Fire. Dark fire.
It was all Inferno could see. Everywhere he looked, smoke and fire invaded homes, destroyed the farmlands and forests, and killed everypony in sight. Soon, the whole kingdom would be completely covered in flames, and the dark fire king, Black Flame, would prevail and rule the kingdom in his image. Inferno tried to stop him, but as the old saying goes, "You can't fight fire with fire." The only choice for him now was to escape.
As he ran away, he looked back to see the castle consumed in fire, but more importantly, he saw his little sister, Kindle, trying to keep up with him. Since he was much stronger and bigger than her, it was hard for the filly to run, breathe, and keep up with her big brother at the same time. By using his magic, he picked her up and set her on his back and continued to run. She was almost out of breath and was coughing uncontrollably from the smoke. The smoke didn't effect Inferno though. Living a life using magic and creating his own fire for protection, he was used to the smoke.
He ran for what seemed like hours, barely reaching the outside of the kingdom's boundaries, but as soon as he was approaching the border, a large flame stopped him in his tracks, preventing him from escaping. He got back on his hooves and started running the other direction, but more flames blocked his path. He kept running and dodging the flames around him, until he was finally cornered. He tried to take the fire away from his path by absorbing it with his magic, but it was too strong for him. They were trapped.
Then, a black figure emerged from the flames, and a voice was heard.
"Where do you think you're going?" it said. Inferno could tell it was Black Flame. He stood his ground, protecting Kindle. "Did you honestly think you could escape me?"
"What do you want, Flame?" Inferno growled.
"Isn't it obvious? Look around you, Inferno. You're kingdom is falling into my hooves, and there is nothing you can do to stop me. However, I can sense you have an extraordinary talent. It would only be wise to join me as we take over Equestria and become the most powerful kings that ever lived."
"We'll never join you!" Kindle responded as she came out from behind Inferno.
"Oh, is that so?" He bent down to her level. "You could be great, you know. I can teach you everything you need to know about magic, and give you everything you've always wanted." He grinned.
"Back off!" Inferno exclaimed as he stepped in between the filly unicorn and the evil king. "What makes you believe that we're ignorant enough to fall under your rule?"
Flame laughed. "If you refuse my offer, I'll kill you right here. No one will ever know you ever existed."
Suddenly, a blue light came from Kindle. Her horn was starting to glow rapidly, blinding both Inferno and Black flame. Then Inferno heard a voice inside his head.
"Please, Inferno. Do it for me. Give other ponies a chance to live good lives. Help those in need, become stronger, learn the magic of friendship." The glow grew brighter, blinding the evil king. Inferno started to feel something envelope him. It was a glow of light, similar to Kindle's. Then, Inferno realized what was happening. He saw Kindle walk up to Black Flames as he heard her voice again. "I know you will defeat evil and save everypony. I believe in you."
"KINDLE!" Inferno tried to break free of the glow, but, somehow, he couldn't move. But he didn't stop trying. Using all his strength, he tried to break free of the glowing bond, but it was no use. He looked at his sister. She looked back at him with a slight smile on her face. A tear rolling down her cheek as her blue eyes glimmered. Inferno felt like he was going to cry.
"Goodbye, brother." And with those last words, she leaped toward Black Flames unleashing tremendous power within her. The power consumed everything, including both the fire king and the filly, who then started to vanish and die.
Meanwhile, Inferno, who was painfully witnessing everything, shed a tear as he tried to break free again. He couldn't let this happen to her, not when she meant so much to him. Then he felt something lift him off the ground, and he found himself inside a green shield enveloping him. As he heard the dieing scream of Black Flames, as he saw his sister start to disappear and die, he was lifted higher into the air, sending him flying to someplace far from the kingdom. There was nothing he could do to save his kingdom, nothing he could do to save his sister. She sacrificed herself to save him against his own will. He closed his eyes, grieving over his sister, and hearing those last words she said to him.
He was sent to a forest where he was locked away, safe from the world around him. Because he couldn't break free, he slept and stayed hidden for all eternity.
That is, until now.
40 years later part 1: Bullying
The last bits of Luna’s night were chased away by the rising of Celestia’s sun, the moon taking its leave as the skies of Equestria began to brighten up. In the clear, dawning skies lay a waking Cloudsdale, where pegasi were just waking up after a good night's sleep. However, one pegasus was already awake in the dark part of the sky village. Her name was Cris Cross. She was a dark, lime-green pegasus with a black and red mane. She wore two earrings on her right ear, one red and one black, and had covered her eyes in black eye liner. Her cutie mark was that of a cross with a peace sign in the middle. She also wore a necklace with a cross tied in the middle. It was given to her by her mother, whom she had lost long ago. She was an orphan who, so far, looked after herself. She lived in the darkest part of Cloudsdale, where she hid from the world in fear of its evil, although, she's always wondered what Equestria was really like. It couldn't be that bad, I mean, there's so much light and happiness. She's always watched the citizens of the cloud city fly by happily with other pegasi. Maybe if she had one day out there, she wouldn't have to hide anymore.
Today was that one day. Today, she was going to see for herself what the world was really like. This is the her life was going to change. Once the sun had completely risen into the blue sky, she stepped out of the shadows and started walking around. At first it felt weird, walking in the sunlight. From where she used to live, it was always dark, cold, and lonely. The only way she survived was by sneaking out in the night and stealing food from nearby food carts. All she had for a bed was the cold, cloudy ground with a couple of thrown out news papers. Life was a struggle and a test of survival, but maybe today, that would all change. Maybe she was finally going to find a home, some good food, and an actual bed. Maybe today-!
She shook her head. There was no way any of that could just happen in one day. She continued walking. Looking around, she saw other pegasi coming out of their homes either to go to work, or to buy supplies, or to go to school. Cris has never been to a flight school, or any school for that matter. All her life, she taught herself everything. How to read, write, and how to fly, although she couldn't get more than a few feet off the ground. She kept wondering around, and every sight she saw, it made her smile. Everything looked so beautiful. The sky, the clouds, the ponies flying by, the rainbows, everything! "How do they even make rainbows anyway?" She asked herself, but she decided not to let that bother her and continued walking.
Since she wasn't paying attention to what was in front of her, she ran into a red pegasus with a short, spiky, black and yellow mane and tail. He had a black and red hat and his cutie mark was a lightning bolt producing sound waves (sort of), He then took a couple of steps to keep his balance.
"Oh gosh, I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going." She said. He turned to face her.
"Hey, don't worry about it. It happens all the time." He replied. Then he narrowed his eyes and looked at her a little longer. "I've never seen you 'round here before. You new here?" He asked.
"Eh, sort of. My name's Cris Cross."
"Cool, I'm Thunder Streak. Since you're new here, you mind if I give you a tour?"
"A tour sounds nice." She replied and they both started walking in a different direction. While they were walking, they talked.
"So, uh." They both said simultaneously. "You first." Thunder giggled.
"So, what where doing standing back there?" She asked.
"Oh, I was just looking at a poster of my hero, Rainbow Dash."
"Rainbow Dash? Wasn't she one of Princess Twilight Sparkle's friends who represented the element of loyalty?"
"That's her! She became captain of the Wonderbolts, the best fliers in all of Equestria! She's so awesome, I wanna be just like her!"
"Who wouldn't?"
"Good point." They laughed. They walked by a few factories, arenas, schools, and came to a skate park.
"This is where I hang out." Thunder said. Cris looked a few of the ponies skateboarding in half pipes, ramps, and rails.
"They make it look so easy." She replied.
"They've been practicing all their life. It takes a while to get the stunts right."
"Oh, wow!" Was all she could say. A few seconds went by as they gazed at the skate park. Until Thunder finally broke the silence.
"Hey, there was something I wanted to ask you before." She looked at him. "Where are you from?" She paused after hearing that question.
"To be honest, I have no idea." He was confused. "I'm actually an orphan, and my mother left me here when I was only a filly. She gave me this before she left." She sowed him the necklace. "I've actually been living in the dark allies of Cloudsdale all my life, at least until I came out to explore Equestria." He took a minute to let it sink in.
"Huh....I guess that explains your look, which by the way looks awesome. So you've just been living all by yourself all your life?" She nodded. "Well, why didn't you go to an orphanage or something?"
"All of the orphanages I've been to were either full, or too harsh. I had to find a different place to live."
"Oh...Well, if you want to, you can stay at my place for a while, at least until you get a home for yourself."
"I'd like that, thank you."
"No prob. Anything I can do to help those in need." They looked back at the skate park.
"Hey, is it alright if I try skating?" She asked
"Oh yeah, sure. Come on." He replied and they headed for the park. She couldn't believe it, she'd only been out here for a few hours and already someone has decided to take care of her! In was like a dream come true. It's no wonder Equestria is such a happy place.
They entered the park and sat down on one of the benches. Thunder got out his skate board and gave it to Cris to practice. He helped her out with standing upright and using her wings to give her extra lift. Pretty soon she started moving, but only a little bit. She fell over a lot, probably because her wing power was too weak. She looked up at Thunder.
"Do you just not know how to fly or what?" He asked.
"I do, but I can get only a few feet off the ground." She started flapping her wings to show him. She flapped really hard like there was no tomorrow, but she only got around two feet off the ground. Then she fell back down again. Thunder helped her back up.
"Maybe I should teach you how to fly first." He said
"Yeah, maybe." She replied.
Over the next few hours, Thunder taught her how to properly flap her wings and how to hover for at least ten seconds. He was very patient with her, now that he knew what she's been through, he figured she must be very fragile when it comes to sociable life. Soon, she was starting to get it. She was able to hover for a little longer than 30 seconds.
"Looking good, Cross! And you're learning real quick too!" He complimented.
"Well, I have a pretty good teacher." She replied, Thunder smiled even more.
"Alright, let's see you try and take off."
"Wait, what?"
"Don't worry, it's easier than you think. All you gotta do is run while flapping your wings, and eventually you should be able to lift off the ground. Give it a try."
"Umm...okay I guess." She turned to face a long runway. She bent her knees and squinted her eyes and was trying really hard to focus. She started running and flapping. She could feel the breeze blowing in her mane. Soon she started to feel her torso lift off the ground. She closed her eyes, tucked in her hooves, and focused really hard. After a few seconds, she opened her eyes and saw she was more than a few feet off the ground. She got a little dizzy at the sight and started loosing her focus. Soon she was falling, flapping her wings uncontrollably, flailing her hooves around to try and get more air, but she kept on falling. Just before she hit the ground, something caught her. It was Thunder, who then brought her back to the bench. She was breathing heavily.
"You okay?" He asked.
"Yeah, I'm so sorry..." She buried her head in her hooves.
"Sorry? For what? That's the best take off I've ever seen from a starter." He replied.
"Re-really?"
"Yep, you were-," suddenly, they heard laughter coming from the other side of the park. They turned to see a group of skaters pointing and laughing at Cris. There was a bigger colt in the middle of the group who had a sinister look on his face, grinning at the two. "Aww no." Thunder groaned.
"What, what's wrong?"
"Trouble, that's what." The group started walking toward them. The bigger colt spoke first.
"Hey guys, look who it is. Our old pal Loser Streak." The rest of the group laughed. Then he turned to face Cris. "And who's this? It she you're new girlfriend, Crash Mare?" He taunted.
"Girlfriend!?" Thunder replied irritated.
"Crash Mare?!" Cris responded confused. The others started to laugh again, and surround the two.
"That's right gorgeous, I saw you flying, and let me just say that you flying like that at this age, you'll never become a real flier." He said. Cris's heart sank a little.
"Back off, Storm! She's learning faster than you ever could." Thunder stood up for Cris.
"Oh, you wanna play it that way, huh?" Storm got in Thunder's face.
"No, I don't wanna play it that way. Come on Cris, let's get out of here." They started walking away.
"You chicken! You and you're worthless and useless friend of yours are chicken." Storm called out. Then Cris stopped when she heard those words. She started breathing heavily, as if she were about to cry. She could feel her heart sink, and both Storm and Thunder took notice of this.
"Cris, he's just being an idiot. Just ignore him." Thunder said.
"Yeah, how about this. Cris Crash, the useless flier without a life." Storm called out. His thugs started to laugh again. Cris let out a tear. Then, something hit her in the head, and she was struck to the ground. Thunder came to her aid. One of the thugs threw at rock at her head.
"Why in Celestia's name would you do that?!" Thunder shouted.
"Aww, come on Streak. It's just a little fun, that's all."
"For you! You could've killed her with that rock!"
"Nah, too small to be deadly. Besides, I didn't intend on killing her. She's a beautiful pegasus, I was only gonna knock her out and-."
"If you finish that sentence, I swear to Celestia, I'll-!"
"You'll what? Beat me to a pulp? If you haven't noticed already, I'm bigger, stronger, and I've allies. If you were smart, I suggest you back off."
"You're wrong on one thing. If I was smart, I'd do THIS!!" He grabbed Cris and started flying up high. The bullies just stood there laughing at him as he zoomed off.
Soon, they arrived at Thunder's home, where he started treating her wound. By this time, she had awaken, feeling a lot of pain in her head. She saw Thunder getting some water for her. She was laying on a bed with a red blanket that had Thunder's cutie mark on it.
"You okay?" He said as he walked toward her.
"Yeah, I guess so..." he gave her the wet cloth as she places it on her head where the wound was. "Who were those guys?"
"That was Lighting Storm and his gang. They're probably the biggest and baddest bullies you'll ever meet. They can do anything and get away with it, whatever it may be." He sat next to her.
"They had some powerful words..."
"Never listen to him, he's just a huge idiot."
"I wanted to die right there. I didn't ask for any of that. I didn't think there was anypony like that in Equestria. I actually felt worthless, after that attempt to fly and falling under pressure right there. Now I feel like I'm the idiot." She hung her head, using her main to hide her sadness. However, he could tell she was in pain. He scooted closer to her and hugged her. She just leaned on him.
"Bullying can do that to you sometimes, but if whatever they say is true of not, there will always be other ponies who will still care for you, even when they're not there for you. Sometimes we all want to throw our life away, but you just gotta keep your head up." He looked at her, she still looked a little down. Then he thought about something. He started to sing a short song to her.
"Take a look inside your heart,
With what seems fair today,
Tomorrow it may not."
"Just a walk or a journey,
Don't stop reaching high,
Don't let the time pass you by."
"So many ways that you can try to forget.
So many ways you find you wake up to regret."
"Someday, one day,
We'll say live life, I know.
Hold on, hold tight,
Don't let go, don't loose sight."
"Thunder, is that why you did that? Is that why you stood up for me?" She hugged him back.
"Yes and no. I did it because I saw you as more than just a new girl and an equal. I saw a lot more potential in you, and I saw you as a caring and kind friend. I couldn't let a pony like you suffer any more than what you've already gone through. But I want you to promise me something. Promise you will not only stand up for others, but also stand up for yourself. Do what you believe is right. Never give in."
"...I promise......thank you, Thunder Streak."
------------------------
Somewhere in the Badlands, a tiny earthquake made a few rocks from on top of a cliff fall and clash with each other. Once they hit the ground, one last clash make a spark appear, but it didn't disappear like normal. Instead, the spark grew into a tiny flame. After a while, the flame grew and turned black, and a feint evil laugh could be heard.
Elsewhere, in the Everfree forest, another tiny earthquake was made. It knocked over a few small rocks on top of a small rock pile in a dark cave. But as the small rocks fell, a small green light could be seen glowing through the cracks. It wasn't enough to light up the cave completely, and it was hardly visible, but it was there, kindling in the dark.