It was a warm summer day, with only a few clouds in the sky. It was a perfect day for flying, but there was no one flying at the Wonderbolts HQ. An old tradition was about to take place, the target, Rainbow Dash. Spitfire led the blindfolded Wonderbolt in front of a small building, or more accurately, a museum.
Spitfire grinned as she took off the blindfold "Alright Rainbow Crash, you can look now."
Rainbow looked up to see the place where few ponies have entered. It was a small two-story building out of sight of the other buildings. Even though it was hidden away it gave an aura of importance. All of the Wonderbolts stood at attention next to the doors.
Dash looked on in excitement. "Is this the private Wonderbolts museum? I only heard rumors about it!"
Spitfire grinned. "Yep! It's a tradition that a picture of every team and a personal object from every Wonderbolt is stored here. Whenever a new member joins our ranks and when we think they are ready they walk these halls. It's your turn Crash."
As Dash looked in excitement a question crossed her mind. "How come I haven't been here sooner?”
Spitfire faced Dash and barked in authority. "Crash! Don't ask questions! Now you let Soarin give you a tour and enjoy yourself, and that's an order!"
Dash instantly stood at attention and saluted. "Yes ma'am!"
As Soarin led an exited Rainbow Dash into the museum Spitfire turned to the other Bolts. "You'd think we wouldn't forget something like this for this long."
A Wonder Bolt standing to the right of the door nick-named Daisy shrugged. “Considering her crazy schedule and all the other crazy stuff that’s been going on, I’m not surprised.”
As Soarin started to lead Rainbow Dash through the long hallways he gave his opinion about the museum. "All honesty this isn't as big or as flashy as the public Wonder Bolts museum, but it feels more personal."
Dash was looking around in excitement. "It's still so cool!”
Soarin chuckled. "I know right. Take your time. Check out what history left us. Think about those cool ponies hanging out like us back then."
Rainbow Dash started checking out the photos hanging on the wall. They didn't stand at attention like in the public museums. They looked more like they were hanging out like friends. The items on display weren't flashy. They included toys, pieces of clothing, and a few odd items. Rainbow found it more cool than awesome. She kept walking until she reached one picture and an item underneath. A poorly knit scarf.
Soarin noticed Dash standing in silence, staring at the photo. “Find something interesting Dash? Dash?”
Outside Spitfire and the other Wonder Bolts were talking outside. Some of them were trying to figure out what Dash was doing.
"I bet she's going to scream in excitement."
"No, she'll get halfway through and fall asleep."
Spitfire joined in. "Well, I think that she's..."
Suddenly Rainbow Dash busted through the door with tears running down her face leaping into the sky and taking off before anyone could say anything.
Spitfire watched in shock as she took off, trying to figure out what happened. “...Running away… crying?"
Their eyes all turned to Soarin who was also speechless for a moment before he finally spoke. "I didn't do it!"
"And we haven't seen her since." Spitfire was talking to Twilight and her friends in the castle about what had happened the other day. None of them understood why Dash would take off like that.
Rarity looked upset as she vented her frustration. "Well, that explains why she didn't show up for her class this morning. I had to skip my spa day."
Spitfire rolled her eyes as redirected her attention to the events of the other day. "I've never seen her that upset before. Today she called in sick."
Applejack was confused by that. "Well why didn't she tell us?"
Before Spitfire could speak there was a knock on the door. Twilight opened it to find Derpy handing her a letter.
Twilight examined the letter confused. "She said she’s sick and she doesn't know how long she'll be away from the school."
Applejack scoffed. "Like that's true. I think she's hiding something. But Spitfire, why don't you talk to her about this?"
Spitfire shrugged. "You all know her better and I don't know what's wrong."
Twilight started analyzing the situation. "Well, I think we need to go back to where this started. Applejack, Fluttershy, can you two go with Spitfire and see what you can learn?"
Fluttershy was shocked when she heard her name. "Uh, m-m-me? Um, why us?"
Twilight sighed "Because you two are not busy this afternoon."
Applejack spoke to Twilight before she got up. "Yeah, we need to talk about getting a few more hooves around here."
The hot air balloon landed at the Wonderbolts HQ. Spitfire was a bit frustrated about how slow the trip took.
Applejack was busy talking to Fluttershy. "I'm telling ya, the last time I've seen her like that was when Tank hibernated for the first time."
Fluttershy looked concerned. "I hope she's okay. I hate to think about the last time she was like that."
Spitfire interrupted them as they approached the building. "Well here we are. Now don't tell anyone we let you in here. Otherwise everyone will want to see it."
They walked inside to see the old pictures and keepsakes. Soarin was inside waiting for them.
He looked nervous as they walked up to him. "I promise you that I don't know what's going on."
Spitfire rolled her eyes. "Thanks. We'll add that to the list of what we know."
Fluttershy spoke up. "Do you know what set her off?"
Soarin pointed over to a photo. "She was over here before she ran out."
They all walked over and started looking at where he gestured. It looked a little over ten years old. Only a few ponies looked familiar including Spitfire. They looked like they were goofing off.
Applejack started talking about the photos. "Hey, these look like my family photos."
Spitfire grinned "Well, it wouldn't be the first time someone said that."
Fluttershy's eyes widened as she softly tried getting the others attention. "Uh, girls."
No one listened as Applejack continued. "You all are kind of like a family over here."
"Uh, girls?"
Soarin shrugged. "A dysfunctional type of family."
"Excuse me."
Applejack laughed as she patted him on the back. "Ya just described them all."
"Listen!!!" Everyone turned to Fluttershy to see a few tears rolling down her face. "I know what happened. It's Sun Ray."
Applejack looked confused when she said that name."Who's Sun Ray?"
"He used to be a Wonderbolt." Soarin replied.
Spitfire looked serious as she tried to give some more insight. "He was the one who taught me the ropes when I was a newbie."
All eyes turned to Fluttershy as she spoke softly. "He was Rainbows's cousin. He inspired her to be a Wonderbolt."
It was several years ago, Rainbow Dash was clutching a report card. Her grades were all C’s D’s and F’s. She didn't leave the runway were she did her first rainboom; she was just sitting there with Fluttershy. Fluttershy didn't know what to say to her friend. Dash was a great flyer, but her learning struggles were hurting her.
A shout came from behind them. "Hey Dashy. If you don't hurry up your parents are going to tie their wings in a knot."
Fluttershy turned to see a blue pegasus with a red and yellow mane. His cutie mark was a ray of sunlight. Sun Ray slowed down when he saw the upset look on Fluttershy's face.
He he took a deep breath and walked over. "Let me guess, your report card?"
A whisper as small as Fluttershy's voice came out of Dash's mouth. "Yes."
Ray sat down next to Dash. "I'm not going to look, but I'm guessing it's not good?"
Rainbow dropped the paper as she started to cry. "I keep failing. I'm an idiot! I'll never be able to do anything."
Sun Ray gave a look of concern when she started crying.
Then he started looking in the sky. "Weather's nice today. Light wind from the north, and I'm seeing some nice wind tunnels. Feel like a race Dashy?"
Rainbow slowly looked up. "What?"
Sun Ray grinned as he got up. "Come on, you don't want those jerks to start beating you, now do you? Fluttershy, can you tell us who wins. I promise you won't get knocked out of the sky this time."
Fluttershy was a bit startled. "Oh, okay."
Sun Ray got prepped at the starting line.
Rainbow Dash looked confused as Ray hollered at her. "Are you coming or are you afraid to lose?"
Dash instantly got serious as she ran for the starting line; she never could turn down a challenge.
Sun Ray stretched out his wings. "On your marks... "
"Go!" Dash interrupted as she took off.
Sun Ray grinned as he looked at Fluttershy. "When it's us she always does this. Call it a head start."
Ray took off like a bullet after Dash. Fluttershy watched as they both streaked across the sky. After a few minutes and several laps later they both stopped at the finish line. Fluttershy didn't want to admit that she didn't know who won.
Rainbow Dash laughed as she joked to Ray. "I think I'm faster than you."
Ray laughed as he turned to Dash. "I might have to stop holding back. Now you listen to me. Don't be afraid. You're afraid that you're going to fail, and sometimes you might. But I've seen what you can do, along with anyone else who saw that, uh, rainboom in the sky. When you put your mind to something you can succeeded. Know your limits and push them a bit, set a goal, work for it, and then only the sky's the limit. Never be afraid to try!"
"He inspired her. When she saw him become a Wonderbolt she wanted to be one too, that and she said that they're awesome. This scarf was a gift from Rainbow. She wasn't good at knitting." Fluttershy gave a soft chuckle as she finished her story.
Applejack was a bit shocked after hearing the story. "That's Rainbow Dash for you, but why haven't I heard about him?"
Spitfire looked at Fluttershy with a sad look on her face. "He has been MIA for several years now. I never knew that they were related."
Soarin and Applejack were speechless for a minute until Applejack finally spoke. "That explains it... It's hard to talk about someone you lost."
"Now what?" Soarin finally asked.
Spitfire straightened up as she gave an answer. "It's simple. We talk to her. It is how you said you helped her with Tank; it's how we help her now."
Fluttershy and Applejack both knew she was right, but they knew that this would be harder. Tank was gone for a winter, Sun Ray was just gone. The other thing that caught them off guard was the word "we".
Fluttershy looked over in confusion. "I thought you wanted us to talk to her? You said..."
Spitfire quickly cut Fluttershy off. "You all know Dash, but I knew Sun Ray. He was the one who broke me in. He gave me my wings when I was a newbie. That and Dash is my teammate, and my friend. I'm going to help her, end of discussion."
It took them a while to explain what happened to Twilight and the others. They didn't find Rainbow Dash at her house, but it didn't take long to figure out where she was. They soon found her at the old race course in Cloudsdale.
Fluttershy was the first to speak. "Hi Dash. We found out about Sun Ray."
Dash didn’t bother asking how they found her. She didn’t even turn her head to face her friends.
She spoke softly as tears rolled down her face. "It was so long ago. I know that he's not coming back, but I still miss him. I'm still waiting for him to come back. I don't even know what happened to him."
Rainbow lowered her head as she started to cry softly. No one knew what to say. They knew it wasn't wise to be harsh again. Finally Spitfire sat down next to Dash.
When Spitfire spoke she didn’t speak with the loud rough voice she usually used. She spoke softly and gently. "Sun Ray was my friend too. He taught me the ropes long before I took command. He was never real serious, but he could read the weather better than anyone I know. He was never content about being just a "show pony". So he had the habit of volunteering us for charity events and certain missions..."
Spitfire paused for a moment before looking Dash in the eye. "Are you sure you want to hear this?"
Dash looked at her for a moment and then simply nodded.
Three Wonderbolts were flying to a storm cell that they were warned about. Sun Ray volunteered them to assess the situation. One was a white pony with a pink and purple mane and tail named Blitzy and the other two were Spitfire and Sun Ray, with Sun Ray leading them.
As they flew towards the storm Ray gave his opinion about some of the new students. "I think that Soren kid has potential. Give him a few years and I think he'll be joining us up here."
Spitfire rolled her eyes. "I don't think he has the natural skills."
Sun Ray took that into account, but he pointed out something else he saw. "But he's got drive. He just needs a little more time and training. Just like you Spitfire."
Spitfire didn’t like the comparison. "Hey! Everyone agrees that I have what it takes to lead."
Sun Ray looked back to her. "And yet I’m in charge right now. You're a pretty good tactician I'll give you that, but you need to value your teammates more. Know their lives, be friends with them, and help them when they need it. Leading isn't placing yourself up; it's lifting your teammates when they need it. Teaching them as well as learning."
Spitfire chuckled as she gave a rather sarcastic remark. "Next thing you'll say is that I'll be in charge of teaching cadets."
A sly grin formed on Sun Ray's face. "Someone has to teach my cousin when she shows up."
Spitfire laughed until she saw that he was serious. "Wait! When were we going to talk about this?"
"Uh guys?" Blitzy interrupted.
Right in front of them was a tornado with white streaks going through it.
Before Spitfire and Blitzy could take off to try to dissipate the tornado Sun Ray stopped them. "Hold it! It's a white orb vortex!"
Blitzy looked confused. "It looks like a normal one to me."
Ray instantly looked serious. "If the white streaks don't give it away then look closely at the top."
Spitfire looked close enough to see a white swirling ball in the center.
Sun Ray quickly explained it to the others. "It's very rare! These types of tornadoes happen almost magically. No clue how they start, but if we stop it now it'll give off a major blast of wind. And with how close we'll be, and the size of that orb, I don't want to think of what will happen to us."
Blitzy looked confused. "So what do we do?"
Sun Ray thought for a few seconds as he came up with a plan. "That orb is just wind. It'll feed the tornado but at the cost of itself. There are no villages for miles. We stay ahead of this thing, keep our eyes open for any ponies, and wait till that orb dissipates. The second that happens is when we take that thing out. I'll keep a lookout up here, you two stay low. Holler if you see anyone, and stay together. That’s an order! Understood?"
"Yes sir!" They both dove towards the ground, gliding a few feet from the ground.
Spitfire was annoyed by what Sun Ray said. Not only did she just found out what he got her into, but now they couldn't talk about it. She started watching Sun Ray to see how he leads. She was annoyed to see him just staring at the tornado.
She decided to fly up to him and confront him. "Why are you just watching this?"
Sun Ray answered while keeping an eye on the tornado. "My eyes can see through this tornado better. I’ve proven it on many occasions. Do you have a problem with this?"
Spitfire flew in front of him frustrated. "I'm just not seeing what you're doing. Volunteering us for missions and having me teach? Why?"
Sun Ray sighed as he put his hooves on his hips. "One! Because we can do a lot more than fancy stunts. I like those shows as much as the next pony, but we can do so much more, help so many other ponies. Two! Because you're perfect for it. You're one of the toughest ponies I know. You'll be dealing with ponies that need the push, who can take the push. You can get their attention and demand their respect. I don't volunteer ponies that are busy with their own lives, and I don't place ponies somewhere if I don't think they can handle it. I believe in you. Have a bit of faith in me."
Before she could speak a bolt of lightning darted right by them. As they caught their breath they heard a scream.
Spitfire instantly knew who was missing. "Blitzy!!!"
They both darted to where the sounds came from to find Blitzy half-buried in a pile of boulders.
"I was right by the cliff, I didn't see it coming. I’m sorry!" Blitzy said in a burst of fear and pain.
"I shouldn't have left you." Spitfire said as she saw her friend in trouble.
Ray knew he had to regain their focus. "Forget the blame game! That tornado is coming this way. We need to move fast!"
They both started doing their best to uncover Blitzy, but progress was slow, and the tornado wasn't stopping for anything.
Spitfire quickly realized that they're fighting a losing battle. "There's no way we can do this in time!"
Blitzy reached out for them as she started crying. "Please don't leave me!"
Sun Ray listened to both of them as he took a look at what was coming. Suddenly a look came on his face; He was more serious than anyone has ever seen him.
He quickly turned to Spitfire. "Listen to me! Stay down! As soon as this stops you're going to fly as fast as you can and get her help. That's an order!"
Spitfire instantly stood at attention; something she never did for Sun Ray. "Yes sir! But what are you doing?"
Sun Ray grabbed her by the shoulder. "If you meet my cousin, tell her that I believe in her. Make me proud!"
Spitfire tried to understand what he was saying. "What..."
Before she could finish Sun Ray took off into the air. A trail of red and yellow light followed him as he darted around the tornado. Spitfire knew what he was doing, he was collapsing the tornado. She quickly covered Blitzy as she waited for what would happen.
Sun Ray felt his heart race as he raced around the tornado. He knew that he wasn’t going to make it. He shuddered to think about what would happen to Rainbow Dash, but he knew what would happen if he didn't sacrifice himself. As he braced himself for what would happen a few tears ran down his face. “I’m sorry!”
A loud explosion rang out through the sky. Spitfire felt a powerful force knock the wind out of her. A large cloud of dust blinded her for a few seconds. As Spitfire turned around to where the tornado she saw nothing but clear skies. No pony was there. The sun shined on them as they realized that Sun Ray was gone.
"We searched for a month. We scoured all of Equestria. Eventually we gave up. Blitzy retired because of her injuries. And eventually I was placed in charge of the Wonderbolts. Sometimes when we did shows in other countries I would ask about him, but we never found him." Everyone stood in silence as Spitfire finished her story.
No one could imagine what it was like that day. Fluttershy remembered the day when Dash heard the news that he was gone. No one there truly knew what Dash was going through.
As Dash's head looked to the ground after hearing about Ray's last moments, Spitfire lifted her chin up as she finished. "But we never forgot him! Your cousin inspired us. He believed in us. And he lives on in us, and in you. I'm proud to have served with him, and with you."
As Dash started crying all of her friends came and hugged her. A ray of sunshine came out of the sky as everyone remembered the one who didn't come home, how his life inspired others, and how he lives on forever in their hearts.
Author's Note
This is my second story. I've always wondered what set Dash on this path to be a Wonderbolt. Admittedly this is the prequel to another story which I'm working on.
Thanks to PoisonClaw for editing and proofreading.