//------------------------------// // Nachbesprechung // Story: Mares und Panzer // by Indulgence //------------------------------// ‘So, in conclusion…’ ‘We whupped ‘em!’ Split interrupted loudly, throwing the speaker off task and receiving a fair few rolled eyes from the rest of the audience she was sat in amongst. ‘We were awesome; they didn’t stand a chance!’ ‘Erm… in a word yes, sort of’ Toffee only half concurred, sending a quick glance her counterpart’s way. Both she and Dawn stood before the seated forms of the rest of AIA’s tank team, set on a background of sketched vehicle movements and terrain covering the snowy expanse of a whiteboard. Two swarms of opposing symbols flew about a roughly drawn landscape, leaving in their wakes matching trails of corresponding colours to highlight their routes. Of these a particular group of red triangles stood out, all meeting their end in the map’s centre when they fatally came into contact with a blue square marked with a P. ‘It was more like we were extremely lucky.’ ‘Nah, just pure unadulterated awesome!’ The pink pegasus remained adamant. ‘The way you drove: awesome! The way I shot: turbo-awesome! The way Dawn took charge and knew exactly what to do: most awesome!’ she continued, adding greater emphasis with each addition she listed. ‘I mean we essentially dodged their rounds and then…’ ‘So in your “highly educated” opinion our close victory was almost, if not absolutely, down solely to you?’ Nat (possibly Twenty) cut in bluntly, matching a low glare adorning many others present. Split meanwhile either remained aloof or unrepentant. ‘Yep!’ ‘Self-aggrandising…’ ‘…cow’ each Nat muttered one after the other. ‘You do realise who you’re talking to?’ Lens Flare piped up, backed by her teammates’ nods. ‘She’s always like that; don’t you realise that all of Equis obviously revolves around Split Second!’ ‘It certainly does more than it does around you!’ The other pegasus turned on her rainbow-maned rival. ‘Last time I checked they didn’t give out medals for second place, or for that matter for running away, regardless of how fast you do it!’ ‘We distracted a good third of them chasing after us, keeping them off your back! Besides we definitely did more than reverse into a ravine and get ourselves stuck!’ ‘Piss off!’ Gleaming Jewel huffed from one side, forehooves crossed sulkily. ‘That was like a total accident!’ Split ignored this interruption, maintaining her sights always on Lens. ‘You needn’t have bothered, we could have taken them all any day, and another thing…’ ‘Pack it in already!’ Dice finally stood up. ‘You two can fight on your own time if you want, or get a room if you’d prefer, but for now can it! Nopony cares. Thanks Toff, and you too Dawn, for the analysis.’ The two earth mares gratefully swapped their places with the teal unicorn, taking their seats, in actuality ammo crates set in the corner of the supply shed. Dawn let out a small sigh as she sat down. Presentations were not usually her favourite activity in the world, let alone trying to give them about herself, struggling to explain actions which she had done with little actual thought involved at the time. She had just acted because there had been a need to, whilst all her orders had been more ‘instinctual’ than actually considered.’ None of which is particularly easy to put into words that others can make any sense of, particularly as you yourself don’t really get it. ‘She’s right about one thing at least, if nothing else.’ A whispered form of Rook’s tones came from somewhere behind the cream earth mare, playing at her ear and pulling her from her thoughts. ‘You were great out there, a true Manestein in the making’ the blue unicorn complimented warmly, inescapably stirring a blush across the recipient’s features. ‘This victory is yours before anypony else’s.’ ‘Moving on, I agree with Toff that although everypony played their part luck had the greatest hoof in yesterday’s win.’ Dice effectively took up the stage, magically wiping clean the board at her back as she spoke. ‘We failed utterly to organise ourselves, we had no plan going into the match, and we failed to act as a team, all of which needs to be addressed before our next one. First and foremost therefore we need a team captain. Does anypony want the job?’ No hooves were raised and quite a few gazes took the added precaution of averting themselves, including Dawn’s. ‘O-kay, pre-emptively I’m out of the running cos I’m council liaison, but are there any suggestions?’ ‘It should be Dawn’ Split called out to fill the void, taking everypony by surprise. ‘Typical!’ the shiny and well-coiffed Silver Streak scoffed. ‘You don’t actually want to do the job, but want the power and the spotlight anyway, so you put forward your own commander. Just typical Split!’ ‘Screw off!’ It’s not like that!’ Split turned from her retort to her suggested leader, locking their eyes with an added smile. ‘In the heat of it all she was epic; without her the score would’ve been very different.’ ‘For once the Las Pegasus princess is actually right.’ Rook’s voice announced itself with its usual theatrical confidence, drawing a glower from the preceding athlete with its words. ‘From the side-lines it was obvious it was Dawn alone who beat Dodge. Atop her tank giving orders in the midst of all the chaos; she has more spirit than anypony else here.’ The Panther’s commander looked between the two making recommendations. Despite their uncharacteristic agreement in their points, both pink sportsmare and darker rebel also shared low just visible scowls in one another’s direction. ‘Have either of you considered that she might not want to be in charge?’ Blossom interrupted, seated on Dawn’s left. ‘Yeah, it should be her choice’ Coquette backed up her friend, similarly sat to her fellow earth mare’s right and just as defensive as her preceding speaker. Toffee likewise nodded her agreement, sending a supportive look Dawn’s way in accord with the other pair. ‘It’s unfair to make her do it just cos nopony else wants to be responsible.’ Well, this is new. Whilst Dawn’s mind made its grand understatement her being felt lifted from the crowd in which in reality it resided, not puffed up by pride but rather simply glowing within. As if they could read her thoughts the trio were correct, the idea of being team leader was not exactly something she relished, but more than simply reading that they were willing to rally to her side over it against everypony else. ‘It’s okay, I’ll do it if nopony else wants to’ she spoke without really thinking, surprising herself as she did so. ‘You sure?’ Her three friends spun to face her as Blossom raised the question for them all, each of them still very much in the cream coloured commander’s corner. ‘No, not really’ Dawn admitted, ‘but like I said before I’ll give it a go. Nopony else should feel forced to.’ ‘Are there any objections?’ Dice asked from the front, scanning the rows before her and finding none. ‘That’s that settled then. Next order of business: we need a team logo.’ --- Tools raged, clashing harshly in the heat of protracted battle. Its strident tones mixed and the lines between each combatant blurred, making for a single all-consuming metallic cacophony. At a lower pitch the setting’s tonal backdrop was meanwhile constructed of whirring motors and coughing engines, both as baser notes to the heavy hoofed orchestra. Like a cavernous amplifier the tank garage threw outward these sounds as a wall of noise, like some titanic predators staking its claim on its territory to the rest of creation. Seemingly without regard for this warning two figures stepped through the shed’s doors, not skipping a beat in their conversation as they went. ‘…so yeah, pretty much the skill part comes where you have to judge the distance to the target, but if you’ve got that the sights do the rest for you. As long as its aligned properly it should do all the complex maths involved for you’ Blossom concluded her explanation to her slightly shorter counterpart, much the easy rival to even the most experienced teacher. ‘Okay, so what’s the knack to judging distance then?’ Dawn added her fresh query as they shimmied their way between welding equipment and a pile of supply crates, further ducking as they passed under an engine block set floating from a winch. ‘Unhelpfully it’s just kind of something you learn, kind of like my job’s just muscle memory, or more correctly magic memory in my case. As a starting point you can use units that you know, such as how many hoofball fields it is to what you’re aiming at for example, using what you’ve already got to get your bearings. After that it’s as boring as “practice makes perfect” you know; the more you do it the better you’ll get.’ They skipped over the Little Lion’s unwound tracks, avoiding the jagged edges of their damaged flanges. ‘Unlike most other stuff though that’s possible anywhere, anytime, just pause occasionally and try to judge your surrounding landmarks. In Split’s case though she’s got biology on her side, a high level of spatial awareness is after all central in flight. That’s assuming she can actually put the effort in and focus for more than a minute’ the hazel unicorn added with a shrug and shake of her head. Dawn mulled over the other mare’s suggestions, experimenting with estimating the span between herself and the fuel pumps at the far end of the space, as well as the cranes in its ceiling. ‘Thanks Blossom.’ ‘You are allowed to shorten it like everypony else does you know’ the loader countered. ‘Bloss isn’t exactly the most inspired nickname in the world, but it’s at least more me than “Blossom”, or worse “Spring” for that matter.’ ‘Sorry, I didn’t figure you didn’t like being called that.’ ‘No, no apologies, that’s not my intention. It’s not like you came up with my name originally, plus it’s not like I truly dislike it, it’s just that it doesn’t feel like it fits, whatever the misguided parental intentions may have been. While we’re on the subject though, do you have a preference other than Dawn?’ ‘Erm… no, no nickname.’ Or at least not one worth repeating. ‘Not even “Manestein” then?’ Blossom jibbed, although light-heartedly, a knowing grin at the edges of her lips. ‘Pardon me.’ Saving Dawn from a repeat of her earlier embarrassed hue, a new voice turned the two friends about, expressing its polite syllables with a light but intrinsically Canterlottian air, not quite going as high as to sound posh, being too demure, but close. ‘Sorry, I hope I’m not interrupting.’ The slight mare attached to the out of place tone was beyond pure white, seeming somehow even paler. In this she was therefore equally at odds with the grimy working environment she was set within. More than this though, she was making an obvious effort to avoid being sullied by it, tentatively checking the floor for its many oil slicks before she let any of her hooves touch down. Past her pure whiter than white fur, her bob cut mane was almost translucent like spider silk, and even her irises denied harsh colouration, instead bearing an icy silver shade. ‘Hi… Crystal, right?’ Blossom ventured, unconfident without the aid of her usual all-knowing counterpart. ‘Yeah that’s me, hi Blossom by the way’ the colourless unicorn confirmed. ‘I… I just wanted to apologise’ she turned her address from the hazel unicorn to the pale cream comrade at her side, ‘both from me and the rest of the crew.’ ‘For what?’ Dawn’s brows creased up in a confused frown at being presented with yet another new face, not to mention one as it was in an unsolicited sorrowful expression. ‘For our substandard performance in the match’ Crystal Facet explained, finally finding a suitably clean spot on the floor in which to stop. ‘Although Ruby or Gleam won’t admit it openly, particularly the latter because it was her driving which put us in the ravine, we’re all seriously embarrassed. I just froze up, sitting staring uselessly at the radio…’ She trailed off, looking away at her forehooves. ‘Even if you’d had it on you wouldn’t have picked up anything anyway’ the other taller unicorn countered, ‘Dahl’s music had pretty much flooded the coms.’ ‘That’s not the point. We were the one black mark against the display everypony else put on, most especially by you.’ Her silver eyes risked a glance up at the newly elected team leader. ‘So yeah, I’m sorry.’ ‘Don’t say that’ Dawn countered, the blush that had been put off making itself felt across her cheeks, set in antithesis to the concerned discomfort which had appeared in her heart. ‘Everypony played their part, and for everypony it was our first real go as well. We all did well, and we all won together.’ Crystal nodded gratefully, if not with any real belief, pausing a moment before she resumed: ‘while we’re on this subject could I also ask a favour?’ ‘Sure, if I can help.’ ‘Well, please could you give us a hoof in generally getting to know the Little Lion a bit better? I really don’t want to slow you down next time.’ ‘As in?’ Blossom queried. ‘As in everything.’ Crystal gave a sheepish shrug. ‘I’m only on coms, so if I don’t screw up as usual I should be okay, but everypony else could use some help, particularly Gleam who’s at the sticks and Blue on the gun. It would be much appreciated, if it’s not too much trouble.’ ‘And the reason they’re not here asking?’ ‘Come on Blossom, you know what they can be like. On top of egos though, although the credits were an incentive, us doing this was largely mine and Ruby’s idea, to try and become known for being something other than the resident pretty airheads. It’s kind of hard to square that with asking for aid.’ ‘It’s okay, next training session we can exchange some team members and learn from each other, assuming everpony’s okay with that?’ The hazel unicorn gestured an affirmative to her commander’s question. ‘Fantastic, thank you so much!’ Crystal’s face lit up slightly, much to Dawn’s relief filled pleasure. ‘I’ll see you round. Oh and those thanks are from all of us, even if the others aren’t so good at showing it’ the colourless unicorn added as she left the other pair, carefully picking her way back to her tank. Blossom’s eyes had in this fallen squarely on Dawn, the silent look prompting a question. ‘What?’ The taller unicorn broke into a smile. ‘I’m glad that you decided to be captain’ she admitted after a moment of quiet thought. ‘Nopony, myself included, is all that good at spotting their own strengths or good points, but you’re a natural leader.’ It might be far easier to just stay bright pink you know, as opposed to this cycle of blush on blush off you’ve currently got going on. The pair moved off, almost making their final destination before being cut short as Split’s boastful voice sliced its way recognisably through the surrounding din. The mostly magenta maned pegasus was once again squaring off against her nigh perpetual nemesis, this time selecting the relatively clear airspace above the Tornado to be their battleground. ‘So what if yours is faster on paper, that hardly counts for anything if all you do with that edge is run away! On the up side though, bearing in mind what you fled from this match, I can’t wait to see how fast you go when we meet some real opposition!’ ‘Bearing in mind what you’ve just agreed to, you’re going have to come up with some way to tell Split that somepony needs her help with gunnery without inflating her ego’ Blossom observed at a mutter in Dawn’s ear. ‘There’s barely enough room for the three of us and it in the turret as it is.’ As the two duelling pegasus, one entrenched in defensive retorts whilst the other remained all heedless boasts, touched down atop the former’s tank the school council appeared unseen to all bar the audience at their back. Split was far too caught up in recounting her all-conquering awesomeness (uncharacteristically however listing it alongside Dawn’s to share in her tale’s glory) to notice their arrival. This unawareness only broke as the president sharply cleared her throat, bringing flaring wings back to their owner’s sides and silence to her lips. ‘So Split’ the council chief began in earnest, ‘I hear that the team’s first challenge fell well short of the mark. You “whupped ‘em” right?’ Surprised, it to the pink pegasus a moment to re-find her words, but when she did her self-confidence was likewise returned, to which Dice in the background winced and face-hoofed. ‘Yep pres, sure did! How about a real test next time?’ ‘I’ll see what I can come up with.’