Chapters A filly was suddenly jolted out of her sleep by something she couldn’t place. Her eyes still closed, she smelled something burning. Normally, there would be nothing wrong with that. There was a fireplace in her room for easy access, but there was something wrong. It smelled poisoned. Suddenly, she felt hooves on her shoulder, shaking and shaking.
“Wake up!” a colt’s voice said, sounding panicked. “Please, you have to wake up!” she sat up, blinking the sleep out of her eyes.
“What’s wrong? Is something burning?” the colt yanked her out of the bed, still groggy.
“Now is not the time for jokes!" He cried, pulling her out of her room, "The castle's under attack!” That woke her up. A wave of fear washed over her.
“What do you mean the castles under attack?” She asked, then gasped he pulled her around a corner. The hallway in front of them was filled with black flames. They didn't radiate heat like normal fire, and the aura around them just seemed entirely wrong. The colt skidded to a stop and pulled her down another hallway. She looked up at the wall sconces, and saw no trace of the orbs of glowing water and golden flames, only tongues of the black fire burning everything they touched, even the stone. She tried to focus on the flames and manipulate them away from the cloud-embroidered carpet under their hooves, and they reached back into her mind with poisonous tendrils. She recoiled, and focused on the colt in front of her, terrified.
“I can’t control them!” she cried. Her friend pulled her around a fallen beam.
“Not even the most expensive fire dancers can!” he shouted back. The castle being burned down with fire that I don’t recognize, that even I can’t can’t control, and I have the most terrible feeling that it can hurt me. Who is attacking? How did they find this place? What do they want from us?
“Hurry, this way!” the colt cried, pulling her towards a window. Her friend jumped up onto the window sill and pulled her up next to him, and without any warning, pushed her out into the smoke-filled gardens below.
She screamed as she tumbled thru the air, unable to get a grip on the wind currents. The filly felt a hoof grab her foreleg and her screams caught in her thought. She looked up to see her friend's eyes glowing sky blue as he manipulated the air so it supported them. She pulled herself out of his grasp as she beat her tiny wings to hover. Her gaze traveled to the court yard below them and she gasped in horror. She could see the strange black flames reaching towards the pegasi below them, who tried to counter them with blasts of water, fire, ice and cold air, some working together in groups to combine their abilities, but no matter what they did it wasn't enough, and the filly watched a group of pegasus scream as they were consumed by the flames.
"Come on!" The colt yelled, drawing her attention away from the horrific sight. He raced away, her following close behind. An air current caught their wings and increased their speed, until they were going five times faster than they normally could. The castle blurred below them, and then the sprawling building was quickly gone, replaced by the mountains that surrounded their home. They landed on a small ledge and looked back to see it all burning. Black flames licked at the windows, and a tower crashed into one of the gardens. Their was cloud of red-black smoke hanging in the air, blocking out all light from the moon, or from the dawn that was surely coming. Suddenly, there was a loud explosion and the castle collapsed. Large black flames leaped at the sky, impossibly high. Sinister glowing red eyes appeared in the haze, and a mad laugh echoed thru the valley.
"Fly!" The colt cried, grabbing her hoof again. They shot thru the air, driven by their fear and desire to get away, terror clouding their thoughts. Only when they were miles away and the sun had perked over the hills did they slow down and comprehend what had happened. Their home, and most likely all the ponies that had lived there, was destroyed. It was a new dawn, but everything that they cared about was gone. Distraught, the filly felt tears slide down her face, and she let them fall.
Author's Note
I'm finished with the second chapter, I just need to spell cheak it.
(twelve (12) years latter)
“'Morning." She greeted, and her captain responded with something that was probably supposed to be a reply, but came out as a yawn. Sighing, she lowered her mug and Rainbow wrinkled her nose. Coffee. Yuck.
"Sorry." She said. "I stayed up late getting some paperwork done." Rainbow winced. Almost no pony at the HQ was a morning pony, and according to Soarin and Fleetfoot, Spitfire was bad enough on a normal day, but when she stayed up past midnight working on paperwork (which she did almost every night), well… let's just say it was a wonder she could still stand up, much less drill the team.
"Hey you two." Fleetfoot greeted, and Rainbow jumped, not having noticed the turquoise pegasus slipping in on the other side of Spitfire.
“Hey yourself." Soarin said, joining them with his own cup of coffee, sitting next to Rainbow. She chuckled. Soar was always so grouchy in the mornings. Spitfire didn't even blink.
"Morning pieboy." She said, prompting a few laughs from the other two mares. Before Soarin could retaliate, golden-orange flames burst into existence in front of Spitfire. Fleetfoot fell off the back of the bench with a yelp. A scroll replaced the flames and fell to the table. They all looked at it in shock.
"That's the Royal seal." Rainbow said, studying the scroll.
"Well?" They all jumped and looked up at the all-too-eager Surprise, who had suddenly appeared in front of them. She reminded Dash a bit too much of Pinkie, and she was also one of those few ponies who were blessed enough to be chipper in the mornings, or cursed, depending on who you asked. "Open it." She said smiling. Hesitantly, Spitfire broke the wax seal and unrolled the letter, hiding it's contents from the other ponies that tried to read it over her shoulder. She quickly scanned it, then rolled it back up.
"It says that the Princesses require my presence for a meeting."
"Ooh!" Surprise exclaimed, leaning over the table. "So that means you'll be heading to Canterlot?" Spitfire shock her head.
"Ponyvill. The meetings being held at Princesses Twilight's castle."
"I keep on forgetting that your personally acquainted with the Princesses."
"We're are you going?" Soarin asked. Surprise smiled.
"Well, you're a big softy, so I thought I might sleep in a little." Fleetfoot and Rainbow stifled laughs and Soarin glared at them.
"I might be a 'softy'-" Soarin started to say, but was interrupted by Surprise.
"See? He admits it!" He shot her another glare.
“-but that doesn't mean I'm going to let you slack off. Go wake up the rest of the team, and tell them we have practice in an hour." Surprise gave him a mock salute.
"Ay ay, captain!" And quickly shot out of the hall leaving behind a streak of white and yellow.
Soarin shot towards Ponyville. The other ‘Bolts were only a few wing beats behind him, but he barely noticed them. The words “have to warn them, I have to warn them” were spinning around his head. The great sparkling castle came into view, a sign of peace and friendship throughout the lands. The sun glinted off golden armor, a beacon telling him exactly what he needed to do. Soarin flared his wings to stop in front of the guards.
“I need to speak to the Princesses.” he said hurriedly before any of them could speak, “I saw something, something worrying. they need to be warned right away!” The guard he had stopped in front of studied him carefully, then her gaze shifted to the Wonderbolts behind him. None of them had landed.
“It would be best if I asked the Princesses first.” she said carefully, her face passive. Opening the huge purple and gold doors to the friendship castle, she motioned for them to follow her. The door closed behind them with a muffled thump, shouting them inside.
The guard led them down a hallway. The sound of their hooves across the cold crystal floors echoed in the large hallway, empty except for the tapestries hanging down the walls, making Soarin nervous. His wing twitched against his back, but he couldn't take off, at least not yet. Muffled murmurs came from the room at the other end, but when the guard knocked importantly on the door they abruptly cut off. The guard slipped inside and they waited, fear and nerves causing him to want to bolt, but he ignored them. I can't run. They have to know what's coming.
He saw Fleetfoot trying to catch his eye, but he kept his gaze forward, not looking at either her or Rainbow Dash. A few minutes later the guard stepped out, wordlessly holding the door open for the three. Soarin took a deep breath and stepped inside the throne room, Rainbow Dash and Fleetfoot nervously following him.
The throne room of the Castle of Friendship barely resembled the one in Canterlot Castle. It was circular, for one thing, and the walls were made out of indigo and violet crystal. A chandelier made from the roots of a large tree hung from the ceiling, hung with small crystals. Right below the chandelier was a large table which had a hologram of Equestra on it. Six white thrones were spaced evenly around it, and each one had a symbol on the back, such as diamonds, balloons, or butterfly's.
Only four of the chairs were taken by the four alicorn princesses. Prince Shining Armor, the captain of the royal guard, was standing next to the throne of princess Cadence. His own captain was standing between two Princess Celetisa and Princess Twilight. Spitfire frowned when she saw him and tried to catch his eye, confusion clear to anypony who really knew her. He gazed back evenly, not giving anything away, at least not yet. Stopping several feet away from the map table he bowed, lowering his gaze.
“Princess Celetia, Princess Luna, Princess Twilight, Princess Cadence, Prince Shining Armor.” he said formally.
“Lieutenant Soarin.” Princess Celetia replied when he stood up. “Is everything alright with the Wonderbolts?” Soarin shock his head.
“It’s not about the Wonderbolts, your highness.” Princess Luna raised an eyebrow.
“Then what is the problem?” she asked. Soarin took a deep breath.
“During practice, the other ‘bolts and I saw a large cloud of black and red smoke.” all the princesses sat forward.
“A cloud of black and red smoke?” Princess Twilight asked alertly. “Are you sure?” Soarin glanced at Spitfire. To anypony else, she was shocked, but he could see a flicker of fear. He nodded.
“I’m positive.”
“It was terrifying!” Rainbow burst out. “It covered like half the horizon! And it had eyes! Huge, red, terrifying-”
“Dash.” Fleetfoot interrupted, frowning at the younger pegasus.
“That doesn't sound like anything I’ve ever heard of.” Princess Twilight said worryingly. Princess Cadence thought for a moment.
“Could you show us where you saw it?” she asked, gesturing to the map table. Soarin stepped forward and placed his hoof on the mountains by the Wonderbolt HQ, opposite the Canterlot mountains. As he did so, he saw the last ember of desperate hope die out in Sitfire’s eyes.
“Here.” he said firmly, “when I saw it it was right here.” Princess Celetia leaned forward, studying the map and made a golden marker appear above his hoof. He stepped back and waited for a response.
“That’s... interesting.” she said at last, “very interesting.” Princess Luna turned to look at her.
“What is so interesting, sister?”
“The magic signature in that area is familiar. I felt it over a decade ago, but it was much stronger.” she created another marker much deeper into the mountains. Soarin felt his blood go cold, and nopony noticed the expression of barely suppressed horror on Spitfire’s face.
“I wish I knew what’s so special about that place.” Princess Twilight said, slightly wistfully. Princess Celetia scanned the room.
“Maybe we can find out. Captain Spitfire, Lieutenant Soarin?” she said, causing them to snap to attention. “Do you think you and a few members of the Wonderbolts could go with Princess Twilight to investigate this other location?” as the two were stunned by the topic shift, Fleetfoot jumped in and answered for them.
“Of course Princess.”
Princess Celestia nodded.
“Good. You should do that tomorrow. The sooner we have this information, the better.” Spitfire and Soarin shared a panicked glance. Spitfire opened her mouth but before she could say anything she was cut off by Princess Celestia. “Thank you for doing this. We truly have no idea what this could be, but hopefully with more information we will be able to figure more out.” She turned towards Spitfire. “You should regroup with your ‘Bolts, figure out which ones should come with you.”
Spitfire nodded, barely registering what was being said. Blank faced, she followed the three other Wonderbolts out of the room.
Author's Note
I'm so sorry for this chapter taking so long to finish. I had to get it just right
I would like to thank my friend GoodAtGrammer for checking this, it is very much appreciated.
Thank you for being patent and for reading this story.
The Wonderbolts glided over the mountains in formation, well mostly. Rainbow Dash had fallen back to talk with her friend and fellow Element of Harmony, Princess Twilight, who was lagging behind slightly. The sun cast shadows of the pegasus and alicorn on the craggy mountains, slightly overlapping the shadows of the six pegasi above them.
High Winds, Surprise, and Lightning Streak had been chosen by Spitfire to accompany them, in addition to Rainbow Dash, Fleetfoot, and Soarin. They weren't the fastest or strongest out of the Wonderbolts, but then again they had no idea what they would encounter, so neither skill really mattered. They, along with Fleetfoot, had been Wonderbolts the longest, as long as Spitfire and Soarin, so they had the most experience.
Rainbow Dash was admittedly a little smug to be on another mission for the princess. Just another mission to save Equestria, it wasn't that big of a deal, she did it every other week. One thing she didn't like about these ‘missions to save Equestria’ was all the traveling and waiting they had to do beforehand.
They had been flying over the mountains four hours already, and Dash was about to fall out of the sky with boredom. The Wonderbolts probably could have been there hours ago, but they were as fast as their slowest member, Twilight, who was still getting used to her wings and couldn't fly as nearly fast or endure as much as they could.
“I am sooo not looking forward to flying back later.” Rainbow Dash grouched.
“Don't worry.” Twilight said, panting slightly, “I’m planning on teleporting us back to Canterlot as soon as we find something. Once I’ve been there, I should be able to teleport back and forth easily thanks to my alicorn magic.” Of course Twilight would find a way out of flying. Dash spotted something out of the corner of her eye.
“What’s that?” she asked, turning to investigate further. She looked up and saw Spitfire, Soarin, Fleetfoot, Surprise, High Winds, and Lightning Streak fly past her. Apparently one of them had spotted something too. They streaked between two of the peaks, and over above a large clearing. Rainbow thought she heard Twilight gasp in horror behind her, but her eyes were glued to the devastation below her. The clearing was huge. There was a large castle-like building that sprawled across the ground and surrounding mountains. It was gigantic, probably as big as Cantorlot, but it was abandoned. Tall towers had collapsed in on themselves, and walls had crumbled into what she thought were courtyards and gardens. It was also completely barren.
The walls weren't covered with any green moss or lichen, and the gardens were empty. The stone bricks were blackened and the ground was covered in ash. The air was filled with the smell of death, but not decay. Silently, they glided over the ruins and landed in one of the courtyards. It had one of the most intact buildings, which looked almost like a temple.
“What happened here?” Surprise said shakily.
“I don’t know,” Twilight said, looking around. “Whatever happened, there's a large chance it happened 10 years ago when Princess Celestia felt the flare.”
“Do you think there was a fire?” High Winds asked. Twilight bit her lip.
“It looks that way, but if it happened that long ago, there should be at least some plants around, it should have grown back by now.”
“Who could have lived here?” Lightning Streak asked. “How can we not have heard of them?”
“I’m not-” suddenly a scream cut through the air and they all wiped towards it. Lightning Streak stumbled back from Surprise suddenly clinging to his back. It was probably her who screamed, but why would she-
They spotted the supposed source and all tried to not let out screams of their own. A blackened skeleton was laying against one of the walls, almost completely hidden by the ash covering the courtyard and heaped in corners. As soon as they spotted one they spotted more, buried in ash and hidden by the shadows. The closest one was only a few steps away from Spitfire. They all tried not to bolt.
“Twi,” Rainbow said urgently, “I’m not a coward, but can you please tell us what we need to find so that we can leave!?”
“And get away from the skeletons!” Surprise added, still on Lightning Streaks back.
“Right.” Twilight was clearly shaken up, but was trying to hide it and remain calm and collected. “We need to find something that tells us what this place is, and try to find a reason for why it was attacked. It would probably be a good idea to get some ash samples.” She said the last part more to herself than to the others.
They all spread out, hovering a few inches above the ground to avoid the ash. Princess Twilight conjured a few viles to gather samples. Rainbow Dash stayed with Spitfire. She had been acting weird since the day before. Ever since they had left the Wonderbolts HQ she hadn't spoken, which was odd for her. They were just flying over the ruins before Spitfire suddenly dropped down into one of the courtyards. Rainbow Dash landed behind her.
“Did you see something?” she asked her captain. Spitfire didn't answer and instead stepped shakily towards one of the skeletons. Reaching forward, she dusted off the ashes and revealed a gold and amber amulet, seemingly untarnished. The only thing that had survived what had happened. She stared at it, eyes shining. Another pony landed in the clearing and she jumped, but it was only Soarin, who looked more solemn than she had ever seen him. He brushed past her and pulled Spitfire into a hug. Rainbow blinked. Spitfire did not like physical contact unless it was for a split second in one of their shows. To her surprise, Spitfire didn't push him away but instead leaned into him, shaking.
A few minutes later Twilight landed next to her, and she jumped again, and she was not a jumpy pony.
“I think we can leave soon.” she said, “I just have one more thing I want to get.'' The rest of the ‘bolts landed in the courtyard, many of them shooting concerned looks in Spitfire and Soarin's direction.
“Can we leave now?” Surprise asked. “I’m ready to leave this creepy place!” Spitfire looked slightly relieved, but it was hard to tell as her face was hidden. Rainbow hated to burst her captain's bubble, but she had to say something.
“Not yet.” she said, “Twi wanted to get one more thing. What is it by the way?”
“I wanted to get some bone samples,” she answered, sounding way too excited. All the ponies present froze. “Maby Princess Celestia has a spell that can tell us more. Have you noted their all pegasi? I wonder why that is. I just need a bone or two..." Twilight continued, reaching for one of the skeletons.
"Don't touch them!" Spitfire suddenly shrieked, finally showing her face and marking the all jump, and turn to look at her. "Haven't they already suffered enough? You shouldn't disturb them!" To their shock, their normally strong captain had tears in her eyes.
“Spitfire, are you ok?” Lightning Streak asked.
“Spits, what’s going on?” Fleetfoot asked, stepping forward. Spitfire buried her face in her wings, sobbing. Soarin pulled her closer, glaring at Twilight.
“Hey, Twilight?” Rainbow said, still shocked. “Now might be a good time to teleport us back.” Twilight nodded, eyes just as wide as she was sure hers were. Her horn lit up and their vision was filled with bright light. A second later the ruins were deserted once more.
Author's Note
Hehe, he.
Chapter 5
There was a flash of light and all 7 Wonderbolts and the one alicorn of friendship appeared in Canterlot Castle. They were all still staring at Spitfire, who was crying, and Soarin, who was hugging Spitfire and glaring at them.
“Twilight!” Princess Luna cried, rushing towards them. “Your back! How did it-” she saw their expressions and stopped, her smile disappearing. “What happened?”
“I’m actually not really sure.” Twilight admitted.
“Luna, what's going on?” Princess Celestia asked, trotting around the corner, but then she spotted them. “Oh, Twilight!” she smiled. “Did you find anything?”
“There was a castle in the area, but it was completely destroyed.” the violet alicorn said. “There wasn't anything to find, but I did try to gather samples.”
“That’s not true.” Rainbow realized. “Spitfire found this amulet. I think it was completely undamaged. It was in the clearing you teleported us from.'' There was a flash of light and Twilight was gone. A second letter she reappeared, the amulet in her magical aura.
“Couldn't you have mentioned it was on one of the skeletons?” she asked, looking a little green. Princess Luna levitated the amulet over.
“This had a very old preservation spell on it. Old enough for it to have been cast before Equestria was even formed. It was destroyed about ten years ago, I think.”
“Skeletons?” Princess Celestia repeated, looking worried. “What do you mean, 'skeletons'? And what happened to Captain Spitfire?”
In the next few minutes, they told Princess Celestia and Luna everything they knew about what happened, which actually wasn't much. They hadn't been there long, thankfully.
Princess Celestia tapped her chin thoughtfully.
“You said they were all pegasi, correct?” She confirmed with Twilight. The newer alicorn princess nodded.
“All the skeletons we saw had wings, so I’m pretty sure. Why?”
“In Commander Hurricane's Diary, there are several mentions of another group of pegasi that branched off from the original tribe. There is a possibility that this is the same group he mentions, especially if you take into account how old the amulet is.” she gestured to the necklace in question.
"Wait, hold up," Rainbow Dash said, breaking into the conversation. "What do you mean 'branched off'? Why would they leave the rest of the tribe?" Princess Celestia sighed.
"They had strange powers, according to the records. They could control some of the natural elements, such as air, water, and fire. They were called manipulators, and their abilities, manipulating." The other ponies shuddered.
"What an awful name." High Winds commented. "they certainly don't sound very nice." Princess Celestia shook her head.
"It’s impossible to tell what they were like. The pegasi were highly suspicious of them, and there are hardly any records of them. Perhaps they were just normal ponies that the rest of the tribe was fearful of because of their abilities." She sighed, "It wouldn't be the first time rumors and speculation drove ponies away. However, there isn't anything we can do about that now." Princess Celestia turned her concerned gaze to the Wonderbolts Captain. "What happened to Spitfire?" High Winds glanced at Spitfire.
“I’m not sure. I think she was mostly fine before we got to the ruins, but when we re-grouped she was sobbing.” the older Wonderbolt turned to Rainbow Dash, “you were with her while we were exploring the ruins, right? What happened?” RD shrugged.
“She was quiet through most of it, but when we landed in this clearing, she went over to a skeleton and found the amulet, then she just started crying. I have no idea why.” Fleetfoot flapped her wings worriedly.
"I don't think I've ever seen her like this, she's normally so, well…" she paused, unsure how exactly to finish that thought. The ponies who did know Spitfire filled in the bank.
Closed off, temperamental, commanding, and not very open with her emotions, especially her negative ones.
“What would you expect?!” Spitfire suddenly burst out. They all turned to look at her in surprise. “What if you saw your home destroyed right in front of you? What if you returned years later to find it lifeless and the skeletons of ponies you knew, respected, and loved burnt to a crisp? What would you do if you found your mother's body, charred but her prized possession completely undamaged?'' She gestured to the amulet floating in Princess Luna’s magical aura. “What would you do?!” At this point she was sobbing once again, tears were running down her face, and she was trembling severely. Soarin pulled her back into his wings, not meeting their gazes. The other ponies in the room were having trouble understanding what was going on. Even Princess Celestia was at a loss.
“Wait, home? Destroyed?” Fleetfoot said, starting to piece things together. “You used to live there?” Spitfire was crying silently, and Soarin answered instead.
“We were both born there,” he said quietly, keeping his eyes on the fire-maned mare.
"So you're both manipulators," Princess Luna asked accusingly. Soarin scowled at her.
"we are NOT manipulators." he said frostily, "I'm a Wind Rider and Spitfire's a Fire Dancer. Those are the proper names for it, not manipulators ." The atmosphere of the room was tense until Fleetfoot broke in.
“When was it destroyed? How could anything destroy something so huge?”
“I was almost 12 when the castle was attacked. Spitfire was a year younger." Soarin said quietly, "There was a fire, the flames were back and impossible to control or put out. It burned everything, water was useless. We barely managed to get out. Before we flew away we saw this huge cloud of black and red smoke with glowing red eyes, just like the one we spotted yesterday.”
“No wonder you acted so weird.” Surprise realized. The other Wonderbolts winced.
“I…” he looked up at them. “Yes. Seeing it again… was… terrifying .”
“Perhaps it wouldn't be best to talk about this right now.” Princess Celestia suggested. “This is a bit too sudden for any of us to understand. For the time being, you could stay in Ponyville with Princess Twilight and fill her in when you're ready.“ Soarin shared a look with Spitfire and sighed.
“That sounds like the best option.”
“I could teleport us there.” Twilight said. She glanced at the fury-maned mare. “It might be easier.”
“Thank you Princess.” Spitfire whispered, not looking up. Twilight blinked.
“Uh, you're welcome..?”
Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter. Soarin glided through the air, the rest of the Wonderbolts in formation behind him. He glanced back at the perfect V's and felt a surge of pride. Was this how Spitfire felt leading the team? If so, she didn't usually show it. She had always been on the lookout for any mistakes they might make, even if they were not apparent. She was quick to correct them all, especially Soarin. He heard them all talk about her high expectations, but what would they think if they knew she held herself to a standard twice as high? Out of the corner of his eye, Soarin spotted a black cloud and glided back in an acre. I know for a fact that our weather team is one of the best in Equestria, he thought, surly they wouldn't neglect any storm clouds? When he spotted the 'storm cloud' his blood ran cold. It had only seemed so small because it was so far away, and it wasn't a storm cloud. Black smoke tinged with red boiled into the sky, possibly scratching across the surrounding land for miles. Two red eyes were visible in the smoke, glowering at the group of pegasus, and Soarin felt like they were reaching into the darkest crevices in his mind and reflecting his greatest fear.
"Sir," Rainbow Dash said, barking into his thoughts, her normally confident voice scared, "what is that?"
He finally tore his gaze away from the eyes and looked back at her.
"I'm not sure, but this one thing I do know; we need to warn the Princesses." He abruptly wheeled around and shot towards Ponyvill, barely registering the rest of the team behind him. He felt the air currents under his feathers, felt the pull of them every which way, and he felt them bend, flowing together to make a single supercharged current that guided him and the rest of the team in the direction of Ponyvill.
I have to warn them. He thought, I have to tell them what's coming. He burst through a cloud, not even slowing down. Especially you, Spitfire.
Author's Note
PS. I'm sorry this chapter is so short, I'm splitting the chapters up by events, not the amount.