The Shadow of Death

Rainbow Dash sat in a chair next to Soarin's hospital bed, not taking her eyes off of him for even a second. She had already gotten all that she needed for her minor injuries, but it was Soarin who needed more than her, with his stab wounds in his gut and leg.

After the Cloudsdale Legion arrived, Dash and Soarin were quickly rushed off to the Cloudsdale General Hospital. They had gotten there very early in the morning, and it was now just past 9am. Dash had gotten a little bit of sleep last night, but not much due to her worry for Soarin.

Soarin was now asleep in his bed, looking rather peaceful. Dash smiled as she watched him. She then thought back to what had happened after they arrived. She explained what had happened to the Legion and they said they would take care of the rest. She knew the Legion had to take care of what had happened at the compound, and clean up....

The bodies.....

Dash quickly turned her head toward the door as she heard the door open. Into the room stepped a male pegasus with a brown coat, yellow mane, and wearing a set of silver Cloudsdale Legion armor. Behind him Rainbow could see the nurse.

"Are you Rainbow Dash?" The officer asked. Dash nodded her head and the pegasus removed his helmet and sat down in the chair on the other side of the bed.

"My name is Officer Flash Flood, I just came from the compound." He explained. Dash's heart skipped a beat and her eyes widened. She was dreading what he had to say. Dash had asked the officers to find Spitfire or anypony else that could have still been alive there, but he didn't look like he was delivering any good news. Dash let out a sigh and looked back at Flash Flood.

"What's going on?" Dash asked quietly. Flash Flood shifted in his seat and nodded at the nurse. She nodded back and closed the door, allowing them privacy.

"My officers and I have just finished clearing out the compound." Flash Flood began. Dash nodded and noticed that his expression had not changed. She knew what was coming.

"And?" Dash asked. Flash let out sigh before looking back at her.

"We found the bodies of 9 Wonderbolts in the compound. Captain Spitfire and Commander Fleetfoot were among the dead." Flash said slowly, giving Dash time to let his words sink in. Dash felt herself flinch as he said the names. She looked over at Soarin. With Spitfire and Fleetfoot gone, he would be sworn in as the next captain of the Wonderbolts. He was now the highest ranking one. "I just thought I'd let you know, since I was told you were interested earlier....I....I'm sorry." Flash finished as he saw her physical reaction to hearing the bad news.

"No." Dash suddenly said. "It's okay, thank you for telling me." Dash turned back to Soarin. "I'll let him know when he wakes up." Dash said as she continued her constant vigil over Soarin, waiting for him to wake up. Flash Flood stood up and silently left the room, leaving the couple alone.

Dash kept staring at Soarin, letting her mind race with everything she had gone through over the past 24 hours. Just yesterday, herself and her Wonderbolt teammates had gone to perform as one big unit at the Cloudsdale Coliseum for the last show of their touring season before winter. Then it turned into an innocent party at the compound, which turned into a nightmare, one that Dash would never forget.

She also thought back to Lightning Dust. She now knew that the Shadowbolts were real, not just some figment conjured up by Nightmare Moon, but a real force. And from what she saw of Lightning Dust, one that the Wonderbolts needed to watch out for. Dash also thought back to Dust's behavior. She was a spunky, hot headed sports mare who was a lot like her back in the academy, but last night, she was a bloodthirsty animal who had gone past the point of reasoning. She sadistically murdered several Wonderbolts in cold blood, and she looked like she was having fun. It made Dash sick to her stomach.

Dash flinched as she heard a knock at the door to the room. "Come in." Dash called out. The nurse entered with a soft smile.

"Miss Dash, you have some visitors who want to see you." the nurse said. Dash raised an eyebrow.

"Who?" Dash asked. The nurse turned to whoever was outside the door and motioned for them to go inside. Dash felt a wave of relief wash over her as she saw who stepped into the room.

Twilight Sparkle stepped in first, with a worried look on her face that turned into a smile upon seeing Dash, Applejack walked in behind her, Fluttershy after her, followed by Pinkie Pie and Rarity. Dash's eyes lit up.

"Guys!" Dash said happily as she got up from her chair and rushed over to join her friends in an embrace. For the first time in hours, she felt like she could finally be relieved and be put at ease, since now she had all her favorite ponies in the room.

"We came over in the balloon as soon as we heard." Twilight said with a relieved tone. Dash turned to Applejack who was giving her a bit of a glare.

"What in the hay actually happened Dash!? That officer that came to Ponyville wouldn't tell us nothin!" Applejack said with her voice a little raised, Dash tried to motion for her to keep quiet, but was cut off by Pinkie.

"Yeah! What happened to make him such a party pooper?" Pinkie said with a bounce. Dash put her hoof to her muzzle and made a shush noise and pointed over to the bed. The other five looked over and all gasped. Dash led them all over to the sides of the bed. They noticed the bandages covering his leg and body.

"What happened to him darling?" Rarity asked as she stared at Soarin in disbelief. Dash let out a sigh as she slumped back in her chair.

"It's a long and unpleasant story." Dash said with a sorrowful tone. The others all gave her apologetic looks and Fluttershy even came over to Dash and gave her a reassuring hug.

"If it's too much, we won't pressure you to tell it." Fluttershy said in her usual caring tone. Dash shook her head.

"No, it's okay, you guys need to know. Or, you'll know anyway, when the story eventually goes public." Dash said as she shifted in her chair, glanced at Soarin before looking back at her friends and taking a deep breath.

"It all started with the show last night..."

"Sir."

"Yes?"

"I have the reports on the mission you sent Lightning Dust on Sir."

The stallion sitting in the chair at the end of the darkened room turned around and looked at the other pony, clad in a Shadowbolt uniform. They nodded.

"I was wondering when they'd get back, how'd she do? Where is she now?" They asked. The other Shadowbolt opened up the folder they had tucked into their wing and cleared their throat.

"Lightning Dust is now K.I.A sir." the Shadowbolt said. The other stallion showed no physical response.

"So, did she fail then?" The stallion asked. The Shadowbolt shook his head.

"Not exactly sir, several targets were eliminated." The Shadowbolt responded.

"How many?" The stallion asked.

"9" the Shadowbolt immediately answered.

"Names?" The stallion asked. The Shadowbolt cleared his throat again as he flipped to another page and listed off the names.

"High Winds"

"Lightning Streak"

"Surprise"

"Thunderlane"

"Fire Streak"

"Misty Fly"

"Wave Chill"

"Fleetfoot"

"and Captain Spitfire herself." The Shadowbolt listed off. The stallion smiled.

"So the distraction did work?" The stallion asked.

"Yes sir, the diversion at the weather factory yielded the perfect results and created the desired snowstorm." The Shadowbolt explained. The stallion nodded.

"Good. The mission was a success." The stallion said as he leaned back into his chair. The Shadowbolt however, did not leave.

"But sir, what about the second step?" The Shadowbolt asked. The stallion leaned back forward.

"Hand it over to the other one. He'll finish it. How did Dust die?" The stallion asked.

"She was hacked in the back with an ax, stabbed in the chest with her own knife, and fell to her death from Cloudsdale. Two agents are transporting her body back here as we speak." The Shadowbolt explained.

"Who were the ponies that killed her?" The stallion asked.

"Soarin and Rainbow Dash." The Shadowbolt answered. The stallion nodded.

"Give the next step to the other one, tell him he has a score to settle with some old enemies." The stallion explained.

"Yes Sir." The Shadowbolt said before turning and leaving the office. The stallion turned back around in his chair and leaned back again. He smiled to himself.

"We've already killed their leader, now we just have to tie up some loose ends, and the Wonderbolts will collapse." The stallion said to himself before letting out a sinister chuckle.

To Be Continued...