The Ultimate Element - Part 5 Revised

The Ultimate Element

Chapter 5
Residence

Thousands of years ago, ponies were forced to leave their homeland, due to a terrible blizzard. Eventually, they found a new land. This land suited all their needs, and became the perfect place for them to farm, and to make a living. And after the three pony races made peace, they settled into this new land. They lived, prospered, and soon it became their home. However, they weren't the only creatures in Equestria.

---

When the stallion awoke, he found himself almost surprised to see that he still rested in Rainbow's guest room.The events of the day before almost seemed like a blissful dream. He wanted to believe it all really happened, but he couldn't be sure. A reaction like that which he received was unusual to him. Most ponies that found out ran from him, or hated him. Usually both. If what he thinks happened yesterday really did, then he might be at the end of his long journey. He might finally be able to start a new life. His train of thought was interrupted by a knocking on the door.

"Hey, Lightning? You awake?" His gracious host, Rainbow Dash, knocked again. The stallion couldn't help but give a light smile.

"Yeah, I'm up." He felt almost tempted to mumble "five more minutes". He began to think that maybe it had all a dream. Nopony could know his secret and still like him. At least, not from he has seen.

"So, are you gonna show us some of those awesome abilities of yours today?" Her question answered his own. It was real. All that had happened. His friends knew the truth, and they believed it to be cool. How? He had no clue, but he thought it best not to ruin anything by asking.

"I think it would be best to wait for a stormy day. That way, nopony else could see my lightning strikes." The stallion spoke as he walked to the main room for breakfast.

"I think there's a big storm scheduled for Thursday. That should work, right?"

"Lightning storm?"

"Yep."

"Rarity's gonna bring a big tent and blanket?"

"Most likely."

"Will the Cutiemark Crusaders be there?"

"You know they love you."

"We're gonna be a little outside Ponyville?"

"Totally."

"Works for me." The quick exchange set up the perfect plan for him to show his abilities. Nopony other than himself knew exactly what he could do, and it would be nice to share them with friends. "I guess we should go tell the others soon." After the pegasi had finished eating, they went around town to tell their friends, each one excited to see him in action.

---

The days passed quickly, and by merely looking out his window Lightning could tell what the day. From his vantage point in the sky, he could see a large number of dark clouds being put into place by the pegasi. He saw several standing on the clouds, preparing to agitate them and start the storm. Most ponies would stay inside on a day like this, but the stallion thought of days such as this as his favorite. He made a quick breakfast for himself and Rainbow Dash. The others would be on their way to the meeting place by now, and the pegasi didn't want to be late. They left the home, and soon arrived at the clearing just inside Everfree forest. Nearby trees protected the group from prying eyes. Rarity already set up a large, purple tarp on the ground and matching tent to block out the rain. Rainbow just had time to get to cover when it started.

"You guys ready?" Lightning asked, water pouring freely on his head.

"You bet!" replied Scootaloo, speaking for the whole group. The stallion began with his simplest ability, the "Bolt". He shot a simple stream of electricity into the sky, making it blend with the others around town. He then proceeded to perform the same trick, but instead this time making it loop and swirl in the air, until it struck a tree, blowing a nice sized hole in the trunk.

The onlooking ponies stood with surprise in how powerful his attack was. "You guys should see the looks on your faces," he laughed wildly. The mares were awed, and wanted to see more. "For my next trick, I shall attract a bolt of wild lightning." The mares thought he was only joking, but just then, bolts from several yards away suddenly changed course, heading straight for the pegasus. When the lightning hit, all the energy transferred into his tail, and shot back into the sky. The onlooking ponies clapped in applause as Lightning took a bow.

"Now, for this trick I shall require a unicorn's help. Twilight," he said, pointing at the mare in question. "I need you to use your magic to pick up an object, relatively large, and throw it towards me." He seemed to be serious, and a few of the ponies thought he was crazy, but the unicorn obliged, picking up a fallen tree. When she flung it toward him, he showed no intention of moving. Instead, he quickly erected a shield of electricity, which both stopped and destroyed the lumber. The feat was impressive, but the time had come for the real show.

"Are you gonna do 'Lightning Mode' now?" asked the little fillies.

"You read my mind," he said with a grin. "But I'm only gonna do about 1% transformation. Now, hold onto your hats." Rarity took the expression literally as he charged his energy. A small part of his tail turned into pure electricity, and the rest of his body became covered in sparks. In his eyes, the onlooking ponies could see streaks of yellow running through the hazel. "Here we go." The stallion zoomed through the trees and into the sky at superpony speeds. He seemed to be almost a blue blur against a green background, and only Rainbow Dash could truly keep up. Her eyes trained to see fast moving objects and ponies. He even shot out a bolt on an unsuspecting tree, blowing it in half, the sound muffled by distant thunder. He continued to show off until his stamina began to fade.

"Thank you, thank you," he said with a bow. The ponies started to applaud, but Lightning stopped them. "Please, hold your applause till the show is over." The mares began wondering what he could mean. They thought that was it, but apparently not. "First, I need  a blindfold."

"I have one!" screamed Pinkie Pie with excitement. He expected her to always have one with her, she is Pinkie Pie after all. He put on the cloth so he could not see.

"Now, Twilight, I need you to make some sort of obstacle court for me." Once again, the unicorn had no idea why, but she set one up anyways. She placed hollow logs in the air and on the ground, and lifted rocks and other nearby objects around. The ponies were unsure of what the stallion could be up to, but they decided to watch carefully. The tip of the stallion's tail sent out a small wave, like a ripple in a pond, and after a few seconds began to fly through the course. All his movements perfectly guiding him. Even without the blindfold, the darkness of the day would have made it difficult to cross through. He ran the course, and soon landed back on the ground. "So how'd I do?" His friends seemed almost as shocked as when he showed his transformation.

"What was that?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"That was my newest technique. I call it the 'Radar.' I send out an electric pulse that acts as a sonar."

"Like a bat?" asked Fluttershy.

"Exactly."

"That's quite interesting," mused Twilight. "If you wouldn't mind, I would like to study what it is that allows you to use the electricity without injuring yourself."

"Why not," he said with a shrug. "I would like that know too." The ponies hoofed it home soon after the rain stopped. The sun had already begin to set, the night quickly creeping on the ponies. Lightning laid down in his bed, tired from the excitement and activity of the day, and fell asleep almost instantly, a smile staying on his face.

---

It was the best dreams he ever had. At least, until things went wrong. It started off normal enough. He was hanging with Rainbow Dash, chatting and training. Everything seemed well, and normal. All of a sudden, the sky turned black, and he saw a large pair of evil, red eyes staring down on him. He looked over at his friend, and she had a terrified look on her face. Something he never expected from a mare as tough as her. Her body was bruised, and charred. She was looking out, away from him. He followed her gaze, and couldn't hold in the shock of what he saw. He saw himself. Except, something seemed different. His fur was white, blended with a light grey, and his mane, tail, and cutie mark had all turned jet black. But his eyes, his eyes were a terrible blood red. At the tip of the tail, he could see a small bolt of black energy, glowing a deathly red around the edge, turning the surroundings into a dull crimson. The pseudo-Lightning charged his power, and shot another bolt toward the mare. Before impact, she let out a blood curdling scream that rattled him to his bones, and he awoke in a cold sweat.

The dream seemed so real. Like a vision. But he could never hurt his friends, especially not that one. And what was with those eyes in the sky? And the fake me? "Lightning?" called a worried voice from outside the door. "Are you OK?" At least he knew this dream wasn't real. Rainbow Dash was alright, and looking at his hooves he saw that he still had the same azure coat as always.

"Yeah," he murmured, his voice barely audible. "Just a nightmare."

"Well, alright." The mare walked off, still worried for her guest. "Don't forget you're going to Twilight's to study that power of yours."

"I remember." Actually, he completely forgot about that. His dream still affecting his train of thought. He wanted to just forget about it, but no matter how hard he tried it kept pushing its way back to the surface. "I'll be back by tonight."

He left for the library, hoping some books or something could get his might off that dream. It seemed so real. What does it mean? He might ask Twilight when he got to her, thinking that she might know something about psychology. He walked into the large tree, that made up the library, and saw the mare rushing around, barely noticing him. "Everything alright here?"

"What?" she wondered, seeing him for the first time. "Sorry, Lightning. I'll be with you soon. Right now I have to get some work done. Help yourself to the books."

"Alright." He looked around the building, taking in the details for the first time since coming to Ponyville. The inside was carved out of the tree itself, probably with magic. The walls were perfectly smooth, without any marks from the tools used to hollow it. Shelves several feet high lined up against all visible walls, save for around the windows. Books appeared stuffed inside, almost bursting out in some places. The library probably hasn't been organized for a few days. Or a few hours. Knowing Twilight, it's hard to tell. He decided to take a look around. He actually loved to read, but only about something interesting. He skimmed through an astronomy book, and another about all three types of magic; earth, pegasus, and unicorn. He looked at a few more, still thinking of the nightmare, hoping to forget about it. Nothing worked, and every time he thought about it, a shudder moved down his spine. The pegasus was about to pick another book when Twilight came in.

"OK. I'm all ready." the ponies went downstairs into the basement. He didn't even know the library had a basement. Down below, he saw a chemical station as well as what appeared to be some sort of brain wave machine. A large piece of machinery,with a slot in front where Lightning could see rolls of paper inside. Outside, a helmet connected to the machine, through a multitude of wires, and lights strung around as well.

"What's all this?"

"This is my personal laboratory. Here, we might be able to see what gives you your power."

"You're not gonna dissect me are you?" he asked sarcastically, though he hoped it would only be a joke.

"Of course not." The next few hours were spent either in the brain reading machine, or with Twilight using magic to scan for magical properties inside the pegasus. She didn't find much, but what she did find disturbed them. "From what I can tell, the magic from that lightning that struck your mother was imbued with some sort of darkness and evil. It doesn't seem to have affected your personality, but it does seem to be part of your abilities and maybe mentality as well."

"What?" she asked quizzically.

"Your subconscious mind," she said, clarifying.

"Is that it?" he asked, taking off the helmet.

"For now. The magic is beyond anything I've ever seen. It's incredible."

"Not to be rude, but I was kinda expecting that. Although I hoped you would be able to prove me wrong."

"The only pony who might be able to help is the Princess, but maybe that's not a good idea?" she wondered, looking at the stallion.

"Yeah. If I really need to, then I'll go to her. Hey Twilight, do you know anything about psychology?" With the tests over, he figured now would be as good a time as any.

"A little," she replied, putting her equipment away. "Why?"

"I had this, disturbing dream last night." He proceeded to tell her his dream, in as many details as possible. A few times, he thought he saw her face shift in terror at some of the more disturbing points. When he finished, the ponies sat in silence in for a full minute, as the unicorn thought about the problem. "What do you think?'

She pondered a little longer before giving an answer. "This might have something to do with the magical properties we discovered earlier. I'm just guessing here, but now that you have real friends, the magic inside you is revolting, giving you these terrifying visions. What you think consciously is opposite of your subconscious thoughts brought on by your innate power."

"Wow, that's deep. Are you sure you just now made that up? And that you only know a little psychology."

"I wouldn't have come up with something like that if we hadn't done those tests today."

"So what should I do?"

"Have you told Rainbow about this? She seems to be a big part of it."

"No. Not yet. Would that get rid of the nightmares?"

"It might, but that's up to you." With that in mind, the stallion left for home, thinking out his next move like a game of chess.

---

At the house, Lightning thought about whether or not he should talk to his host. It seemed only right, considering she was the one he hurt in the dream. He didn't have long to come up with a plan, though. It only took a few minutes until she arrived, tired after a long day of weather patrol. He gave a summary of what had happened that day, everything about what happened in the library until he asked Twilight about his dreams.

"That doesn't really sound good," she said after the stallion finished his story. "Hopefully that won't cause too many problems in the future," she said half-laughing, not seeing his troubled face.

"Yeah." He felt tempted to tell her about his dream.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, noticing the hesitation in his voice.

"Oh no. Just had something on my mind today." He wanted to ask for advice, to try and discover the reason behind the dream, to tell Rainbow that something was wrong, but decided on something else. "I have been thinking, about staying in Ponyville permanently." It wasn't a total lie. He had been thinking about it, but it just hadn't been his main concern that day.

"Really? That's great! I already expected that from you, though. So what are you going to do now?" She instantly forgot about his worried tone, and smiled broadly.

"I'm not sure yet." He felt happy that he finally solved one problem, and stuck with that thought. It helped keep his mind off his horrifying dream, and hopefully it would turned out to only be just a one time thing. If it happened a few more times, then he would tell her. He really didn't want to seem like a foal, so it would be best to not talk about it.

---

The Princess looked out over her balcony, like she had done so many times in the past month. The guards have informed her that, although they have searched nearly half of Equestria, the monster could not be located. How could something this powerful be hidden so well? The power climb slowed to a crawl, but it still existed. Whatever is out there, it already reached a level more powerful than the Royal Sisters. The magic she could feeling was one of pure evil. If it is allowed to rise, there is no telling what this monster would do. Most likely, she and her sister would already be defeated by the time the Element's can fight back. As an alicorn, she has never felt more powerless. She could do nothing to stop the beast, and if it does come for her, she knows she will not be able to stop it.



End Chapter 5