The Tale Of A Shaded Comet

Chapter 7: The Rebirth

John stood still, letting the water cascade down his shoulders and face. The gathering clouds were darker than ever, and there was the occasional flash from the heavens, swiftly followed by a rattling boom.

Staring impassively at a group of teenagers that were lounging around in the small shelter they had under a tree, he drew in a breath. The cold air revived his senses, and smelt faintly of smoke, the woody aroma calming him.

He flexed his fingers, relieving them of the numbness that resided in his arms. The teenagers hadn't spotted him yet. He moved his gaze, concentrating on one of the two girls. Hearing her laugh, he tensed.

She was apparently his girlfriend. Reaching into his trouser pocket, he drew out his phone. He was close enough to hear every word she was saying, but ignored her voice, instead focusing on the only male voice.

She had been cheating on him, since the day they met. He had, unfortunately for her, found out about it recently. He hadn't confronted her, because each time he tried, she was always with her family or her friends. As much as his thoughts for her were now bitter, he couldn't bring himself to announce it in front of them.

It hurt him to think about her. They had been together for two months now. She was, apparently, still in love with him. He activated the phone, hovering over her name on the contacts list.

John hadn't wanted it to be like this. He had wanted to take it slow, and she initially agreed. He had thought that she was the one. All of his previous girlfriends had been the same, except they had all told him .

At least they were honest. He closed his eyes. Her friend had told him everything when he had asked. She told him about every conversation, every question and every single occasion that she had ever cheated on him.

She had lied to him, laughing about it behind his back. She was exceptionally unkind about her opion of him, and she was jealous of her friends and their boyfriends. She hadn't been loyal to him, and as such, ruined their friendship.

The magic in their 'love' was now slashed, decimated, utterly destroyed. His fingers clenched. He took a step back, into the shadows. He pressed the button, and called her. After a few rings, she answered. He watched as she shushed the boy.

"Hello?" She tried to sound innocent.

"I know everything." The steadiness of his voice scared him. In the distance, her face turned to one of shock.

"John? What are you talking about?" She still attempted the act.

"Don't lie to me. You know you have." A tear appeared in the corner of his right eye. Stepping forward, he continued to stare at her.

She still didn't see him.

"I swear I haven't! Whoever told you, they're lying!" She began to make pathetic crying sounds.

"I see you with him. Under the tree. I'm waving goodbye to you." He sniffed, raising his hand as he walked away. Sticking up his middle finger, he turned his head towards her.

"It's over." He hissed down the phone, before starting to increase his speed. As he reached his car, an old blue Ford Fiesta, he ended the call, not wanting to hear her excuses anymore. Opening the lock, he sat down in the worn seats. He let his head drop and hit the steering wheel.

"WHY! GOD DAMN IT!" He roared, letting all of his anger out. He punched the dashboard, hearing the plastic crunch under his fist. He sat like this for a while, calming down. He had been looking forward to seeing her today.

He was in his last year at his School, and was one of the most talented musicians there. He had signed up for the end of year production as a singer, for which he was also famous in the school, and was turned down by the Drama teacher. That had crushed him.

He had to get home and properly calm down. His anger and general emotions always had a snowball effect on his family. Exhaling deeply, he noticed something in the corner of his eye. A sticker on the steering wheel caught his attention. It was Rainbow Dash.

He had watched My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic for two years. It had an unbelievable ability to calm him down, but also make him sad. He really liked the show, as it was light hearted, and didn't need blood and violence to be popular. The characters were interesting, and their personalities engaging.

Rainbow Dash was his favourite. She was, in his opinion, the funniest, the most engaging and she had traits similar to his own. He had searched for a girlfriend tirelessly for the ideal personality that Rainbow Dash had. But in vain.

He put his foot down, ignoring the screech of his tires. The rain battered relentlessly at the windshield and roof, giving off metallic pings every time it hit. His anger slowly escalated, making his heart ache again.

He closed his eyes, for a split second, as he went through a junction. Why? He thought to himself, tears brimming under his eyelids. Hearing horns blaring, he was shaken from his thoughts. When he opened them, he yelled in fear.

There was a sickening smash of metal on metal, and he was flung out of the windscreen, breaking the glass. Flying through the air, he felt... Wierd. A sharp pain in the base of his skull erupted as he hit the floor, and all was black.

Rainbow Dash floated in the air in front of the statue of Shaded Comet. It had been exactly a year since he had died, and the day was still fresh in her memories.

She had renounced her love for him, without knowing that he had heard her. He then went to Manehatten. That night, he was killed in a Changling attack. And in the morning, his body was brought back.

Princess Celestia turned it to stone, and infused it with a prophecy. Rainbow Dash stared at the prophecy, letting her eyes wander over it.

"From nothing to greatness, ashes to ashes, he will be back soon, at lightning's flashes. The soul of an innocent, the body ravaged, to combat pure evil, the holder savage. Remembered, disgraced, a persona displaced, Shaded Comet, you cannot be replaced. Until you return, your body shall remain, locked into stone, broken through magic supermundane." She read quietly read aloud. Her eyes filled with tears, and she let them drip into the grass below.

"When will you return?" She raised her voice a little, her sobs contorting her voice.

"When can I apologise?" She almost shouted, her composure cracking.

"Why did I say I didn't love you!" She screamed, hugging the statue. Her cries of sorrow could probably be heard all around Canterlot. But she didn't care. A flutter of wings above her alerted her to the presence of another pegasus. It was Lieutenant Gage.

He put his hoof on her shoulder, trying to reassure her. The brown pegasus had been the equal of an older brother to Shaded. His green eyes kindly regarded her with pity.

"It's alright Rainbow... He'll be back." He sighed, moving his hoof back to the floor.

"It's been a year. I'm beginning to lose hope in this prophecy" Rainbow Dash whispered, hugging the statue tightly, the cold stone chilling her. The statue that contained Shaded's body seemed to return the look in her eyes, even though he was inanimate.

Gage began to turn away. "Don't lose hope. You and your friends brought the Changlings to justice four months ago. Stay loyal to your thoughts, Rainbow Dash. Stay true to yourself." With that, he took off, returning to the barracks.

The warm summer air comforted her as she raised herself into the air. The sun was shining, and Canterlot was sparkling in the sunshine that Princess Celestia had gave them. Rainbow Dash flicked her rainbow coloured mane away from her eyes. She put her hoof on the statue's chest.

"I'll be back soon." She whispered so quietly that it was barely audible to herself. She fluttered her wings, and flew back to Ponyville.

John was surrounded by black. He was seemingly weightless; floating in space. Looking around, he saw no escape, and began to panic.

"Ohcrapohcrapohcrapohcrap." He stuttered, his eyes twitching. His breathing became laboured, coming out in harsh gasps. A light pierced the darkness, throwing John's surroundings into relief. He was actually surrounded in grey. Searching for the source of the sudden brightness, his jaw dropped in disbelief.

"Good afternoon John. You are probably wondering what happened." Princess Celestia smiled at him, standing a few feet away. "I asked your God to let me bring you to Equestria after you died. Your God agreed." Celestia blinked at the hyperventilating human. "Are you feeling alright?"

John nodded weakly, trying to understand. He was in Equestria. He had died. But why was he still a human?

Celestia answered him. "You will not be a human for much longer. You will become a pony known as Shaded Comet. I preserved him in stone. And yes, I can read minds before you ask."

John nodded again. Celestia continued talking. "There is however, a catch. As you are effectively being reborn, I have to erase all of your memories, and give you a completely new memory that is partly blank. You will gain some of Shaded's memories, but only enough to know who you are. You will also reatain any memories and skills you had as a human."

The Princess paused again for confirmation. When John had given it, she closed her eyes in concentration. "I am communicating with you telepathically. I'll meet you when you have been reborn as Shaded. Oh, there is something you need to know," She looked directly at him, her eyes still closed. "When you are being reborn, there will be a massive output of energy released. Be prepared."

With that final sentence, she dissapeared from his mind. The grey around him began to crack and shatter slowly. He glanced up at the top. He could see lightning flashing towards him. Closing his eyes, he was rushed with an onslaught of memories that didn't belong to him. Energy rushed into him, elevating his senses and paining him beyond words. Screaming, he heard one final crack from the apparent stone around him, and all was then silent.

He felt himself being thrown forwards through a barrier of fire, and hit something soft. Opening his eyes, he realised that he was in a flowery bush. He raised his hands to his face. They were hooves now. His forelegs were a light grey and covered in burns. Shakily getting up from the bush, he extended his wings. They were little more than bones held together by sinew.

It suddenly hit him. He was alive!

Twilight Sparkle was in the middle of a seriously massive studying session. Her nose buried in a book, she was at complete peace with herself. Calm only existed in her mind at the moment.

Smiling in contentment, she turned the page with her magic. Or at least tried to. her horn fizzled, the magic blocked. "Huh?" She felt her horn; it was intact. beginning to worry, she stepped outside onto the streets of Ponyville.

The sky was almost jet black, the clouds gathering over Canterlot in the distance. Swirling, lightning crackled in the centre of the freak storm. Most of Ponyville was staring in shock at the uncommon spectacle. The lightning flashes became more frequent.

Her eyes followed a single bolt of the energy that streaked towards Canterlot. It seemed to be aiming for something. Time slowed down as it descended, striking the mountainside city.

She didn't know what it hit, but she could guess. As soon as the bolt struck it's target, the sky immediately lightened by a fraction. Her jaw literally dropped. A faint roar could be heard in the distance, complementing the pillar of blue fire that was erupting into the sky from Canterlot.

Her mouth started to form words, speaking of it's own accord. She could understand what she was saying, and it shocked her beyond thinking.

"From nothing to greatness, ashes to ashes, he will be back soon, at lightning's flashes. " She whispered to herself. "The soul of an innocent, the body ravaged, to combat pure evil, the holder savage." She became louder, now speaking normally. "Remembered, disgraced, a persona displaced, Shaded Comet, you cannot be replaced." She raised her voice, now almost shouting.  "Until you return, your body shall remain, locked into stone, broken through magic supermundane!" She finished, shouting the final phrase so everypony could hear her.

The pillar exploded, creating a blue shockwave of fire that spread into the sky, clearing the clouds, allowing the sunlight to enter again.

"Shaded is back!"

Rainbow Dash lounged on a cloud, lazily regarding the clouds gathering over Canterlot. A tear gathered in her right eye, and slowly trickled onto her face. She thought of Shaded. It had been exactly a year today. Turning away, she began to sniffle.

A sudden silence below her caught her attention. Looking down, she saw Twilight and the usual market stall owners staring into the distance, their mouths open as if in shock. She turned her gaze to the subject of their disbelief, and almost fell off the cloud.

There was a twisting pillar of fire above Canterlot, roaring with an unbelievable intensity. Lightning flashed inside the tornado, making it pulse with energy. She could faintly hear the roaring flames from her cloud; they were that powerful.

Now flying, she darted up into the air to get a better view. As she did, the flames discharged into a wave of blue energy, spreading through the sky. Her heart began to soar. "Shaded?"