//------------------------------// // An Impossible Stallion // Story: Captain Falcolt // by TalltalePony //------------------------------// Rainbow scrunched her eyes shut and shook her head. Must have been some dust from the explosion left in her eyes. Yeah, that was it. She opened her eyelids again and looked around. He was gone. What a relief; she thought insanity had finally caught up to her. She turned to her pink friend to chastise her for spreading ‘the crazies,’ but noticed a distant look in the earth pony‘s eyes, her gaze turned skyward. She followed Pinkie’s line of sight, but before she could spy what her friend was looking at, it found her. A strong gust caught them off guard and kicked up dust and debris; at least, a gust caught Rainbow off guard. Pinkie continued to stare with stars in her eyes. And why not? Rainbow felt her own jaw drop when she realized that the mysterious stallion was now towering over them. His expression was… Indifference? No, that wasn’t it. He actually looked kind of curious when she considered his wide eyes; well what she could see of his eyes, since his ebony visor obscured all but soulless, white shapes; but his mouth appeared to be trapped in a perpetual scowl. But unlike Pinkie, our hero wasn’t impressed by this performance. There was no way Captain Falcolt was standing in front of her; he was legendary, even for legends, and hadn’t been seen in generations. This imposter would not get away with walking around in that getup outside of Nightmare Night. “Hey, bub! Who do you think you are dressing like that?!” She hovered above the ground, so she could chew out the large pegasus face-to-face. He seemed taken aback by the sudden hostility, but remained silent. “I get that you’re a fan of Captain Falcolt. We all are. But you can’t just stroll around wearing his outfit. It’s disrespectful.” He looked from her, to Pinkie and back. His muzzle twisted into a smile. “Oh, you’re fans, are you?” His voice was deep and silky; it echoed in her head, and she found herself straightening her back as though called to attention. “Well look no further for the object of your admiration!” He splayed his wings and raised his head, then flashed a wide grin; his teeth glistened, then were set alight by a flash of reflection so bright that Rainbow swore she heard a ding. She stood for a moment, aware that her mouth was hanging open but too befuddled to care. How could she have doubted it? Before, she had tried to rationalize; she had tried to explain it away. But no matter how many times she repressed her suspicions, they always came back. She had to accept them. This guy was crazy. She closed her mouth and sighed, then returned to the ground. There was no point arguing with a mad pony, as she knew from personal experience. Pinkie Pie bounced and whistled at the display. She, apparently, didn’t share Dash’s doubts. “Omigosh! I can’t believe it! I mean, I can believe ‘cause I see it, but I’m really unsure about my eyes right now!” “Trust your eyes, Little Pony. They’re working just fine.” He flexed his wings, then gave a mighty beat, kicking up a plume of rock and pebble. Rainbow wasn’t impressed. “Uh huh. Well you enjoy that whole being Captain Falcolt thing. C’mon, Pinkie.” “What? Are you kidding me? Did you get your eggs scrambled in that crash too, Dashie? This is Captain Falcolt we’re talking about! We can’t just leave!” Rainbow sighed again. “Look, it’s been a long day, Pinkie; I couldn’t practice, we hung out, I almost got killed. I’m pooped. And even if I wasn’t, I don’t have the time to argue with some wackjob in a two-bit store costume.” A hefty gasp pierced the air. She turned back to the “Captain,” to see him wide-eyed and wider-mouthed. “Two-bit… Store?” “Well yeah.” Rainbow raised a hoof and began to point out parts of his outfit. “That helmet is totally plastic. I see ’em sold all the time around Nightmare Night. And, dude, that blue is off. It should be phthalo blue, not navy blue. Oh, and those boots…” She cocked her head to the side, “those are actually pretty cool.” The stallion shut his mouth; it returned to the scowl she had seen him with initially. But now his eyes, too, seemed to scowl, and, even through the visor, they now possessed an intensity that almost made Rainbow gulp. Almost. “Very well.” His voice was abrupt, but still flexible. “Since you choose to dishonor The Falcolt Suit, you will pay the price.” “Price? What are y--” Thunder erupted and a stomp of his hoof against the ground cracked the earth. “Silence!” Rainbow was silent. “There is only one ritual by which a pegasus, once dishonored, can be vindicated.” Rainbow searched her memory, but couldn’t find any thing. What was he talking about, ’ritual’? The pegasi didn’t have rituals. There was only one way she knew of to get honor back… He arched his neck toward the sky and bellowed: “A RACE!” Of course. Dash furrowed her brow and considered her options. On the one hoof, she wanted to get back to Ponyville and see what made that rainboom, and what that monster was, and maybe check up on Twilight, since both those things meant a trip to the library. Yeah. On the other hoof, this goof had to be put in his place. It would be like those times Twilight dealt with that loud-mouth faker, Trixie. But she didn’t have to worry about this guy busting out with magic, though she needed to be on guard for cheap tricks like that thunder thing. He didn’t fool anypony with that. “You’re on.” Pinkie squealed. “A race between Dashie and Captain Falcolt? Best. Thing. Ever!” “Humph.” A firm flap of his wings filled the area with a vicious wind as he took to the sky. No biggie; she could do that too, and did, with a beat powered by an unexpected rush of adrenaline. The flutter of anticipation took to her heart. She followed the large stallion to the top of the horizon, buoyed by a new found agility. The winds caressed her feathers in some parts of the sky and buffeted them in others, but she maneuvered through both without thinking about it; though now that it was on her mind, she supposed that she was thinking about it. But she didn’t need to think about it! Anyway… When the would-be Falcolt ceased his ascent and entered a hover, they were high above the devastated landscape. Rainbow thought she could see a pink dot entering the crater, but it was difficult to tell. ‘Fraudcolt’ extended a hoof and gestured toward three, large clouds. “We will start here, then fly to that grouping and make one lap around each cloud.” He traced his hoof back toward the ground, to the opposite side of the crater. His voice was now steely, cold. “After the third lap, we’ll fly to the other end, where your pink friend is. First hooves to touch down is the winner.” Rainbow scanned the ground. It was a strain, but she could see the tiny, pink speck from before swaying and bouncing… Oh, it was waving. Dash nodded and cracked her shoulders, then rolled her neck. “Let’s do this.” “Okay. As challenger, I will call start.” “Doesn’t matter to me.” He nodded and lowered his head. Dash did the same. “Three.” She tucked her hooves in and licked her lips. “Two.” She could feel her heart racing; she hoped it wouldn’t bail on her. “One.” She forgot about everything else. “Go!” She shot forward; the familiar impulse of a sudden start greeted her; her eyes watered, cheeks pressed to her face and feathers flayed. She dipped toward the first cloud, delighted by the stomach full of butterflies which the maneuver brought. In her periphery, she could see the obvious impostor trailing her kiddycorner. She was only gliding, but he was already falling behind. So much for restoring his honor. A smirk cracked her muzzle. If he wasn’t going to be any competition, she could at least give him a show. She banked around the cloud’s edge and hugged its sides as she began the first lap. The edge of her wing brushed the fluffy formation and a thin mist sprayed behind her, glistening in Celestia’s sun to form a rainbow which trailed in her wake. She peered back to enjoy its effect, but noted that the stallion behind her was unimpressed. Tough crowd. Fine, if that didn’t catch his attention, she knew what would. She tipped to the side and edged closer to the cloud, until her back skimmed its surface, then plunged her head into it. The cool interior soaked her mane as she moved her neck about; she collected just the right amount of fluff before withdrawing. She wished she had a mirror, but everything felt like it was in the right place. Dash turned back to ‘Failcolt’ and flashed him a grin; her face was covered in a cloud beard, and her mane in cloud hair. That always cracked her friends up. The large stallion, however, was unamused. Talk about a buzz kill; if he was going to challenge her, he could at least make it fun. She groaned and shook the cloud away. Whatever. If he didn’t want to enjoy himself, then he could take his defeat served cold. The edge of the second cloud came into view. Rainbow righted herself and returned to a glide. Just as its full form became visible, she arced out of the first lap, then applied a few, strenuous bursts of wing power and rocketed toward the next. She peered back again, to judge how far behind she had left the impostor, but was surprised to find no sight of him. Figures; he was probably thrown off course when trying to break out of his turn and flung off to-- “Yo!” The deep greeting frazzled our hero, but she maintained her course. Her challenger swooped down from above and positioned himself at her side. A smirk cracked his muzzle, to which Rainbow grimaced, before he waved his hoof in a mock salute and shot forward, into a tight turn around the second cloud. She followed suit. The large stallion might have been ahead at the moment, but she hoped that didn't make him overconfident. She would have hated to embarrass him so soon; sudden comebacks are best left for the finale. She edged up, to attempt a pass from above, but he climbed as well. A pass from below was the next option, but he dipped when she did, cutting her off again. Dash groaned, and widened her distance from the cloud, to pass from the outside, but again he mimicked her and blocked her maneuver. Okay, this guy was a jerk. She tightened her turn and grazed the cloud. He did the same. Flecks of water and wisps of white were shaved off the fluffy structure in their wake, but neither could spare an inch. The winds were picking up and transformed their steady turning into a battle with the sky. Dash’s eyebrow arched at the turn of events; she had an idea. The racers adjusted themselves as the edges of the third cloud became visible. Once again, when its form was fully revealed, ’Fakecolt,’ arced away and toward it, but Dash had other plans. Instead of following him, she hugged the second cloud closer, and sped into a second lap. The strain on her wings transformed into a burn, and she struggled to balance her increasing speed with the wind resistance. Shifting currents assaulted her; at first from the side, causing her to tilt away from the cloud; then from the front, so she beat harder, adrenaline alone fueling her; then from the back, which was right where she needed it. She grinned, feeling out the winds by muscle memory, then, at the perfect moment, broke away, slingshotted toward the third cloud by the wind at her back and the momentum of her turn. Her spread wings caught a separate current, and she rode it into a close arc around the final cloud. Her eyes watered and the speed strained every part of her body. She was in heaven. The impostor came into view, almost done with his third lap, but she didn’t have time to taunt him as she shot above his head, circling the entire cloud in a quarter of the time she needed to lap the first two. She risked a look back, and was pleased to glimpse a confused look on the would-be Falcolt’s face. The final lap came to a close, and a clear path opened toward the ground, where a familiar, pink speck bounced and cheered. Our hero would have congratulated herself, but the whole thing had been too easy. That loon in the Falcolt suit clearly didn't know a thing about racing. Dash dipped and spread her wings, carried by gravity and enough momentum to rip the wings clean off a lesser pegasus. Her senses sharpened and the pink dot grew into the familiar, bubbly form of Pinkie Pie. She tilted up and loosed her hooves to prepare an awesome landing, but before she could resign herself to victory, a clap of thunder shook the heavens, and a multi-colored blur zipped past her. Boom!! It slammed into the ground and kicked up a plume of debris. Rainbow swerved, her landing foiled by a sudden lack of visibility, then careened to the side and found an abrupt stop at the edge of the crater; her hooves slid against the rock and rubble and she skidded to a halt, aided by her wings. She turned to the dust cloud and shook herself, convinced that she couldn't be seeing what she was seeing. The silhouette of her challenger was apparent through the dust, and a flap of his wings cleared it in an instant. He stood, his stance wide and his head high. He held one of his forelegs aloft, and the glow of an unknown power faded from his body. Rainbow was surprised by the thoughts racing through her head, but was impotent to stop them; maybe he wasn't as big a fool as she had taken him for. Maybe there was something to his boasting. It seemed impossible, but maybe this guy was actually-- Her thoughts were cut off when he glanced in her direction. His face was solemn at first, but his muzzle twisted into a grin and he opened it to speak. What wise worlds could escape such a champion of pony kind in his moment of victory? “… Falcolt pose!” ding “…” He’d ruined the moment. Rainbow dropped her head, and was tempted to bash it into a nearby rock.