“I heard she crawled out from, the darkest crags of the mountains.” A gasp echoed from three young foals as they poked their heads out from under their ragged covers.

“Oh yea?” replied a pepper colored colt, “I hear that she’s really a dragon, here to torment us all before she gobbles…us UP!” A lavender filly squeaked and jumped under her covers, shivering violently.

“She gobbles foals?!” was all her quavering voice could muster.

Out of the shadows a glint of light twinkled for a fraction of a second and the youngest of all the ponies jumped from the darkest shadow growling and snarling, showing off her teeth to the captive audience. The act made only better by the unnatural canines possessed solely by this young pegasi.

“That’s right little ones,” she cackled in a dark voice, “I’m going to fatten you up, clip your wings to hang on my wall and then…I SHALL DEVOUR YOU ALL!” She roared, grinning the entire time. The foals screamed in unison, diving to hide under their pillows or beds, while the youngest smiled happily enjoying her only moment in the spot light.

“EVES STORM!” barked one of the older ponies, a colt that blazed brilliant orange with a gold-red mane. “Stop terrorizing the others. After all the times they bully and pick on you, you decide to do the same thing back? That makes you just as bad as they are.” He frowned looking disapprovingly at her, watching her glee deflate into the repressed and lonely stance she normally carried herself with. Her eyes seemed to empty of its night sky shimmer. She was the newest to come to the Windsoar Young Fliers Sanctuary, an orphanage for young pegasi found on the streets of Windsoar. The city itself was double the size of Cloudsdale, and nearly as large as the floating ponytropolis of Las Pegasus.

“Now, what aren’t we going to do?” Firebrand asked in a hopeful tone. Eve glanced up at him, her hair covering one of her eyes as the other brimmed with angry tears. She stood and huffed, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

“Don’t be a bully, I know, I know.” She snorted and trotted off bucking the door open and walking off into the play yard. She could still hear Firebrand calming down all the other ponies. “It’s not my fault their just a bunch of finicky foals! Getting all scared about Scorn Wing ‘the terrible’.” Scorn wing, the ‘house mother’ of the orphanage. She was the cruelest of any pegasi; rude, rough, abusive even. Telling all the young ponies how awful they were and how lucky it was to have her as a ‘mother’.

Eve sat and sighed lying on a comfy tuft of cloud to gaze into a small pool of water that had been left by this night storm. She could see her reflection as it stared back, her mane and tail shimmering a lovely shade of deep navy blue that attempted to spike and flow at the same time. Thankfully she still had her most precious and only possession, a blue star sapphire barrette that tied back her mane brilliantly. Her fur dark pale cobalt to match her pure silver eye with flecks of blue shimmering between the pools of silver. Biting her lip softly, she looked at her flank, still no cutie mark. She was the youngest, the smallest, and the last pony without her cutie mark.

“It’s okay; I still scared those babies!.” She smiled halfheartedly, laying her head upon the cloud bed she had made for herself. “One day…one day I’ll show all those ponies, I’ll be a somepony!” Thunder rumbled in the distance as she nuzzled the cloud, curling up into a ball and falling fast asleep into a land of dreams that would carry her far from this desolate excuse of a home.

Her dream filled with a choking fog, as crickets began their song and frogs harmonized. A tall angry figure trotted through it all, her bones creaking with every step and her eyes glowing so brightly that it lit the old pony’s path. Her skin clung to her bones and her wings rattled when they unfolded.

“Children, oh my little darlings! Where are yoooouuu?” Eve cowered from the frightening form of Scorn Wing as the monster terrorized her dreams. Taking a deep breath she could feel an inner strength fill her, give her strength and power. She smiled taking a step from the bushes only to realize the growth of her stature. She was a fully grown pegasi now ready to face the monster that was Scorn Wing.

“Eve…” A soft yet strong voice echoed through the gloom. “You must confront your fears…not destroy them” Eve narrowed her eyes, ears pinning back but all she caught was a shadow moving unnaturally fast before the sky. What or who was that? Eve shook her head; no she had to destroy the tyrant of the Orphanage! Pawing at the earth she charged forward, teeth bared, wings pinned tight to her side. Scorn Wing cackled and leaping into the air her wings creating echoes of thunder. With a sudden buck of her hind legs Eve kicked off the ground and soared after her with the hopes of permanently grounding her.

“SCORN! Never again will you hurt another innocent-“

“Eve…EVE…EVE! Wake up, it’s time for breakfast.” Eves eyes slowly fluttered open, her mouth dry and gritty as sand.

“Fire...brand?” She murmured trying to shake the sleep and her dream from her mind, yet still that voice, that foreboding voice echoing from that strange shadow. Slowly she rose to her hooves and followed Firebrand off to breakfast, which probably was going to consist of old grass and hay. Perhaps if they were lucky they might get a wilted daisy here or there but they came few and far between for any meal. Most of the foals would create a group meal and just share it all. Making sure the smallest and weakest ate first and the strongest ate last. Firebrand stopped at the door and sighed, looking down at Eve,

“I’m sorry, about last night. I didn’t mean for you to sleep in the yard… you have a bed Eve please sleep there so that the night chills don’t make you sick. Be strong Eve, fortune always favors the bold.” She could only smile back up at the colt. He always knew how to cheer up anypony.

Author's Note

Comments and Constructive Criticism welcome, hope you enjoyed the beginning of this tale.