//------------------------------// // Rapidfire (What More Can I Say?) // Story: Behind the Flight Goggles // by Crystalline Waters //------------------------------// "So make sure you get all my good qualities." "What good qualities?" "My charm, physique, the pure legend that is me." "Charm? You're kidding." "How I support the team and never hurt my friends..." "...You...are kidding, right?" "The 'fire legend was born right here at Wonderbolt Academy-" "I thought it was born in your mind." "Shut up Blaze!" Rapidfire turned around and glared at the orange mare. Her violet eyes were gleaming with amusement at the fact her comments had gotten to him at last. The cream colored stallion huffed and ran a hoof through his swept back yellow and orange mane. "Why is he going first again?" Wave Chill asked, glancing at Rainbow Dash, who sat beside Rapidfire, a piece of paper before her and a quill in hoof. "Because he wouldn't stop bugging me about it." Now that the chapters for the top four Wonderbolts had been completed, it was pretty much a free-for all as to who went next. She eventually passed around a sheet with a numbered list for who got to have their chapter next. It would have worked, if Rapidfire hadn't disregarded it completely and pestered Rainbow until she agreed to do him first. "Well, my tactic worked, didn't it? Put in that I'm smart, too." Rainbow hesitated, then smirked. "Just for that, I'm adding this whole conversation to the chapter." "What? No!" Rapidfire exclaimed, deep blue eyes widening. "Yes!" Blaze and Wave Chill cried as one. "Great, the I's have it." Rainbow grinned as she wrote furiously. "So, what else are you going to add about 'Gutter' here?" Wave Chill asked "You better put in my nickname." Rapidfire said "You...want her to put that in?" Blaze cocked an eyebrow, confused. "Well, of course. You probably don't know this Blaze, since you came to the 'bolts a few years after my class did, but I was given it because I have 'guts'. Obviously." Blaze and Wave Chill looked at each other, then back at Rapidfire. "Are you seriously as dumb as you look?" Blaze asked "What?" Rapidfire asked "Dude...we called you Gutter 'cause that's where your mind always is." Wave Chill said, snickering. "You what?!" Rapidfire stood up angrily. "Did you not know that?" Blaze asked Rainbow snickered and burst out laughing. "Dude, even I thought that once I got to know you!" "Hey!" Rapidfire dropped back down and crossed his forelegs in a pout. Rainbow laughed and began writing. Most ponies know Rapidfire as the pony that usually comes in second to Fleetfoot in the Wonderbolt Derby-before I joined up and made Fleet second, anyway, but I digress. In real life, Rapidfire isn't all he makes himself out to be. And if you read the conversation above, you'll see that. Rapid's nickname is Gutter. He's had it since he first arrived. Of course, I wasn't there, but Soarin, Fleetfoot, and Spitfire told me. Apparently they graduated the Academy in the same year as him. And when he showed up for his first day, he started flirting with some of the mares-they're retired now, obviously-and being generally obnoxious. They nicknamed him Gutter for it, with the joke it's because that's where his mind always is. Rapidfire may be rude, make bad jokes at bad times, and completely disregards Spit's title, but he's still...well, he's...okay, he's the worst. He always gets in trouble and ends up on cleaning duty. And he sometimes gets put on mess hall duty but that's really more a punishment for the rest of us. "Hey!" Rapidfire had apparently been leaning over her shoulder. "I am not that bad of a cook. Misty Fly's worse." "Ex-cuse me Rapid?" Misty Fly stalked into the room, having been passing by. "Is there something you'd like to say to my face?" "Er...I love you?" Rapidfire tried. "Ooh, Rapid's gon' get it..." Blaze teased "Take care of him for me Mist." Rainbow said "Oh don't worry, I will..." Misty Fly grasped Rapidfire's ear with her wing and dragged him out. "Owowowow! Ear, ear!" he yelped as she dragged him away. "So, you're going to put down he's annoying, right?" Blaze asked "I already did." Rainbow stuck the end of the quill in her mouth. "But there's got to be some good things about him..." "Despite his personality and his complete lack of respect for any authority figure under the rank of Royalty?" Wave Chill asked, to clarify. "Yeah, I don't think so." Blaze added "Yeah...seriously, does Rapid have any redeeming qualities?" Rainbow asked "Well...he was in my year at Wonderbolt Academy...and he wasn't so bad back then." Wave Chill began "He was?" Blaze and Rainbow asked as one. "But wait, I thought he was in the same year as Soar, Spit, and Fleet." Rainbow corrected "He was. We both were. So were a few others. Either way, he wasn't all that bad at that point." "Tell me." Rainbow prompted, grabbing a fresh sheet of paper, and sitting hunched over it, poised for writing. "Alright..." -------------------------------------- "Our group's days at Wonderbolt Academy were a bit different. Back then, you could join as soon as you came of age, which we all know is sixteen for Pegasi. It was changed after our year so by the time Blaze got in, we were the same age as her and her group, eighteen or so. But anyway, in our year at the Academy, there were plenty of fine recruits. Including our friends now, and a few more flyers who didn't quite make the cut...I remember Rapid was probably just as eager as the 'Bolt Crusaders-you know, Spit, Soar, and Fleet. The first impression he gave us was probably better than the one he gave the rest of you. It started during the first day..." "Alright, newbies! Listen up!" the Drill Sergeant-and current Captain of the Wonderbolts, Thundersnow, paced before them. "Do you think you've got what it takes to be an elite flyer?" "Yes sir!" they chorused "Well, let me be the first to tell you," he lowered the aviator sunglasses he wore and glared at them all, "YOU DON'T!" "Wait a minute!" -------------------------------------- "What?" Wave Chill asked "Those sound like the exact lines Spit told my group in my year at the Academy." "Where do you think she heard it from?" Wave Chill smirked "She adopted the glasses style from him too. I think she kind of idolized Thundersnow, for good reason. He was her predecessor as Captain, and one of the best flyers on the team." "Oh. Sorry, continue." Rainbow said, as Blaze shifted closer, looking interested. -------------------------------------- Thundersnow stalked around before the group. "If you had what it took to be an elite flyer you'd already be a Wonderbolt! Still think you're something special?" He growled in the direction of a Pegasus standing before him. "N-no sir." she mumbled, backing down. "What about you?! Think you're hot stuff?" he growled to Wave Chill, who stared calmly ahead, unfazed. He huffed in what appeared to be approval, then turned to Spitfire. "You look like the worst flyer in the whole Academy. You'll probably quit after the first day." "Thundersnow didn't really think that about her. Spitfire explained to us once while we were reminiscing that Thundersnow apparently liked using that line on the ponies he'd heard a lot about and knew would have a lot of potential." "Spit used it on me..." "Yet another thing she adopted from him. Anyway, after he said that, Spit, unlike me, actually responded..." "No sir! I am here to be a Wonderbolt sir!" Spitfire saluted with her wing. Thundersnow looked at her for a minute, and she glared right back with determination. "Maybe that's why she took a chance on Dust...because she reminded her of herself..." "I doubt it. I mean, Spits does like that, but she'd already picked and choosed-" "Not the way you're supposed to say it Blaze." "Whatever Wave. Point is, she decided she was gonna be hard on you, because you had potential. So she did. Dust probably just reminded her of how brash she obviously was to stand up to her Drill Sergeant like that." "...Right...like I was saying..." "What about you, hothead? Think you could fly past the first flagpole without getting winded?" Thundersnow asked Rapidfire "Sir, yes, sir!" "Oh, really?" "Sir, let me show you I can, sir!" His eyes narrowed, and he glanced to the side, flashing a wink and smile at his fellows. Thundersnow stepped back. "Why not. Let's have a roll call. When I call your name I want you to make yourself known. Do a flight move and follow with 'sir, I'm here, sir!' Is that clear?" "Sir yes sir!" "Chill, Wave!" Wave Chill took off, performed three loops in a row, then landed "Sir, I'm here, sir!" "Fall, Water!" "Sir, I'm here, sir!" the pony shouted after rising up, then swooping down and falling neatly into place in his same spot. "Fire, Rapid!" Rapidfire took off, did one continuous loop, circling around six times before landing. "Sir, I'm here, sir!" "Rapid's move was pretty impressive-not nearly as much as the moves Spit, Soar, and Fleet would do, but it was enough." "Flare, Spitfire!" Spitfire took off, leaving a contrail the same color as her mane, did a swoop, arch over, and dive, then landed again. "Sir, I'm here, sir!" "Fleetfoot!" Fleetfoot rose up, twirled into a corkscrew, then arched and did a face-forward corkscrew before landing. "Thir, I'm here thir!" "Shower, Sun!" "Sir, I'm here sir!" "Skies, Soarin!" Soarin took off, did a barrel roll, a corkscrew, and a twist before landing. "Sir, I'm here sir!" "Zoom, Silver!" "Sir, I'm here sir!" "See, that day, Rapid gave us the impression he wasn't going to back off, especially since he got the rest of us a chance to show what we're made of too." -------------------------------------- "Huh. So he actually didn't start out all that bad." Rainbow said "Nope. I think it was the idea of being famous that got to him in the end." "That should be in the chapter. Do you remember the moves Sil and those other cadets did?" "Nope. It's why I didn't tell them to you." "Eh. Good enough." Rainbow had been taking notes and slid the page into the notes for Rapid's chapter. She then continued the original page. According to Wave, Rapid's ego and obnoxiousness only started after he realized how famous he'd become. Of course, I'm sure lots of bolts have had their own moments of realizing this. I guess Rapid's the unlucky one that let it go to his head. Still, this proves he can actually be helpful when he wants. He gave his fellow cadets a chance to prove themselves just as much as he gave himself the chance. "I got away from Misty!" Rapidfire announced, strutting back in. "You might as well go back to her and apologize, I'm done." Rainbow told him "What?! Already?!" "Yep." "Aw, come on!" Rapidfire moaned, falling onto the couch. "I bet you filled it with stuff about how I'm the worst!" "...I think he's going to be presently surprised..." Rainbow thought with a smile as she left the room to hide the drafts.