind the now crying Lunar. He fell to the floor, bawling.

“Twilight…” He sniffed, “Twilight… I didn’t do it… it was him…” He slammed his fist against the floor, finally noticing the four that entered the palace. “You!” He pointed to them, his eyes flashing red, “You shall not speak a word of what you have seen! If you do, so help me, I will make you regret it!” He growled then suddenly he clutched his head, his hair flashed from night to light blue. Rarity nodded to Big Mac, and rushed off to find Twilight. Big Mac rushed to Lunar.

“Y’all okay there partner?” Big Mac tried to place a reassuring hand over Lunars shoulder, but Lunar slapped his hand away, a soft hiss escaping his mouth. He was half turned at this point.

“Get your filthy hands off… Please run from this freak.” Big Mac stayed where he was. He didn’t like the way that Lunar was. He was changing colors, his eyes had this mad look in them. Big Mac scooted back and watched as Lunar picked himself up, stopping to glare at Beau and Apple Bloom, who was hiding behind Beau. Lunar suddenly realized what he was doing, so he ran from the room and towards his astronomy tower.

Big Mac sighed, “we leave home and come tah another awkward place…”

“We’re not gettin’ a break this week are we?” Beau chuckled awkwardly. Apple Bloom was shaking behind him. “Aw no! Don’t worry Apple Bloom! E’erythin’ is fine! I-I’ll play will y’all today! You an’ yer little friends!” He was then suddenly pulled by Apple Bloom to the gardens, all the while, Apple Bloom was excitedly naming games they were going to be playing.

Big Mac thanked Celestia that Apple Bloom had the attention span of Pinkie Pie hyped up on coffee. He then grabbed his bag and made his way to his room, he was in need of a nap.

At the gates…

Sky Light landed onto the ground, he was thoroughly impressed with the female Pegasus that had followed him all the way. She was even able to make him crack a smirk or two on the journey. “I have to admit. You are a very capable flier.” He dug into his bag and threw her the last of his rations, a sweet, succulent muffin. She caught it mid air and devoured it happily. “Alright. You got your muffin. Mind telling me your name soldier?”

Derpy swallowed what was left of the muffin. “My name?” She asked as her eyes uncrossed a bit. She smiled and saluted him, messing up with the hand signal a few times, “My name is Ditzy doo! But you can call me Derpy!” She then smiled at him.

“Soldier, are you alright? In the head I mean?” Derpy didn’t respond, but just cocked her head. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Sky Light turned his attention back to the gates. He yelled out, “I am General Sky Light! General of the Air force! I have received summons by Princess Celestia!” When he was done talking, the gates started to be pulled open, and soon, the palace ground came into view.

Sky Light snorted, “the grounds haven’t changed a bit.” He walked forward with Derpy following him. He looked over his shoulder, “Why are you following me?”

Derpy smiled, “I came all this way! I might as well stick around for a bit!” She giggled to herself. Sky Light shrugged his shoulders.

“Just stay out of my way.”

He made his way to the throne room, he still remembered the halls since the day he joined the Air Force. And it seemed as if everyone remembered him or recognized him, because as soon as he came into sight, every guard would straighten up and act all dignified. They all feared him. However, with this, Derpy was still unaffected by Sky Light’s demanding aura. He thought this to be strange, but he soon brushed it off.

Sky Light then finally approached the throne room doors. The guards in charge of opening and closing them saw him approaching and quickly opened the door for him. He nodded to them vaguely before venturing inside. Celestia looked up from her scrolls to see Sky Light there.

“Sky Light.” She smiled, “how wonderful it is to see you again.”

Sky Light smiled at the princess. Even though he lived an empty existence, he was always happy to see the Princess. If not for her, he would have been long dead. “Princess, an honor to be in your presence again.” He lay an arm across his chest and bowed deeply to her, “even through this unwanted change, your beauty has not faltered. I must say it may have even doubled.” He straightened.

Celestia chuckled, “as suave as ever Sky Light.” She then noticed that another being was behind him. “Ah, I see you have a friend?”

Before Sky Light could explain, Derpy jumped forward and did her salute, again with the wrong hand signal. “My name is Ditzy doo your majesticky! But you can call me Derpy!” Sky Light face palmed at Derpy’s rudeness. He immediately tried to apologize to Princess Celestia about Derpy, but the Princess just waved it off.

“It’s alright.” She lowered her hands and turned fully towards Derpy, “I believe I have heard your name before. You are from Ponyville?” Sky Light snorted.

Derpy nodded quickly, “yeah! I deliver mail there!”

“You’re a mail carrier?” Sky Light asked, “but you fly so superbly. How are you just a mail carrier?”

Derpy shrugged, “Cause everypony in Ponyville says I’m a bad flier. But they don’t mean it in a bad way. But you should see Rainbow Dash! She’s an awesome flier!” Celestia nodded.

“Yes, Rainbow Dash told me all about you.” She chuckled lightly, “the only pony in Equestria to fly north for the birds in the south. Sky Light, she followed you here, is that correct?” He nodded, “and you were flying like you usually do?”

“Yes ma’am. I fly with the perfect balance of speed, agility, and power in my wing. And somehow, an untrained mail carrier was able to keep up with me and do the same movements I had accomplished while flying.” He smirked, “she has proven to me that she is not just a regular mail carrier. She has shown she has potential.” Sky Light turned towards Derpy, “Ditzy doo. You have shown your worth to me. Even though you accomplished these feats while entranced by a muffin-”

“MUFFIN!”

“-I believe you could be an asset. Ditzy doo, you stay and be taught how to be a better flier? How to better your skills and be more than just a simple mail carrier?” Sky Light reached out a hand, “it would be my pleasure to teach a worthy pony about what it’s like to be a true flier.”

Derpy thought for all of ten seconds before grabbing his hand and shaking it with enough force to make Sky Light wobble in place, “okay!” But she suddenly remembered about her job. “But I don’t know if I can. I have to deliver mail all over Ponyville and wherever I can.”

Celestia spoke up, “Actually, if you really want to work with Sky Light, I can arrange for another Pegasus to take over your work. Only if you want to though.” Derpy contemplated this and then eventually agreed. “Wonderful. We would all be overjoyed to have you in our ranks. I trust you shall heed all of Sky Light’s orders?” Derpy nodded. “Wonderful. Now, I hate to have you pulled away, but may you talk to the guards outside? They shall take you to your room. I need to have a few words with Sky Light.”

“Okay Princess!” Derpy whished around and set off to find her room.

Sky Light waited a few moments before speaking, “Now Princess, in the letter you sent me, you had said something about not feeling safe?”

Celestia smiled softly, “always straight to the point, Sky Light.”

“Yes well, somepony has to be.” He strode over to her, his face a picture of seriousness, “Tell me, what made you come to the conclusion that you needed me to be here?”

Celestia stood and went over to the high ceilinged windows, she stared through at watched the guards and other subjects walk through the palace; she peered over to Canterlot and watched the townsfolk continue on with their lives, like nothing had happened. “Everything is going along fine. Nothing new has happened and everypony in Equestria is happy in their own way…”

“Then what is the problem?”

“The problem is that everything seems too peaceful… No reports of any kind of criminal activity… No reports of natural disasters… Nothing.” She turned her head to the side and watched him from the corner of her eye, “doesn’t all of this seem suspicious? Everything going on with no problems, everything is happy, hunky dory?” She turned to him fully, “I’m not buying it at all. This doesn’t feel like peace, it feels like the calm before a storm. Call me paranoid, but I feel as if a great and powerful foe is coming our way. I have no idea when or where, this foe will attack, but I want to be prepared if or when it does happen. This is why I called upon you Sky Light. You served in the Air Force, you are the fastest flier I have ever known right next to Rainbow Dash, and you are one of my most trusted soldiers.”

Sky Light blinked in surprise, he placed a hand over his chest, “Princess… I am honored…” He bowed his head, “I am honored to be held so highly in your eyes.”

Celestia nodded, “Actually, you’re more of a friend to me than a soldier. You’re a precious friend to me, and I would gladly trust my life to you.”

Sky Light clenched his hand, “Princess… You put so much trust into me… Really, I am flattered.”

“Think nothing of it. You are my most trusted ally, and loyalist friend. Your years in the Air Force prove how disciplined you are, the fact that you made it into the Wonderbolts shows how great of a flier you are is another honor you possess. You are a gifted Pegasus that just suffered a terrible tragedy.” Sky Light moved his gaze to avoid hers, “I hope one day you can come to realize that your life isn’t truly over…”

“Princess, forgive me, but… Look at me…” He gestured to his lone wing and eye patch. “I no longer have two wings, and I can’t see from my right eye. Ever since that day, I had to live a life full of pain and sorrow. I’m sorry to thwart your expectations, but I am a broken Pegasus. It’s a miracle in itself that I can still fly, at my top speeds no less, with just one wing.” He shook his head, “I’m sorry to have destroyed your vision of me with those words, even just a little.”

Celestia just turned back to the window, she didn’t speak for a few moments, “…Nevertheless, you are a remarkable pony. And I am glad to have you in my ranks. But please, all I ask of you is to keep things tidy around here with the other ponies. There have been some tensions here and I know you are the only pony that can straighten them out.”

Sky Light straightened up and saluted Celestia, “I understand, Princess.” He stopped then asked after a moments silence, “But I must ask for full authority. If I am to be in charge with the others, I need your full support with whatever decision I make. And I shall say this now, and only now, when I make a decision, I always think it through and only give the answer that will give the best results.”

Celestia nodded, “I understand. You have my full support.”

“But that’s not enough. If there’s anything I hate more, is representing something, anything, without plausible evidence. I would need a document signed by you that stares that you back up whatever decision I make, no questions asked, and no underhanded elements used to usurp my authority.” Celestia thought this over, Sky Light was always very by the rules, and this would appease him and keep him from causing any unwanted disturbances.

“I will only sign this document if you promise, and sign as well, to not use this authority over everything in the palace, but just the barracks, courtyards, gardens and skies. Is this clear?” Sky Light nodded, “good, now I shall go ahead and start on the document. Go ahead and sign here and I’ll get everything else figured out.” Sky Light signed his name on the parchment.

“Alright Princess. Am I needed here?”

“No. You can go back to your room or you can go meet the rest of the guards and weather team. The captain of the weather team is Rainbow Dash, I’m sure you two can get along. Though she might not like the fact that you’re practically taking her job.” Celestia shivered at the thought. Sky Light chuckled darkly.

Sky Light was eager to fly in the air with his old teammates, so he bid Princess Celestia a farewell after she told him about the dinners they have a six every day. He promised to attend only if he felt like it. After he left the throne room, he decided he should explore the palace a bit, since it had been ages since he had last been there.

As he was walking he found himself in front of Venom Mix’s potions lab. The dark scent of unknown potions was emanating from the door. Sky Light decided to push his luck and knocked on the door, quickly receiving an explosion from the inside. Not two seconds later the door was pulled open by Venom Mix himself, sporting just his pants, goggles, dark leather boots and dark leather gloves. “Now who dares- Sky Light!” He waved his arms open, “so good to see you again in one piece.” He jeered.

Sky Light snorted, “just as big of the pain in the ass as ever.”

“Oh come now, we’ve only met once.” Venom Mix waved a hand and went back inside to continue whatever crazy project he was in the middle of. Sky Light stepped inside and almost bolted out, an ungodly stench was coming from the cauldron in the middle of the room. The contents were boiling dangerously while blue fumes billowed out, many bottles and flasks were thrown about in the room along with a few black charred objects that Sky Light refused to touch. “Now please make it quick, I am in the middle of a great break through.”

“Have the cauldron fumes gotten to you now?”

“Nonsense! I am thinking perfectly well right now! I only act brilliantly when surrounded by the fumes of potions.” He suddenly barked out laughing and twitched. Venom shook his head and fixed his goggles, “though for the life of me, I cannot figure out why I twitch and laugh when brewing.” He grabbed a flask from the back room and opened it up. He turned it over the cauldron and out came what looked like…

“Dear Celestia!” Sky Light shouted as he covered his mouth with a hand. What came out of the flask was an Earth pony heart. “Are you barking mad!? Where did you acquire an Earth pony heart!?”

Venom giggled and threw the flask against a wall, shattering it into a million pieces. “I’m surprised you could tell it was an Earth pony heart. Then again, Earth ponies have red blood, while Unicorns have shining magical blood and Pegasi have silver blood. Quite a nice eye you have. Excuse the pun.” He giggled quickly then proceeded to stir the mixture, avoiding the popping bubbles that spewed out the acidic formula.

“Why on earth do you have a heart!?” Sky Light yelled. Venom threw some mixture at Sky Light, which he dodged and watched it fizz on the ground.

“Do be quiet. I cannot allow anypony to hear this. In potion making, we can’t always just use the cute ingredients. No, to make real potions, we need the real ingredients, which happen to be…” He showed Sky Light a box full of vials of blood from all three races, “…what’s on the inside.”

Sky Light shook his head, “soldier, are you sane?”

“Who can be when you’re hated by everypony you know, and must work in dark drab environments and work with black magic? And have to be perfect? I’m sure anypony would be insane by now.” The cauldron started to shake. “Woops! I let the heart settle too long! Sky Light be a doll and hand me the,” he snapped his fingers, “what was it? Oh yes! Hand me the jar of pegasi feathers.” Sky Light scoffed, but did as he said.

“Venom Mix, is there a reason you need body parts for potions?”

Venom Mix nodded, “why yes. Black magic is the strongest of all magic. And for black magic, we need these kinds of ingredients. I believe you have had a potion of this sort, a muscle regeneration potion?” Sky Light nodded, not liking where this was going, “yes, muscle regeneration. Ingredients are: tuft of cloud, Hydra flower and aged humus.” He smiled maniacally, “want to know what the main ingredient is?”

“Do I want to?”

“No, not really.”

“Then I don’t want to know.” Sky Light then finally asked the question he had been wanting to ask for awhile now. “Tell me, why are you shirtless?”

“It gets hot when I brew, so I do it shirtless now. I usually do it completely nude, but now…” He let it hang as the meaning was quite apparent. Venom Mix wiggled his fingers at Sky Light, “now, why did you come here? I am very busy.” Sky Light then told him that he had no reason for coming there. “Well why didn’t you say so!?” He practically threw Sky Light out of the potions lab, “now you may be a general and physically stronger than me, but you are not, I repeat,” he leaned close for emphasis, “are not to order me around!”

“But I haven’t even-”

“OUT OF MY SIGHT!!!” The door was then shut, it stayed like that for a moment before being opened and Venom Mix placed a sticky note on the door that read, ‘Disturb me and you shall perish’.

Sky Light dusted himself off, he was positive that that pony was the only one that would never follow his orders. Though it was good thing, he wouldn’t have made a good soldier anyway. Sky Light glanced out the window, and he saw red. The skies were in terrible condition!

Clouds were thrown about haphazardly, each one different shapes and kinds of clouds. “Who in their right mind would think this layout was a good idea!?” He growled to himself as he made his way outside.

Out in the skies…

Rainbow Dash, Soarin and Spit Fire were all lounging on the clouds, all talking about nothing as their clouds rolled on by. “Really? You’re commander was that bad?” Rainbow asked.

Soarin chuckled, “yeah! You should have seen him! He made us fly a hundred laps around the stadium and do twenty sets of wing ups for a warm up. And just to be even more evil, he’d dangle water breaks in our faces in between our workouts. He’d be sipping on water right in front of us!”

“But Soarin, you got to remember, he’s one of the fastest ponies we’d ever seen. He’s on the same level as you Rainbow.”

Rainbow laughed at Spit Fire’s comment. “Well I don’t know about that. I’m the fastest flier in all of Equestria, I did three Sonic Rainbooms, and can clear a sky in ten seconds flat. I think it’s safe to say I’m faster than him.”

They all laughed together when Soarin felt a shudder go through his body. Spit Fire stared at him, “you okay Soarin?”

Soarin just nodded, “sorry, I felt a dark aura coming towards us.” Spit Fire kicked him, “OW!” Soarin rubbed his leg, “don’t kick me!”

“Well don’t be stupid. You can’t feel auras.” She crossed her arms behind her head and leaned back again.

“No really! Out of nowhere, I felt this weird dark aura.”

Rainbow raised an eyebrow, “really?”

Soarin nodded, then he chuckled, “kinda reminds me of the commander. Everypony would shudder or convulse wildly until he finally came into the room. Then he would like to sneak up behind you and scare the living daylights out of ya!”

“He sounds like drag.” Rainbow commented.

“Yeah! Like one time, he was flying around and somepony said something about him-” Spit Fire quickly sat up and started to kick Soarin, “-OW! Stop kicking me!”

“Soarin! Shut up!”

Soarin scoffed, “I’m just telling a funny story about our commander-” He suddenly stopped, Spit Fire was darting her eyes behind him, “-oh he’s right behind me isn’t he?”

“Yes I am Soarin. Now tell me, what story were you referring to? I’m sure you could remember after a few laps.” Soarin and Spit Fire both shot up into the air and saluted him.

They both cried out in unison, “Sir! Commander Sky Light Sir!” Sky Light watched the display, his arms crossed over his chest and lone wing lazily flapping in the wind.

“At ease soldiers.” They both lowered their hands, but continued to stay perfectly still. “I was called here to the Palace by the princess herself. And what do I find when I come here? I find-”

Rainbow Dash couldn’t contain her excitement anymore, she leapt into the air right in front of Sky Light and couldn’t stop herself from gushing. “Oh my Celestia! You’re part of the Wonderbolts! And you’re their commander!” She squealed. Sky Light blinked, not knowing why this girl was suddenly in his face and gushing over him. “From all the stories they told me about you, I figured you’d look scarier, but man! You don’t look that scary, but you do look really awesome! Celestia I’m rambling like Pinkie right now, but oh I don’t care! I have so many questions!!”

Sky Light momentarily forgot his anger at his teammates, his emotions not that of amusement and curiosity at this young female before him. “I take it that you’re Rainbow Dash?”

Rainbow practically exploded with glee, “you know my name!? I mean- of course you know my name! I am the fastest flier in all of Equestria! And the only pony to ever do three, and I do mean three, Sonic Rainbooms!” She rubbed her knuckles on her shirt, “yup. You are talking to the Rainbow Dash.”

Sky Light said nothing, he was quite impressed with what she had to say, but she would have to prove to him that what she said is true. Him being a hermit for such a long time, he had no idea what had been happing in the world, mostly just thoughts of food and sleep entered his mind on most days. “Well that’s nice.” Rainbow’s happy little bubble deflated. Her bragging had no effect on him. “As you know, I am Sky Light. Commander of the Wonderbolts.”

Rainbow then noticed he had only one wing. “Um not to be nosy or rude, but why do you only have one wing?” Soarin and Spit Fire both tried to send Rainbow mental messages, telling her to not ask about that.

Sky Light wanted to just ignore her, but knowing how she reacted to meeting him, it was in his best interests to just answer her, a true or untrue answer would get her off his tail. “When you’re parents tell you not to do anything dangerous, just listen to them.” He smirked at his answer, believing that his answer was adequate enough. Rainbow frowned, not liking his answer. “Anyway, Princess Celestia had sent for me to come to the Palace. She said things, which shall be classified until she deems she tell you about them, and it made me come here. However, I did bring along a pony I met on the way here. She is quite a capable flier and she would be a great addition to the weather team.”

A cloud then exploded next to Sky Light to reveal Derpy. Rainbow, Soarin and Spit Fire all freaked out, but Sky Light just stayed still without flinching. “Her name is Ditzy doo, a mail carrier from Ponyville.”

Rainbow shook her head, “sorry to say this, but Derpy is the worst flier in all of Ponyville! No offense.” Derpy giggled and waved it off, “trust me, everything she touches gets destroyed.”

“Worst flier you say? Well, when she followed me here, she kept up with me just fine. She performed excellently on the moves I demonstrated and was successful in destroying a good number of large objects that were in our way on the way here. I deem her to be quite a capable flier. So before you make assumptions about some pony’s flight ability, you need to remember that your word, over the word of a qualified official is all void.” Rainbow’s mouth hung open.

“Now, before we begin, just two things. I will be in charge of the skies from now on. All the soldiers are now under my command, and everything I say, goes. If you refuse to heed my orders, you are to be punished severely. Got it?” Rainbow snapped out of her initial shock.

“Oh boy, you just don’t wait till you start the slave drive, do you?” Soarin muttered to himself.

“Care to repeat that soldier?” Sky Light spat to Soarin, who in turn shook his head furiously.

“No Sir! Sorry Sir!”

Rainbow flared up, “hey! Who do you think you are!? You can’t just come in here and start ordering us around! How do we know you aren’t making any of this up!?” She puffed up and tried to look intimidating to Sky Light.

“For one thing, I have the letter from Princess Celestia, in her own ink.” He showed the folded parchment, the seal was waving right in Rainbow’s face. “And I talked to Celestia. She agreed to give me absolute power to the troops, skies and everything that is outside of the Palace.” He glared at Rainbow, “now get in line soldier before I make you do two hundred laps and forty sets of wing ups.” Rainbow growled then got in line with Soarin and Spit Fire. “Good, now that we are in order, the second order of business before training.” He held out his hand, “I need all of your licenses.”

Soarin sighed, “seriously commander? You already know all of us are qualified…”

Sky Light, “nonetheless, I like to keep everything legal and licensed. License and registration.”

Soarin and Spit Fire both fished out their forms from their uniforms. “Jeez commander, even when you’re not here, you still have us carry this stuff with us.” They handed their forms to him, he unfolded them and finally nodded after a moment’s silence.

“All clear. Ditzy doo, Rainbow Dash. License and registration.”

Rainbow started sweating, “uhh… License and registration? What’s that…?”

Spit Fire answered, “it’s the forms they give you after your final exam in Flight School, you know, the ones that say you’re all qualified for any type of work in the skies.” Rainbow turned white with dread.

“Oh those!” Derpy called out, she reached into her hair and pulled out her own forms, which were torn and stained badly.

Sky Light took them, he had seen stranger places that ponies kept their forms in. “Bottom of your class? No matter, you have proven you have improved from where you stood at graduation.” He gave them back to Derpy then settled before Rainbow. “Rainbow Dash. License and registration.”

Rainbow Dash looked side to side, everyone around her were urging her to just give him the forms. She gulped, “uhh, I don’t have any. I dropped out of Flight School.”

Sky Light smirked, “I knew it.” He flew towards her, Soarin and Spit Fire dashed away, both knowing what was coming. “I knew it the first moment you talked to me. You’re a drop out that couldn’t handle Flight School, am I right?”

“It wasn’t because I couldn’t handle it! It’s because I didn’t need it! I’m the best flier in all of Equestria!”

“Not by my standards.” He crossed his arms back over his chest, “so you’re a little foal who thought she was, ‘too cool for school’ huh? Well let me tell you something Rainbow Dash, if you don’t have the education, then to me you’re nothing more than just a simple Earth pony. And since you have not graduated, you are to be treated as such.”

“What!? I’m not an Earth pony! I’m a Pegasus!”

“If you are, then you should have finished Flight school and gotten your permits. You’ve been flying and doing Pegasus work all this time without a permit.” He sneered, “I should kick you down now.”

Rainbow glared at him, she brought her fists up in a fighting stance, “The Mayor of Ponyville, Princess Celestia and plenty of Wonderbolts say I’m perfectly capable to work the skies! With or without a permit!”

“Yes, and we should always take the word of a few ponies. I don’t care who says you’re capable, if you’re not educated, you have no license, you aren’t qualified.” He sent a hateful glare at her, “now get down on the ground.”

Spit Fire came up to Sky Light, “commander, cut her some slack. She’s a fast flier, she’s great at weather work, I say she’s perfect for the job.”

Sky Light spat, “so you’re telling me, that everypony, with or without the schooling, can do whatever they want? That some Flight School dropout can go and get a high paying job at the Factories as a manager? Or lead legions of weather teams all over Equestria because the words of a few ponies say she’s good? That’s not how the world works. So to me, she’s nothing. Everything she did or said she did have no meaning. Rainbow Dash, get your ass back to the ground where you belong! You don’t deserve to work the skies!”

Rainbow Dash stared up at him, “no.”

Sky Light chuckled, “Don’t play with me, drop out. Get on the ground before I lose my patience with you.”

“No! I am a capable flier! I’ll do anything to show you I’m not under you or anything like that!”

Sky Light and Rainbow Dash both glared at each other, neither one wanting to let the other win. “Alright. You want to prove to me that you’re a capable flier? Fine. We’ll do just that.”

Rainbow Dash smirked, “anytime gramps.” Sky Light’s eye twitched, but he just let it slip.

“Another thing about me that these two have failed to mention. I am also a trained teacher of CloudsDale Flight school. You can take my test, and if you pass, I’ll make you official. I’ll do it in my own ink!”

Rainbow Dash puffed up and sent him a challenging glare, “you’re on! I’ll prove to you that I’m a great flier!” Soarin and Spit Fire bolted to her while Sky Light just barked out laughing.

“Dash! Don’t do it! Sky Light is the harshest examiner in all of Equestria! Only the best of the best take his courses, and most of them fail!” Spit Fire tried to explain to Rainbow, but Rainbow just flipped her rainbow-hued hair.

“Well then, I guess I’ll be the best of the best when I pass his exam!” Rainbow replied confidently.

“Rainbow! Please, for Celestia’s sake, listen to us! Just do as he says, and don’t fight him on it!” Soarin tried to block her view of Sky Light, “trust me on this! You won’t pass it! I know you won’t. Just back down before you fail and he makes things ten times worse for you!” Rainbow just pushed out of her way.

“Listen Gramps! I’ll take on whatever you throw at me! Give me everything you got!” Soarin and Spit Fire would bang their heads on the Palace walls if they were close enough. Derpy just watched as she munched on one of Beau’s muffins.

Sky Light smiled good naturedly at her, but the aura he was giving off was anything but, “That’s great to hear, drop out. Because I’m just waiting till you fail and I can prove to you, that you are what I call you. Drop out.” He flew off, getting started on making his obstacle course. Soarin and Spit Fire pleaded with Rainbow to see reason, but she refused to listen. She knew she was going to pass with flying colors.

It was about a couple of hours later when Sky Light was done with his course. He flew over to them. “Alright, to start off, we need to start from the ground.” All of them, excluding Derpy who was enjoying he muffin on a small cloud away from the course, descended to the ground. “Alright, Drop out, here’s the course. You shoot up into the air in a perfect y-axis flight, then when you reach the thirty thousand feet mark, you turn in a ninety degree angle towards the cloud walls. You had better be good at timing. When you flap your wings in time to a single rhythm, you fly faster. You are to fly through all of them, in time with your wing speed, all images on each wall better be a down wing position, or you will be failed.

“After you are done with all ten walls, you are to fly up another nine thousand feet and dispatch nine cumulo-nimbus clouds, all ready to start a thunderstorm or tornado in ten seconds after you take off. If even one of them goes off, you are to be failed. Got that!? And finally, my favorite one. I have set up twenty red rings all over the palace. You are to fly through all twenty of them dead center. If you are off even an inch, you are to be failed. After you get through the rings, you are to fly back here and drop in a ninety degree angle. Drop for three seconds then parachute yourself back down. You miss a single second, and you will fail. Oh, and you have twenty seconds to do the whole thing.”

Rainbow Dash snorted, “I can do it in ten.”

Sky Light laughed, “Right, drop out. Right.” He raised a hand, “on the count of three, you are to take off! ONE!”

Rainbow Dash spread her wings.

“TWO!”

She gulped in air, ready to prove him wrong.

“GO!!!”

She pushed herself into the air, ready to take on the exam.
DONE!
Wow that was a long chapter! Long chapter is LONG. Anyway, I hope you guys like the story so far. I got SOOOOO much stuff to do with this story; I might break 100K words! Or even 200K words!! OH THAT WOULD BE EPIC!! But seriously, I’ve been working all day on this. So my fingers are so damn tired right now… :(
But now, I feel like I should tell you guys this NOW… There WILL be Blood/gore in this fic. It won’t be for awhile, but I will promise more smutty goodness, and plenty of mental torture, but blood and gore are a GUARENTEE. Ya just got to give me a few chapters… okay… A LOT of chapters… BUT IT WILL COME. I plan on being so merciless… Most ponies call me a sociopath.
*Maniacal laughter*
There will be so much blood and gore, that it’ll make Cupcakes look like a bedtime story!! *happy face* I do love the suffering and torment!
READ RATE REVIEW SUBSCRIBE AND FAVORITE~! OR I’LL THROW YOU INTO FLUTTERSHY’S SHED~! ((BTW, I’m not gonna ALWAYS be doing these long as fuck chapters. Only for forgiveness for taking so long to update, or for special days.))