“Let’s move it, everypony.” Misty Fly led the recruits across the compound to their new housing assignment; barracks B. It was perhaps a two-minute march, but the students from the School of Friendship suddenly found themselves someplace they did not expect themselves to be; outside the sectioned off compound that was only for recruits, and moving onto the actual campus grounds.
“Oh, wow!” Cloudy Sky whispered, more to himself than to anyone around him.
“There’s putting us here?” Silverstream, too, was stunned to find where they were going to be residing together for the next four days.
“How cool is this; we’re getting to stay on campus now! It just doesn’t get any better!” Nightflight was already scanning around the immediate vicinity, seeing a few attractive cadet mares walking to class.
“Halt!” Misty Fly stopped them just outside the barracks, making sure all the recruits from this group were present.
“All right, recruits,” Silver Zoom got their attention, “here is where you will be housed for the remainder of your time at the trials.” The collection of newbies looked up at the simple clapboard-sided building, painted a beige color with drab olive green trim surrounding the two entryway doors and the windows that lined the exterior. The whole building, while old, maintained an air of timelessness as the last of the original barracks constructed for the Wonderbolt Academy from its inception centuries ago. This structure had a long and storied past as a who’s who of flyers to have resided here at one time or another. The collective body of young flyers stood reverently beneath the aura of time it radiated.
“Find yourself a bunk and head over to the mess hall for lunch. We’re picking up where we left off, everypony, so don’t be late,” Misty Fly cautioned as she and Silver Zoom parted to let them sort out the sleeping arrangements.
The barracks welcomed them inside as two recruits pulled open the building’s double doors, the sparkling clear fitted glass panes allowing the rays of light to bathe the interior space. The aged wooden planks that composed the floor bent and flexed under the heavy load of pony hooves as the recruits each sought out a bunk for themselves. At one end of the room was a pair of walled-off separate spaces for what they guessed would be their drill instructor’s sleeping quarters. At the opposite end, an open doorway that led to what they all assumed were the bathrooms and showers.
In spite of its plain whitewashed interior walls, minimal florescent lighting and similarly lumpy bunkbeds, the place wore its age well. Maintained over the passing years by the many occupants who resided here at one time or another, the barracks stood as a legacy monument of the academy.
Silverstream and her friends staked out the bunkbeds at the far left end of the room, keeping together near the drill instructor’s quarters. Stormbringer and Wind Raider, seeing the two freakbeaks along with their pony-pals clustered at one end of the room, moved to the opposite end, close to where the showers were.
“Just keep to your end of the barracks and we’ll all get along fine,” Stormbringer warned as he and Wind Raider walked toward the door, exiting and glaring balefully right at the griffon. Gallus wasn’t intimidated.
“Fine! The same goes to you and your loser friends!” he sneered back at the two ponies as they left the barracks, already disliking their new living arrangements. Solar Flare was about to say something to Gallus when the bugle call finally went out for the recruits to head for the mess hall; lunch was being served.
“Don’t waste time bickering with those two, Gallus. They’re not worth your energy.” The husky stallion put a reassuring wing on his friend’s back.
“I know, but it stinks that we have to be housed in the same barracks as those jerks.” Gallus couldn’t help sounding put off, wondering if there was going to be a problem with some of these ponies later on.
“C’mon, let’s go grab a bite and forget about it.” Solar Flare didn’t want Gallus to be distracted by those two. They had plans to work together and show what a pony and griffon could do.
“You guys don’t like the living quarters, I’d guess, by the looks on your faces.” Brightstar was waiting by the door to the mess hall. Their friends were already inside and holding their places at the table. Solar Flare sighed a little.
“We had some words with Stormbringer on the way out. He and Wind Raider won’t make this easy for any of us.”
“We’ll just keep an eye on them. You know, to make sure they don’t try any funny stuff,” answered Brightstar soothingly. Once inside the mess hall and sitting with friends again, the weight of the sleeping arrangements didn’t bother Gallus as much. There was too much excitement in the anticipation of getting to fly for evaluation for the first time. The whole room was a buzz of energy; a most delicious and palpable anticipation for all. The time for talk was over. The time to show what a flyer had was nearly upon them.
===*****===
“Oh-h-h, this is going to be great!” Silverstream could barely contain herself. She and her friends clustered together, awaiting the next Wonderbolt team member to instruct this next and most anticipated part of the trials; a first solo flight. All the recruits stood near the bulletin board, most watching the door from the main classroom building to see who was coming to post the next trial for them.
“I know! We’ve all been waiting for this!” Firebolt found Silverstream’s excitement infectious and the two girls giggled like fillies. Every recruit was chattering away, each telling the pony closest to them how great their first routine was going to be and how they were going to impress Commander Spitfire to no end.
Gallus and Solar Flare were quietly but intensively planning their routine between them.
“I can’t wait to get started.” Nightflight pawed at the ground with a forehoof.
“Me too. By the looks of every flyer here, there’s going to be some real contenders,” Brightstar could see the hunger in her friend’s eyes, eager to get on with the flying.
Cloudy Sky took another deep breath and exhaled slowly, trying to not let his nervousness get to him. He had a nice, simple four-move routine, nothing fancy, just something he was sure he could do. But doing it in front of all the Wonderbolts, their C.O., and the other recruits was going to be daunting.
The sound of a door opening came from the classroom building, causing every recruit to turn to look. The silence was deafening as Blaze walked closer; all the recruits’ eyes were on her and the clipboard she held.
“Good afternoon, newbies!” Blaze announced, tacking up the two sheets of paper to the board.
“Good afternoon, ma’am!” they barked back at her.
“Alright, everypony, listen up! We’re now ready to see your first forays into precision flight this afternoon. I want all of you to head to the opposite end of the field where you will meet the instructors who will be doing your evaluations. Remember, scoring for your first routine is on precision and successful completion. Don’t worry about doing flashy tricks; that’s not what this part is about. We are evaluating your skills and abilities, not your hype. Understood?”
“Yes, ma’am!” they shouted back. Blaze pointed with her wing.
“Well then, what in Tartarus are you doing standing around here for? Get going! Move it! Move it! Move it!” she ordered, and the group noisily ran or flew off.
Sky Stinger and Vapor Trail watched as the small phalanx of recruits headed right for them.
“You set, Vapor?” Sky Stinger glanced back as his partner, seeing her clutching the clipboard given to her by their captain. She didn’t answer aloud; only smiled and nodded nervously. In seconds, the group was right in front of them, excited and eager for their first official flight. Sky Stinger took control, getting the high-strung recruits in line.
“All right, all right, settle down, everypony, and listen up,” Sky Stinger got their attention, “there’s lots to get through so let’s not waste any time. My name is Sky Stinger and this is my fellow instructor, Vapor Trail. I have right here the routines you wrote out in the classroom lectures for you to perform.” He held up his clipboard for all to see. “We have set aside most of the afternoon for practice on those routines and then you will showcase what you’ve learned today.”
Vapor Trail continued. “If any flyer needs help or has questions about how to perform their maneuvers in flight, myself and Sky Stinger are here to assist. All flyers that complete their routine are to see the Wonderbolt team captain to begin your first level of synchronized flight instruction immediately. There is to be no break in training until mealtime. Does everypony here understand what to do?”
“Yes, ma’am,” they responded.
“Sky Stinger and I will be going around to watch and help. So, everypony, let’s get started.” Vapor Trail looked at all the smiling, eager faces of the recruits, hungry to show her and Sky Stinger all they knew.
Sky Stinger handed back their submissions, watching the score of fresh-faced flyers quickly scatter off in the designated area of the field. He walked over to Vapor Trail, whispering in her ear.
“Well, so far so good. I don’t foresee us having any problems with this group.” Sky Stinger was sure this was going to be a cakewalk for them. Their first instruction assignment as acting Wonderbolt team members was going to be great.
“Let’s hope so.” Vapor Trail wished she were as sure as he was. Classroom teaching was one thing. But being an instructor for the academy trials was a whole other scene that neither one had experience with.
“Relax, Vapor. What could possibly go wrong?” Sky Stinger was less concerned, positive they could handle anything that came up.
=====*****=====
Rainbow Dash watched as Spitfire launched into her usual opening routine, getting in the faces of a couple of newbie recruits and watching said recruits simply melt under her shouts and glaring. It never ceased to amuse any Wonderbolt team member at a first review to see a newbie intimidated by Commander Spitfire. They all remembered when it was they who were shaking in their horseshoes under her first once-over that dripped with judgement.
“That’s right, newbie! You’re not hot stuff!” Spitfire shouted in the face of one of the new recruits, causing the stallion’s knees to buckle slightly with fright. Spitfire moved further down the line, eyeing each recruit with the same toughness. “If any of you were as half as good as your submissions claimed you were, you’d already be Wonderbolts!”
The two dozen new arrivals stood at attention, trying not to let their new C.O. scare them. Although this was always fun to watch, Rainbow Dash kept sneaking looks over at the activities field, seeing her students along with the other recruits, starting their first practice session. More than anything, she wanted to be there for them and their clutch of friends; to be supportive and help them achieve their goals. But she couldn’t. That wasn’t her assignment. Her team and her C.O. were counting on her.
“Now give me five-hundred laps staring right now! Go! Go! Go!” Spitfire ordered and some of the recruits took to the air while some still stood uncertainly on the tarmac. Rainbow Dash and her squad made a line for the recruits, hollering at them to get moving. Spitfire conferred with her squad leaders once the new arrivals were in the air.
“You got the assignments worked out for your squad, Crash? Time is critical.” Spitfire reached for Rainbow Dash’s clipboard, looking over what her number two flyer had planned.
“All set, ma’am. We’re ready to do our jobs.” Rainbow Dash stood tall and proud in front of her squad; three veteran Wonderbolts and two Wonderbolt reservists, prepared for this new duty. Spitfire silently nodded in agreement as Rainbow Dash listed off the names and duties assigned to them. One choice caught her attention.
“Thunderlane’s teaching again?” She raised an eyebrow at the team’s co-captain. Rainbow Dash just gave her a little shrug and a quick grin.
“Actually, he requested the duty. He said he enjoyed doing it.”
“Whatever.” Spitfire returned to looking over the paperwork. “Make sure Mountain Haze gets out of the classroom for some time flying. I know he’s something of a ‘book horse’ but don’t let him get out of his flight practice.” Spitfire returned the clipboard to Rainbow Dash, feeling a bit more assured now that things were underway and her two squads were primed and ready.
“Yes, ma’am.” Rainbow Dash was very pleased with herself. The fact that her choices for duty for each of her group hadn’t been changed by Spitfire meant a lot to her. Knowing her C.O. trusted her decision-making as a leader was a pretty awesome feeling.
She stood next to Soarin and watched as the fresh batch of recruits came in for a thunderous crash landing at Spitfire’s whistle.
“That was pathetic! Where did all of you learn to fly anyway? The circus?” Spitfire proceeded to take them apart further for their mediocre flying. Rainbow Dash’s whole squad would be busy this afternoon, with how much work the new arrivals were going to need. She was thankful she had two good ponies who could teach.
=====*****=====
Silverstream and her companions staked out one corner of the activities field for themselves, furthest away from the instructors. Solar Flare was first up.
“Watch this!” he bragged, taking off very quickly and gaining altitude.
Whoosh! He was off and into his routine, climbing high to begin his first try.
“He’s fast!” Firebolt was impressed by her soft-spoken friend’s rapid ascent into the air.
“Look at him go!” Silverstream clapped her talons excitedly. The companions watched Solar Flare start his routine and manage to get the first three maneuvers correct, only to find himself facing the wrong way from over spinning his loop and stopping in mid-air to reorient his body. His recovery was sloppy as he tried to make up for the mistimed part and he ended up missing the last loop he had planned to do, then stumbled forward to his knees when he tried to hit the landing correctly. He was huffing and puffing harder then he’d anticipated.
“I… was a… total mess… up there!” Solar Flare gasped for breath.
“What went wrong? You were doing so great,” asked Firebolt.
“This is so much harder to do then it is to write down on paper. My timing is all over the place.” He knew this was going to be the toughest thing for him. He was a strong, tough pony but not necessarily a graceful one in flight. Flying with a plan was more difficult than he had first thought.
“I’ll go next.” Nightflight took off, getting up to height. He also flew through the first three moves of his routine only to mess up terribly when trying to do the corkscrew spiral down, going much too fast and spinning for too long, and then pulling up out of the move just as he was going to hit the ground. Nightflight, too, made a not-so-graceful landing, stumbling forward off his hooves and onto the ground. He hauled himself up, slightly embarrassed.
“That was awful!” Nightflight cursed at himself. “I think we need to refresh ourselves with the textbook some more.” This was going to take some serious reviewing to get right.
“Hold up, let me go before you start digging through the book again.” Firebolt was not going to let them start second-guessing themselves. She would show them what to do. “Try to follow what I’m doing.”
The friends watched as Firebolt took off from a dead stop up into the air, gaining some altitude before she started. The fiery-maned pony had enough experience in trick flight to be able to fly freestyle with the best of the recruits here. She launched into six of her favorite flight moves, albeit very quickly and not overly gracefully, to demonstrate how a routine ought to look.
She landed precisely on her hooves in front of them, leaving them wondering at how she made it look so easy. Slightly winded, she was all smiles now at the sight of how much she had impressed her friends. “See? Something like that.”
“That was something.” Silverstream was in awe of how quickly Firebolt could put moves together and make it seem as natural as anything. She had outdone both Nightflight and Solar Flare in one go. Both stallions were somewhat humbled.
“Thanks! I’ve practiced a lot for the trials. It took a long time to understand what to do.”
“Let me see if I can match you.” Brightstar took a short run before launching herself into the air, climbing steadily higher. She got to the height she needed and started her run, flying through five of the moves she wanted to perform.
“Wow! Look at Brightstar go! She’s great!” Cloudy Sky cheered for her, watching her move along through the maneuvers and only stumble a little as she landed on the ground at the conclusion. She, too, was panting but not as much as either of the boys had.
“You’re really good, Brightstar! How did you do that?” Cloudy Sky was eager to know her secrets.
“Practice, Cloudy. Just lots of practice.”
“Let me try next. I think I know what to do.” Gallus was ready to give it his all, wanting to push himself for this next trial. He crouched into his launch position and gave a good solid thrust up, getting up into the sky quickly. He waved to them before plunging into a dive, building up speed before he pulled up out the dive and went into a zooming climb straight up into his first maneuver.
Up and up he went, reaching the zenith of his momentum, hanging motionless in the air for a second or two before falling backwards briefly. He shifted his wings forward slightly and extended his hind legs out more to catch the wind of his fall which allowed him flip forward and into the dive.
“He got the stall turn right,” Firebolt watched with great intensity, seeing her ‘student’ trying what she and Razzle Dazzle had taught him this morning.
Gallus fell downward into a slow clockwise corkscrew, his eyes focusing on one spot on the ground below so as to limit the dizzying effect on his senses. He spun himself around no less than six times before pulling up and into the first part of a figure-eight.
“Wahoo! Go Gallus!” Nightflight hooted when seeing the griffon attempting such a tough series of tricks.
“Nice moves!” Firebolt was impressed by how Gallus took the harder way into doing a figure-eight; starting from the outside loop rather than the inside.
But the griffon quickly ran into trouble. He flew through the first two turns but then lost control, flipping end over end in the air. Dizzy, the griffon glided down on unsteady wings, tripping over his paws and talons, barely staying upright as his head spun around and around. He leaned on Cloudy Sky to stay on his feet, holding his head.
“That was awful.” Gallus grumbled, wondering just how bad he looked to his friends. But Cloudy Sky was first to cheer him on.
“No way, Gallus. You did those first tricks all right.” Gallus was not one to take false praise or compliments but knew Cloudy Sky was being honest.
The griffon gave the pony a small smile. “Thanks.”
“I’ll go next. I’m not sure I’m going to be very good at this.” Silverstream moved out onto open ground and launched herself up into the air, flying high above their heads to what she thought was a safe altitude.
“Here I go!” She yelled down to them, hovering in the air for a few seconds as she began her routine. Despite never having done any substantial trick flying in her life, Silverstream glided easily through her six flight maneuvers, only missing the transition between her flying inverted to the Cloudsdale-Eight maneuver.
“Hey, check out the competition! Looks like some flyer’s been holding out on us!” Silverstream’s constant denials of her skills had led Nightflight to expect a much less impressive first flight from his hippogriff friend, but she’d surprised him greatly.
But Silverstream’s ending came with a scare. Turning downward into her loop, she misestimated the arc she was flying and nearly collided with two of her friends as she reached the bottom of the loop.
“Look out!” Solar Flare dove out to one side, knocking Firebolt over in the process and sending their friends scurrying out of the way. Silverstream cut her routine short, doing a quick turnaround, and landed close by. She came running back over, worried she’d might have struck them.
“I’m sorry! I’m sorry; totally my fault. Is everycreature okay?” She looked over the three ponies as they got back up off the ground.
“That was a close one.” Solar Flare brushed off the dirt from his uniform, a little shaken but unhurt.
“That was exciting! Can you do that again?” Razzle Dazzle squealed, loving the rush of wind and the thrill of being so close to a creature in flight. Her new acquaintances looked at her oddly, as if she had said something wrong.
“I’d like not to get walloped, thank you very much.” Gallus shuddered at the thought of feeling such an impact.
“Let’s all stand back and give space to whomever is flying, right? Safety first?” Brightstar took the lead, stepping back to make room. They agreed, giving her a quick nod and stepping back.
“Smart pony.” Nightflight was glad someone was thinking ahead.
“Who wants to try next?” Firebolt was looking right at Cloudy Sky, eager to help him get through this. Cloudy Sky shrank back a little, intimidated after seeing his more-skilled friends struggle. Nightflight put a forehoof on the youngest stallion of their group, encouraging him.
“C’mon, Cloudy. Show us what you’ve got.”
Cloudy Sky did his best to gulp down his nervousness. Brightstar was right there with Nightflight, making sure Cloudy Sky felt supported.
“You can do it, Cloudy. Just give it your best try.”
“Yeah! Clou-dee! Clou-dee! Clou-dee!” Razzle Dazzle started cheering for him, and the rest quickly joined her.
“Clou-dee! Clou-dee! Clou-dee!” They all started chanting for him, clapping their forehooves and talons, making him blush. He stepped forward onto the grass.
“Okay, I’ll try.” He took a deep, cleansing breath and then took off into the air, his mind racing.
He got up to the proper height, flying around in a lazy circle before beginning. His friends watched intensely as he began. Cloudy Sky started out simply enough, executing a clean wingover and pulling out in an inverted position, flying upside down.
“Nice…clean…” Solar Flare muttered, more to himself then to his friends.
But Cloudy Sky was having trouble already; so disorienting was it for him to fly upside down that he couldn’t maintain level flight. He wove up and down unsteadily, barely able to reorient himself back upright in time for his next move.
Dizzy with the blood draining from his head so suddenly, Cloudy Sky swung his hind legs around, causing his body to swing in a lazy series of falling pirouettes, rather than a tight circular descending pattern as his shaky first attempt at a Flat Spin maneuver.
“That’s not going to cut it.” Firebolt’s heart fell a little at the sight of Cloudy Sky’s weak flying skill, getting worse as he went along.
Out of the final spin and into his last trick; a ‘flipty loop’ like Razzle Dazzle had taught him, with his head still dizzy from the spinning, he managed to level off and set himself up for it.
I’m gonna get this right! I have to get this right! Everycreature is watching me! Cloudy Sky told himself, beginning the first part of the outside loop.
“He’s going for it!” Razzle Dazzle squealed while clapping her front hooves together.
The ground came rushing up to meet his face, scaring him. Cloudy Sky, with all his strength, twisted his body around as hard as he could, getting himself oriented correctly to do the inward loop.
Zoom! He whizzed past his friends, continuing the trick and surprising himself along the way.
I did it! I really did it! He momentarily cheered for himself, elated in his success as he completed the inward loop. Now he had to finish the outward loop, twisting his body once again so as to finish the trick and then go for his landing.
“He’s got it! He’s got it! Go, Cloudy, go!” Silverstream cheered Cloudy Sky on, seeing him get the hardest part of his routine correct.
“C’mon, Cloudy, hit that landing!” Gallus, too, shouted encouragement.
But the end came very quickly for him; he finished his outward loop and flapped his wings hard, futilely attempting to slow his momentum down enough to land.
“Cloudy, slow down!” Brightstar yelled, but it was too late. Cloudy Sky couldn’t slow down in time. He came rushing in, tripping as his hooves touched down and catapulting him forward to smack the grassy field on his belly, skidding along the ground for a good thirty feet or so before coming to a halt and lying there crumpled up and motionless. His friends ran to him.
“Cloudy, are you okay?” Firebolt was first to his side, wanting to see if her ‘student’ was unhurt.
“Ow-w-w-w!” He groaned out loud, the pain from the impact curling him into a tight ball.
“How bad is it? Should we call for a stretcher?” Silverstream looked to her friends, thinking they needed to get Cloudy Sky to the infirmary for some medical attention.
“What did you hurt?” Solar Flare saw the particular way that Cloudy Sky lay scrunched up on the ground, moaning in agony.
“I… I totally whacked my orchids when I hit the ground! Oh geez! The pain; the pain!” He rolled around a little, continuing to moan. Nightflight, Solar Flare and Gallus tried to hide their smirks, aware of just what he had hit against the ground.
“His what?” Razzle Dazzle looked to Firebolt for an answer. Firebolt and Brightstar blushed a little at her question. Silverstream was trying to cover her beak with her talons, holding back a chuckle.
“You know,” Firebolt made a rolling hoof gesture in the air, smirking and not really looking at Razzle Dazzle, “his… his stuff.” That didn’t clear up anything for the lavender mare.
“Huh?”
Gallus attempted to clue her in on male anatomy. “His twig and berries? His bread and two veg?” Razzle Dazzle’s confused expression didn’t change. “His rattle and flute? His stem and leaves? His carrot and apples?” Silverstream finally stepped in and slapped a talon over Gallus’ mouth when it started to look like he might be getting carried away.
“His private parts, Razzle,” she said gently. The other girls were rolling their eyes at Gallus’ euphemistic litany.
“Oh, that.” Razzle Dazzle was actually relieved. “I thought it was something serious, like breaking a wing or something.” The boys did all they could not to smile or laugh even while being slightly pop-eyed at Razzle Dazzle’s odd response; it was a guy thing. Every male creature at some point in their life had had a ‘personal’ accident like that and they knew what kind of pain Cloudy Sky was in. Finally, Gallus carefully helped Cloudy Sky to his hooves.
“C’mon, Cloudy. Just walk around for a bit, that’ll make the pain subside.” He tried not to smile, seeing Cloudy Sky staggering on his hooves somewhat. His injury elicited looks of sympathy from the girls, able to imagine how much it was hurting Cloudy Sky.
Two other mares that’d seen Cloudy Sky’s less-than-spectacular landing from close by openly mocked him.
“That’s your routine?” The pink mare’s voice dripped with sarcasm. “Maybe if you were going for a comedy routine, you’d pass. But if that’s the best you’ve got, you should just quit now and avoid embarrassing yourself in front of the Wonderbolts.”
The red mare from the same group piped up. “My little sister can do better tricks then you; she’s probably half your age and twice as skilled! You haven’t got a chance!”
Her words cut him deep, because he knew she was probably right. He wasn’t a great flyer, not like his friends and certainly not like the other recruits selected for this opportunity. The sound of those two female voices laughing in his ears as they pointed right at him had to be the most humiliating moment he’d ever felt in his young life.
“Don’t laugh at my friend.” Gallus warned the trio of ponies. “He’s new to this; he’s never done stunt flying before.”
The two girls continued to snicker at him. “’New to this’? Oh-h-h-h,” continued the pink mare, “I’m guessing he’s just one of those pathetic ponies who won some two-bit flight competition for a chance to try out for the academy, right? He’s not a real flyer.”
Brightstar marched over, infuriated by the comments coming from the two recruit mares. She didn’t miss the injured look on Cloudy Sky’s face; his confidence was shaken enough as it was. She wouldn’t allow that to happen to her friend.
“Oh, and I suppose either of you two are so much better at this; so much so that you can put others down for trying?” Brightstar stepped closer to the two girls; her wings mantling in anger. Like Solar Flare, she had a real dislike of bullies.
“Pbbth, well, yeah! I mean, look at him; he’s puny and not very good at all.” The pink mare seemed unafraid of Brightstar’s closeness but the other backed away a few steps at the sight of Brightstar’s expression.
“So, I guess you could easily do his routine, right? You being so much of a superior flyer than him, right?” There was an aggressive edge to her speech, slightly mocking the mare’s west-coast Applewood way of speaking; daring this mare to put her wings where her mouth was.
“I could, but why waste my time when I need to practice the routine that’s going to get me past this trial and onto the next.” The pink mare began to turn her back, dismissing Brightstar with a flippant wave of her wing.
An aqua-blue stallion came over to defuse the tense moment, trying to pull his partner away. “C’mon, Sunglow, let’s get back to our practicing. Just let them be.”
“That’s because you can’t do his routine. You’re not good enough.” Brightstar goaded her.
The pink mare stopped and turned back around, scowling at her bright yellow adversary. Brightstar eyed Sunglow up and down, sneering a little.
“You think I can’t do that stupid routine of his?” Sunglow didn’t like the way Brightstar looked down at her.
“Oh, I don’t think you can’t do it, I know you can’t do it because he’s better flyer then you’ll ever be.” Brightstar snarled, laying her ears flat.
This was something neither of the guys never suspected of Brightstar. She was so laid back and easygoing, never showing them any kind of ‘military tough girl’ attitude. But Sunglow wasn’t going to take anypony’s guff about who was or wasn’t a good flyer. She would prove them wrong.
“Fine. Step aside, losers, and let a real recruit show you how it’s done.” Sunglow pushed aside Brightstar with a wing, getting the space clear. She took off into the sky, getting up high in the air and went into the routine. Her arrogance made her sloppy, her transitions between moves done either too soon or too late. When Sunglow attempted the ‘flipty loop’ move of Razzle Dazzle’s, she mistimed the transition and went sailing off, crashing into the ground. Red-faced, she tried to collect her dignity as she pulled herself up to her hooves. Brushing off the grime from her formerly clean uniform, she desperately tried not to look at Brightstar’s grim smile as she backed away.
“C’mon, we still have work to do.” The same aqua-blue stallion who’d tried to deescalate the moment herded the two mares away, looking suitably mortified by Sunglow’s actions. Cloudy Sky bit down on his lower lip, trying not to laugh. Brightstar looked uncharacteristically smug.
“Let’s go, Cloudy, we should get back to practicing.” She led the way back to where their friends were waiting. Cloudy Sky didn’t feel so terrible about his attempt anymore. He remembered what Professor Dash had said; that he should rely on his friends who were there for him. He trotted after to catch up with Brightstar, wanting to walk by her side and thank her for doing that. Gallus only grinned as he walked behind them.
“What was that all about?” Solar Flare asked the obvious question, once they rejoined their group.
“Let’s just say,” Brightstar stopped in front of her friends, casting a reassuring smile at Cloudy Sky, “I don’t like bullies either.” He blushed a little, feeling suddenly warmer in his uniform than a moment ago.
“Oh, oh, oh! It’s my turn! It’s my turn!” Razzle Dazzle bobbed up and down on her hooves, excited to show all her new friends how she could fly. She stepped out onto the grassy field, stretching her wings in preparation. Firebolt had the copy of Razzle Dazzle’s routine, remembering what Thunderlane had said about paring down the overly complex first routine.
“Alright, Razzle, let’s see if we can-” But Firebolt never got the chance to complete her sentence as the lavender mare with the bouncy curls launched herself up into the sky.
“Ooh we-e-e-e-e-e!” Razzle Dazzle squealed out loud as she went into her ‘routine’, laughing all the while. What the friends witnessed was astounding to the point of impossibility. It could only be described as the manifestation of pure joy in flight. They watched as Razzle Dazzle twisted and turned her body, doing just about every aerial trick move they’d read about in the first chapters of their textbooks this morning, and more.
“I don’t believe it!” Solar Flare’s mouth fell open, stunned by the mare’s flight skill. “How is she doing that?” Firebolt only shook her head a little, never taking her eyes off Razzle Dazzle as she reached over to shut his mouth with a forehoof. She, too, was made speechless by Razzle Dazzle’s fluid-like movements in the air.
“Sweet Celestia’s cutie mark! She’s amazing!” Nightflight swore.
“Oh… wow.” Cloudy Sky was awestruck and humbled, seeing Razzle Dazzle’s effortless flying. The lavender mare was giggling like a filly the whole time, clearly enjoying herself.
“She’s been holding out on us! Go Razzle!” Gallus clenched his talons and pumped an approving fist at the chatty mare as she flew by.
“Boy, are Commander Spitfire and the Wonderbolts in for a surprise.” Silverstream clapped her talons, excited to watch such an amazing performance.
“She’s got the goods to make it, that’s for sure.” Brightstar was impressed, not having expected the flighty mare to be such a talented flyer.
If she’s this good, why was she put in the Wing Pony class? This doesn’t make much sense. Firebolt could not understand it. This mare was flying circles, literally, around them talent-wise but had been put in the same class with her, Gallus and Cloudy Sky.
Razzle Dazzle did two back-to-back loop-de-loops before coming in for a landing close to where her friends were standing. With a firm thud, her hooves hit the ground, making a near perfect textbook landing. She stood proud and tall, her wings extended in a bit of showponyship.
“Ta-dah!” Razzle Dazzle finished. There was a brief moment of silence, with none of them sure if what they’d just seen was actually real. Then they all broke out in cheers.
“You’re amazing, Razzle Dazzle!” Cloudy Sky was so in awe of her flight skills, making them all seem like rank amateurs.
“Really? You think so?” She looked to her new friends for confirmation, wondering if they really meant it.
“Are you kidding me, Razzle? Commander Spitfire and the other Wonderbolts are going to be blown away.” Nightflight had no doubt in his mind about it. He couldn’t wait to see the other recruits’ reactions when they saw her fly for evaluation. She was going to intimidate them all.
“Definitely!” Solar Flare was also positive of her ability to impress.
“You got my approval. They’d better watch out for you.” Silverstream clapped her talons. She was extra pleased Razzle Dazzle was part of their group now.
“Mm-hmm!” Gallus gave her a nod, grinning all the while. Here was a pony he was eager to fly with; one who showed superior flying skills.
“That’s so nice of you to say!” Razzle Dazzle felt lucky to have met some flyers who liked her. The two instructors for the trial came over to check up on the biggest group that was working together.
“Hey, I caught sight of that last flyer’s practice run; who was that?” Sky Stinger inquired.
“It was Razzle Dazzle; isn’t she amazing?” Cloudy Sky was the first to point her out to the instructors, causing Razzle Dazzle to blush slightly.
“You are a very gifted flyer, young lady.” Vapor Trail stepped closer, “What class were you assigned to?”
“Wing Pony class, ma’am,” Razzle Dazzle’s words echoed with pride. Her response stunned both instructors.
“Wing Pony class?” Sky Stinger wasn’t sure if he’d heard right.
“Yes, sir. It was a surprise to us as well. She is some special kind of flyer.” Firebolt had met great flyers before, but Razzle Dazzle had just outdone most of them with sheer zest and skill.
“Well, whatever the reason, after seeing what you can do, I don’t foresee you having any trouble passing this trial.” Sky Stinger’s words boosted her confidence wonderfully.
“Did any of you have questions about your routines or need some help?” Vapor Trail walked around the eight of them, checking with each to make sure they were on track.
“Well,” Solar Flare was the first to speak up, “I think all of us could use a little help getting through our routines. Turns out flying them is a bit tougher than just writing them out,” he finished with a wry smile.
Only Firebolt did not agree wholeheartedly with Solar Flare’s suggestion. She felt her moment to shine as a group leader was slipping away; where she would show that she could be a team leader by helping her friends with their routines. Doing so would make her stand out among the other recruits.
“I’m sure we’re fine just working together.” She gently tried to turn the instructors away, wanting her fellow recruits to ask her for help instead.
“If it’s not a bother, ma’am, could you watch us and offer any suggestions?” Cloudy Sky wanted to pass this trial very much and was eager to get all the help he could. He looked past Firebolt to the instructors standing behind her for guidance, missing Firebolt’s mildly wounded look at being passed over.
“But, Cloudy, I can show you-”
“Let’s see what your routines are and we’ll help out as best we can. But we can’t spend too much time, we have to keep watch on everypony here.” Vapor Trail stepped around and took the small collection of papers out of Firebolt’s hooves, taking control away from her. Reluctantly, Firebolt agreed, going with the flow of her friends, in spite of her belief that they were fine on their own.
“Let’s have a look here,” Sky Stinger looked over what tricks they’d chosen on each of the routines, answering questions about this or that aspect.
“How about each of you fly for us and we’ll see what needs help.” Vapor Trail and Sky Stinger watched Brightstar, Razzle Dazzle, and Firebolt each perform their routines, picking out the small errors that would be counted against them when it was time.
“You three girls are definitely ready for your first solo flights. I don’t think there’s much either of us could offer that would help out. Keep limber for now and be ready to fly when you’re called.” The three mares grinned excitedly at one another.
For the next ten minutes or so, the two reservists did what they could to help the flyers who needed the most attention before moving on to the next group. After watching both Gallus and Silverstream fly, it was about helping them get the transitions between the moves correct and smoothed out for each of them. For Solar Flare and Nightflight, it was modifying or reducing the moves so they could perform them correctly rather than how they dreamed of performing them. Nightflight was reluctant to tone down his routine, feeling this was the first chance to show his stuff to the instructors and Commander Spitfire.
“Remember, you guys, it’s just the first solo flight. It doesn’t have to be big and fancy, just correct. Later on during the formation flying trials you’ll get to show off a bit more.” Sky Stinger urged them to simplify the routines and pick just one ‘special’ move to showcase their talents, if they were so insistent.
Solar Flare revamped his whole routine; having Vapor Trail point out how to string the revised moves together was a huge help. Firebolt offered suggestions, but they were quickly discarded in favor of something from the instructors. Firebolt tried not to take it personally. The instructors were, after all, real Wonderbolt reservists. She saw how Cloudy Sky looked at them; kind of like a star-struck fan. How could she compete with that?
When Solar Flare went to retry his routine, he found the transitions between tricks much easier thanks to Vapor Trail’s help. He was smiling from ear to ear when he landed, much more confident now than when they first started.
“See? Not so hard to do now? Simpler is sometimes better.” Vapor Trail was pleased to see how much improvement the young stallion had made in such a short time. “I think we’re done here for now. Good luck on the first flights.”
She and Sky Stinger moved on to the next group of flyers down the field a short distance, ready to help out all they could. The group went back to work in earnest, more focused then before. With Gallus and Silverstream now feeling up to the task with some more practice runs, Solar Flare and Nightflight having tweaked their routines and flown them a few times too, and Firebolt, Brightstar, and Razzle Dazzle primed and ready for their trial, that only left Cloudy Sky in need of help.
“We’d best hurry up and try for anoth-” Firebolt was cut off by the sound of a loud blaring whistle.
“First flyers ready for their trial, come down to this end of the field!” shouted Sky Stinger, waving them in.
“Uh oh.” Cloudy Sky started to worry. “I’m… I’m not ready yet. I need more time to practice.” He took a step back, not wanting to leave the practice area just yet.
“Already? I thought we’d have more time than this.” Nightflight knew they hadn’t spent enough time practicing. It was still too soon.
Several other recruits were heading over to where the two instructors stood, getting the names written down and into a running order. Firebolt, Razzle Dazzle, and Brightstar were ready and headed off to join them.
“We’re going first and then coming back to give you guys some more help.” Brightstar assured her friends, seeing Cloudy Sky still looking worried. Solar Flare and Gallus got his attention away from the small group of first attempt flyers.
“We’ve still got time. We’ll stay here and help until you feel sure. Just remember, Cloudy, it’s our first times doing this too,” Solar Flare reassured him. Knowing his friends were just as raw and green as he was made Cloudy Sky a little less worried. They were all here to help him, just like Professor Dash said.
“Thanks, you guys.” The butterflies in his stomach calmed down some. “I’d best go fly my routine again.”
He took off into the air, trying to get through the four maneuvers as smoothly as possible. His friends watched from down below.
Not much time left; I’ve got to make this practice count! He was suddenly surprised to find someone flying alongside him. It was Silverstream.
“Hey, I had an idea. Why don’t I fly along with you through your routine? That way if you need help, I’ll be right next to you.” Silverstream wanted him to get through this as much as he did.
“Do you think it would help?” Not that Cloudy Sky would turn away her assistance; he just found the offer pleasantly unexpected.
“It couldn’t hurt, could it?” Not much of an answer from the hippogriff, but what did he have to lose?
“Let’s try it!” Cloudy Sky would give it a go. Anything to get a better understanding of trick flying.
=====*****=====[
“First flyer up.” Sky Stinger called out. A pale yellow mare at the head of the line stepped up, passing him a copy of the routine she intended to fly. Commander Spitfire suddenly appeared from around one of the large pieces of training equipment that had been set up on the field and headed right for them.
Sky Stinger caught sight of his C.O. out of the corner of one eye and turned slightly to the recruits next to him.
“Atten-tion!” The recruits snapped to attention as Commander Spitfire approached.
“At ease.” She reached out for the clipboard that Sky Stinger held in one wing. She first glanced over the paperwork, then looked over her sunglasses at the two first-time instructors to the trials. “Status report.”
“First group ready for their evaluations, ma’am,” Vapor Trail reported proudly.
“I’ll be evaluating this group; the new arrivals are still in class with Mountain Haze and Thunderlane. You two spot the flyers during their evaluations.” Spitfire didn’t look at the two reservists, stepping up to the start/finish line to look over the first recruit.
“Yes ma’am.” The reservists took a step back, ceding the floor to their C.O.
“First flyer up!” Spitfire ordered and the pale yellow mare once more stepped up to the starting line. “Name?”
“Windflower, ma’am.” She saluted her C.O. before setting herself in position.
“Go!” Spitfire ordered and Windflower took off, getting a good jump and started off into her routine. Firebolt, Brightstar, and Razzle Dazzle watched as the first recruit successfully performed a routine of six aerial tricks, the last trick bringing her back down to the ground with a precise landing. Windflower stood proudly in front of her C.O. with a big smile, convinced she’d set the bar for the rest of the recruits to measure up to.
“Tighten up on that barrel-roll; your transitions in and out of it were pretty sloppy.” Spitfire knocked the grin right off Windflower’s face, stunning the mare with the tough language. “Next flyer!” Windflower stepped away from the starting line, crestfallen.
Brightstar was next, stepping up to the starting line and passing along her written routine to Spitfire.
“Name?”
“Brightstar, ma’am.” She didn’t look at her C.O., getting her body into launch position and focusing on the task at hand. Spitfire scribbled down something on the form before giving the command.
“Go!”
Brightstar took off like a flash of lightning, getting up high and into her routine’s first move. Firebolt and Razzle Dazzle watched intently, silently urging her on.
She made the precise flying look so easy, the discipline of a military upbringing shining through in her smooth flying. After her spins, a pair of inward and outward loops finishing off with a classic Cloudsdale-Eight move, she came in for her landing like a seasoned Wonderbolt, only taking a small extra step forward from her momentum. She stood tall at the end, her expression void of emotion, as if carved in stone. Spitfire scribbled down her notes.
“A little hot comin’ in there, newbie. Best get a handle on that approach speed.” Spitfire flipped the pencil back into her mouth, catching it with her teeth to jot down the notes. Once more, she flipped it out of her mouth and caught in between her wing tip feathers. “Who’s your recruiter?”
“Wonderbolt Soarin, ma’am.”
She jotted down more notes. “Next flyer up!” she called out and a reddish-brown stallion strode confidently up to the starting line as Brightstar headed back to her friends.
“Quiet in the ranks!” Spitfire snapped at the trio of mares chattering softly behind her. Vapor Trail came to stand close by the three girls; keeping an eye on them to make sure they didn’t repeat the offence and anger their C.O.
The girls watched two sturdy-looking stallions, the one that came right after Brightstar and another that followed, go on to do a fine showing for their first trials, each getting a small critique from Commander Spitfire at the end. The two guys were pleased with their first attempts, giving each other congratulatory hoof-bumps and came to stand close by Brightstar and her friends.
“Nice job, you guys.” She was sincere in her praise, having watched their routines and thinking both had a real chance of moving on.
“Hey, thanks. You were great up there too.” The orange stallion was grinning broadly, relishing in the completion of this first flight trial. Brightstar knew that feeling well.
“Next flyer up!” the C.O. ordered, and up strode Firebolt, confidently passing off her written program of flight moves to Spitfire.
“Name?”
Firebolt raised an eyebrow at her cousin, but then remembered it was just an expected formality.
“Firebolt, ma’am.” She didn’t look over at Commander Spitfire as she got into position, hearing the C.O. scribble more notes down on the paperwork. She was focused and determined.
“Go!”
Firebolt was off, heading up high into the sky above them and getting right into her first three moves; a stall-turn that turned into a power dive, building up her speed for the two giant loops, one flown inward and one flown outward. This was straightforward enough, done mostly with just gliding from her previous speed before setting up for the next part of the routine. She twisted her body easily to the left, setting herself onto her trajectory of a three-spin barrel roll from right to left, allowing her transition into flying inverted and then finally heading in for a landing at the starting line. As a bit of flair, she executed a quick single-turn corkscrew ending at the last second, mimicking the flight move she’d seen Gallus do.
She, like Brightstar, landed in near perfect form right in front of Commander Spitfire. She was so proud of herself, confident like never before. She waited for the inevitable praise that was sure to come for such a great first flight. Spitfire silently scribbled down her notes about this flyer.
“Next flyer up!” Spitfire demanded, leaving Firebolt nonplussed at not getting what she thought were her due accolades. She shrugged, figuring her C.O. couldn’t let anypony else know they were related and didn’t want to show any favoritism. She went back to her friends.
“That was awesome! You really nailed your routine.” Brightstar quietly cheered for her friend.
“Wait, what? It was your turn?” Razzle Dazzle was caught off guard. “I was busy watching this little green caterpillar walking on the blade of grass down here and-” the colorful mare prattled on, oblivious.
“Grrrr!” Firebolt planted a forehoof to her forehead and dragged it down the length of her muzzle once more, her teeth clenched together. Razzle Dazzle had missed the awesome flight she’d just done, all because she was too busy watching some dumb bug crawl on the ground!
“What’s wrong, Firebolt? You have a headache or something?” Razzle Dazzle didn’t understand why Firebolt seemed upset. Was it something she said? Brightstar gave Firebolt a little pat on the back with a forehoof, understanding her frustrations.
A sandy beige mare with a platinum blond mane and tail went up to the starting line, passing to Spitfire the routine she was going to perform.
“Name?”
“Amber Haze, ma’am.” Her voice was soft and willowy, like a gentle breeze blowing through a meadow. She crouched down and got ready.
“Go!” Spitfire sent her on her way.
The trio of friends watched together, able to pick out flaws in Amber Haze’s routine. They watched as she came in for her landing too slow, almost stalling out as she approached the ground. It was not a smooth ending for this recruit. She landed poorly and stumbled to the ground, looking embarrassed. They all watched Spitfire’s expression, wondering if they could determine if she had passed or not. Spitfire gave no clue as she scribbled down her notes.
“Who’s your recruiter, newbie?” Spitfire didn’t look up.
“Wonderbolt High Winds, ma’am.” The mare answered, embarrassed for her lackluster showing. Spitfire silently wrote down more notes, making the recruit very nervous.
“Next flyer up!” Spitfire called out, leaving Amber Haze jittery and fearful of getting cut. Now it was Razzle Dazzle’s turn. Bubbly and cheerful, she bounced on her hooves over to the C.O. and passed along the paperwork with her touched up routine on it.
“Name?” Spitfire remained focused on the clipboard.
“Razzle Dazzle, ma’am!” she sang out proudly, flipping her goggles down over her eyes and getting herself in launch position.
“Go!”
Off Razzle Dazzle went, like a shot out of a confetti party cannon, speeding into the air and gliding easily into her routine. Brightstar and Firebolt watched as their friend soared, zoomed and whooshed rapidly through seven complex aerial maneuvers and landed right in front of Commander Spitfire, her wings spread proudly and her head high.
The C.O. looked over Razzle Dazzle’s submission, and began scribbling down her notes. “It says here,” she began, “you were moved to a second group of recruits for some additional help with your routine, correct?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Who were you working with?” Spitfire looked over at the two mares Razzle Dazzle had been chattering with.
“Oh, I was working with my new friend Firebolt, ma’am.” Razzle Dazzle looked back over her shoulder and waved at her two friends, smiling innocently.
“Oh no,” Firebolt groaned softly at being pointed out by Razzle Dazzle like that.
“What?” Brightstar looked back and forth between Firebolt and Commander Spitfire.
“I see!” Spitfire’s inflection made Firebolt cringe; the C.O.’s expression made her cringe even harder. Razzle Dazzle rejoined her friends, confused at the sight of Firebolt slapping a forehoof to her head again and grimacing.
“What’s wrong Firebolt? You still have a headache?”
“Razzl-l-l-l-le!” Firebolt groaned aloud, raking her hoof down her muzzle in taut frustration again.
“What did Razzle Dazzle do?” Brightstar didn’t understand why Firebolt looked so upset.
“It’s not what she did do, it’s what she didn’t do!” Firebolt whipped around to face the lavender mare. “Why didn’t you do the moves we worked out back in class? You wrote them down; it’s what you gave the C.O!”
Firebolt tried not to sound upset, but this was not looking good for her or for Razzle Dazzle.
“Wait, that show she just put on for us, that wasn’t-”
“No, it wasn’t.” Firebolt cut off Brightstar. “She didn’t do any of the maneuvers we had worked out together in class, and that was after I’d offered to help her.”
Now it was Razzle Dazzle that was cringing; she had made her new friend upset at her. “I’m sorry… I thought having all of us write out the routines was just a classroom exercise. I didn’t realize they wanted us to do the same as we wrote down.”
Firebolt got even more exasperated with her. “What did you think the whole classroom time was for?! It was supposed to be for us to make a routine and then fly it afterwards. Weren’t you paying attention?”
“Why didn’t you do what you had written down, Razzle?” Brightstar was curious to know. She’d never seen a flyer quite like her.
“I just…” Razzle Dazzle groped for the right words, “… just didn’t feel like doing the same thing over and over. That’s boring. Why not try something new every time we fly? Why not make it exciting?”
“Because,” Brightstar countered calmly, seeing Firebolt growing even more upset at Razzle Dazzle’s apparent cluelessness, “that’s part of what Wonderbolt Academy is all about; learning about and performing precision flight.”
“Now I look like a moron to Commander Spitfire; because I was supposed to help you get your routine in order and you totally blew off what we’d been working on, all because you didn’t ‘feel like’ doing what was written down.” Firebolt just couldn’t conceal her irritation. Razzle Dazzle looked down at the ground, her ears drooping.
“I’m… I’m sorry I did something wrong and got you into trouble. You don’t have to be friends with me anymore if you don’t want to; I won’t bother you guys.” Razzle Dazzle was about to turn and leave when Firebolt caught her by her foreleg, stopping her.
“Oh, don’t be so overdramatic, Razzle. I like you,” Firebolt sighed, getting Razzle Dazzle to look up at her and Brightstar.
“Re… really?”
“Of course we do. I mean,” Brightstar glanced over at Firebolt, the annoyance still on the fiery-maned pony’s face, “you’re probably the best flyer here. That was really some performance you put on.”
Hearing that Brightstar was impressed by her flight made Razzle Dazzle perk up. “You think so?”
“Heck yeah, I know so. I’ve been part of the military my whole life and I’ve seen plenty of flyers come and go. You’ve got so much potential, I know you can be a great flyer for the Academy.”
“But you have to listen to instructions, Razzle. You can’t just go off all willy-nilly and do whatever you want because you feel like it. Do you understand what I’m saying?” Firebolt hoped to get through to her, aware of her potential too, but still wishing to demonstrate to the instructors that she could be a good leader by getting her ‘group’ through these trials.
“I do, and… I’m sorry for making you upset. I really didn’t mean to.” The two girls could clearly see how sincere she was.
Firebolt, taking a deep breath and exhaling to rein in her sometimes fiery temper, let go of the moment. “It’s alright. I want us to get through this and get into the academy.” She put a wing on Razzle Dazzle’s withers.
“I’m not mad at you. Still friends?” She watched as the big smile returned to Razzle Dazzle’s face once more. She lunged at Firebolt, tackling her to the ground and squeezing her in a tight hug with her forelegs, causing Brightstar to snicker a little.
“Urk!” Firebolt quacked, feeling the stuffing getting squeezed out of her by the brightly colored mare.
“Friends!” squealed Razzle Dazzle happily. Firebolt let Razzle Dazzle relish in the moment briefly before dislodging herself from the lavender mare’s grip and getting back to her hooves. They turned around to head back to their friends.
“We’d best get back to the fellas and help Cloudy out some more. They’ve got-”
Fweeeeep! “Just where do you three think you’re going? Get moving over to the next phase of the session.” Spitfire stopped them in their tracks with a blow from her whistle.
“I thought we could-” Razzle Dazzle pointed back to where the rest of their group was practicing, waiting for them to return. Spitfire pointed in the opposite direction, towards the two waiting Wonderbolt instructors who were already starting with four of the recruits who’d just completed their first flights.
“You are to continue with the trials; there’s no break or stopping until chowtime today. Now get moving!” she snapped. Brightstar and Firebolt did as ordered, moving off to the area where the next phase of the trial was going on. Razzle Dazzle looked back at their friends out on the field, still working with Cloudy Sky. Firebolt tugged at Razzle Dazzle’s foreleg.
“C’mon. We’ve got to get moving. Let’s hope Solar Flare and Nightflight can handle getting the others in shape for their flights.”
“Hey… he-e-e-y! Where… where are the girls going?” Cloudy Sky watched Brightstar, Firebolt, and Razzle Dazzle head off for the next part of the afternoon’s trial. The trio of mares looked back to the practice area, seeing Cloudy Sky looking at them, worried about not having them with him to help out. Silverstream came to stand beside her pony friend.
“I guess they couldn’t wait for us; we’re supposed to move on to the next phase of training once this is done. We’ll catch up to them.” Cloudy Sky felt like he’d just lost half his support group.
“But… I’m not ready to try yet.” Cloudy Sky had only re-flown his routine three times and still wasn’t sure if he was doing it correctly. Solar Flare came to stand next to Cloudy Sky.
“Well, we’ll just have to make do without their help and get through this the best we can, Cloudy.”
The gray stallion groaned with worry, the nervousness returning to his stomach once more. Silverstream turned to face him, wanting her friend to feel sure he still had help.
“Why don’t Gallus and I fly with you through your routine again? You’re almost ready to do it for real.”
“We’ve got a bit more time so any more practice you can get in will help.” Solar Flare had flown his routine four times and felt confident he was going to pass. He didn’t need more practice but would stay as long as possible to help.
“Let’s get moving.” Gallus got up in the air, wanting them to join him. Cloudy Sky and Silverstream took off, the three of them getting to the right height so as to begin. Nightflight and Solar Flare spotted them from below.
Once more Cloudy Sky began his routine with Gallus and Silverstream flying on each side of him, watching carefully.
They flew along with Cloudy Sky, watching him successfully do his Wing Over move and then fly inverted. He started to panic from the sensation of being upside-down, his flying becoming unsteady.
“Oh… oh… oh no…oh!” Cloudy Sky began to panic. Flying upside down like this made the whole world look so crazy to him.
“Cloudy, don’t flap! Don’t flap your wings. It’s what throwing you off.” Silverstream saw how shakily he was flying inverted.
“You’ve got to glide when flying upside down like this. Resist the urge to flap your wings and you’ll be much smoother.” The two flyers flew inverted as long as they could alongside Cloudy Sky, wanting him to get familiar with the sensation.
“Here comes the transition, Cloudy! Make sure you’re in position.” Solar Flare yelled out from below.
“Count down with me, Cloudy. Four… three… two…” Silverstream carefully guided Cloudy Sky along.
“…one!” Cloudy timed it correctly and rotated himself upright, gliding easily into his Flat Spin maneuver, much better than his previous attempts. His hind legs swung effortlessly around, his body descending slowly in a tight circular pattern, his hind legs acting like a pendulum. He completed the four required spins for the maneuver before smoothly leveling out and setting up for his last and most difficult move.
“By Celestia, I think he’s got it!” Nightflight reared and pumped his forehooves in the air. Solar Flare was smiling and nodding, relieved to see Cloudy Sky getting his routine down.
“Count down again, Cloudy. Five… four… three… two…” Silverstream flew just to his left wingtip.
“…one!” He dove down into the ‘flipty loop’ maneuver, doing the first part of the outward loop before twisting his body into the inward loop portion. Silverstream and Gallus landed close to Solar Flare and Nightflight to watch Cloudy Sky finish.
“Oh-h-h-h, c’mon Cloudy! You can do it!” Silverstream watched with her talons clutched tightly together, the tension within her growing.
“Almost… there…” Solar Flare, too, watched intensely at Cloudy Sky’s last move, pulling hard for his friend.
“He’s so-o-o close!” Gallus didn’t want to blink, fearing he’d miss something in his friend’s best run so far.
“Hit it, Cloudy! Hit that landing!” Nightflight spun a forehoof in a circle above his head.
Gotta make it! Gotta make it! Cloudy Sky told himself over and over, trying to keep count of how long between transitions within the trick. The earth and sky raced up and down in his eyes as he spun in the loop, throwing off his balance. But he kept counting to himself, keeping time as the hardest part of the trick came rushing up to him.
“…ten!” he yelped, twisting his body hard to the left so as to fly inverted briefly before soaring back up to complete the outward loop at its starting point.
His moment of elation at completing the trick was replaced with the terror of now trying to slow down enough to land without wiping out like he’d done every time before.
“Too hot…he’s too hot…” Solar Flare could tell Cloudy Sky was in trouble.
They watch as Cloudy Sky flapped his wings furiously.
“He’ll get it... he’s slowing down.” Nightflight hoped he was right, seeing how hard Cloudy Sky was flapping to slow as momentum. Cloudy Sky extended out his hind legs from under his body, wanting to touch down with them first and then his forelegs, so as to catch himself.
“Oh… no! UGH!” Cloudy Sky touched down on his hind hooves, the ground passing under him far too quickly. He fell forward and smacked the ground again, sliding on his belly for a few feet before stopping. This time he was unhurt, except for his pride. His friends were right at his side to help him up but he managed fine on his own, getting to his hooves.
“I messed up again! Why can’t I get this?” Cloudy cursed at himself, not really directing the comment at his friends.
“That was the best attempt you’ve done so far, Cloudy. You’re almost ready.” Solar Flare brushed off some of the dirt from Cloudy Sky’s uniform.
“You’ve got to start slowing your approach down sooner, before you even get to the apex of the outward loop.” Nightflight was fairly certain that was the sticking point his friend needed to get right. The shrill sound of another whistle blow pierced the air, alerting them to the next session of trial flights.
“Next group of flyers ready for their evaluation head down this way!” Sky Stinger called out and more of the recruits started heading over. Now more than half of the recruits were leaving the field. Only Cloudy Sky and a small number of others remained behind. From behind them came the soft clip-clop of hooves and then came a gruff voice.
“So, any of you losers want to show what you got or are you just too scared to try?”
They recognized the voice, instantly putting their nerves on edge. They turned around to find two ponies they really didn’t want to hear from right then.
“Not now, Wind Raider. Shouldn’t you be heading over to do your flight?” In spite of what he’d seen at the memorial the other day, Solar Flare really didn’t need this right now. They’d been lucky for most of the day, not having to deal with him or Stormbringer, since everyone was focusing so much on the trials and not thinking about much else.
“I’d offer you good luck, but I doubt it would help a pony like him. He’s pathetic. I can’t wait to see him wipe out like that in front of Commander Spitfire!” Stormbringer laughed and pointed at Cloudy Sky, having enjoyed himself watching the light gray stallion repeatedly fail. Wind Raider stood by and only grinned, watching his friend have at the pony friend of the two freakbeak volunteers.
“Yeah, well… well… we’ll see about that! Put your wings where your mouth is and show me what you got!” Cloudy Sky demanded, surprising his friends a little by standing up for himself. Gallus looked over at him, pleased his friend’s confidence was up, in spite of his bad landing.
“Fine! Let’s go, right now!” Stormbringer pointed towards the starting line where Commander Spitfire stood waiting. Cloudy Sky’s eyes went a little wide.
“Like, right now?” A cool tingle skittered across his coat, bringing with it a wave of worry about what he’d just committed to.
“Yeah, right now!” Stormbringer wasn’t bluffing, he was prepped and ready to take Cloudy Sky to task.
“Uh…” Cloudy Sky stammered a little, glancing over to his friends. Gallus watched Cloudy Sky’s confidence buckle.
C’mon, Cloudy! Don’t let that punk psych you out! He’s nothing! Be tough! Gallus silently urged his friend on, wanting Cloudy Sky to not be intimidated by another flyer.
“Yeah, just as I thought; he’s not a real flyer.” Stormbringer sneered at Cloudy Sky and his friends. The angry glares they shot back at him show how easily he’d gotten under their skin.
“You miserable little piece of-!” Gallus rushed forward, incensed. Solar Flare caught him, preventing an international incident right out in front of the C.O. and everypony else.
“Save it, Gallus. Save it.” He held the griffon back firmly in his forelegs as Gallus struggled to get at Stormbringer, wanting to sock him right in the muzzle. Wind Raider and Stormbringer laughed, pleased to have provoked Gallus.
“We’ll see you at the starting line with Commander Spitfire. That is, if you’ve got the guts to actually try.” Stormbringer aimed his comment right at Cloudy Sky, seeing the smallish gray stallion seemingly become even smaller. They headed away from Silverstream and her friends, laughing.
“What a couple of jerks!” Nightflight spat.
“Just some nopony losers, that’s all.” Solar Flare took their jibes with a lick of salt, aware they were trying to play mind-games with him and his friends.
“I can’t wait to see them eliminated from the trials!” Gallus clenched his beak tightly, grinding his teeth and scowling back at the two antagonists.
“There’s not much time left, so I think you should try one or two more times practicing, Cloudy, before you try for real.” Solar Flare saw that while a few scattered recruits were still waiting, most of them now were on line to try.
“I’ll stay with Cloudy to help him, you three go on ahead. We’ll keep practicing until they stop us.” Silverstream moved to stand next to Cloudy Sky. “Best Friend Flyers always have each other’s backs when it’s crunch time, right?” She saw the smile return to Cloudy Sky’s face, glad he had such a good friend in Silverstream.
“Right!” Cloudy Sky really appreciated Silverstream’s assistance, having seen her practice her routine and having her and Gallus fly along with him had been a great help.
“All right, if you think you’ll be okay. We’re going to go do our flights and join Firebolt and the others down there. Just find us when you’re both done.” Solar Flare, Nightflight and Gallus waved to them as they headed off to get in line with the other recruits.
“Let’s see how many more times I can try before we have to go.” Cloudy Sky was already up in the air, ready to try again. Silverstream was right behind him.
“Hey, wait for me!” She followed him into the air.