Chapters Chapter 1: Molecular Foreshadowing
That's odd.. looking at a skin sample it seems like all of his cells are made of ionized atoms... That could help explain his ability to warp reality. He probably manipulates the atoms around him by adjusting the electromagnetic field made by his molecular- My thoughts where cut short by a cackling laugh from the being that happened to be a test subject, spirit of chaos, and source of many headaches.
"What is so amusing to you this time?" I asked in a rather irritated tone, lifting my eyes up from my microscope to look at Discord. He may be reformed but let's face it, sometimes he's still just a jackass.
"Oh! Anger, anger! Why are you so irritated? Still trying to make sense of chaos?" Discord taunted in that silly tone of his. I sighed and thought of the irony of the situation, Discord and science did not seem to mix, not even at the visual level, his brightly colored body looked very exotic in the pewter grey lab that also happened to be my basement.
"Everything has an explanation, even you." I told him as l looked back into my microscope. I heard a strange popping sound and looked up from my microscope again to see discord was now wearing a pair of glasses and a lab coat. Note to self: his creation of objects seems to create noise and light, possibly an extroversive reaction?
"I believe in chaos theory personally." Discord said in a mock scientific tone. I mentally sighed at the mention of chaos theory, well he's not going to shut up until I snap anyways.
"Chaos Theory is a myth, if everything was doomed to chaos then you would still be wreaking havoc wouldn't you?" I explain.
"Atomic Flash! I'm shocked! You wound me!" As Discord started to cry fake tears I noticed that the glasses and lab coat was gone. Note to self: either the destruction/reversal of his made objects is an introversive reaction..... or he makes the flash and sound as part of his theatrics. Wouldn't surprise me either.
"We are done for today." I inform the still weeping Discord, and he leaves without complaint. In reality Celestia had given me 45 minutes with Discord not 22, but you try to stay in a room alone with the spirit of chaos for 45 minutes and keep your sanity. My computer started beeping.
"Unusual Sub Atomic Activity!" It reported. I use my magic to manipulate the mouse as I put up my skin sample from discord, no telling when I'm going to get another sample of that!, and take a look at the atomic levels, average protons, neutrons, slightly above average electrons, Note to self: Possibly caused by discord's activity in the room?, trace amounts of potons, electronos,and nuetatrons, Note to self: Evidence of an extroversive reaction! Evidence I tell you!, an average amount of photons, the sub atomic particle that was in extremely unusual amounts was aurons, an extremely rare particle that I helped discover, it is created when magic is used and travels approximately 76 hours back in time from when it was created, Princess Celestia had asked me to pay careful attention to this molecule because of its congruency with certain events in equestria. The first time it had went off was about 3 days before the return of Nightmare Moon and the elements of harmony, then there was the time about discord coming back, twilight going back in time, the wedding incident, the ascension of Twilight Sparkle, and the everfree incident. After I reported the particle's ties to the events to Celestia after the wedding incident, Celestia asked me to report to her if it happened again. I sighed and traded my lab coat for my blue and grey barding, which turned my coat grey, my tail and mane white, and my eyes to a dark yellow.As a junior member of the night guard, I will inform Luna instead for a change.
"I have important news for Princess Luna's ears only." I inform the two other night guards outside of Luna's bedchamber.
"Report your name and rank." The grey barded guard demanded.
"Junior night guard Atomic Flash, caster division." I replied respectfully.
"May I ask what sort of nature this message is?" The guard asked critically.
"It has to do with my research, I was informed to only tell the princesses sir." I answered back, trying to hide my impatience.
"Go on in." The pegasus guard replied, apparently satisfied. I walk in to see princess Luna staring at the night sky through her window.
"Your nights where always more beautiful than her days, your highness." I tell here as I bow down before her.
"Ah, Atomic Flash. What is it that you need?" Luna asked regally.
"Your highness, I am afraid princess Celestia, your sister, has made me keep some secrets from you. Secrets I think you should be made aware of." I explain. Luna had a strange look on her face, something between sadness, fear, and curiosity.
"Do go on." She told me.
"Are you aware of the subatomic particle that I helped discover, the auron?" I asked Luna.
"I have heard of it, yes." Luna affirmed.
"Then you are aware of it going back in time to roughly 3 days before its creation?"
"Yes, Atomic Flash may I ask you where you are going with all of this?" Luna inquired.
"I have a machine that can detect these particles and by using it I have been able to predict all of the major magical events of equestria, minus the events in the crystal empire as it is to far away, for the last year. That is what I was reporting back to Celestia that day she asked for me and her to ask privately." I explained,
"Which was three days before Twilight became a princess." Luna said in sudden realization. "I've been a fool! How ironic is it that my sister, princess of the sun, keeps the princess of the night blinded from the truth?" Luna wondered outloud. Luna said this with a look of pain on her face, a look I could not tolerate to have on her.
"Your majesty, I am extremely sorry if I have brought pain to you. But I believed it be my duty as a night guard, citizen of equestria, and as one of your worshipers to inform the princess of the night what she has the right to know even if it goes against your elder sister's wishes." I stoically inform her.
"What you have done is considered treason, punishable by banishment, or even death." Luna turned around and informed me in a stern voice.
"I am loyal to you unto death and beyond your highness." I informed her sinking back into a deep bow.
"Guards!" Luna called in a stern voice. Immediately the two guards outside came back in at the ready."Captain Shackle Hoof!" Luna called to the elder guard.
"Yes your majesty." He replied loyally. I felt sweat start to form on my forehead.
"See to it that this colt is hereby" I felt a bead of seat roll down my face. "promoted to senior guardsman." My jaw dropped in shock.
"Of course your highness, but are you sure? He's very young and he's barely been in the guard for a year-" Luna gave him a look which gave made me shiver. "Ye..ye..yes right away your highness, I didn't mean to offend.." He stammered as he backed away and closed the door behind him.
" Luna smiled and gave me a knowing wink. "He isn't so tough as he'd like others to think." She explained to me.
"Why princess?" I managed to get out.
"Loyalty and honesty are both elements of harmony Atomic Flash, and last time I looked deception and cowardice wasn't." She explained.
"Princess, the machine went of again today." I told her.
"Really?" Luna mumbled. She turned around and stared outside for a while and said "Atomic Flash?"
"Yes, Princess Luna." I replied bowing deeply.
"Let's keep this between us ok?" She asked softly.
"Yes your highness." I reply without hesitation.
"Congratulations on your promotion, Atomic Flash!" Fluttershy told my joyously as soon as I had told her the good news about my promotion yesterday.
"Thank you Fluttershy, that's very kind of you." I reply as I lead her back down to my basement laboratory.
"Kind of me? Oh no no It's very kind of you to keep my secret for me like this." She tells me in a very grateful tone. We are in the laboratory now.
"You know the routine." I tell her. She smiles and lays down on the bench. "Open wide." I tell her. She opens her mouth and it all looks normal. "Extend out." I tell her sternly. Two of her teeth extend into fangs. "Good, now retract." And she does. "Alright." I say and levitate an apple over her nose with my magic and look at her teeth. Nothing happens. "Good job Fluttershy you didn't extend out that time!"
"Yeah!" She exclaims weakly. I then levitate a scalpel over to the apple and cut it. Fluttershy's fangs still didn't show.
"Do you feel any particular attraction to apples at all now Fluttershy?"
"No I think that spell you came up with fixed it Atomic Flash."
"I didn't come up with it, it was in Twilight's spell book. I think it didn't work completely when twilight used it because you where mildly distracted by the juice from the apple." I explain to her. "Look I went to Luna a while ago to get permission to explain something to you." I tell the pegasus.
"Is it why I am this way?"asked Fluttershy.
"I think so, Fluttershy.. Does your family have a history of guard traditions?"
"Yes, most pegasus families do." She explained to me.
"Well do you remember the two guards on nightmare night pulling Luna's chariot?" I asked. "Yes, I think so.. They where kind of batish weren't they?" She asked.
"A long time ago, when Luna was preparing to rise up against Celestia, she transformed some of her pegasi guard by fusing their essence with that of bats to create better nocturnal warriors. A few escaped after Nightmare Moon's defeat and had children and their descendants still carry the gene." I explained.
"So you think I have the gene? Why haven't I heard of any bat ponies till now?" Fluttershy asked timidly.
"Nightmare Moon's presence triggers the gene and only three carriers are known right now, those two guardsman, Fang and Claw, and you. You did not realize you had the gene because you never really knew how to access your transformations, until Twilight cast her spell to make you think you are a vampire fruitbat." I concluded.
"So all of those changes I went through I can do willingly?" She asked.
"Yes, but each change will make you slightly more aggressive for as long as it is active, and you will feel weakened and nauseated in strong sunlight." I warned her.
"For today we will start with the eyes which will give you night vision. Try to zoom in your vision" I asked her.
"Okay, I'll try." She replied. Her eyes went a little red then stopped.
"Try it again, you can do it!" I say trying to motivate her.
"I really, really, can't." She said in a frightened tone."I don't what to be a vampony!" She cried out in protest running back up stairs.
"Fluttershy, your not a vampony!" I called after her. Damn it! I should have been more gentle with her! I hope I didn't get her too scared...
"One more day till we see the magic's source your highness." I informed Luna.
"Good, how did Fluttershy take the news?" Luna asked me.
"She's still convinced she's a vampony."I explain.
"Too bad, so much potential..." Luna murmured to herself.
"Your highness, are you oka-" I tried to ask her before being interrupted by two gold barded unicorn guards busting through the door.
"Senior Guard of Luna, Atomic Flash, you are under arrest!"they announce.
"On what grounds!" I demanded.
"High treason, insubordination, and deceiving a senior officer!" The guard informed me.
"Luna has the right to know everything Celestia knows!" I yelled back at him.
"Silence!" Luna called out in the traditional Canterlot voice. Everyone froze immediately, "On what basis is the charges founded on my guardsman?" Luna inquired.
"I was not told the specifics your majesty, I just know that it was your Captian Shackle Hoof that turned him in." That jealous bastard! He better that I can't get a clear shot at him.. Just one little spell then...
"I will accompany Atomic Flash to my sister." Luna informed the guard. When the guard looked hesitant she continued "or do I not even hold that right any longer?".
"Of course you may accompany us your majesty." The guard was quick to reply. When Luna and I was escorted to the throne room we came to see an extremely angry Celestia with a very smug looking Shackle Hoof at her side. Shackle Hoof paled at the sight of Luna entering the room, and Celestia had a surprised look at the sight of her younger sister, but it quickly dissipated back into a look of pure rage directed at me. I have no doubt that I was about to face the wrath of Celestia that the celestian priest and priestess that I once called my parents had always warned me about. I guess all I can hope for now is to make a stand before my death.
"Atomic Flash, you have been brought in front of me here today for the leakage of information, which I had ordered you to keep classified, to princess Luna, and deceiving a senior officer in order to do so. Is this true?" Celestia asked me.
"Is it true that you and your sister rule Equistra together, and as such there is no such thing as leakage of information to Princess Luna?" I lashed back. The angry look on Celestia's face grew even darker as my words fell on her ears.
"I asked if you are guilty!" Celestia shouted at me.
"I think your the one whose guilty! You claim to rule Equistra with your fellow princesses but Cadance is put away in the crystal empire, Twilight just does whatever you ask of her, and Luna is just being ignored and lied to!" I shouted back.
"Enough! I sentence Atomic Flash to death!"Celestia yelled out."Captian Shackle Hoof!" Celestia demanded.
"Ye-e-es you-ur high-gh-ne-ess." He sputtered out.
"Take him away." She ordered him.
"Of course your highness." He replied.
"The truth stings like a bitch doesn't it!" I yelled out before I was hit from behind, and all went black.
I laid down on the bed in my jail cell, stripped of both my barding and my rank, but that still didn't keep me from having a big smile on my face. Oh that look on Celestia's face was priceless! Hah! I wonder if she will regret killing me after she can't tell when the next magical anomaly is coming! Who knows? Maybe we'll all get lucky this time and this one will take out Celestia tomorrow and rid Equistra of the tyrant for good! I wonder how Luna's doing? Maybe I actually shouted some sense into Celestia and made her treat Luna better? Who knows? Maybe she's actua- my train of thought was interrupted when I heard a click and my cell door swung open to reveal a pegasi in a simple brown robe that covered her entire body except for her blue wings. Wait a minute the door doesn't have a key in it so that means she can use magic... "Princess Lu-" I began to ask her.
"No time!" Luna replied. She ran over to me and cast a teleportation spell and we where in an apple orchard, I think it's the one in Ponyvile, but I can't be sure.
"Hurry up, put this on!" Luna demanded me, levitating another set of robes. And I quickly put on the robes.
"Now, is your lab safe?" She whispered quietly to me.
"No, but I know a friend in Canterlot that could hide us." I whisper back.
"Can this pony be trusted?" She asked cautiously.
"Definitely." I respond steadfast.
"Okay, I'm teleporting us into Canterlot, we must be quick." Luna informed me. She cast another teleportation spell and we are in Canterlot. Lucky for us it's raining, so our coats help us blend into the crowd as we try to avoid the numerous guards running down the streets searching for us. We finally made it to my friends house. I pound on the door three times as hard as I can and unsatisfied I lift up my hoof to try again when Luna stops me. "What are you doing? Do you want to get caught?" She demanded.
"No I want to be heard." I explained.
"Heard?" She started to ask when the door opened.
"Wow! "Vinyl exclaimed as she saw our faces. "I thought you where on death row Flash!"she exclaimed.
"Luna sprung me. We need a place to stay Vinyl." I explained.
"Well come on in." Vinyl said joyously. We walked in to hear the sound of wubs being played at a surprisingly quiet volume.
"No wonder you heard me, how come your not booming it like you usually do?" I asked her.
"Im having my quiet time with wubs." She explained. Luna gave me a questioning look. I just gave her a look that said to not question it.
"So tell me the story Flash." Vinyl asked. "I heard you where on death row for treason. Why did Luna spring you anyway? Was going to be the first execution in Equistra in almost a thousand years." Vinyl asked me.
"So why did you break me out? I asked Luna. Luna took in a deep breathe and let it out then she looked at us and told us
"For the revolution." she said in a solemn tone. Vinyl Scratch sputtered back up her drink, while my jaw dropped. There was a long awkward silence, which was broken by Vinyl laughing outloud and turning around to Luna.
"Nice one, you nearly got me on that one!"she said inbetween chuckles.
"It's no joke, I need ponies who are brave to stand up to Celestia's tyranny like Atomic Flash was." Luna explained.
"And do what? March up to Canterlot Castle and fight off the entire military plus two alicorns, possibly three if Cadance shows up!" Vinyl asked.
"It won't be a problem if we can build a military of our own!" Insisted Luna.
"And who's going to pick your side?" Asked Vinyl Scratch.
"I know a few that might." I but in. "Fluttershy might because of her condition, Red Reef has been itching for a fight with anything, I know that Fang and Claw from the night guard would probably join our cause, Colossus hates Celestia more than he hates anything and that's saying something, Maple Leaf worships you, Iron Shaft might still be loyal from his time in your guard, I know the Thesalians want Celestia gone and there's eleven of them, and Octavia has a .....personal vendetta against the Celestian Church... One I think you share Vinyl... So counting us three that would be twenty two ponies, eight earth ponies, nine pegasi, four unicorns, and one alicorn. It's a start, if nothing else." I explain.
"All right, all right, I'm in if where going to take down those stuffy old priest!" Declared Vinyl.
"Now we just need to find these ponies from the most likely to join us to the least likely." Luna explained.
"All right then we should go find Fang, Claw, Iron Shaft, and Octavia here in Canterlot, Maple Leaf in Applelousia, Red Reef from Manehattan, Colossus in The Badlands, The Thesalians by the Eastern Shores, and Fluttershy in Ponyvile. But what are we going to do about the magic event tomorrow?" I asked Luna,
"We will face it whe-" Luna was interrupted by a group of guards bucking down the door. I quickly summoned a lighting bolt and shot it at them to distract them and was very fatigued by the spell. Luna then teleported the three of us away.
We spent the rest of the day hiding underneath bushes by way of Luna's invisibility spell but Luna I insisted on raising the moon when the sun was setting. But while she was doing so we were no longer invisible, so we had to be ready to flee at a moments notice. But luckily she rose the moon without incident and cast her invisibility spell over us again then we decided to try to go to Octavia's house under the cover of night.
"I'm glad nopony saw us." Vinyl whispered.
"That makes two of us." I whisper back.
"All right, that's Octavia's house." Vinyl told us quietly.
"Let's go over the plan again."Luna whispered to us. "We go up to the house, Atomic Flash will cast a spell to open the lock, I will go in and cast a silence spell on Octavia to stop her from screaming, and Vinyl will talk to her about joining our cause."
"Ok" we both consent to her plan. "One, two, three." Luna whispered to us. I ran up, cast a spell to unlock the door, and stepped to the side to let Luna and Vinyl in. I then followed them after shutting the door behind me. Luna cast a silence spell on Octavia, who was standing in her kitchen washing dishes, then we lowered our invisibility spells. Octavia opened her mouth wide but nothing came out. She then looked at her mouth with a frightened look on her face as she tried to speak and no words came out.
"Please don't scream Octy." Vinyl pleaded. Octavia stopped panicking and looked at all of our faces then seemed to calm down and nod her head in agreement. Luna then released her spell and Octavia was free to speak.
"Vinyl Scratch! Princess Luna! Atomic Flash! What are you three doing here! There are guards everywhere! There's talk of rebellions and treason about! But you wouldn't possibly be capable of that.. Would you?" Octavia inquired. We all glanced at each other nervously then I tilted my head back to Octavia and cleared my throat. Taking the hint Vinyl looked back towards Octavia.
"We'll Octy...we kinda are..and we where kind of hoping you could help us out.." Vinyl said in a sheepish voice.
"Help you out how? Why would I risk my life for this madness?" Octavia demanded.
"Remember what the Celestian Church did to us......" Vinyl half whispered.
"Remember! How could I forget! The outrage! I had never been so humiliated in my entire life!" Octavia curtly replied.
"If we win this thing we can change that......thing we where forbidden from...." Vinyl said in a lowered voice.
"Very well I will help, now where can I begin?" Octavia asked. Almost a second later I noticed a guard staring at us through a window, and as soon as we made eye contact he cast a signal spell with his horn.
"We've been seen!" I tell the others. Luna prepared to teleport us but while she was still casting the spell the doors was broken down and a unicorn guard shot a quick moving purple looking spell at us that hit all four of us.
"It's a dimensional anchor! We can't teleport until it wear's off!" Luna explained.
"Well I am not going down without a fight!" I exclaim. I concentrate my magic into an orb of telekinetic force which I shoot towards the unicorn guard, knocking him over, and run out of the kitchen into the hallway where I see a pegasi guard in the hallway armed with a set of wing blades, a extremely sharp type of barding that attaches onto a pegasus' wings. Fortunately for me the hallway is to narrow and low for him to swipe at me with them or fly above me so I have the advantage here. He's probably expecting me to use a spell so I'm going to give him a surprise. I rush at the pegasi causing him to flinch then I use my telekinetic magic to slam him against the wall knocking him out. I hear sounds of fighting behind me so I turn back around to see Octavia getting her flank handed to her by a earth pony guard armed with tramplers, a type of heavy barding that is put on the hoof to do more damage, it is usually used by earth pony infantry because it slows down unicorn casters and pegasus skirmishers a bit too much. I cast a magnetic spell on the sink behind the guard and on his barding causing him to stick to the sink. Me and Octavia then ran down the next hallway to see Vinyl locked in combat with a pegasi guard in grey armour with wing blades. I was about to cast a spell when I noticed how his body became furry for a split second when he ducked under a telekinetic blast Vinyl hurled at him. "Fang!" I yelled out to him.
"Atomic Flash? Your the traitor!" He accused me.
"This pony is Fang!?" Vinyl exclaimed.
"Traitor! I just didn't like how Celestia was keeping the other princesses in the dark, she's a tyrant Fang!what do you think she's going to do when she realizes what you are? She'll purge you like she did the rest of them all of those ages ago!" I explained.
"Fine, I'll help out you and Luna, as long as me and my descendants are kept safe under your new order." Fang informed us. We all four ran outside to in time to see Luna cast a spell that put almost twenty guards into a deep sleep.
"The anchor is gone!" Luna yelled out to us. "Time to go!" We all jumped and grabbed ahold at her and was instantly teleported away.
We found ourselves in the middle of the everfree forest and Luna immediately cast many different spells that formed a tent sized force field like dome.
"That should protect us against the denizens of this forest." Luna explained.
"So what is that you aim to do?" Fang asked us.
"We wish to recruit different ponies throughout Equistra to join the rebellion." Luna explained to him.
"Do you have any information about where they are looking for us?" I ask him.
"Mostly Canterlot, though guards throughout the kingdom have been alerted to the danger." He explained to us.
"Well I need a place to stay hidden, without barding or tramplers I'm pretty much just a burden." Octavia informed us.
"That's a good point Octavia, we should break into an armory after all what good is raising an army without weapons?" I reply.
"Yeah we totally need a home base to store up supplies and sleep. Plus we shouldn't all get out at once, two or three ponies is much less likely to be noticed then five." Vinyl pointed out.
"Excellent points." Luna remarked. "I think I know of a place that could be used as a home base, it's up past the mountains near the badlands, it's a well hidden cave that is full of crystals that refract the light from above."
"How pretty!" Octavia said in awe.
"How many entrances are there, and how big is the cave?" Fang asked her.
"Two entrances, one about two ponies abroad near the main carven, another in the badlands about one pony abroad. And the main chamber could easily fit 300 ponies." Luna replied.
"That's perfect!" I exclaim. Finally a stroke of luck! "Now to get into an armory....Wait I have an idea!" I declare.
"Then lets here it." Fang replied.
"What if we put up recruitment posters in Applelousia to distract them and think we are in Applelousia then teleport to the night guard armory in Canterlot while their of guard!" I explain.
"That's a good plan Atomic Flash." Luna remarked.
"Time to put it into action!" Vinyl exclaimed.
As the sun dawned we noticed a few guards conversing and heading down to the train station, more and more left. Eventually only two guards where stationed in front of the armory. Worked like a charm!. I signal to Luna and Fang. I see a blue bolt of magic come out of the bushes up ahead fly towards the two guards who are instantly put to sleep. Fang then uses his key to open the doors and we finally get to see the inside of the armory, and we see Princess Twilight Sparkle sitting there waiting for us.
"Luna you can't do this! There is still time to repent!" Twilight begged Luna.
"Are you nothing but a puppet Twilight?" Luna asked her.
"I must stop you from bringing about eternal night!" She replied.
"But that's not my inten-" Luna began to explain when Twilight hurled a dimensional anchor on us and teleported past us into the city. We watched in awe as Twilight summoned up a large purple circle lined with runes and symbols.
"Luna, I challenge you to a magic duel." Twilight declared
"I accept." Luna replied. Luna then flew into the circle and landed opposite of Twilight who in turn released the dimensional lock on Luna.
"Are you ready?" Twilight asked.
"Yes, are you?" Luna inquired.
"The first one to cause the other to submit, lose consciousness, or die wins." Twilight explains. "On guard!.... Begin!" Twilight ordered. Luna started with a sleep spell that was quickly dispelled by Twilight. Twilight then conjured a pony sized fireball and hurled it at Luna. Luna cast a wind spell that created a small vortex which destroyed the fireball and flew directly at Twilight. While Twilight was still flinching from the vortex flying into her face Luna put a dimensional lock on twilight and teleported out of the way of an arcane blast cast by Twilight. Twilight managed to cast a dimensional lock on Luna when she reappeared to her left. But Luna countered with a ray of cold, which hit Twilight's left flank causing her to yelp in pain as part of her flesh froze. Twilight then cast a lightning spell at Luna who redirected it in air back at twilight who deflected it with an arcane barrier.Twilight began to charge up magical energy and Luna did the same.
"Hurry! Grab up the weapons and barding!" I yell to Fang and we hurriedly take seven suits of barding, three heavy and four light, with five tramplers and 4 wing blades and place them into an enchanted bag that I made before hand which could hold more volume than a whole room but remained the same size, it also could hold any amount of weight and still weigh half a pound. We then turn around to see extremely powerful beams of magic colliding, one blue and one purple, the blue one was gaining on the purple one and it pushed back into Twilight, knocking her against a building near us causing her to bleed from the back of the head and she lost consciencess. Underneath where the Alicorns had been hovering was an enormous smoldering crater easily the size of a house. Luna then glided over to us we and teleported us away. We where back in a small forest near Applelousia where we explain to Vinyl and Octavia what happened and learn that Maple Leaf went out looking for us after seeing the posters and joined up with the rebellion. Luna then teleported us into the cave and it was a breath taking site to see a soft light come from a pillar of crystals in the middle of the room. The room had other smaller crystal pillars also glowing softly with two entryways in the front of the cavern.
"Well we got the gear, and we need to distribute them." Fang informed us and then handed Octavia and Maple Leaf both a suit of heavy barding and tramplers. He then handed me and Vinyl both a suit of light barding. He offered barding to Luna as well but she declined, explaining how wearing armor reminded her to much of being Nightmare Moon. When we are putting on our new gear and Fang moved the rest into a smaller room of the side of the cavern, a realization struck me. "Forgive me this is all my fault!"
"No it isn't Atomic Flash, you did what was best." Maple Leaf assured me.
"But it is! Luna and Twilight's dual was the magical event that made all of those aurons! So if that's the cause of those aurons appearing, me being able to detect them to is what caused me to start this whole rebellion with Luna. So if I had never discovered the auron none of this would have happened!" I explained to them.
"Don't be so hard on yourself Flash! If you hadn't started this rebellion somepony else would have!" Vinyl reassured me.
"Vinyl Scratch is right it wasn't your fault, you did not know it was going to lead to this." Octavia explained to me.
"Thanks guys." I tell them grateful for their kind words.
"It's no problem at all." Octavia responded in a cheerful voice.
"You guys get some shut eye i'll take first watch." Vinyl Scratch suggested. And we all gratefully agreed.