Cloudy Atmosphere

Darkness surrounded the room. The only source  of light was a couple of torches with green fire hanging on the walls. The dim glow they provided barely illuminated the stone walls. The hallway was narrow and deep, and there were strange symbols engraved on the ground. Pillars held up the monstrous ceiling. There were only two beings in the room; one of them a dark creature surrounded by a cloak that was made of shadows and spirits. The only things that were visible in the void were his large claws, five diamond-shaped eyes that glowed crimson, and the massive fangs dripping blood on the floor.

The other being in the room was a unicorn stallion wearing titanium armor. His light grey fur was scratched and matted under the dented armor, and long black mane and tail had several chunks missing. He was leaning on a massive broadsword. The warrior was struggling to get up; he and the creature had been fighting for hours.

He got back up and charged at the monster. His blade clashed with its claws, sparks flying. He jumped back and dodged the creatures swing. He attacked again, desperate to land a blow on it, only for the abomination to counter with its weapon. The stallion swung his sword around and landed it again on the beasts sword-like claws. He jumped back, and charged once more. The stallion was about to impale the thing, only for it to grab his sword right before impact.

The beast smirked, soon after the stallion levitated his last throwing knife he kept hidden in his armor, and shot it right into one of the monster's eye. The monster shrieked in pain and swung at the stallion, sending him flying. The stallion hit a pillar and fell, groaning from the pain of the impact. He got back up and returned to his opponent.

The two struggled on, swinging and clashing weapons.

When the stallion lunged again, the creature caught him and threw him on the ground, hard. The stallion exhaled from the pain. He lay there, stunned. It felt like he had been thrown from the top of Celestia’s tower. Grunting, he flipped himself over and attempted to rise again.

“You still continue to fight me, Gray Diamond?” asked the creature.

“What do you think?” the stallion responded.

“You will NEVER defeat me!” bellowed the beast.

I must defeat you. No! I must kill you! In order to save this land, and protect my friends! Gray Diamond thought to himself.

He glared at the beast, staring into all four remaining eyes, with a small smirk on his face.

“How very cliché. Hasn’t that line been overused enough?” Gray asked, a slight sneer in his voice.

“After all you’ve been through, you dare to mock me?” asked the creature.

Gray didn’t answer. Instead, he used what little bits of magic he had left to lift his sword and aimed it at the monster.

“Your soul, your conscience, your very strength belongs to me!” shouted the beast.

“Come and take it!” responded Gray.

With that, the creature lunged himself towards the stallion, encasing its body within the shadows.

_________________________________________________________________________________________

A few days later

It was dusk at Ponyville train station. The sun was about to set and everypony was getting ready to leave. There was a loud whistle and the last train of the day pulled into the station, steam escaping as it came to a stop. Once the train was at a halt, the last few passengers started to exit.

The door closed as the last group disembarked the train. The three ponies.

The first one to off was a typical young Pegasus stallion. He had a small muscular build to him, but was nowhere near ripped or buff. He had blue fur, and his silver medium length mane and tail blew in the breeze. His golden eyes scanned the platform, while a lollipop rolled around in his mouth. His sharp teeth shone when he smiled, and his cutiemark, a crescent moon behind some thin clouds, was partially hidden beneath his saddlebags.

“Alright!” he exclaimed happily, “Just a few more stops after this and we’ll be at our destination!”

“Would you relax for one minute, Cloudy?” asked a feminine voice.

He turned around to see his adoptive sister, Scarlet Aura, getting off the train. She was a slender unicorn mare with dazzling white fur. A long pink mane and tail trailed behind her as she stepped onto the platform. Her dark green eyes glimmered behind her small rectangular glasses, and her cutiemark stood out on her saddlebags, a simple star surrounded by a scarlet aura.

“That was the last train for today, another one won’t arrive until tomorrow. You should stop trying to rush things,” she complained.

“I can’t help it, we’re almost there!” Cloudy responded, “Besides, don’t you want to see him too?”

“Of course I do, but unlike you, I’m actually willing to wait for my surprises.”

“Sheesh, can you two go one day without arguing?” said a younger feminine voice.

They both looked at the youngest of their group. Little Swift was Cloudy’s biological pegasus sister. She shook out the dust of travel from her bright red coat and blonde mane hiding her right eye. Her long blonde tail fluttered in the breeze, and her purple eyes focused on her older brother. Despite her small wings and being two years younger than her siblings, often times she felt she was the most responsible one in the family. She adjusted the saddlebags on her back, making sure the trio of tiny golden lightning bolts that was her cutie mark stood out.

“It seems every time I turn my back, you two are always bickering,” she joked, trotting towards the older pair.

“I do not bicker,” Scarlet pointed out. “It’s just that he’s too impatient and can’t learn to keep his cool.”

“Pfff, like you can stay calm for 20 minutes,” Cloudy mocked, “I just want to be able to see him is all. I mean, we haven’t seen the guy since he left when we were young.”

“He just left a few years ago,” Scarlet reminded.

“And we’re not THAT old,” added Little Swift.

“I know, it’s just that I want to be able visit him and catch up on things. And we could all hang out like the good ol’ days. It’s been so long,” he sighed.

“I know. We all miss Gray,” said Scarlet. “But it’s getting late. Let’s just find a hotel for the night and we can leave tomorrow.”

“Sounds good to me,” replied Swift.

“Alright,” said Cloudy.

With that, Cloudy spat out the lollipop stick and the three left the station, making their way to the nearby village. It was a typical village, with house scattered here and there. The streets were filled with ponies walking about and idly chatting. The three started to look around to see if there were any places where they could all crash for the night.

As they were searching, they were caught off guard by a bright pink pony popping out of nowhere.

“HI THERE!"

“Gah!” they shouted and jumped back.

“I’m Pinkie Pie, I haven’t seen you three around, so you must be new here! If that’s the case, then I’m going to throw you a huge welcome party! I’ll invite every-pony and we’ll have games and it’ll be a blast! What do ya think about that!?”

“You’re scaring me,” Cloudy commented.

“That reminds me, it’ll be a surprise party! Oops, I accidentally gave away the surprise!” She giggled, covering her mouth with her hooves. Amazingly, she still continued to talk.

“Who is this mare supposed to be?” asked Scarlet.

“Beats me, but she seems fun!,” said Swift.

“Pinkie, what’re you doing?” asked another female voice from behind the excited pink pony.

The trio looked over  to see it came from an alicorn. She had lavender fur, and her purple mane and tail had a long pink streak down the middle, and the bounced as she walked. They could clearly see her cutiemark, a pink bug star surrounded by smaller white stars.

“Oh hey, Twilight! I was telling these new ponies about the surprise party I was planning for them! But don’t tell them it’s a surprise,” Pinkie responded.

Once Cloudy got a view of Twilight, he couldn’t believe his eyes. This was the first time he had ever met an actual alicorn in the flesh. He’d only seen pictures of Celestia and Luna from paintings, never an actual one. He felt the blood in his body beginning to boil, and his cheeks flushed from the excitement.

“Whoa”, he breathed.

“What?” asked Twilight.

Cloudy blinked back to reality, realizing he had dozed off. He focused his eyes on the purple pony before him.

“You know, it’s considered rude to stare at other ponies,” Twilight stated matter-of-factly.

“Sorry, my brother can be bit of a spaz sometimes,” Scarlet replied.

“Hey!” retorted Cloudy.

“Is there something in my mane?” asked Twilight, concerned at the stallion’s staring.

“Oh, no n-nothing like that,” Cloudy responded nervously. “It’s just that, I’ve never actually seen an alicorn before in real life. I’ve seen pictures of the Princesses, but never have I seen one up-close. It’s kind of cool to actually see one of the future Princesses in person.”

Twilight loosened up a bit as she heard Cloudy’s apology.

“Oh, why thank you,” responded Twilight, “That’s kind of you. Sorry about getting the wrong idea. But still, you really shouldn’t doze off like that.”

“I know, it’s a bit of a bad habit.”

“I don’t think I fully introduced myself. My name is Twilight Sparkle.”

“Cloudy Crescent. This is my adoptive sister, Scarlet Aura…” he introduced.

“Hey,” Scarlet greeted.

“And this is my actual sister, Little Swift.”

“What’s up?”

“Pleased to meet all of you. So how long are all of you going to stay?” asked Twilight.

Cloudy was about to answer, only to get cut off by Scarlet stepping in front of him.

“Oh, we’re not actually staying,” she said.

“Really? That’s a bummer,” said Pinkie.

“We’re just looking for a place to crash for the night. We have another train to catch tomorrow.”

“Well, there’s a hotel nearby. If you want I can show you,” Twilight offered.

“Sure, that would be helpful,” Cloudy quickly responded before Scarlet could answer.

Twilight began to escort the three to the hotel and Pinkie Pie yelled a quick goodbye after them. As they were walking, Twilight asked a few questions.

“I’ve got a question for you, what’s up with your eyes and teeth?” Twilight asked, pointing towards his pupils and fangs.

“Oh these? I’m half bat-pony, on my dad’s side,” Cloudy answered.

“Seriously?” she asked surprised.

“Yep. I got most of my dad’s traits and my mom’s wings, while Little Swift got the full pegasus package.”

Twilight looked over to Little Swift, who was floating around and playing with an orange yoyo, and turned back to Cloudy to compare the two.

“That’s so interesting. I don’t think I’ve ever met anypony like that before,” she admitted.

“Thanks,” Cloudy chuckled.

“I have another question, where are you headed tomorrow?” she asked.

“The Crystal Empire,” Cloudy replied. This caused Twilight to freeze in place.

“The Crystal Empire?” she gasped.

“Yeah. Why, have you not heard of it?” Cloudy asked.

“No, it’s just, my friends and I are heading there tomorrow as well.”

“Seriously? That’s a coincidence.” He laughed.

“Yeah. We’re heading there tomorrow to visit my brother and sister in-law and check how their kingdom is doing.”

“Oh that’s so cool! You’re brother and sister in-law rule the kingdom?” asked Swift.

“They sure do,” she replied proudly.

“Lucky,” Cloudy muttered, which made Twilight giggle.

“So why are you three visiting the Crystal Empire?” Twilight asked.

“We’re actually going to visit someone as well,” he replied excitedly.

“Really?”

“Yeah, he’s our foal-hood friend. He’s strong and noble, and he would do anything to protect us. Although, he can be a bit too competitive at times. Especially when we were young and all he wanted to play was Capture the Flag. He said he wanted to test his strength and agility, but I think he just wanted to win.”

“I think I know someone who’s like that,” Twilight replied.

“I would easily get upset about his arrogance and lose my cool on him. I even tried to punch him in the face one time for being such a braggart, which resulted in me getting a black eye."

"Ouch."

"Yeah, after that he apologized and said that he didn't mean it. Then he swore that he wouldn't hit me anymore. He went and joined the Canterlot guard a few years back, and we haven’t seen him since. Then word got out that he was transferred to the Crystal Empire. So we all thought it would be a good idea to go there and surprise him.”

“Wow, he sounds like a really good friend,” Twilight said with a smile.

“Yeah, he is,” Scarlet replied as she looked up at the sky with tenderness.

“Someone’s got a crush,” Swift teased.

“I do not!” she shouted and started to chase Little Swift around, “Get over here!”

Little Swift tried her best to avoid the magic beams that Scarlet was firing at her, singing and laughing at her older sister.

“Way to show some sisterly love,” Cloudy joked. Both he and Twilight let out a laugh as Scarlet was still attempting to shoot Little Swift.

“So, what’s his name?” asked Twilight.

“Gray Diamond.”

_____________________________________________________________________________________________

At The Hotel

They eventually made it to the hotel and checked in. Twilight helped bring their bags and other things to their rooms and was preparing to leave.

“Thanks again for showing us the way, Twilight,” Cloudy said.

“No problem, I hope you three will make your train tomorrow,” she responded.

“Thanks! You too!”

“Maybe we’ll run into each other again. We’re all going to the same place after all.”

“We’ll see.”

“Alright”, she smiled, “Well, see you later.”

She started to leave from the room. She turned and waved one last goodbye before heading out. Cloudy returned the wave warmly. After she left, Cloudy turned back to his room, only to see Scarlet and Swift getting ready for bed.

“You guys getting ready for sleep already? It’s not even that late,” said Cloudy.

“If you want to see Gray tomorrow, then I suggest that you go to sleep soon so we can get an early start,” instructed Scarlet bluntly. “After all, you’re the one who’s so eager to see Gray again.”

“Sheesh, do you always have to be so strict about everything?”

“Since Glimmer isn’t here, it’s my job to watch over you two.”

“You mean Mom? You do know you can call her that,” Cloudy pointed out.

“I know, I keep forgetting,” she sighed.

“Besides, why are you the one watching over us? You and I are exactly the same age.”

“Because you lack patience and control. Remember the scooter incident?”

“Hey! That only happened one time, and we both agreed to never bring it up again!”

“I made no such promises.”

“You know, you can be such a stickler sometimes. You can’t expect me to change who I am.”

“I’m aware of that, and I’m sorry. We should both get ready for bed,” Scarlet suggested. Cloudy gave a simple nod as he prepared for sleep as well.

There were only two beds. Scarlet and Swift shared a bed closest to the door, while Cloudy had a bed to himself under the window.

Scarlet tucked herself in with Swift and she set her glasses on the dresser next to her. Cloudy closed the curtains and slipped underneath the covers.

As soon as they were both tucked in, Scarlet shut off the lights and immediately closed her eyes. Cloudy was about to fall asleep, only to be woken up by Little Swift.

“Hey, Cloudy,” she whispered.

“Yeah?”

“What do you think of that Twilight character?” she asked.

“She’s definitely something,” he replied. He formed a soft smile and his eyes were half open at the thought of the alicorn.

“I have a feeling we’ll see her again soon,” said Swift.

“Me too. We should both get some sleep now.”

“Ok, good night.”

With that, Little Swift turned over and shut her eyes and fell into a deep slumber. Cloudy had a little more difficulty falling asleep. Too many thoughts danced in his head. He kept thinking of the scooter incident and how he regretted his actions that day.

He also kept thinking about Twilight and their walk through town. He wanted to get to know her better, but was unsure if he would have the chance. After all, he may or may not see her again after his visit. Most of all, he kept thinking about his foal-hood friend and how excited he was to see him at the Crystal Empire tomorrow.