The Hidden Adventure

“Alright Cliff, I have a plan for you to not get bullied anymore.” Dusk announced proudly at breakfast.
“What is it?” Storm asked out of pure curiosity.

“Just wait and see.” Dusk replied. Cliff sighed, shaking his head and looking unconvinced.

Just then, Princess Celestia stood up and clanged her glass. “I have an announcement to make,” She said. All the ponies in the hall turned to look at her. A violet colored alicorn stood up next to Princess Celestia, her short light blue mane curling cutely at the ends. She had the same cutie mark as Nightmare Moon. “I present you my sister, Princess Luna!” Princess Celestia said clapping her hooves. All the ponies in the hall began clapping their hooves and some even whooped with joy.
“She’s really different from Nightmare Moon, isn’t she?” Storm commented.

“Yeah, she really is,” Dusk said. Princess Luna smiled and said, “I thank thee my faithful subjects for greeting thou princess with the greatest applause.” A great number of ponies in the hall turned to look in each other in confusion.

“She means to say thank you,” Princess Celestia explained, “She still only knows olden English I’m afraid.” Everypony nodded in understanding.

Later, Dusk, Ashley, Storm and Cliff went to a large grassy field off the back of the castle with a huge oak tree in it. A place known to the royal guard as Oak Hill.

“What’s this?” Cliff asked.

“It’s your salvation.” Dusk proclaimed, his chest puffing out.

“It’s a tree.” Ashley said flatly.

“Dusk, I know you have weird tactics that saved us uncountable times on the battlefield, but I have to agree with Ashley on this one,” Storm concurred, “It is just a tree. A big tree.”

Dusk ignored the two of them. “Okay Cliff, I need you to slam your front hooves on the tree until it falls over.” Dusk instructed Cliff, pointing to the tree with a hoof.

“Huh?” Cliff asked, dumbfounded by the impossibility of the task. “Are you crazy?” Cliff said, looking at Dusk the way one would look at a lunatic.

“Nope, now do it,” Dusk responded, his tone and his facial expression told everypony that he was not kidding. Cliff shrugged and slammed his front hooves into the trunk of the tree. The tree shook a little but that was about it. Cliff looked at Dusk. “Go on,” Dusk said motioning to the tree with his head. Cliff looked at Storm and Ashley, both of whom shrugged and gave him the ‘I can’t help you, sorry’ look. Cliff turned and began pounding on the tree.

“Okay continue doing that until tonight.” Dusk said. Cliff nearly fell over when he heard that. “WHAT?!” Cliff shouted in an unusually exasperated manner, “Why?”

“Because it will help build your foreleg strength,” Dusk said.

“But I have duties,” Cliff protested, trying to get out of the insane task the senior ranking pony was trying to put him up to.

“I have removed your duties as of today until tomorrow morning,” Dusk said, “If anypony asks you what you’re doing, say Lieutenant Flamer asked you to do it.”

“Nah I don’t think so,” Cliff said skeptically.

“Please do it,” Dusk begged, “It really will help you. Just trust me please?”

“I’m not doing it.” Cliff said stubbornly.

“Hey, why can’t he just do normal push ups?” Storm said, cutting into the conversation.

“Yeah, why not?” Cliff said, agreeing with the white pegasus.

“It would give him more foreleg strength but not anymore than he already has.” Dusk explained, “And I wouldn’t have asked him to do it if I thought that he couldn’t do it.”

“But I can’t do it!” Cliff cried out exasperatedly. Dusk turned to him and snapped, “Don’t say that, you need to believe you can do it for it to work.” He quickly shot a glance at Storm and Ashley telling them to not say a word. “Now please continue Cliff,” He pleaded, the turning to the other two he gave them a look that said, ‘Please help me convince him.’

“I think you should do it,” Ashley said, “This does sound crazy but Dusk wouldn’t ask anypony to do anything pointless.” Cliff looked at Ashley, raising an eyebrow.

“I have to agree with them,” Storm said, sighing, “Dusk isn’t one for fooling around.”

“Okay, fine I’ll do it,” Cliff said, giving in.

“Thank you,” Dusk said calmly, “You will not regret this.” He turned and left, Ashley on his back and Storm following them. Cliff sighed and resumed pounding the tree.

“I hope you know what you’re doing Dusk,” Storm said worriedly.

“I know what I’m doing,” Dusk replied, “Have faith in me.”
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“Dusk! What are you doing?!” Shining Armor yelled at Dusk.

“Hmm? What are you talking about?” Dusk replied.

“Why is the new recruit trying to knock down the old oak tree on Oak Hill?” Shining Armor said angrily.

“Because I asked him to,” Dusk replied nonchalantly.

“I know,” Shining Armor said, furiously, “I’m asking you why did you ask him to do something so pointless?”

“It will help him, trust me,” Dusk said looking at Shining Armor very seriously. Shining Armor was about to yell when he was touched on the shoulder by a white wing-tip. He turned to see Princess Celestia. “Your highness!” Shining Armor said, saluting crisply, “Lieutenant Flamer has gone nuts!”

“I have not,” Dusk argued.

“He has made the new recruit pound against the old oak tree until it falls.” Shining Armor reported. Princess Celestia turned to Dusk and asked, “Is this true?”

“Yes, it is true your majesty,” Dusk said, “But please trust me your majesty, good will come from this.” Princess Celestia looked at Dusk skeptically but turned to Shining Armor and said, “I’m sorry, but I’m going to trust Dusk on this one.” Shining Armor’s mouth dropped open while Dusk sighed in relief. “But,” Princess Celestia added, “If no good comes from this, Dusk will have his position removed.” Dusk gulped and hoped that his plan would work.
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Cliff’s he was tired from pounding all day, he was panting like a dog and his body was covered in sweat. His hooves were sore, bleeding and had splinters from pounding the oak tree. Hi front leg muscles were aching and tense from overuse. The part of the oak tree he had been pounding was heavily damaged, leaving the softer inner flesh exposed. Cliff was about to collapse when he heard a voice behind him say, “Good job.” Cliff knew who it was. “What… do… you… want… Dusk?” He asked between pants.

“You did well trying to knock this tree down.” Dusk said, then looking at Cliff’s hooves, he asked. “Do you need some help getting to the infirmary?”

“No… I’m… fi- ” Cliff whispered before he passed out on the ground.
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When Cliff woke up, he felt like his front hooves were on fire. He looked down and saw that they were in bandages. He looked around him and saw that he was in the royal castle’s infirmary. The air was filled with a medicinal smell. The ceiling was white and had electric lights and fans installed into them. The walls were white with large windows at regularly intervals. Through the windows he saw that it was late morning. His bed was a metal bed with railings and an uncomfortable mattress and a lumpy pillow. There were five more beds just like his lined up parallel to his bed. At the end of either side of the room was a door. The door to his right opened and Storm came in carrying a tray of fruits and vegetables on his back.

“Yo Cliff! How you doing?” Storm asked, quickly walking over to him to pass him the food.

“Better I guess,” Cliff said, his aches and tiredness were gone but his hooves still hurt. Storm placed the food on Cliff’s lap.
“Dusk carried you all the way up here you know?” He said, leaning on the railing of the bed, “He really cares about you.”

“Why?” Cliff asked puzzled as to why the lieutenant would help a recruit he only knew yesterday.

“It’s probably because he empathises with your bullying situation.” Storm replied.

“Wait, Dusk was bullied?” Cliff questioned, he did not know that the lieutenant he knew as a friend was bullied.
“Yeah, I was with him when it happened,” Storm said, “Me and him were bullied to no end because we didn’t have our cutie marks.” Cliff began to eat as Storm recounted what happened to him and Storm on their first few days at the royal castle.

“Well, since Dusk and I didn’t have out cutie marks,” Storm began, “We were picked on by the other castle guard the same rank as us and believe it or not, our main bullies are your main bullies; Bright Boast and Crush Ice.”

“No way,” Cliff interrupted, “Wait a second, doesn’t that mean that they didn’t get promoted a single rank since you and Dusk joined?”

“Yup,” Storm replied, chuckling, “All twelve years.”

“You and Dusk have been serving in the castle for twelve years?” Cliff said in awe.

“I guess, well no, two years only as we spent ten years in the war,” Storm replied, “Anyway, we were teased and abused. The torture mercifully stopped only when her highness or Shining Armor was present. The limit for Dusk was when the bullies grabbed me and…” Storm stopped and shut his eyes tightly for a while before continuing, “Broke my wings.”

Cliff gasped, even as an earth pony he knew how sensitive a pegasus’s wings were to their owners.

“Dusk found me in a janitor’s closet bleeding and with my wings literally tied in a knot,” Storm said, wiping some tears that found their way out of his eyes, “He found the bullies and yelled at them. Their response to that was slapping his muzzle and more taunting. Dusk’s horn then glowed red and the ground beneath them exploded into red magic. This led Dusk to lean his signature spell, Eruption. Afterward, Dusk’s lessons became more practical so that Dusk could learn how to control his magic properly, I was sent to let my wings recover and the bullies were left with magic burns and a harsh scolding.” Cliff finished his breakfast just as Storm wrapped up his tale. “Anyway, follow me,” Storm said, getting up, “Dusk wants to see you at Oak Hill again.”
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“Ah! You came!” Dusk said happily as he saw Storm approaching with Cliff in his wake. Ashley was on his back munching on an emerald.

“You really like them emeralds eh?” Cliff said to Ashley, then turning to Dusk he asked, “What do you need me to do?”
Dusk pointed to the grassy ground and said, “I want you to slam your hooves as hard as you can into the ground. Please?” An hour before this and Cliff would have refused but after hearing how Dusk was bullied and how he overcame it, he removed the bandages on his hooves and prepared to strike the earth. He had newfound respect for Dusk and knew that this would somehow help him.

Cliff raised his hooves high above his head and brought it down on the ground as hard as he could. The pain was intense but he withstood it. There was a loud ‘BAM!’ and the ground began to shake and rumble. Then from Cliff’s hooves, a large crack formed in the earth. Cliff could not believe his eyes and neither could Storm or Ashley. “Did I… just… do… that?” He asked, amazed by his own strength.

“Yes you did,” Dusk said, smiling to himself.

“B-But h-how?” Ashley said, hopping off Dusk’s back to inspect the crack.

“Well, I guessed that your strength in your front hooves would be very strong as your legs muscles weren’t aching even after doing at least ten times the amount of work we did yesterday at your uncle’s,” Dusk explained, “Then I had a hunch that you could possibly turn that into a weapon.”

“You mean that you expected him to be able to split the ground?” Storm asked his right hoof scratching his head.

“Not exactly,” Dusk replied, leaning back on the large oak tree behind him. Motioning to the tree he said, “This tree is actually magically enchanted to withstand hard blows. The fact that you could actually damage it this much yesterday shows how strong you are.”

The other ponies looked at the tree and saw that it was completely fine. “Huh? But I bashed it up yesterday.” Cliff said, baffled.

“Well the tree regenerates,” Dusk said, grinning broadly, “So enjoy using it to train your muscles.”

“Thanks Dusk, for helping me realise my true strength.” Cliff said, bowing respectfully to the grey unicorn. Both Cliff’s and Dusk’s flanks started glowing and then two different marks appeared on them. “Hey you guys got your cutie marks!” Ashley exclaimed. Dusk and Cliff turned to look at their respective flanks. Dusk’s cutie mark was a golden capital ‘L’ surrounded by red spirals and Cliff’s was a fissure. Storm tackled the both of them together and shouted, “Yeah! Now we all have our cutie marks!”

“By the way,” Dusk said, regaining his calm composure, “What are you going to call your new move?”

“I think I’ll call it…” Cliff said, pausing to think, “Fissure.”