It had been over a week since HyperBlitz returned to the camp. Throughout the week, he and Jet had flown back and forth between there and the city to pick up supplies. They were out again, picking up more paint. CharmingRhythm was on painting duty, attending to the outside walls. It was hot, but the paint would dry quickly in the heat. Rhythm wiped the sweat from his forehead with his left foreleg.
“Rhythm!” A familiar voice sounded from several houses down the street.
He twisted his head around and caught sight of SilverFlash cantering his way towards him. Rhythm placed down his brush and ran to meet him.
“Flash! It’s so good to see you!” Rhythm placed his forelegs around Flash and gave him a brief, tight hug.
“I see you got a new recruit!” Flash said, his eyes gleaming.
“There’s another one too, but he’s out getting supplies,” Rhythm replied
“I’ve got someone I want you to meet, too,” Flash stated quickly, too quick for Rhythm to question. “Hey, Lance!”
He called out to a pony who was conversing with Ash down the street. The stallion heard Flash’s call and skipped forward. He was a tan Unicorn with an elegant crimson mane and a very long tail.
“This is my new mission partner, Lance,” Flash introduced.
“Seriously? You actually got a partner?” Rhythm asked, dumbfounded.
“Uh, duh. You said I wasn’t allowed to visit without one,” Flash teased.
“Oh yeah, I did say that,” recalled Rhythm.
“Don’t tell me. You forgot and I would have been off the hook if I came without one?”
“Uh, probably,” Rhythm spoke through a grin.
“I should have known!” Flash blurted out with his muzzle in the air. He then addressed, more calmly “No, but thanks for pushing me to get a partner. He’s a lot of fun to be around.”
“Eh, I know,” Lance commented.
“He’s full of himself sometimes, too,” Flash told Rhythm, smirking.
“Now if I can actually get a chance to introduce myself, formally,” Lance shot at Flash and then turned to Rhythm. “I’m QuickLance, but you can call me Lance.”
“Ah, he’s a second-namer like us, huh?” Rhythm directed to Flash.
“Yep.”
“What?” Lance said, confused.
“Nothing,” Rhythm chuckled. “I’m Rhythm, but you probably already knew that.”
“True. Flash has told me a lot about you,” Lance replied. His character was teeming with confidence.
“So why did you choose him as your partner? I assume you interviewed ponies?” Rhythm questioned Flash.
“I interviewed way too many,” Flash grumbled, annoyed. “But he and I seemed to click. Oh yeah, and his magic. Show him your magic!”
Lance took a few steps back. His horn glowed a light blue. A streak of magic appeared in front of him, and then shot down into the ground with force. Rhythm jolted backwards, surprised. In front of him stood a magic spear, glittering and opaque. Rhythm reached his hoof out to touch it.
“Solid magic. Impressive,” Rhythm gaped. “How long does it stay like that?”
“It dissipates after a minute or so, or I could decast it myself,” Lance explained. His horn glowed again, and the spear vaporized.
“You should see it when he uses them on Hybrids. It’s awesome!” Flash claimed with enthusiasm.
“It’s nothing compared to what this guy can do,” Lance complimented Flash, pointing a hoof.
“Oh, please,” Flash rolled his eyes bashfully.
While his eyes were away, Rhythm gave Lance a short head shake. Lance raised a brow, not understanding the gesture.
Behind Rhythm, there was a fluttering of wings. FeatherTune was seeking out Rhythm, but his eyes locked onto Flash. He hovered around the Unicorns.
“Hey, Flash!” Feather exclaimed. He turned his foreleg over and straightened it out. Flash hit his hoof on Feather’s in return.
“It’s good to see you!” Flash smiled back.
“Whatcha doing here?” FeatherTune wondered.
“We were on our way to a mission, but we decided to stop by,” Flash spelled out.
“We?” Feather cocked his head.
After Lance was introduced to Feather, the Pegasus relayed his message to Rhythm. “I found another node, with a few Hybrids around it.”
“Another one?” Rhythm remarked.
“Hey, why don’t we come with you to disable the node?” Flash offered. “Then you could see Lance’s magic in action!”
“Now?” Rhythm said hesitantly.
“Yeah, why not!”
“Eh, alright,” Rhythm accepted. “I need to go get my armor though. I’ll be right back!”
CharmingRhythm exited the base building and met up with the three other ponies. FeatherTune flew in front of them and showed them the way. They headed to the east, just on the outskirts of the forest.
“So, have you guys gone on a citadel mission yet?” Rhythm asked as they walked.
“Not yet,” Flash reported. “We’ve done a couple bounty missions, to test how well we work together. But we’re on our way to the citadel now.”
“Hopefully it works out for you guys,” Rhythm said.
The node appeared into sight, and the stallions took cover behind some trees. There were three Hybrids circling it.
“At least there are no new Hybrids…” Rhythm thought aloud.
“You mean the heavy ones with the saw?” Flash asked.
“You know which one I’m talking about?”
“Yeah. I saw a few being sent out from the Citadel. They look scary as fuck,” Flash recalled.
“One of them cut off Hyper’s wing,” Rhythm added grimly.
“WHAT?” Flash exclaimed.
“Shh-shh! Keep it down!” Rhythm hushed.
“Why didn’t you tell me?!” Flash demanded.
Rhythm flicked his head up with a glowing horn. A cyan sound bubble formed around them and then dissipated, invisible.
“If you’re going to yell, tell me ahead of time!” Rhythm growled.
“Why didn’t you tell me Hyper lost a wing?!” Flash spat.
“I’m sorry! I guess I wasn’t thinking about it,” Rhythm answered honestly. “That’s not important right now.”
“Not important? HyperBlitz lost a wing, and you’re saying it’s not important? Don’t you care?” Flash accused.
“Of course I do!” Rhythm snapped back, practically yelling. “Why wouldn’t I care about my friend? Why wouldn’t I care that he lost a limb?”
His voice was heavy with emotion. Lance and Feather were glancing away awkwardly. Flash saw the pain in Rhythm’s eyes and said no more. He pressed forward.
“Let’s get this over with.”
Rhythm followed behind Flash’s black and violet tail and took his place on the battlefield. He and Feather were firing their energy at the Hybrids. A Unicorn Hybrid created a shield, which Feather dispersed with his electric energy. Lance countered up a magic spear which impaled the Unicorn Hybrid at high velocity. Rhythm gawked at how powerful the spears were.
A second Hybrid, a scout, ran towards Flash. He easily picked it up a meter above the ground with his magic. He threw it against a tree. The cyborg made a horrible sound, but got back to it’s hooves. Rhythm shot energy from his leg at it until it died completely.
Suddenly, Rhythm heard the creaking of steel and the crumble of earth. A field of bright magenta magic surrounded the entire node. Flash ripped it out of the ground without effort. The large virus shaped object was suspended in the air for a moment. Flash swung his head, and with it the node followed. It’s side slammed into the last remaining Hybrid. It’s force was enough to knock the Hybrid out.
“Wha-wha-we could have-” Rhythm stuttered with a wide gape. Rhythm peered at Lance and Feather, who were also staring in awe.
“Eh, it gets the job done,” Flash remarked. He started trotting in the direction they came, the node floating along with him. “Let’s go.”
“What the fuck?! You’re taking it with you?!” Rhythm blurted out, baffled.
“Do you want to leave it here where Hybrids could take it and make a new one? Or do you want to take it back to camp and see if you can make anything out of it?”
Rhythm just stood there, stunned. He finally said, “You’re beyond me, Flash.”
The four of them trekked back to the camp.
“Well that was something,” Lance said next to Rhythm, trying to strike up a conversation.
“I don’t know why I still get surprised when he does stuff like this,” Rhythm commented with a small head shake.
“He’s got an incredible talent,” Lance stated.
Rhythm didn’t talk anymore. He was watching his brother walking ahead of him, unable to read his expression. Rhythm picked up his pace until he was parallel with Flash. “Hey. I’m sorry about the way you found out about Hyper. I’m sure it’s a lot to take in.”
Flash exhaled. “It’s alright, it’s not your fault. And I’m sorry I said what I did. I’m sure you take it personally, y’know? With what you’ve gone through…”
Rhythm was glad that he and Flash could come to an understanding. “Hyper’s out of the camp right now, but he’ll be back soon. You want to stay to talk with him?” Rhythm offered.
“Sure. I’d like that,” Flash replied.
“Why did you bring it back?!” Spinning shouted as they arrived in the camp.
Flash placed down the node in the sand by the crossroad. “I thought you might be able to use it for scraps. And there’s energy inside; wouldn’t want to waste that.”
“I suppose so,” Spinning thought as he gazed at the large object.
A few moments later, Ash stepped out of one of the houses. Her blue eyes were wide when she saw the scene. “How did a node get here?!”
Several ponies pointed their hooves to SilverFlash. He smiled proudly.
“Alright, I’m done.” Ash waved her hoof and left.
“Hey Flash,” Spinning confronted directly. “I know you’re good at picking locks. Can you try to open a safe for me?”
“Uh, sure. Just show me where it is.”
“He’s been trying to get that open for weeks,” Rhythm chuckled, only loud enough for Lance to hear.
Lance still stood by Rhythm as Flash followed Spinning. Once they were out of earshot, Lance spoke to Rhythm, “What was that earlier?”
“Huh?” Rhythm let out.
“You shook your head at me.”
“Oh.” Rhythm collected his thoughts. “You were complimenting Flash on his magic. It’s just...he doesn’t like to be thought of as just his magic.”
“What? But I was just complimenting him,” Lance defended.
“I know you were. But I’ve seen him take things in the wrong way. He can be really self conscious,” Rhythm clarified.
“I don’t think of him that way though. He’s very skilled, but he has a lot of other good qualities.” Lance stared off to where his partner was standing, near the base.
“All I’m saying is be careful with what you say. He may seem confident, but he has his insecurities,” Rhythm warned.
“I guess we all do, huh?”
Rhythm couldn’t guess what insecurities Lance had. He seemed like the most confident and charismatic stallion in all of Equestria.
“So, why’d you decide to become his mission partner?” Rhythm inquired, changing the subject.
“I never really had a partner. I always bounced around to different teams. But I never had a team to call my own,” Lance explained.
“And you’re alright with going into a citadel?” Rhythm cautioned.
“Hey, if my skills can save ponies, then I’m all for it,” Lance responded with a fearless smile.
Rhythm thought about it for a moment. Lance did seem like a good fit for a citadel mission. He was a bold and self reliant stallion. He could easily take out a Hybrid with his magic alone. He’s full of himself sometimes, too, Flash’s words rang in Rhythm’s mind. Hopefully he’s not doing it for the glory, to be a hero, he silently mused. Despite that, Rhythm believed Lance was a good, reliable pony. Rhythm usually trusted his instincts on how he felt about ponies at first meeting.
About an hour passed. Flash repositioned the node to the west of the base, out of the way. Flash had also successfully opened Spinning’s safe, the latter looting the contents. Jet and HyperBlitz had returned from Los Pegasus. They brought with them a total of eight cans of paint.
Hyper greeted Flash when he approached him. “Hey, Flash. How are you doing?”
“Um, fine,” Flash answered, his eyes troubled. “Rhythm told me about your wing. I’m so sorry.”
Hyper glanced behind his right shoulder and lifted up his prosthetic wing. “I have a new one. I just have to get used to it is all.”
“Yeah, but you still lost a part of you. That has to be a big deal,” Flash expressed.
Hyper sighed and dropped his head. “It is. And thank you for your concern.”
Flash gave Hyper a short hug, patting his back.
After another half hour, Flash and Lance began to wrap up their business in the village. They said their goodbyes to the ponies in camp
“You guys don’t need a ride or anything?” Blazing offered.
“Nah, we’re good. I got my cart,” Flash said.
“Cart?” Blazing cocked his head.
“I have a railway cart that I push with my magic,” Flash explained as if it was normal.
“Wh-wha…” Blazing was puzzled, a gold hoof raised in front of him.
“Yeah, he does that,” Rhythm added, amused.
“Alright, we really should be off though,” Flash stated. “Hope the camp goes well.”
“And good luck on your mission,” Rhythm replied. “Stay safe- er, that’s probably not the right thing to say. Stay smart.”
Flash put his hoof to his temple and waved it back to Rhythm.
“Don’t worry, I’ll look after him,” Lance claimed with a smirk.
“We look after each other,” Flash corrected.
“Yeah, I know.”
Flash gave Rhythm a glimpse and rolled his eyes. The two Unicorns made their way towards the train tracks. Blazing and Rhythm turned back to the camp.
“Flash is…” Blazing began to say but was out of words.
“Ridiculous?” Rhythm chuckled. “Yeah. But you gotta love him.”
CharmingRhythm was glad that Flash had found a mission partner. He knew citadel missions were extremely dangerous, and he didn’t want what happened last time to happen again. Hopefully a partner was a right call, and that they would make a good team.