So Silver Rush had an idea of what he'd actually be doing on his quote-unquote "visionquest" in Ponyville. After talking to Rainbow Dash and briefly meeting Pinkie Pie, he realized he hadn't eaten a thing all day, and his stomach confirmed this. He started walking to the nearest restaurant, taking him back through the main square in front of the city hall. Now he noticed two ponies hanging a banner in front; a unicorn centering the right portion and an earth pony on a ladder on the right. She was having difficulty reaching, though, and her unicorn friend shouted to her,
"Applejack, are you sure you have it?" she yelled.
"Don't worry, Rarity," said Applejack. "I've got it." But as Applejack reached again, the ladder buckled, and she was quickly falling through the air. But just before she hit the ground, a blur of grey and blue swooped in and caught her.
"Are you alright?" said Silver Rush, setting her down.
"Yeah," said Applejack. "Thanks partner. Glad you showed up in time."
"Indeed," said Rarity. "Not many ponies can move that quickly."
"It mostly comes from experience," said Silver. "Though not necessarily from good ones. Oh, where's my manners? Name's Silver Rush, pleased to meet you both."
"Applejack."
"Rarity."
"So, partner," said Applejack, "what brings you to Ponyville?"
"Visionquest," said Silver Rush, picking up the scroll case and backpack he had dropped to catch Applejack. Suddenly he felt his stomach growl at him again. "Hey, I'd love to strike up a conversation, but right now I'm starving. Either of you know a good restaurant nearby?"
"You might try the cafe at the corner," said Applejack.
"Thank you," Silver replied. "Nice meeting you two, by the way!" With this he flew off towards the nearest source of hay-fries.
"He's a bit of an odd one, isn't he?" said Rarity. "Not in a bad way, just different."
"Got that right," said Applejack. "Well, let's go ahead and finish this up, and I'll try not to fall off again."
After sitting down at the cafe and receiving a plate of hay-fries, Silver Rush quickly devoured them. He may be polite, but he was incredibly hungry. Finishing and paying for his food, he took to the streets again. He didn't know what to do next, and he was alright with that. As he strolled, however, he spotted a pegasus with a yellow body and a pink mane bent over a storm drain, seemingly calling down to something.
"Angel, don't worry!" yelled the pony, although it was probably the softest, sweetest yelling in history. "There must be some way to get you out."
"Is there something wrong?" Silver Rush asked, walking over to the storm drain.
"Oh, sir, please, do you think you could get him out of there?" said the pony.
Silver looked in and spotted Angel; a white rabbit, cowering in the storm drain just out of reach. Neither Silver Rush nor the pegasus could fit through to try and get him out. But Silver's scroll case could. Slipping it off, he pushed the scroll case through the gap to where he could reach Angel.
"Come on," Silver said. "Don't be scared. Just grab on and I can get you out." Angel, defiant as he was, grabbed on, and Silver hoisted him out of the drain.
"Angel!" yelled the pegasus. She immediately latched on to Angel, relieved to have him out of danger. "Thank you sir. Who are you?"
"Silver Rush."
"My name's Fluttershy," she said. "That was quick thinking on your part. Thank you so much." With this Fluttershy walked off, lecturing Angel on how he should pay more attention to where he was walking.
"I guess today is a good day for helping ponies out," said Silver Rush. He wasn't normally so chivalrous, but it felt good to help those around him. Now, he realized, it was starting to get late in the day, and the sun was starting to set on the eve of the Summer Sun. He wasn't sure where to stay, so he just started walking again. Answers usually came when he walked or flew, and now was no different. What he didn't expect, though, was an invitation from a princess.
"Princess Twilight?" Silver said, being approached by one of the most famous ponies in Ponyville (in his opinion, at least).
"Twilight is fine, Silver Rush," Twilight Sparkle responded to him.
"How do you know my name?"
"I heard how you've been helping ponies around town. I figured I would meet you myself."
For once, Silver Rush was tongue-tied. "Well, uh, thank you," he said, blushing a bright pink. "I'm flattered you would want to meet me."
"You know, we're having a small gathering at the castle to celebrate the Summer Sun. Would you like to join us?"
"Would I! I mean, yes, if you'll have me." Smooth, Silver Rush thought.
The two of them walked up to the castle doors, pushing them aside and seeing complete darkness, followed by a flash of light and what seemed like hundreds of ponies yelling "Surprise!" Silver just looked at Twilight, totally flabbergasted.
"Okay," said Twilight, "it was less a Summer Sun celebration and more of a welcoming party for you."
Silver smiled. Turns out he didn't need to act surprised for Pinkie Pie's party. "Then what are we waiting for?" he said. "Let's get this party started!"
Over half of Ponyville was partying at the castle that night. Dancing, eating, and socializing were the main forms of entertainment. However, after the initial adrenaline rush from the surprise wore off, Silver Rush backed off a little from the main party, still enjoying himself but not in the center of everything. Spike noticed this, and decided to introduce himself.
"Hey there," he said. "Why you over here off to the side? This is your party, you know."
"Yeah," said Silver Rush. "I know. I'm just not really the social type."
"Why not?"
"I don't know. I guess I'm just not a conversationalist."
"Aren't we having a conversation right now?"
Silver thought about this for a second. "Fair enough," he finally said. "Normally though I prefer to be alone with my thoughts."
"Why's that?"
"Just my nature, I suppose." Silver poured himself a glass of punch and drank half in one gulp. He really wasn't used to talking so much.
"So, how'd you get your cutie mark?" Spike said as an icebreaker.
Silver's eyes lit up. "Now there is a good story."
"If anyone likes a good story, it's me."
"Well," said Silver Rush, "it starts back when I was a young colt growing up in Cloudsdale. I really didn't have that many friends, but those I did have were amazing. I was also the last pony in my class to get my cutie mark, and as a result I was always flying around, trying to figure out what my special talent was. I learned quickly I was good at several things, but they weren't necessarily my special talent.
"One day a good friend and I got out of school. Neither of us had anything better to do, so we flew below the clouds, around the edge of the Everfree Forest. We just flew there, doing tricks and messing around. It was one of the few times I wasn't obsessively focusing on finding my cutie mark. Neither of us, though, noticed the storm clouds rolling in.
"By the time we noticed, thunder was booming all around us. My house was closer, so we both started flying towards there, not stopping for anything. That's when I saw it. Everything was in slow motion as I saw the lightning bolt heading straight towards her. I didn't know what to do, so I went with my first instinct, the only thing I could do. I pushed her out of the way, and from there, there was this great flash of light and everything went black.
"When I woke up, I was in the hospital. The doctor told me that I'd pushed my friend out of the way of a lightning bolt and was struck. She had caught me after I blacked out and carried me to the hospital. I was lucky, though. The lightning only had one lasting effect." Silver Rush gestured to his blue-and-teal mane. "Believe it or not, my mane was black before the accident. I could have dyed it black again, but I liked it. Its not a good idea to style your mane with lightning, but it worked for me.
"Anyways, the doctor said he wanted to keep me in for a few days to make sure there was no permanent damage from the lightning. Ponies came and went, making sure I was okay. Then my friend came by. Her eyes were red from tears, but I assured her I was alright. Then the weirdest part happened. She suddenly kissed me and left. That's when it happened.
"It hit me, just like that bolt of lightning, a sudden wave of inspiration washed over me. I noticed the notebook next to my bed and I started writing in it. I wrote and wrote and wrote for three days straight, spending nearly every waking moment either writing or sketching what I couldn't completely put into words. When I finally got out of the hospital, I showed the writing and drawings I made to my friends and family, and as soon as I saw that first pony's face light up, this appeared." Silver nodded to his flank, emblazoned with a lightning bolt crossed with a quill. It was only after finishing his story did Silver Rush noticed the crowd that had gathered around him, listening intently to his tale.
"Not quite sure how to follow that," said Spike. "Write anything I might've read?"
"Depends. Ever heard of the Power Ponies?"
Spike's jaw dropped completely to the floor, but he quickly retracted it. "Well then, have I got a story for you."
End of Part 2