Chapter 1 I'd Kill To Fall AsleepI'd Kill To Fall AsleepFollowing the tragic events of his tenth year in Ponyville, Spark Storm must rely on himself and some old friends to find direction in his new life. Having been branded a monster, can an old flame reignite Spark's passion for life and give him purpose? -Sequel to Star-Crossed School Days - Rated T for some violence and suggestive themes in later chaptersSpark Storm laid awake for what seemed like hours. It had been nearly a week since the incident that had landed him sleeping out in the woods. Well, trying to sleep.When Spark had come to his senses after his melt-down, he had fainted from exhaustion. His friends a
Chapter 2 When The Wrong Road Is The Right OneTwo weeks later, Spark Storm had long since run out of the food that Ditzy's mother had given him. The days had started to stretch into each other, and he was no longer sure of the date. Not that it really mattered to him. He wasn't sure if anything really mattered anymore. He could teach himself to thrive in the woods, but...to what end?He often found himself asking this question. What was the point? He had nothing to live for. He had no goals. He'd forced his friends to leave him alone, so he had no one to share this boredom with. After a while, he just started lying around. His reason for being was gone.A day later, as the leaves idly
Chapter 3 Tell MeSpark Storm plodded aimlessly alongside Rich. He didn't remember what the business pony had told him about where they were going, and he really couldn't care less. As long as it let him sit in a quiet room by himself, Rich could take him anywhere.Spark was completely concentrating on not existing anymore when he was blinded by white. Forelegs were wrapped around him, but he barely noticed. A sweet, angelic voice was calling his name, and for a moment he really thought he had finally died. It would've been a reprieve, but once again fate gave him a sound slap and told him 'Nope.'So when he leaned back to see who or what had attached itself
Chapter 4 Call Of The NightSpark sighed heavily as he let Sapphire groom him. They were in the bathroom, knee-deep in dirty water. The white Pegasus let the water out, then turned the shower on, the warm water pouring over both of them.Taking care of Storm gave Sapphire feelings of warmth and mother-like care, but it also put other feelings she'd had for him in perspective, a few of the feelings that made her blush, too. Something about this situation made her heart flutter, but she knew she was too young to even think about stuff like that yet, so she put those on the back burner for now.Sapphire lathered Spark's mane, using immaculate care to get his once shining
Chapter 5 Back To WorkThe two Pegasi ran together, pounced and wrestled each other, slipping in and out among the trees, laughing, playing. It was a scene of young love, coupled with a childhood of friendship. Their relationship would be a thing of beauty when it truly blossomed.Celestia sighed as she watched the two friends together in the gardens. She had rarely seen two ponies so much in love. Their relationship would change very soon, all too soon. They would grow up and...well. She'd need to intervene so they didn't grow up -too- fast.But for now, she hated the thought of sending Sapphire back to her training. She seemed to be having so much fun helping h
Chapter 6 An Inconvenient TourSpark Storm lay awake in his bed that night. His whole body was sore. Braham's spell had forced him to use every last muscle he had in his body, including muscles he didn't know he had, especially muscles in ridiculous places. Braham had told him that none of the Fighters were that strong at his age. Then again, none of the Fighters had ever been farmers. Spark wasn't a farmer either, but he had spent many, many months plowing the fields at Sweet Apple Acres.He looked at the clock on the wall. It read 2:35. Ugh...two thirty in the morning. Why was he still awake? After all that exercise he got today, why wasn't he sleeping? He looked out th
Chapter 7 Goodbye, Goodbye AgainSpark Storm returned to his room to find that his bed looked different. It took him a moment to realize that all the covers, blankets and sheets had been changed. His room was also in perfect order. Strange...he hadn't allowed anypony to clean up after him since he'd been staying here.After settling in for the night, he half-expected Sapphire to come in and keep him company like she had several times that week. After staying awake for two hours, it was evident she wasn't going to show up. He finally decided it was time for some sleep, so he closed his eyes and tried to stop thinking about the pretty Pegasus. It lead to a long, restless nigh
Chapter 8 Lost In Ponyville Part 1Braham's next lesson was an interesting one: How to hide. Spark didn't really see the point. He had the firepower, why not just blow everything up? Because, Braham said, even the heavy-hitters got tired. And when that happens, the heavy-hitters need to hide until they're strong enough to hit again. "Now, some ponies, like me, can simply use our natural talents and hide where it's to our advantage. I, for instance, can hide in the ground." His horn lit up an earthy brown. And then, like a stationary drill, the ground shifted beneath him and he disappeared underneath. Spark jumped back with shock. Had Braham really just dug into the ground with
Chapter 9 Lost In Ponyville Part 2Spark Storm sighed. He laid in one of the guest rooms at the Apple Family's farmhouse. He hadn't slept in a bad for over a month, and it was heaven compared to the crook of a branch or on a pile of leaves. He'd bathed before lying down, of course. The feeling of being clean, well fed and a nice, fresh bed was something that he would surely miss when he left....If he left. He just wasn't sure. He, Big Mac and Applejack had gone over the maps the night before, and Sweet Apple Acres was it's own property, just outside the Ponyville borders. He could stay here as long as he wanted and the townspeople didn't have a single say in it.But...was t
Chapter 10 The Truth About UsToday's inspiration came to me courtesy of Big Wreck's Time. Check it out on youtube, it heavily influenced this chapter.Green eyes shifted and glanced to light blue. The green eyes shifted upwards to glance at the light pink highlights in the stallion's hair. Said stallion rolled his eyes and looked back down into the beaker the two of them were working on. "Honestly, Melli..." He said with a thick Southern accent. "Ah'd expect a stallion to give me trouble on mah hair, but a scientist like yerself..."The older mare chuckled as she looked back down at the beaker between them. "My apologies, Gunslinger. It's not often I see a stallion wit
Chapter 11 The Truth About Us Part 2Four Pegasi rocketed right past Canterlot. Lovely Lightning watched the castle drift further and further behind them, then moved closer to the leader of their little group. "Uh, boss-lady?" Sapphire kept flying, but she cast a glance at the yellow Pegasus. "What." "Weren't we going to stop at headquarters and let the seniors know what we're doing?" Sapphire snorted dismissively and actually poured on the speed a little."No. This might be going against the rules, but this is important to me. I have to talk to him." Lightning shook his head and sped on ahead of Sapphire, then pulled to a stop and got in her face. "Look, I can see he means a l
Chapter 13 Not All That Kills Is Ugly Part 2Spark Storm had wandered into a darker part of the forest. The trees above did little to provide any sunlight. You know, I might've taken a wrong turn at some point...he thought to himself. "Ya think?" He responded aloud, and then laughed. He was beginning to think he might be just a little nervous.Thinking it might be high time to see where he was, Spark approached a tree and started climbing it. Several weeks spent practicing a good hard grip with his hooves were paying off as he scaled the tree like a spider, slow and steady. Higher and higher he went, into deeper foliage. Finally, he began to see sunlight.As he broke through the canop
Chapter 14 Blood FeudBright light. White clouds. Pure white beauty, accented with flowing blue hair the color of the clear blue water. This creature was the very idea of grace. Her eyes were the deepest blue, her wings, while unmistably insectile, were the very picture of what beauty meant on a hot summer day. The Alicorn stood for freedom, peace and life. She was the ruler of her people, a race of Ponies that had long since existed, parallel to Princess Celestia and her younger sister, Luna. While the sisters ruled the cities and created government, this Alicorn promoted freedom among the wilds of the Everfree, where her ponies lived.All was not peaceful, howe
Chapter 16 EvictionSpark Storm sighed heavily as little Orea nudged his flanks on both sides aggitatedly. Time was scarce, and they had to hurry. Spark, however, was in no mood to go anywhere. He had fallen into a depression. His comrade and teacher had been killed. Orea was sympathetic; she had seen with her own eyes that Braham had been both honorable and invaluable. Without him holding off a good portion of the horde, both she and Spark Storm would be dead."Storm, please, you must hurry into my woods! More of the devils may be coming!" She pouted as Spark frowned back at her. She sighed and trotted up to him, nuzzling her head under his chin. "Please...if
Chapter 17 Return to CanterlotTwo days, a Changeling fight and chase, and two stops for water later, Spark Storm had finally returned to Canterlot. Just on the outskirts of town, Spark sat down to take a breather. He was about to head into the city when with a pop and a flash of light startled him and made him fall back onto his haunches. In front of him appeared Twilight Sparkle, looking highly miffed."So there you are. Do you have any idea how worried Princess Celestia has been? How dare you just go galivanting off doing whatever it was you were doing, when my teacher was so kind as to take you in -" She was suddenly cut off as Spark Storm got in her face, glowering w
Chapter 18 How To Love And Tolerate A MonsterSpark Storm awoke to find himself alone in the tree. Oh crap. He hopped down from the tree, his wings spreading to slow his descent. 'Ok, think, Sparky. If you were a nymph far-removed from home and woke up in a strange place, where would you go? Like I know. Stop talking to yourself, idiot, and go find Orea!'He groaned and ran through the gardens. He stopped once he approached the finely polished stone castle, his ears leaning this way and that, listening for tell-tales signs of a mythical creature among the public. Still, he could hear nothing. Spark was starting to panic. A living legend walking around could cause some serious problems.
Chapter 19 Back In The Game Part 1The week went by fast. Spark Storm spent more and more time with Spike, getting to know the little dragon. He was surprisingly mature, and he displayed great intelligence and humor. The two played outside, sometimes getting into trouble sneaking out late at night to watch the stars.Spike told Spark what he'd learned from Twilight about the stars. From the beginning of his short life, the dragon had been educated, from politics to science. He still had a lot to learn, but he had retained every bit of information he'd been fed. Spark was very impressed.When the subject of making friends came up, Spike let out a raspberry into the night sky.
Chapter 20 Back In The Game pt 2Spark Storm sighed, his ears laid back against his head in anticipation. This was not going to be a good day, he just knew it.As he made his way into the large, sparsely furnished room, Spark took notice of the new faces. New to him, at least. The Fighters he knew about had been Sapphire Snow and Lemon Pop, including their teachers Mellifluous Cannonade (A name he hadn't quite figured out yet) and Braham.He sighed. Braham was why the new faces were giving him the stink-eye, at least he figured, anyway. The first colt he saw was a light blue Unicorn, who sported brown hair and pink highlights, and his cutie mark was...well, a pair of contr
Chapter 21 Let's Go EastThings continued like this for another six months. Spark Storm trained with Frostbite the most. The two of them seemed to be on equal terms of destructive force, though Spark Storm was a better tactician. After months of training, though, Frostbite could move nearly as well.Spark Storm learned from him, as well. He learned patience in battle, and control.Working with Gunslinger had helped Spark, as well. He learned aim and precision. Gunslinger also taught him that coupled with the control lessons he'd learned from Frostbite, he could make an excellent marksman, or maybe a sniper. Stealth had always been one of Spark's natural gifts.As
Chapter 22 The Long, Rocking Voyage part 1Spark Storm watched from the rear of the ship as Equestria became smaller and smaller. The trip to the sea itself had taken a week by royal carriage. For some reason, Celestia had wanted them to go by land. Something about Pegasus spies.It was going to be a long boat ride. Three weeks on the sea. This had surprised Spark Storm. He had no idea the world was so big!As he was running along the narrow walkway towards the front to see what they were heading into, he nearly ran into Twilight Sparkle. He skidded to a halt on the metal, nearly causing the two to bump noses.An angry blush on her face, she pushed past him on her way to the back o
Chapter 23 The Long Voyage - Storm And StarsAfter three days at sea, Spark Storm had started to miss the smell of trees and pine sap. He missed the cooling darkness that the shade offered. Out here on the sea, he either had to stay inside where the air was stuffy, or stay outside where there was little protection from the sun.Having dark fur meant absorbing the heat, instead of reflecting it like Sapphire Snow's fur would. Being the darkest-colored pony was a bit of a hassle on the open sea, needless to say. Of course, it did help when Frostbite would make him a suit of ice to cool off in.Tonight, having spent all day inside his room, Spark sat upon the cabin's roof, overlooking th
Chapter 24 Spark Vs The StormThrough the day, Spark Storm slept. It wasn't until sometime in the afternoon that he felt something wrong, and he felt it in his wings. There was some kind of itch running up and down his feathers, making them twitch. Finally, after balancing inbetween sleep and being awake, Spark opened his eyes to see the makings of a thunder storm overhead.'Ok, what the hell. Why did my wings start up like this in my sleep?' He looked around and noticed that everypony was on deck, preparing the ship for the coming storm.He got up and, feeling a bit woozy from sleeping all day, made his way over to Shining Armor, who was shouting orders at the others.
Sta.sh
