Arrested
Bang.
I changed direction, riding a shockwave glistening with light, feeling almost weightless. The wind under my grey wings felt almost freeing after the crushing stress they were just subjected to. I turned south, heading home. I remember the flight away took about 23 minutes; in the time it took to remember that, I passed my little cloud house. I cut hard and saw, well, my mane. The electric yellow with strands of orange, just… followed me from miles back. I finally slowed and tried to make it to my again distant home. After two minutes I was hit by a... shockwave of light? Going through, it saw the same rainbow colors that had given me that boost. One more minute, and I could make out my mother in our yard, I called out to her in excitement and went in for a landing.
So I haven't quite got everything down. Brushing myself off from my… lets go with bad crosswinds. I tried to get my bearings and found my mother standing over me.
“Mommy? Why are you looking at me like that? Did I do something wrong?” My adrenaline high hadn't quite burned out, but every heartbeat turned my joy into worry. My mother looked at me in shock, and maybe… fear? Is mommy scared of me? I wasn't trying to do that! Whatever that was! Oh no…. I nudged my mother in the side and squeaked, “am I in trouble?”
She looked down at me and tried to put on her usual, emotionless face, but I could see past it. She wrapped her wings around me and kissed my forehead. “I love you, and I will always love you, no matter what happens. You know that, right?” My mothers voice cracked as she hugged me close. Tears dropped into my mane. Nothing she ever said had scared me more.
What? Mommy's… crying? But what did I do wrong? “I…-” tears welled up in my eyes too. “What did I do?” my voice barely above a whisper.
“Answer me.” Her normal, stern tone had resurfaced, reminding me of her lessons. Never show weakness. Bring pride to your name, and strength to your Queen. I fought back the tears, steeled my voice and said with an unwavering composure, “I know you love me; I’m your child.” I looked up and add, “and I’m proud of it.”
“Thats a good colt,” she said. Her strength was back. She released me and stood up, her hooves firmly planted in the cloud. Looking to the west, the red armor of the Royal Guard flew at top speed twords us, in their standard ‘v’ formation. “I am proud to call you my foal, Starspark. Never forget that.”
This is a big house. Columns of stone held up a domed ceiling thirty feet in the air. Paintings of pegasi in battle and unicorns conjuring epic feats of magic decorated the chamber. On the marble floor stood beautifully crafted wooden tables and desks. It even echoed. The building was intimidating, and it didn't help that I was shoved into one of the benches around the exterior and left behind by the pegasi Guards. I still had questions about flying in the armor.
“Kill him?!” my mind snapped back to the conversation taking place between three ponies (two mares, one in the armor of a Guard officer, and a stallion in modest blue robes) taking place in front of him. “Are you out of your damn mind?! You Guard mares are all alike, no regard for such an intriguing specimen of nature!”
“It is a risk, not only to the pegasi in the air, but the very land as well. The rockslides your ‘specimen’ caused will take months to clear completely.”
“If you would just let the unicorns help-”
“Your help?!” yelled the mare without the armor. I remember seeing her on a news post in the cloudtop markets, about how she was the Royally appointed governer of our province. I don't remember many of the ponies there being happy about it. “No self-respecting earth pony would even think to lean on your weak backs!”
“If you two would stop your tribal quarrel, maybe we could hear what our guest has to say on the subject.” All eyes turned to me. They're going to execute me and use me as a spesi- specim- something!
I finally stuttered out, “I was j-just trying to see how fast I could go.” So much for resolve.
After a few seconds, the unicorn asked, “No magical interference?” He looked like he was going to burst with happiness.
“Inter- what?” Does he always use big words?
“What are you getting at, unicorn?”
He ignored the disrespect. “This young pegasus flew fast enough to shatter light itself!!! The legend, the sonic rainboom.... It-,” he apparently couldn't contain it any longer, “it EXISTS!!!”
“It exists, it exists, it exists, it exists.” Echo, echo, echo. I should really pay attention.
“That is just a myth. You truly don't believe those feathered barbarians have any truth in their stories.”
“Icarus, a pegasus that flew on rainbows, a flap of her wings could shake the earth, and it is said her children could draw on her power. You could call it ridiculous, and just this morning I, admittedly, would have called it a legend meant to give an empowered veiw of the pegasi mare and give the pegasi as a tribe a hero. But now tell me, what exactly would you call what this young stallion did this morning?”
“That myth has been censored for a reason, unicorn.” The words that the robed pony spoke seemed to put the two mares across the chamber from him on edge; an uncomfortable silence dropped over the three, allowing them to hear me whispering to myself.
“Specimem? No….” I looked up at the other ponies now staring daggers into each other. “Um… what happens to me now?”
The Guardsmare sighed and said, “this meeting was put together to decide if the foal was worth the attention of the royal court, and personal opinions and theories aside, what he did certainly deserves that much.” The other two nodded in agreement.
Does that mean I can hang around the guard more?!
I can't sleep. Whatever this mattress is made out of heated up quick. The blankets were itchy and heavy and, and, and i don't wanna die!
It finally hit, and it hit hard. I bit into the pillow to muffle my sobbing, painfully aware of the presence of two Guard stallions outside of the room, but I don't want to die, I don't want to go to another city, I wanna go home. The pillow absorbed my tears but stayed wet, reminding me I was stuck on the ground and away from the clouds. I miss mommy.
“You okay, child?”
My head shot up as I tried to hide all evidence that my happy and carefree facade had shattered. I tried to muster some strength and power into my voice, “y-yes?” and winced at how badly I failed on that front. The Guard actually showed pity. He was an older pegasus, scars decorating his coat and wings, probably the result of the multiple skirmishes with the griffons over the years. Even as a stallion he was intimidating. However, his expression was soft as he watched me struggle to get my emotional outburst under control.
“There is no shame in admitting you are scared, young colt. And, believe me, nothing will happen to you in the capitol.” His voice was hoarse with age, and years of barking commands during battle could not have been good for his throat.
My immediate reaction was to deny that I was terrified, but all I could choke out was, “you don't know that….”
“I do, son. Your gift made itself known only this morning, but every pegasus in Equestria knows your name. Starspark, the living child of Icarus! You are a hero, child. If the unicorns or earth ponies did anything to harm you, we pegasi would rip this union apart, Queen be damned!” I could see the other pegasus at the doorway, visibly shocked by what the elder had said, but met my gaze and gave a short nod.
What? Who is Icarus? Why does everyone get so worried when she gets mentioned? Am I really that important? If I'm a hero then why have I been arrested? My mind churned out questions to replace my anxiety. I finally focused enough to ask one. “Does your armor mess up your flight profile?”
Politics is a big word for a big argument. The Roaman Royal senate generally held 2300 officials at a time in its colossal amphitheater, but ‘generally’ implies that general business on how to run Equestria is being discussed. The rebirth of a myth that pegasi used as a battlecry is anything but general business, and the attendance of 5802 officials reflected it. And not one could stay quiet.
Most of the unicorns were arguing that because all remnants of Icarus’ myth had been purged, so should the foal. Many in that camp wanted to dissect my wings to see the inner workings of much of the raw physical power it takes to achieve a speed to break light.
Pegasi were almost unanimously fighting for my survival, admittedly in true pegasi fashion. “We will kill all of you heretics before you harm that stallion!!!”
Earth ponies wanted a quick execution and disposal. Neither the pegasi or the unicorns could benefit from my existence or the union would be unbalanced. Oddly enough, the earth ponies were actually willing to go to violence over me, and considering that they lost every war they ever fought with the other tribes, my presence must have ruffled some… earth ponies don't have feathers…. This chair is squeaky.
Wind Rider, the highest general in all of the Guard, legendary for her conquests in battle to the point that all of Equstria’s enemies could recognize her orange coat and white mane from their nightmares, put her hoof on my head to stop me. Again. She did look just as bored as me. “You wanna try it?” I yell, looking up at my hero. Hey, after two hours being within touching distance, dumbfounded wears off. She doesn't answer. She wants to.
The unicorns fell silent first, and I turned to them in confusion. Their gaze was locked on a set of doors opposite of the ones I came in through. Two torches on either side of the doors spontaneously lit, and the other tribes fell silent. The doors opened and an earth pony stallion in silver armor stepped out, and yelled, “SILENCE!!!” You're a little late with that. “Now presenting her majesty, Queen Andromeda.”
Bow. Bow. Bowbowbowbowbow. All the guards around the amphitheater stood at attention, the delegates called in unison “ALL HAIL THE QUEEN!!!” as a white coated unicorn with a violet mane stepped out and looked at me. And my dumb open-mouthed expression. It took a second for my body to listen to my mind, but I nearly broke my neck turning my gaze to the marble floor.
“Is this the foal?” She's talking about me!!!
“Yes, your majesty, and we have three witnesses to confirm.”
“Thank you, General,” and General Wind Rider bowed her head and stepped away from me. Please come back….
“What is your name, child?” Do. Not. Screw. This. Up.
“St- Starsp-park-,” dammit, “-Your majesty.”
She stayed silent for a few seconds. “This colt will live,” now addressing the room. “We will not execute a foal simply because he has an ability we previously did not think existed. We must also reconvene this court to discuss lifting the gag order on the Icarus myth at a later date.” The earth ponies looked visibly angered and the torches in the room flared up, reacting to the unicorn's displeasure. I breathed a little easier, but I almost stopped breathing entirely when she said, “Unless we can find a reason to let him keep his ability, I deem it necessary to cripple his wings, to ensure the cooperation of our other tribes.” I could hear the feathers shifting in unison from my fellow pegasi before the announcement registered. The crippling of wings was a punishment generally reserved for criminals that tried to escape the guard. It was extremely painful, left a pegasus grounded for at least a year, and hindered flight for the rest of the punishee’s life. And if that wasn't enough.
“May I speak, your majesty?” an old pegasus mare, her voice shaken with disturbance. When the Queen nodded, she said, “ Such a punishment this early in a foal’s life will be a life sentence on the ground. While the wings are still developing, an injury such as that stunts the growth of the wings. He would never taste the skies again. It is a fate we consider worse than death.”
My gaze hadn't left the floor, but I could tell my vision was blurring. I won't ever fly again? I began to hyperventilate. But… why? Tears hit the floor. I…. Even when execution was still an option my mind could form a rational thought. This was new. I missed whatever one of the earth pony delegates said but an uproar of wings snapping to full spread filled the room, a show of preparation to fight. My snout began to drip onto the floor. No…. At that moment, I felt defeat.
“My Queen, if I may make a suggestion,” my hero from when I knew who she was spoke in my defense. The longest second of my life took place as my tears hit the marble under me. I was about to collapse. To cry in front of an audience of all tribes. Why should I keep this up? In a little bit I won't even be a pegasus. Who am I trying to impress?
“Would you let Starspark and his gift join your Guard?”
Author's Note
I hope it doesn't suck, but the comments are there. I want feedback... Please?
