//------------------------------// // 15- Loyalty // Story: Approaching Apotheosis // by KKSlider //------------------------------// When I arrived at The Wonderbolts Academy, all I could really surmise was that the Academy is extremely impractical. ‘I mean seriously, who puts a training facility at the very peak of a mountain? Then again, pegasi have wings… I suppose they have become quite accustomed to hauling supplies and materials high into the sky to keep Cloudsdale and Las Pegasus running. Still, it seems inefficient…’ The Night Guard touched down on the runway of the Academy– and far too close to the edge for my personal comfort. Despite the fact that I had wings, I still maintained a moderate fear of heights. It was simply instinctual. The thestrals pulling the chariot came to a stop in front of the Academy’s main building, where three lines of ponies were waiting. I rose from the chariot and hopped down, the Wonderbolts Captain calling the ponies present to fall in at my arrival. They all stamped their hooves as they straightened their... necks and not their backs. That was a sight I had seen a few times in this life, especially during my time as High Marshall of the Fourth Hive, but the twist always caught me off guard. Most of the ponies stared at me incredulously when I stopped before them. The ones in the front row all continued to stare forward, successfully maintaining their military decorum. ‘At least some of these government-employed circus clowns can act professionally.’ “King Phasmatodea,” Captain Spitfire greeted me. “I must say, I am surprised to see you.” “You all are,” I smiled back. “I can taste the emotions you and the rest of the real Wonderbolts manage to hide. I see the recruits still need to learn how to maintain parade attention…” While I had spoken with Spitfire once or twice during our nations’ preparations for the upcoming war, I also knew who each of the Wonderbolts were by name. Not because I was some member of one of their fan clubs, like Sir Fancy Pants, but because I had assembled a contingency plan to defeat them back when I took orders from Chrysalis. Said contingency plan mostly consisted of ‘lure them into a room and beat them up with spells.’ If I couldn’t lure them out from the open air, there really wasn’t a way to defeat them. Captain Spitfire cleared her throat rather loudly and the Wonderbolt recruits snapped-to, eyes forward. She was flanked by a pair of stallions in similar blue parade uniform, though they had caps on. “We’ve got a long way to go to find out which of these ponies are Wonderbolt material,” Spitfire said. “I hope you don’t mind me asking, Your Highness, but I was told to expect Princess Luna. I see you’ve got a couple of her personal guards…” “Princess Luna could not make it,” I explained. I caught a strong whiff of disappointment before continuing, “She has asked me to go in her stead. I am here as an official representative of the Crown of the Principality of Equestria, not as leader of the Hive Eternal.” Spitfire shrugged, “As you say, Your Highness.” She adjusted her aviators and nodded to her assembled soldiers, “Shall we begin the inspection?” The Night Guard fell into formation around Spitfire and me as the yellow pegasus started the official inspection. It was not my first rodeo: simply look regal, pretend that this was all important, and slowly walk past each soldier. The inspection was ceremonial in structure, with actual combat readiness inspections being handled by their relevant military personnel. All the royals had to do was be present and remind everyone who was in charge. Given that I was a Princess for today, I tried my best to at least smile at the new recruits, offering a compliment or a short word of advice here and there. The very last recruit in the last row caused me to come to a complete stop in surprise. “Rainbow Dash,” I greeted the Element bearer. “I didn’t expect to see you– or any other Element of Harmony.” Rainbow Dash broke her rigid pose to smile and toss her hair back, “Yeah, well, I guess we’re just as surprised to see each other! I’m here to be a Wonderbolt. You, on the other hoof, might not fit into the uniform…” “Recruits!” Spitfire barked. “About face!” Rainbow Dash stood up straighter and stared forward at Spitfire. The rest of the gathered ponies stifled groans. “Since you think you can joke around and insult an emissary of the Princesses, why don’t you show King Phasma what a Wonderbolt can do! Remember, one pony mouths off, the whole team suffers! Cold Front drill, quick time!” “You got it!” Rainbow replied– earning another shaded glare from Spitfire– before hustling over to the runway with the rest of the Wonderbolts. With a galloping start, the ponies took to the air. Gaining height first and then speed, the pegasi proceeded through a well-choreographed set of flight maneuvers. Personally, I never really cared for the Wonderbolts’ theatrics, and their showiness was one of the reasons why I never really put much thought into defeating them during the Invasion. “Lieutenant Mustang, once they’re done with the Cold Front, make sure they each do three hundred laps.” One of her seconds saluted before trotting off to the runway. “Sorry for that, Your Highness,” Spitfire apologized. “Don’t worry about it, Captain,” I reassured her. “I’m quite accustomed to Rainbow Dash’s outbursts.” Spitfire snorted, “That’s no excuse for her behavior. They’ve all got a long way before they can be considered actual Wonderbolts, Rainbow Dash especially. Now come on, let’s discuss how the Wonderbolts are actually doing.” “I’ll just… make myself busy?” The remaining Lieutenant wondered. “Lieutenant Typhoon, I’m sure the Night Guard would love to… talk shop?” Spitfire suggested. The four thestral guards nodded enthusiastically. As we walked away, Spitfire asked, “So… a fundraiser? Why would the Princesses have to hold a fundraiser for a school? Can’t they just pay for it?” “Luna didn’t say why,” I said, “but as a matter of fact, I know the reason. It’s uh… kinda my fault.” “How so?” “The changeling war. When Chrysalis and the Fourth Hive podded everyone south of Canterlot, it left a lot of ghost towns. Even a ghost city! Luna and… Daybreaker kept the place in shape using their… civilian conservation corps? Something like that. That mostly worked, but there’s still a lot of problems with getting the ponies in those areas back into… harmony.” “What kind of problems?” I shrugged as I walked– a hard skill to master as a quadruped, “Lost revenue, wear and tear, food spoilage, crop destruction, and so on. The grass might have been kept cut, but there was no way the corps could tend to the fields or anything like that. So the Crown has dedicated much of its free funds to helping out all the ponies who were podded. I helped Luna out with budgeting so I learned just how big the numbers got…” “Glad to see the Princesses are watching our backs,” Spitfire said. “Harmony knows those ponies deserve the help. Still, a school? Why won’t the provincial ruler pay for it?” “That I don’t know,” I admitted. “Knowing the fucked up state of the Equestrian politics, I’m sure there’s a reason… Actually, while I have you, I wanted to ask a question.” “Ask away.” “Luna was pretty apprehensive about showing up in the first place. She seemed quite dead set on the idea that you guys hate her. Is there any truth to this?” Spitfire frowned, “Of course not! The Princesses deserve our respect and admiration, there’s no– oh!” Spitfire paused and face-hooved. “Captain?” Spitfire grunted and started walking again, “I forgot. I made my official introduction to Princess Luna a while back, but I’ve never talked with her heart-to-heart. The last of my predecessors that Princess Luna would have known was Captain Right. She was… To sum up the few notes Princess Day– Celestia has shared with me about the period of time shortly before Princess Luna was possessed by a Nightmare, Captain Right and Princess Luna did not get along. Her Highness was very tight-lipped about the specific, but she detailed a few encounters between the two. Captain Right is also partially responsible for chasing the Thestrals out of Equestria…” “... That explains a lot,” I sighed. “Would you–” “I’ll make sure Her Highness knows that she has our full and undivided support!” Spitfire declared. “Thanks, Captain.” Spitfire frowned as her boss delivered the news. I frowned, “A second griffon demigod? What does this mean for us?” Through the changeling communication device, Celestia shrugged. “Nothing, I suppose,” she said. “Not yet. It is worth noting that both of these demigods are on opposite sides of the Griffonian civil war. That was your doing, by the way.” “Your intel suggests that the conflict was inevitable, anyways,” I replied. “Perhaps. I have already informed Luna and Cadance of the development. Our current stance is the same as before: sit back and wait for the situation to develop. I trust that the Fifth Hive will be doing the same?” I narrowed my eyes, “Yes, Celestia. We won’t be doing anything.” “I’d ask that you keep it that way. How did the official inspection go?” “Passed with flying colors,” I said. “Red, orange, and tan specifically.” Celestia frowned, “I don’t follow.” Spitfire sighed, “Rainbow Dash, Your Highness. She mouthed off during the inspection. Not to worry, Princess, if she can become a Wonderbolt, then I’ll make sure she meets that potential and shapes up to be a proper soldier!” “I don’t doubt that,” Celestia offered. After a moment of silence, Celestia looked at me and sharply inhaled. In response, I groaned loudly. “You’re about to ask me to do something I don't like, aren’t you?” Celestia grinned, “As a matter of fact, I think this is a wonderful opportunity for you to make amends with the Element of Loyalty! “Kkksssh– sorry Celestia, you’re going through– kkksssh– a tunnel! You’re breaking up– kkksssh!” “What? I’m not–” Celestia vanished when I disabled the communication device. “... What was that, Your Majesty?” Spitfire looked up at me in confusion. “That was your boss being a pain,” I muttered. “... Alright, fine. I’ll go speak with Rainbow Dash. Do you know where she would have gone after those exercises?” “Go?” Spitfire repeated. “I don’t think you understand, sir. She’s not going anywhere. Not for the next six hours… What did Princess Celestia mean when she meant the Griffonian civil war was your doing, King Phasma?” I beat a hasty retreat from her office, “Kkksssh– sorry Spitfire, you’re going through– kkksssh– a tunnel!” I found the cyan pegasus on the tarmac, performing some stretches as the other recruits flew in circles around the whole Academy. Lieutenant Mustang had moved over to his comrade to talk with the thestrals while he kept one eye on the sky, leaving Rainbow Dash alone on the runway. “You missed the show!” Rainbow Dash said when I approached her. “I don’t think flying in circles is much of a show,” I said, glancing up at the recruits. “It is when I do it, but I meant the routine. You and Spitfire just walked away!” “It’s Captain Spitfire to you,” I corrected. Rainbow glared at me, “Just what exactly are you here to do? Find some poor recruit to push off a cliff? Go around, cutting daisies? Kick a puppy?” I huffed, “I’ve got far more experience pushing daisies than cutting them. Look, I know we haven’t gotten along very well–” “Why would we?” Rainbow cut me off. “You’re not exactly a nice pony. The Princesses have been very generous with how they treat you after what you’ve done, but you don’t care. You just double down and do worse things!” “I do care!” I stressed. “It’s just… I’m trying. The sisters have had thousands of years to get an understanding of the limits of their strength. I was murdered a year ago, completely powerless. I’m not exactly able to control most of the situations I find myself in…” The anger that permeated throughout the air around Rainbow Dash simmered away, “Well, keep trying and you might just make it halfway– and make me lose a bet with Fluttershy.” I tried to change topics, “You know, I’m surprised you want to join the Wonderbolts. Sorry if I’m being rude here, but you don’t exactly seem like the military type.” Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, “The Wonderbolts don’t seem like the military type.” “... Touché,” I smiled. “That is changing, though. Has the Captain not put you through any combat drills yet?” Rainbow frowned and I sensed frustration, “... No. Those will start after the basics have been mastered. I tried to tell her that I’ve already mastered them, but she didn’t care. I gotta wait for everypony else to catch up! I admit, I’m kinda psyched up to see what kind of fighting moves the Wonderbolts have come up with since the first changeling invasion!” Rainbow dash karate-chopped the air for dramatic effect. “... Right, because there weren’t that many fighting maneuvers before I brought war to Equestria,” I pointed out. “No.” I cleared my throat, “Which brings me back to my point, Rainbow. Sorry if I’m being rude, but you seem far too… uh… independent to fit into the military.” “Tch, don’t worry about that! I learn new stuff all the time! The important stuff, that is. I can fit into the Wonderbolts just fine. I was practically born to be a Wonderbolt!” “But instead, you became the Element of Loyalty…” I muttered. Rainbow frowned, “Uh, what does that mean? I can be both.” I continued my train of thought out loud, “You’re the wielder of the most potent weapon the Canterlot Confederacy has in our arsenal. All six Elements are needed. You are… irreplaceable.” She chuckled, “So I’ve been told.” “Which means you can’t be risked,” I continued. “No self-respecting commander would be placing you in the front line– or operating above and beyond the front lines, in the case of the Wonderbolts. I wouldn’t be surprised if you are denied entry into the Wonderbolts due to how important you are.” Rainbow Dash froze, her eyes shrinking as the taste of fear flooded my senses. “Too awesome for the Wonderbolts? Nah, that’s not possible. Heh, no one’s too cool! I’m going to be a Wonderbolt. I am! Even if I don’t fight up front with everypony else, I can still do other stuff! I can still fly in the shows and–” I cut her off, “The Wonderbolts probably won’t be able to spare the time to have separate drills. They need every skilled pegasus they can get. I don’t think Spitfire can allow for special cases…” Rainbow continued to stare at me. ‘... Wait, I’m supposed to be connecting with her, not scaring the shit out of her and crushing her dreams! We can solve this glaring issue later.’ I nervously chuckled, “But then again, you are the Element of Loyalty. You saved the Princesses twice! Luna especially! They’ll make an exception– I’ll make sure of it.” She blinked and snapped out of her freeze, “No! I can’t just be put into the Wonderbolts just because I picked up a shiny rock in the woods one night! It’s gotta be legit! It’s gotta be because I’m the fastest flier alive! I… No way! This is not cool!” The pegasus pivoted on her hind legs, crouched low, and launched herself into the sky– narrowly hitting a circling recruit as she flew. She flew into one of the cloud buildings hovering near the academy before bursting through its roof moments later. “Shit!” I cursed. “Shit pissing fucking–” I took to the air after her. Rainbow Dash was already a chromatic blur that was getting farther and farther away. Desperately, I disguised myself as a pony pegasus to try to get some more speed. ‘Damn, I really just walked up and… I need to work on my people skills! Sure, I might be right, but damn am I in the wrong to just say it like that! I blame Chrysalis, this is all her fault somehow! Panar, Phasma, aren’t you just an expert at making friends!’ By the time I caught up to Rainbow Dash, I was a wheezing mess. I collapsed onto the small cloud that the Element of Loyalty perched on. “Guh… Rainbow…!” I muttered. “Whoever you are, get lost. I’m not in the mood to talk!” “Wha– oh,” I quickly dispersed my pegasus disguise as I tried to catch my breath. “Mare, I haven’t flown that fast since… uh… last time I flew that fast,” I panted. “Rainbow Dash! I’m sorry, that was my bad! I’m certain there’re going to be at least a dozen solutions to figuring this out. I, uh, wanted to talk to you and make amends…” Rainbow Dash’s fear had burned away in her short flight and had been replaced with anger and fear. “Yeah? You're also gonna make it rain rainbows while you’re at it? You said it, King Phasma; there’s no way I can be a real Wonderbolt. Not while they have to be at the front line, fighting bad guys! There’s no way Spitfire or the Princesses would let that happen!” She lifted a hoof and the Element of Loyalty, the red lightning-bolt-shaped gem strung on a gold plate, dangled over the edge of the cloud. “Where did you get that?” I said, managing to finally catch my breath. “The Castle of the Twin Sisters,” Rainbow muttered. “Oh wait, you mean now, don’t you? I grabbed it from my room on my way over here.” “... The cloud house you burst through?” I asked. “Wow, you work fast.” “Not fast enough,” Rainbow said quietly. “Or too fast? I… I wanted to be a Wonderbolt. I want to be a Wonderbolt! You don’t understand what this means to me, Phasma!” “I guess I don’t.” She stared into the dangling gem, “Is this the cost? In all the books I’ve read, when Daring Do gets the treasure, there’s always some kind of cost. She’s gotta leave it behind, or give it up to save somepony, or return it to where it belongs, or… or… Gah!” She stamped her free forehoof into the cloud, “It’s not fair! I deserve to be a Wonderbolt! Don’t I?! Don’t I at least deserve the chance to be one?! I worked for years for this!” “Look, I’m sorry Dash, I didn’t mean–” “It’s not you!” She glared at me. “You’re just pointing out what would be obvious in a week when we start fighting drills! If it wasn’t you pointing it out, it would be the Captain, or her lieutenants, or… It’s just not fair! I… I wish I never found this thing. I wish I could just throw it off the edge right now…” I shook my head, “You saved Luna! You saved Celestia! You defeated Discord after I broke him out! Rainbow Dash, you are a hero of Equestria! You put your name in the history books and earned more fame than you ever could as a Wonderbolt! You’ve saved the world and the Princesses!” She smiled weakly, “Yeah, we’re awesome. But… I wanted this, you know? It’s my thing. Was my thing. I wanted to be cool enough and fast enough to be a real Wonderbolt, but now… Too cool for the Wonderbolts. It's like a lame joke. And it’s not like I can try to join after the war is over or whatever– do you know how rare it is for the Wonderbolts to actually recruit somepony? Let alone when they have three dozen extra ponies to fill in any gaps when the fighting is done?!” Rainbow Dash rubbed her eyes, “I’ll be out of my prime by the time the slots start opening up again… It’s not fair.” ‘Life isn’t fair, at least you’re alive.’ I bit back the spiteful comment. “Rainbow. You’re going to be a Wonderbolt.” Rainbow growled, “I told you, I don’t want any special treatment! I’m irreplaceable, like you said. I have to be where the Princesses need me when the time comes, and the Wonderbolts will be too busy to make an exception for me. They’ll be too focused on fighting drills, not show maneuvers! Maybe the Wonderbolts I love have changed so much that they’re something else…” “It doesn’t matter how irreplaceable you are,” I told her. “I’ll make sure that it’s not a reason to bar you from becoming one. And take it from me, things change all the time. If you try to hold onto the past and never try to find happiness now, you’ll lose yourself.” “The Nightmares want to destroy everything, King Phasma. You said it yourself! I’m not going to put everypony in danger just because I want to be a Wonderbolt! If I put everypony in danger, would I really be protecting them?” I tried to think of an answer. “I don’t know, Rainbow. I don’t know. The military strategist side of me says that it’s just plain stupid to put you in danger when you are needed to wield the Element of Loyalty, but… if I was in your position, I don’t think I could sit back and watch others die if I could save them. Heh, I know I couldn’t. I’ve risked everything to save lives before, even when it made more sense to just save myself.” “You? Risk your own hide to save somepony else? When?” I smiled as I connected the dots, “... You remember when I told you about the Third Hive?” “The one with the zombies? Yeah, it was a pretty good story for Nightmare Night. Why?” “Did I ever tell you what I had to do to kill the Prophet and his zombie army?” Rainbow Dash squinted, “No… Oh wait, that was when you blew up the place, right? I remember hearing about that.” “Right. Well, as I was blowing up the place, two people got left behind. A drone and a pony.” “A pony?!” Rainbow yelled. “What the hay was a pony doing down there in a changeling tomb?!” I sighed, “Long story, I think you’ll find out eventually, if your earlier comment is correct. Anyways, it made more sense for me to leave them. I am a King, and orders I give in the future can save more than just two lives… but I might have been able to save those two. So I did. I went back and risked everything for two people. I don’t even remember the drone’s name, just the pony’s. I went back and I shielded all three of us from the explosion that destroyed the entire Hive. I don’t remember what happened afterwards– the overload of my shield breaking knocked me out– but they saved my life in return. “I nearly died again. I almost lost everything again. But I couldn’t just sit back and watch them die. I don’t think you can either. So… while I’m not saying you should charge head-on into danger, but instead that if we all were the kind of people to just sit back and watch others die, none of us would actually still be here by now. We take risks, make mistakes, and do stupid things in the name of protecting those we care about. And I do think that you training in the Wonderbolts is a good idea. In fact, all six of you bearers should get some real combat training.” The pony mulled over my story, “... Hmph. I guess I can see what the Princesses see in you, King Phasma. I think if you did more stuff like that and less stuff like invading and killing, ponies would like you better.” “Thanks, I didn’t think of that,” I deadpanned. “... It was pretty awesome of you to risk your life for somepony whose name you don’t even know,” Rainbow insisted. “Hey, wait! I’ve got a great idea that solves the Wonderbolt problem!” “Oh, what’s that?” I asked. Rainbow Dash tossed the Element of Loyalty my way and I lunged to catch it on instinct before it fell through the cloud. “You can be the Element of Loyalty! That was some pretty loyal stuff you did: loyal to the ponies– uh, changelings– that look up to you. I bet the Element could work for you! Meanwhile, I can go be a Wonderbolt without any of this sitting-in-the-back nonsense!” “What?!” I hissed. “Did you not listen to– Rainbow Dash, get back here! Rainbow! Are you forgetting the part where I staged a coup against my mother? How is that loyal?! Rainbow?!” As the rainbow-colored blur disappeared into the horizon, I sighed and stared down at the glowing red gem in my hooves. “... Idiot.”