A Glimmer of Hope

Fizzlepop Berrytwist trotted along the mountain path. She wanted to get out of Equestria as soon as possible. Over the many weeks she had spent travelling, she had grown bigger and stronger, allowing her to cover more distance. She was still unable to do much with her horn, but it was better than nothing. One day, she would be able to control the white lightning it cast whenever she tried to use it. That lightning had helped her invent her new name: Tempest Shadow. Fizzlepop Berrytwist just didn't suit the strong mare she was trying to become. Neither did her cutie mark - a bottle of cherryade. A lightning bolt would suit her so much better. For now, she had just covered it in the make-up powder she had brought with her to make her look like a blank-flank. It matched her coat perfectly.

Suddenly, something crashed into her. A glimmer of light pink and dark purple and cyan was all she saw before the filly tumbled over the edge of the cliff.
"HELP!" the pink unicorn filly cried. Tempest looked over at her. She had her dark purple and cyan mane tied in two buns. Those big cyan eyes, filled with cold, hard fear, stared back. There was no ignoring her.
"I - I can try," stammered Tempest. Why was she doing this? Nopony had helped when things became tough for her! She had never even met this filly! Yet she reached out a hoof and scooped her up.
"Thanks," the filly panted. She looked curious. "What brings you this far away from everypony?"
"Lack of trust," Tempest grunted. "I have nopony to help me when I'm in trouble. And you?"
"The same. My best friend practically abandoned me. They're not much of a best friend now. Who are you?"
"Tempest Shadow, the ex unicorn. An Ursa broke my horn." She tapped the stump on her head where her horn once was.
"Ouch. I'm so sorry. My name is Starlight Glimmer," said the filly. She looked up. "It's getting dark. We should find somewhere to stay. If you want to join me."
Tempest smiled.

Ten minutes later, they found a cave that was too small for an Ursa to inhabit, but perfect for them. Starlight gathered a few branches with her magic and made a small campfire while Tempest looked on with envy.
"Why'd you run away?" asked Tempest. She thought she was the only one who would do something so drastic.
"I'm lonely. Jealous, too. The friend who left me, we both tried to go to Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. He got in. I didn't. My magic wasn't strong enough, the judges said. I begged him again and again to stay. You know what he told me? He said, "just because you don't have a future it doesn't mean I can't." I couldn't bear being stuck without a friend. I left. Friendship backfired on me. I was naïve."
"Similar problem. My friends and I were playing in the woods, and we accidentally knocked our ball into an Ursa's cave. I was brave enough to go in there and rescue it. It swiped its paw and I lost my horn. The day I got out of hospital, I went to see them. They would not speak to me. They had a new friend. I couldn't stay. Friendship has failed me, too."

They sat in silence, eating some daisies that Tempest had brought with her. Princess Celestia was lowering the sun.
"Screw you Celestia," muttered Starlight, glancing at the horizon. Tempest burst out laughing.
"I've never known somepony to dislike Celestia that much," she giggled.
"Of course I do! She let my friend enroll in her school but didn't allow me in. She separated us. Princess Luna wouldn't do that, surely? Well, if she wasn't stuck on the moon, that is."
"I agree with what Luna did. If nopony's going to help you, you might as well go rouge and have a fresh start elsewhere."
"A fresh start elsewhere," echoed Starlight. "I blame destiny and cutie marks. He was always going to go off on his own. If he had no cutie mark, though, he would have no powerful magic. If nopony had separate destinies, everypony would be equal."
This confused Tempest. "What's this got to do with anything?"
"Well," said Starlight, grinning smugly, "cutie marks can change. My aim is to take cutie marks and replace them all with the same symbol so that everypony is equal. That way, their friends can't leave them."
"I don't buy that. I think ponies should be allowed to go their separate ways, just like I'm going my own way."
"Hmm."
"What are you going to do once we go our separate ways? All I know is that I'm leaving Equestria and never returning. No offence, but I hate ponies in general. Maybe other creatures like dragons are more reliable."
"I wouldn't bank on dragons personally. I might make myself a house, live all the way out here. Work out how to do magic with cutie marks. Invite other ponies to live without their cutie marks. With me. Maybe somepony will listen once their are enough ponies to back my ideas up."
"Your ambitions impress me." She wasn't lying. Tempest could tell that this filly was destined to be powerful.
"I try to please. All I want is a place in life. That place is somewhere that I am in charge of. My own village."

They slept side by side. They had followed similar paths so far and were so alike in personality, and despite the fact that their opinions differed greatly, they liked and trusted each other. Tempest knew that she could rely on this pony if she ever needed help.

Tempest woke before Starlight and reapplied the dark purple powder to each flank. Starlight woke up and saw, her eyes growing wide. Before Tempest could become angry, she whispered sneakily, "I can keep a secret. That is so cool. Your cutie mark just... Disappears! How do you even do that without magic?!"
"With difficulty," answered Tempest, grinning.

Starlight didn't want Tempest to leave. A small part of Tempest didn't want to leave, either. She swooped down and dismissed that as her old, naïve way of thinking. She was a ruthless mare to be feared now, not a filly who lets everypony walk over her.
"I'm sorry, Starlight," she told her new friend, "but I have to go."
"I will always be here for you," Starlight replied as Tempest galloped into the distance, not wanting the unicorn to see her cry.