//------------------------------// // Chapter 7: Fanning the Flames // Story: Race the Wind // by Skyblitz //------------------------------// Chapter 7: Fanning the Flames "This is something worth fighting for..." Spitfire's jaw almost dropped to the ground when her eyes found the seven blue clad pegasi standing at the far end of the stadium. Surely she must have been hallucinating, surely it couldn't be the Wonderbolts... She had to be seeing things. However when she caught Soarin's equally astonished face, she realised how real it was. The Wonderbolts - here! Her heart leapt into the stratosphere in excitement. Fleetfoot had stumbled over her own hooves as she gaped at the sight of the amazing flight team before her. "A-are those really the W-Wonderbolts?" she said to nopony in particular as she picked herself up. Spitfire didn't hear her. But why were they here? What possible reason could the most prestigious flight team in all of Equestria be doing at their humble little school? Her answer came soon enough. "Okay everypony listen up! Now you may have noticed our special guests over on the other side of the stadium, and the first thing that I ask of you is that none of you overreact when we go over to join Coach Cyclone's class. Now, the reason for the Wonderbolts being here is one I'm sure you'll all find exciting to say the least - the Wonderbolts are here to find new recruits for their squad" announced Coach Polaris, an athletic lime green mare who was considerably less formidable than Coach Cyclone. The entire class exploded with excited chattering. One pony even fainted... Spitfire couldn't believe her ears. What flashed through her mind was something along the lines of 'Wonderbolts-Here-School-Recruiting-New-Oh-Sweet-Celestia!!!'. Fleetfoot couldn't force any form of understandable words from her mouth. She started babbling half-words, so high was her excitement. Spitfire gazed over at Soarin' who seemed as dumbfounded and stunned as she did. Rapidfire had a glazed look in his eyes. The yellow mare smiled. If she knew her cousin, he'd most likely be imagining himself in one of their flight suits. "Okay everypony, follow me!" called Polaris. The class began to file towards Coach Cyclone's class at varying degrees of speed. Some mares trotted over excitedly, clearly eager to impress both the stallions in the other group and the esteemed guests that stood beside them, while others timidly trailed behind. Spitfire practically dragged Fleetfoot to follow her as the white maned pony was frozen in shock. However, Spitfire was greeted by an even more stunning sight - the sight of her colt friend trotting towards her with a huge dumb grin on his face. She couldn't help but laugh as he nuzzled her when he approached. She could practically smell the confidence and trepidation on him. "You ready?" he asked, practically bouncing on his hooves. She smiled broadly and winked at him, a gesture which she could tell made him melt inside. "Oh yeah, I am definitely - but I'm not sure about Fleetfoot..." she turned to her friend, who was almost shivering in nervousness and excitement, her eyes widening when Tempest Wind strode past her. Soarin' chuckled warmly. "ALRIGHT! Everypony I call the name of come and line up at the track!" thundered Cyclone, "Blitz... Cloud Dancer... Tornado... Stormy Days..!" The list went on, until a total of eight ponies were positioned at the starting lines. The Wonderbolts had seated themselves in some of the higher stands of the stadium to gain a better vantage point from which to oversee and judge the race. "Listen up everypony", called Polaris next to a brooding Cyclone, "the race shall consist of twenty laps, every lane in use. You are not allowed to fly above the set height markers that line the edge of the track. Fifteen feet is the maximum height allowed, so watch out if you're going to try to overtake!" Soarin' and Spitfire took it all in, watching with rapt attention as the first group of ponies readied themselves. All eyes turned to the Wonderbolt Captain Tempest Wind as he raised a forehoof, the crowd below waiting with held breaths. He dropped his leg - "GO!" The first race finished with a surprising result, with the favourite - Tornado - coming in second place to a pony called Sunburst. The rest of the ponies waited anxiously to see if their names were next on the list for Race Two. "Star Kindler... Neptune... Breezy Winds... Snowmane... Thunderfoot..." Spitfire and Soarin' breathed sighs of mixed relief and disappointment, Rapidfire and Fleetfoot doing likewise. "GO!" Race Two was much more eventful than the first, which culminated with Neptune slamming into Thunderfoot at the finish line, calling for a judges vote on the winner. The decision came that Thunderfoot won by a literal inch, much to the annoyance of Neptune, who trotted to the benches swearing and cursing all the way. Soarin' turned to Rapidfire, who was stretching his wings in preparation. "You ready buddy?” Soarin' asked, barely concealing the nervous edge to his voice. "Um... No, but might as give it all I got, right?" the light grey pony replied, his anxiety all too clear in his voice. Soarin' gave him a weak smile before slapping him heartily on the back. "Right... You'll be fine pal, you'll be a Wonderbolt yet". Rapidfire smirked as his suddenly stood up at the sound of Coach Cyclone's voice. "Whirlwind... Lightning Streak... Rapidfire..." Rapidfire gulped. He turned to Soarin', a look of extreme trepidation glued to his face. "Wish me luck," he said, managing a strained smile. Soarin' patted his friend on his withers as he turned to leave for the start line. "Go get 'em!" Soarin' rejoined Spitfire and the still petrified Fleetfoot as Rapidfire raised his wings into ready position. Spitfire waved at her cousin, who only managed a nervous half smile. Soarin's head flashed back to the time when Spitfire had done the same thing to him when on the track. Silence descended as Tempest Wind stood up from his seat once again, his shadow grey mane blowing in the light wind. "GO!" The pale blue stallion and the fiery yellow mare watched as the next group dashed from their marks. Fleetfoot watched on in sheer terror, biting the ends of her hooves as Rapidfire sped round the track, currently in third place. All watched as the group of pegasi veered around each other, constantly shifting positions as they banked, cut through or flew straight over each other to gain first place. The entire crowd gasped as Two ponies crashed into each other whilst both trying to overtake the pony in second place. The crash itself caused said pony to fly straight into the mass of tangled limbs and feathers, slamming into the unfortunate pair. Rapidfire barely managed to twist away from the ball of bodies as they came crashing towards him. He could hear Soarin' and Spitfire gasp as he flipped forwards once more, catapulting himself into second place. Soarin' and Spitfire let out a massive sigh of relief as Rapidfire spun over the collision, now racing towards the stallion in first place. Rapidfire's wings were solid blurs, and both of the watching ponies could only imagine what he must feel like. Rapidfire was always good at acceleration, but lacked when it came to overall speed. Even now the mare in third place was coming up hotly on his tail.  And there was only one lap to go... Rapidfire shook his head as beads of sweat began to fall from his brow suddenly. The Wonderbolts were watching, his friends were watching, his classmates were watching. He couldn't lose this now. With a final push of energy, Rapidfire diverted all of his final reserves into his wing muscles. Feathers began to fall away from his coverts. He had never flown so fast before in his life. The white blue tail of Whirlwind teased him as he veered round the final curve towards the finish line. "NOOO!" Rapidfire closed his eyes and pushed harder still. He felt as if his wings were on fire. Slowly, ever so slowly, he pushed ahead... The cheer from the crowd was immense as the third group finally finished. Soarin' and Spitfire hugged each other in exultation as they watched Rapidfire's muzzle cross the line a single inch ahead of Whirlwind's. The light grey stallion crashed into the track after he crossed the line. When he opened his eyes, Soarin' greeted him with an enormous goofy smile. "Ya did it buddy, you won! YOU WON!" the pale blue pegasus exclaimed whilst hugging Rapidfire's exhausted body firmly. "Wha-what..?" was all he could manage in response. Spitfire came and hugged him harder still, squeezing the last of his air reserves from him. "Well done cuz, I'm so proud of you!" she smiled warmly and kissed him on the forehead. Rapidfire, so overcome with this new revelation, collapsed in a tired mass, much to the amusement of Fleetfoot. The white maned mare had finally managed to gain so measure of composure for herself. It was probably the sight of one of her friends winning that had brought her back into sanity. Race four, however, wasn't such a time for celebrating. Hurricane had powered to victory by a whole lap. Not welcome news at all. The white stallion glared at Soarin' as he came off the track, flexing his wings and spreading them in an attempt to intimidate the shorter pegasus. Soarin' firmly held his ground as the taller blue maned pony strutted away to the benches. Race five didn't bode well either, as Storm Rider had managed to snatch victory with a cunning undertake on the last lap. Race six wasn't very good as well, as one of Hurricane's goons won the final sprint to the finish. Soarin' gulped as the grey stallion trotted off to join Hurricane with a smug grin decorating his face. "Firefly... Typhoon... Static Charge... Blossom Breeze... Spitfire" All eyes suddenly shot to the orange maned mare. Holding her head high, Spitfire smirked confidently. The names of the other called ponies were names she knew she could easily beat. Soarin' whispered gently into her ear. "Good luck Spitty" The fiery maned mane smiled at him before winking seductively. "Don't worry Soar, I got this". She made her way over to the starting line, raising her golden wings. "GO!" Spitfire smiled as she beat her wings. The force created by them hurled her straight into first place easily, leaving the rest of her group behind as she veered around the first curve of the track. She could see her friends showing their support by the benches. If her friends supported her and stood by her side, there was nothing she couldn't do...   Spitfire crossed the line a full lap ahead of the pony in second place. The roar of the crowd was almost dizzying. She the yellow mare fluttered to a halt, she was most surprised to find out that a great portion of the cheering was coming from the not-so-timid Fleetfoot. The light blue mare seemed to be caught up in the whole euphoria of her surroundings, causing Soarin' and Rapidfire to keep a certain distance away from her. The sight brought a big smile to Spitfire's face. Cyclone's voice rang out across the stadium once again as the orange maned mare rejoined her friends. "Silver Dash... Aurora... Fleetfoot..." The light blue mare stopped her cheering dead, her timid and nervous state of mind returning very rapidly. Spitfire gave her friend an affectionate hug. "You'll be fine. I know you, you're almost as fast as me. Just concentrate on the track, not on the crowd!" she said warmly. She didn't know if her words helped. "B-But what if I crash or s-somethin'? I've crashed b-b-before, like, what if I do it now? What if I c-come last? What if-" She was silenced by Rapidfire's lips pecking her cheek softly. Fleetfoot turned to her friend with a completely baffled look plastered on her face. Rapidfire only smiled. "Go get 'em... I know you can do it" The light blue mare remained dumbfounded for a few moments before her face began to lighten, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She kept her gazed fixed on Rapidfire as she slowly dragged herself to the starting line. Soarin' and Spitfire turned to the smiling stallion as Fleetfoot trotted away. "What? Like you didn't notice?" Rapidfire asked cheerily to Spitfire. His cousin giggled before shaking her head. Soarin' continued to look flabbergasted until he finally spoke up. "You like Fleetfoot?" "Now what in Equestria gave you that idea?" his friend replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm. He smirked as Soarin' tried to recall any sign that he may have missed of Rapidfire’s interest. Both of the other ponies with him laughed. Spitfire ruffled his mane. "Oh Soar’, you featherbrain, what are we gonna do with you?" she laughed. Soarin' blushing slightly. Fleetfoot's wings flapped almost automatically as she banked around the final curve of lap twenty. But two facts still stunned her more than anything else. Firstly, Rapidfire liked her? Like, really? The thought made her all warm and melty inside, and she could feel her cheeks reddening just thinking about it. She had always maybe considered dating him, but he never really seemed to like her in that way. Yes they were friends, good friends, but Fleetfoot had never believed that Rapidfire cared for her as anything other than just that. The second fact that baffled her was the fact that nopony else was in front of her as she darted down the final sprint. She was on lap twenty, that was for sure. But with no other pony in her field of vision, that could only mean... Fleetfoot's face lit up as she crossed the finish line. "I WON!" She came to a halt as the crowd cheered, her friends leading them in celebration. The little blue mare felt tingly and almost numb. She had won? She had actually managed to fly to victory in front of the Wonderbolts. As her friends came in to greet her with beaming faces, it was Rapidfire who she veered towards. She startled the light grey stallion as she raised her forelegs in a hug, which he gladly returned. She closed her eyes gleefully as she rested against her new love interest's shoulders, his wings coming round to drape over her sweating body. "Awww, you guys are so good together" Spitfire teased as the pair slowly pulled away from each other. Soarin' couldn't honestly think of a time when he was more content in the world. Everything was perfect. He met the mare of his dreams - something which he still couldn't quite believe was real. His best friends had managed to find love in each other's company, and on top of that the greatest pegasi athletes of all time were here at his school to select new members for their squad, every young pegasi's dream. Nothing could be more harmonious or liberating than being in the company of those who you care about most in the world, during a happy time of excitement and celebration. Soarin's uplifting thoughts were briefly broken by his teacher's stern voice again. "Comet Breeze...West Wind... Blackwing... Rain Runner... Soarin'...". All of his friends turned their heads to the pale blue pegasus. This was it, his chance to prove himself. Flexing his wings and ruffling his feathers, Soarin' smiled to everypony before turning away. But as the stallion started to trot towards the track, he was spun round by a welcome yellow hoof. Spitfire's lips met his own with a soft feather light touch tempered with passion. As Soarin' gazed into Spitty's unique arresting eyes, he felt his legs become jelly. She had that effect on him, and he loved it. "Lets make it a full house" Spitfire whispered, turning her head to the other two ponies, "four out of four". Soarin' winked at her confidently. "Already done" he replied slyly. Her pecked Spitty's cheek as he left. With nerve tingling excitement, Soarin' raised his powerful powder blue wings high above him into the ready position. At the same time he dragged his right forehoof across the cloud that made up the track, lowering his head and narrowing his jaded eyes. With a final glance and smile to his best friends, Soarin' eagerly awaited Tempest Wind's voice. "GO!" Like a bullet, Soarin' beat his wings hard, launching himself into second place. He took a quick glance to his left. A yellow mare was hot on his flank, gradually inching her way forward to overtake Soarin'. With a powerful tilt of his right left wing, Soarin' twisted in midair. He rolled directly in front of the sun coloured pony, clearly startling her and blocking her advance simultaneously. Extending his forelegs before him, the pale blue pegasus flapped harder. The black stallion in front of him noted his sudden burst of speed, and repeated the exact same maneuver that Soarin' carried out on the mare. But the pale blue stallion veered in the opposite direction to the black, flying through the opening caused by the other pony's banking, bringing him into tied first position. The black stallion was slightly smaller than Soarin', and therefore weighed slightly less. The minor difference however was what allowed him to edge in front of the athletic blue pegasus by a few bare feet. Soarin' knew the only way he could compensate was with sheer power, and so diverted most of his energy reserves into his beating wings muscles. After catching up, Soarin' turned to his right, locking gazes with his fellow competitor. The pony's name was Blackwing, not somepony who Soarin' talked to that often, but always seemed like a nice colt. But judging by the small smirk playing on his lips, Soarin' could tell that this pony wasn't going to let past pleasantries interfere with winning the race. Soarin' liked that... Mirroring Blackwing's smile, Soarin' pushed ever harder with his blurring wings, using skilled flying as well as force to slowly take the lead from the smaller pony. As the final lap started to come to a close, Soarin' flipped high over Blackwing's dart like form, gaining an expression of awe and amazement from the other racer. As the finish line beckoned, Soarin' turned to Blackwing. "Good race, we should try this more often." "Hehe, I'm up for that. You're a lot faster than you look, ya know." "Well thank you kindly sir," Soarin' said in his abysmal Trottingham accent. Blackwing chuckled as he started to slow down, knowing that Soarin' had already won. The pale blue pegasus smashed past the posts marking the finish line. The cheering was nothing like Soarin' had ever heard before. It was raw, primal and powerful. The pale blue pegasus gaped in awe as he saw the high number of ponies who yelled and cheered for his victory. Were these friends that Soarin' never knew he had? His musings were interrupted by a tremendously strong hug from three ponies at once. Spitty, Fleetfoot, and Rapidfire heaped their praises on him. They had done it. All four of them had won at their set races. Unfortunately, so had Hurricane and his goons.         The final race of the day ended with the victory of another of the white pegasi's lackeys. But Soarin' was so caught up in the atmosphere of winning alongside his most loved friends that he hardly deemed it important to care. But what came next certainly was important. Tempest Wind stood up tall and proud on the stadium stands, rearing high to gain everypony's attention. "Hello everypony, and well done. As you all know, we are the Wonderbolts, the most elite of the high flyers in Equestria. And all of you will know how much we demand excellence and perfection in everything that we do. Aerobatics is a hard tough sport, and so we need the best of the best to fly with us. And I can speak for my entire team when i say that we have never been so proud to witness such excellence from ones so young. Despite my next words being very clichéd, I mean every word I say - all of you here are winners. In all my years of flying I have never seen such determination and drive to excel than I have seen today." Everypony drank in the Wonderbolt captain's words eagerly, hanging on every syllable.       "But these races were done to find the strongest, the fastest, and the most determined of you all... For those are the qualities needed to be a Wonderbolt. I would ask that the eight victors of each race step forward". Eight young strong pegasi trotted forwards in a line. How fitting that four of them were the greatest of friends. Soarin', Spitfire, Fleetfoot and Rapidfire looked up at Tempest Wind with their heads held proudly, manes of dark blue, fiery orange, snow white and burned golden flowed in the breeze, making the pegasi look like something out of legend. A hush fell over the assembly of ponies as Tempest Wind spoke again. "But...we have one last test for you all before we can call you Flight Partners." This was a shock, and soon muttering and excited chattering rippled through the crowd. Soarin' shifted on his hooves intently, eager to hear what the final trial would be. "And only four of you can be accepted..."