Dashed wings
Prolog
Rainbow Dash had just clocked in at the weather factory, and wanted to clear some clouds, that had moved into Pony Ville over night. After a quick breakfast, she set out to locate the clouds. When she located the clouds, she started to clear them, so that the citizens of Pony Ville could have a nice beautiful day. She had been at it all morning, so after 8-9 hours of this she went back to the factory and clocked out, and then made her way to the park. Where upon arriving she happened upon spitfire whom was training, Rainbow stared in awe she thought it was amazing the tricks her friend Spit Fire could do.
Rainbow Dash just stood there watching Spit Fire perform loops, spins, and then doubling back as if it where nothing. Then Spit Fire saw Rainbow awing her or, Spit Fire waved at Dash inviting her over. Then Rainbow Dash flew over to great Spit Fire. Dash was blushing slightly because Spitfire had caught her staring. Dash greeted her and they both chatted about their day. In addition, the things they had planed to do, Spit Fire told Dash she was getting ready for the wonder bolt auditions, and told her that she would be judging the contestants.
Then a look of excitement popped on Spit Fires face then stared at rainbow dash. A big smile spread across the amber ponies face, Rainbow Dash just stood there wondering what Spit Fire was so excited about, when spitfire raced off to her discarded backpack. She then returned with a white envelope, stamped with the wonder bolts seal of approval on the back. Then passed it on to her she looked at the envelope. Then back to Spit Fire. “What is it?” Rainbow inquired. “Well why don’t you open it, and find out!” Spit Fire answered with a wink.
Rainbow Dash smiled a little at the reply, and proceeded to open the letter, then jumped 20 feet in the air. She was thanking Spit Fire the whole way up and the whole way back down. Rainbow hugged her friend tightly. Inside the envelope was an invitation to audition for the wonder bolts. Which listed a time and place to be. Dash was ecstatic Spit Fire returned the hug, and then warned Rainbow Dash not to be late. They hugged once more, then said goodbye.
Then they both went their own ways. Back at Rainbow Dash’s home, she was jumping up and down. Much like twilight had when Celestia asked her to be the princess’s private student. Rainbow could barely contain her joy as she knew this was her time to prove, what she had and that was the day she had been waiting for her whole life.
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DASHED WINGS
Chapter 1
She could barely contain her self; she was nerves, as hay today rainbow dash would get to audition for the wonder bolts! She took several deep breaths as she tried to calm her self. She was in a small room with no windows a small florescent light shown dimly above her; she had a tag with a number of 109 on her flank indicating her position in line. She had been waiting for what felt like ages for her number to be announced, the judges she had been told that would judge her where spitfire (whom told her of the audition) and sorin. She knew them well and hoped that the time they had spent getting to know each other after the competition, in which she had caused her second sonic rain boom.
Would allow her a better chance of being selected, she knew well that she had a good chance but could not help but fell as if she may not be chosen. There where 400 other ponies who where also auditioning for the wonder bolts today. It was a small amount compared to the 800 that where just there yesterday, none where selected it was a rough selection process. Therefore, she waited until they opened her door and told her to go on. Rainbow Dash, started going through her head of what she had planned to “wow” them. She would have to go through a set course, which had been set up for the contestants to use.
There was the freestyle section after this; she already knew what she would do. She would spiral up into the sky and dash down after peaking at the correct altitude her goal, simple a sonic rain boom. It was the best she could do because she only had 10 minutes to show them what she was capable of doing. That was the best she could offer so she would make it count. She had practiced the routine constantly. She still had trouble going through the shifting pillars. The pillars where made of hardened clouds that where as hard as concrete and they would shift and turn, so the Pegasus would be challenged to dodge them not a very easy task.
Many contestants where seriously injured in this part of the obstacle course it had a set path to follow to make it to the end. However, every now and then the course of the pillars would shift, causing the contestant to change tactics and find a new way out. She started to think about her chances of making it through this obstacle, that was by far the hardest and certainly the most dangerous section of the course. Then she jumped as a loud clicking was heard from the door, a small stallion flew in with he was wearing black rimmed glasses and a red velvet vest.
He glanced over at her and back to his clipboard, he had a very nasally voice “Contestant 109 your up,” The stallion sneered. She dashed off, and before the stallion could look up from his clipboard, rainbow dash was gone, and already halfway down the hall. As she entered the open arena she saw spitfire rubbing her temples, and sorin was eating a piece of pie. She waved to them smiling gleefully; they looked up in surprise and waved back. She flew straight over to them and they immediately exchanged greetings.
Spitfire had Rainbow Dash take up position at the starting line. She was ready and she knew what she had to do. She licked her lips in angst waiting for the buzzer to sound, this was her moment her day nothing could ruin this for her. She would prove she was wonder bolt material and she would do it in style! A bead of sweat dripped down her mane as she waited for the buzzer, her wings fluttered with anticipation and then the buzzer went off.
Dashed Wings
Chapter 2
She was off, first up was a speed section, in which she had to get up to the fastest speed she could with in a 500 meter length, and be clocked at the end. “No problem!” she thought to her self proudly. She raised her wings as high as they would go, and flapped as if there where no tomorrow. In a blink, Dash was gone and speeding down the track at top speed. As she came to the finish line she reared back and came to a screeching halt, it was over she hoped she had been fast enough to set a good time.
Next was the breaking area, Rainbow’s goal here was to reach top speed and break as close as she could to the wall, with out colliding with it or veering off. Rainbow once again raised her wings as high as they would go and slammed them down sending her flying down the course; she waited until she was but 20 feet from the end wall and came to an abrupt stop. Dash looked back and caught a glimpse at the speed radar; it had clocked her at 252 miles an hour, and registered her breaking distance at 15 feet! This had given her a huge confidence boost. Spitfire and Soarin jotted down a few notes and the recorded scores.
Rainbow Dash took note of this as a good sign of her progress and right as she was getting ready for the next obstacle, Just then Rainbow noticed movement out of the corner of her eye. It was the stallion from earlier but he had a funny look about him, as if he where trying to not to be seen. Dash could not quite understand why the stallion was acting this way but she did not know the stallion very well and simply narrowed it down to him being odd turned. Therefore, she sprinted off to the agility course that waited ahead. First up was the tunnel. She soared into the tunnel she weaved left and right avoiding obstacles jutting from the rounded walls, and passed through it with ease.
As she came out, she again saw the odd stallion walking up some old metal steps that lead up to an office looking building. That was hanging out over and above the course. Rainbow Dash just shoved it to the back of her mind and prepared for the next obstacle. Up next where the swaying metal boulders, she started to slow as she came up to them, then started to pace her-self. The balls would sway back in forth and her goal was to get through them with out touching them or flying above or under them.
She set off and passed the first one with ease, the second boulder proved just as easy, but by the third boulder she had gotten to prideful, in her success in passing the first two with such ease. Then before she knew it, the fourth ball came down upon her as she yelped with surprise. Dash jetted past it and almost collided with the fifth ball when she dived to the left to avoid it. Nearly clipping her wing in the process, she continued past the final boulder. Then came up to the circling hoops, the objective in this part of the course was to pass through as many hoops that you could, with out missing one which would normally be easy.
However, the hoops where spinning in alternating circles. This would prove to be a little more challenging. Rainbow Dash licked her lips in angst, she sprinted down the starting ramp leading up to the hoops, and then she zoomed through four rings with out missing a beat. She had missed the fifth and sixth but got the seventh through tenth hoops. Dash was sure she did much better that any pony else could. She was sure of it; Rainbow had sweat dripping off her mane, much so that she had to shake her bangs constantly to keep it out of her eyes.
She was getting fatigued, but when she caught a glimpse of Spitfire and Soarin with their mouths agape, a sudden rush of renewed confidence rushed through her, which melted away any fatigue that previously slowed her pace. Just in time because now came the hard part.
The shifting pillars, now this was a more notorious obstacle reserved for the more advanced flyers. Dash’s goal here was just to get through it with out touching the pillars, or coming up to a dead end and there was no time limit for this obstacle. Rainbow Dash came upon the shifting pillars at an awkward angle. She was trying to find the best way to enter, when Dash saw her chance the pillars had presented an opening that looked as if it lead straight through to the end. Then right as she started to enter the opening, Dash saw the stallion again.
This time he was up in the office above the stands with a rather unnerving smirk on his face, Dash thought it was because he was marveling at how well she was doing in the course thus far. Which made her confidence jump through the roof; she was now entering and maneuvering inside the pillars. Just as she was dodging the first pillar, another one of the pillars came at her from the left. She then banked over the one coming from the left. She was then coming up to a third pillar coming in from the right. She then redirecting her trajectory to a find better flight path, and avoided the third pillar all together.
Every single time she veered left or right to avoid an on coming pillar, she noticed that it was as if the pillars where actually trying to crush her. As she was pondering this odd observation, she snapped back to reality, and immediately shot straight up. When she spotted another pillar coming straight toward her from ahead, that started to unnerve her. Dash knew very well that the pillars can move in all directions, but this was crazy! Rainbow was almost certain that the pillars had it out for her.
Then caught her self-chuckling at the very thought of such a thing. They where just pillars how could they have it out for her. They where just a bunch of rocks, she pushed the outlandish thought to the back of her mind and focused on the pillars ahead of her. Rainbow Dash thought she was doing great and she started to relax, to save some of her stamina, which was disappearing fast. When yet again something odd happened, the pillars seemed to halt for maybe a second or two.
Dash thought it was because the pillars where changing patterns again, but when she prepared to change her flight path a single pillar came crashing down from above her. She veered left narrowly avoiding a hit that would have surely been deadly blow. Then right as she regained her Barings, another pillar came from the right and another from the left both came at her at in sync with the other, she dived down missing them with ease this time she knew something was amiss.
