Earlier, Around The Party's End
Watching through the screen of Xavier's holo-scope, Zenix wondering how things were going to go. It wasn't until Zenix heard something in the distance that alerted him. Most wouldn't think much, but what he heard sounded like gun shots, so his eyebrow raised as he stood up.
"What in the world-" He thought. Looking at his friends, he decided to go on his own. A bit of walking later he stopped to get his bearings. "It came from around here. I wonder if I was-"
"Well look at what we got here." Zenix's eyes widened as he went stiff. Turning he saw a blue teenage dragon flying in. "Where did you come from?" The dragon asked in a snarky tone.
"U-uh well I-I got lost." Zenix lied, wearing a nervous smile and sweating bullets. "I-I was just t-trying to meet up w-with my friends so I'll get out of y-your scales-" He tried to get away but the dragon blocked his path.
"Ah ah. No can do. This is dragon territory, so you and your friends are going to have to pay."
I-Is that it?" Zenix asked. "W-well what do you need? I can give you anything you w-want-"
"Well how about you come to the dragon lands?" The dragon asked, walking up to him. Zenix backed away, but he fiddled his hands behind his back.
"C-can't we t-talk here?"
"Aw come on. It'll be-" The dragon was cut off by an open glue bottle hitting his face, splattering the sticky substance around him and disorienting him. Zenix took the opportunity to run as fast as he could. He didn't get far though as a dozen more teenage dragons flew down and surrounded him in an opening in the forest. "That was a stupid stunt you did!" The blue dragon growled as he walked up, some glue still scattered on his body. "Now you'll pay." The dragons began to walk closer, Zenix panicking as he didn't have anything to stop them. One dragon moved faster than the others and reached to grab the merchant, but was stopped. How he was stopped was strange as no one could react to a speeding projectile aimed right for the dragon's head, landing a direct hit and a burst of sparkling, red dust exploded out. The impact knocked the dragon down to the ground, confusing everyone. When they looked at where the projectile flew from, the dragons grew angry, but Zenix was shocked to see why he heard gunshots.
Standing at the edge was a human like him, but unlike all the others he was built like a football player. About as tall as the dragons nearby, he was muscular with a tough look on him. He was wearing a military jacket opened to reveal his black tee and jeans. His brown boots stood strong like his stance, and his head was covered by a military cap and sunglasses on the brim. His piercing, blue eyes were determined, and were locked onto the dragons alongside the pistol he held in his fingerless-gloved hands.
"Stay away from him." He growled, his voice deep and gritty.
"You!?" The blue dragon growled. "Well more fun for us! Get him!" The dragons rushed the new human, but he didn't flinch. The only thing that did was his arms as he pulled the trigger, each bullet landing dead center on each dragon, sending them down one by one with a cloud of dust flying out. A few dragons managed to get in close enough to attack, but the human reloaded the pistol pulled out a combat knife, using it to block the claw swipes and retaliating with punches and kicks to their heads and chests that, while not as graceful as Huston's, were similar in power. The hits however seemed more intentional to knock the dragon assailants to the ground, letting a bullet fly into each to knock them unconscious. Finally the last one to attack was the blue dragon, grappling with the human. "You're not bad, I'll give you that. But you're dumb to think you're stronger than-" Before the dragon could finish, he was overtaken as the human turned the dragon sideways, sending his head to the ground as the human dusted his hands off as he turned to Zenix, the merchant hiding behind his backpack for cover in a fetal position.
"Are you hurt?" The human asked, his voice lightening up from the growl from before. Zenix responded by lifting his head up so his eyes poked over.
"U-Um... N-No." He stuttered, still shaken up.
"Good. Now follow me." The human commanded, motioning out of the forest. "It's dangerous to stay here, they'll be more. There always is." Wasting no time, Zenix put his backpack back on and ran over to the human, leaving the clearing and into the forest. "We can head to the forest's edge for now."
"You can tell where the edge is?"
"Of course." The human replied. "Basic navigation is needed to survive out in the wild."
"Right..." Zenix stared at the human for a second before continuing. "So... Who are you?" The human's look of seriousness faded slightly as he looked at Zenix.
"Oh, my bad. You can call me Flint." The human introduced.
"That's a... unique name."
"Well it's what my squad called me, so it kinda stuck." Flint shrugged.
"Squad?" Zenix looked over Flint, realizing something. "Are you a part of the military?"
"Correct." Flint said, flashing a badge. "Corporal in fact."
"Interesting." Zenix smirked, rubbing his chin. "Oh, where are mine. Name's Zenix, I'm a merchant." With Zenix's name, Flint took his turn to rub his chin, but this time he was thinking.
"Zenix... Isn't that the name of the Mirmadon's son?"
"Wow, you actually got that right quickly." Zenix smirked. "The others didn't get that until I pulled out the family's emblem." Zenix dropped the smirk however, turning to Flint. "So what is someone like you doing out here anyway?"
"Wish I could tell you." Flint admitted, crossing his arms. "One moment I'm in the dorms of the base. The next I wake up to find giant flying reptiles flying over me and trying to fight me. I've been here for a few weeks before I saved you."
"Thanks by the way." Zenix said, grateful for the save. "What exactly did you shoot them with anyway? Haven't seen those before." In response, Flint took out his gun and unloaded the magazine, taking one of the bullets out and showing it to him. The bullet had a red material inside instead of the typical lead. "Experimental non-lethal rounds. Made to shatter upon impact. It's effective as it stings just as much as regular ammo while not killing even on headshots, but they can be a bit inaccurate."
"Ooh, nifty."
"Though you wouldn't mind me asking about where we are?" Flint asked.
"Tsh, well that's a tricky subject." Zenix admitted, his hands together and looking to the side. "We're not exactly on earth anymore. We're in another world known as Equestia." Flint looked at him curiously. "I know you don't believe me, but you said yourself. Those flying reptiles are dragons and they live here alongside many other creatures. Right now me and some other humans live in a town with one of the species, ponies." Zenix watched Flint for a reaction, though he stayed quiet. "I know it's hard to believe, but it's the truth-"
"Alright." Flint said. "I'll believe it."
"Wait, really!?"
"Normally I wouldn't but seeing is believing as they say."
"...Well that makes things easier." Zenix shrugged. "So what's your plan after this?"
"Not sure..." Flint admitted. "It's not like I can't survive on my own, but I'm low on the non-lethal ammo, and even then I only have a few mags worth of ammo, and I doubt that going for leg shots will slow down a dragon for long."
"Well, maybe I can convince my friend to let you stay at his house." Zenix offered. "He's letting the other humans live there, so I'm sure he'll let you too."
"I wouldn't want to impose. Are you certain that-"
"Where'd he go!?" Suddenly, Xavier's voice rang out. Flint started to reach for his gun, but Zenix stopped him.
"Wait, that was my friend. Sounds like you can ask him yourself." Zenix said as he walked over, Flint following. It didn't take long to see the forest's edge with everyone panicking. "There you guys are!" He shouted, getting there attention.
"Zenix! Why'd you run off like that!?"
"Sorry, but I had to see something."
"What could you have possibly had... to... find..." That's when everyone spotted Flint, and their gazes all looked up at the massive human. "Okay Zenix what in the actual fu-"
"A-bu-bu! That's a bad word, no need to shout it out here." Zenix said, raising his fingers.
"Well how else do we react to you finding another human, huh?!" Xavier questioned irritated.
"A, very large one at that..." Twilight mentioned, her and the other ponies looking over Flint. Taking note of their uncertainty, Flint bowed.
"Greetings everyone. You may call me Flint, and I hope we can get along." Looking at him, everyone had different ideas. Xavier however looked ticked.
"Alright Zenix, explain."
"Well some time ago I heard gunshots in the forest, so I went to investigate."
"And you didn't think to tell somepony?" Rainbow asked.
"Well I didn't want any of you to tear away from Spike, so I went off alone. I... Regret it though since I managed to get surrounded by dragons."
"Of course you did." Shooting Xavier a glare, Zenix continued.
"Well just as a dragon was about to grab me, Flint showed up and shot him with these special bullets." Zenix explained, using finger guns to visualize. "The dragons attacked, but Flint took them down with ease with nothing more than his pistol, a knife, and his fists. All while keeping it non-lethal." Everyone looked amongst themselves, not sure how to think.
"Is that what really happened?" Rarity asked.
"You doubt me?" Zenix asked offended. "I'll put my honor as a merchant-"
"Please don't make a spectacle out of it." Flint interrupted. "It's only my job in the military to save a civilian in danger."
"You're military?" Huston asked, raising interest amongst the humans.
"A corporal." Flint admitted. "Nothing special."
"Still, that's impressive." Huston complimented as Xavier turned to Zenix once again.
"So I'm guessing that you brought him over to ask if he could say in the house?" Xavier asked with deadpan.
"You got me." He answered with a cackle and a shrug.
"*sigh* Alright, fine. I can allow it." Xavier said, giving into his friend. "He's human after all, I can't exactly ignore that fact and him being out here." Xavier then walked over to Flint who was trying to change the topic of him being in the military. "Alright Flint, as long as you're okay with it, you can come along with and live in my house. Just know you're going to be living in a town where the only humans around are the five of us and two others."
"I'm okay with that." Flint agreed. "As long as I don't have to forage for food for much longer."
"Alright, welcome to this crazy family I guess." Xavier sighed, turning to his friends. "Well as long as we don't have any more business here I recommend leaving less we risk more dragons attacking." Everyone gave their agreements to the idea, and without further delay, they left the dragon lands for greener pastures.
"I need to ask though, what's a pistol?" Twilight asked, the humans knowing they had a long discussion ahead of them.
Days Later
The journey back to Ponyville was a productive one to say the least as most of the group was engaged in lots of conversation, mostly between the topics of Equestria itself, Flint's gun and how it worked, and some stories about their time there. All the while they got to learn more about Flint and his personality, and they learned he was actually quite a stand up and humble guy. He was also quite responsible, setting up the camps as night fell and helping cook. As they closed in on Ponyville however, Rainbow flew in front of them to get their attention.
"Sorry to cut this short, but I need to fly." She announced. "I need to gather up the town's pegasi quickly."
"Why's that?" Xavier asked.
"Well I kinda just remembered that Cloudsdale chose our reservoir to refill. They even have Spitfire overseeing the water transfer, so I need to get the pegasi training to break the current record! See ya!"
"Wait-" Before he could stop her, Rainbow flew off. "So what was she talking about?"
"Well you know how pegasi are in charge of the weather, right?" Twilight asked, getting nods from the humans save for Flint. "Well Cloudsdale is in charge of making the weather, and of course they need water to make rain. So pegasi of different towns across Equestria band together to send water stored in their reservoirs to Cloudsdale."
"Interesting." Huston admitted.
"So weather is controlled by pegasi?" Flint wondered as he crossed his arms and looked up at the clouds. "This world is quite different."
"Hopefully you'll get used to it." Jasmine dais with a nervous smile.
"I should." Flint reassured. "If I can survive military training, then I can survive new logic."
"Good for you."
"Well it's getting late, we should be heading home." Xavier said, waving towards his fellow humans. "We kinda need to help Flint settle in while explaining the situation to Cali and Alex."
"Oh right..." Huston remembered, looking a bit nervous. "They're still at home..."
"I hope they'll be fine with it..." Jasmine worried, knowing that those two were the least open.
"Don't worry about it!" Zenix reassured. "As long as he stays like he's been these last few days they're sure to warm up to the big guy." Looking at Flint, he sighed and nodded.
"I'm guessing these two aren't as friendly."
"Is 'angry enough to hold a grudge for months with the pony next to you' enough to say it?" Huston asked, pointing to Rarity who was looking a bit guilty and nervous, looking to the side.
"A lot actually." Flint replied nodding. "I knew someone on the base who was like that. Don't worry, I'll tread lightly until we get to know each other better." While everyone seemed fine with that answer, Xavier noticed something about the way he acted.
"Well good luck." Twilight said as she and Spike began to walk off. "Me and Spike are going to the library."
"I need to go as well." Rarity said. "This entire ordeal has put me quite behind."
"Alright, good luck." Huston said with a wave, everyone heading back to their homes. As predicted, the few townsfolk that were out and about noticed the humans, and of course they noticed that they had a new, very large human amongst them. Flint did notice that they were looking at him in particular, so he simply gave a small buy friendly smile and wave, the ponies waving as well seeing as he was friendly. Soon enough they made it back to the house, entering it with Flint lagging behind slightly. When they entered they saw that Alex and Cali were in the living room, doing nothing in particular.
"Oh good, you're here." Xavier said, getting the two's attention.
"Ay, yer back!" Alex called out, his usual spirited energy back.
"Took you long enough." Cali spoke as she stood up. "So how'd it go with..." It was then Flint entered the house, the two stopping to look at the large man (The doorframe made for ponies was just short enough that he bumped his head on the top, so he had to duck). Similarly, Flint looked at the two with curiosity.
"I don't' think we should beat the bush here." Zenix said. "Alex. Cali. Meet Flint. Flint, these are our friends we talked about."
"I see..." Flint muttered, his hand rubbing his chin. He then stepped in front, giving a bow. "Greeting. It's a pleasure to meet you, and I hope we can get along." Confused at the fact this new giant of a human was so polite, the two walked over to their friends.
"Sooo... Where'd ye find this guy?" Upon Alex's question, those who knew the story turned to Zenix.
"I met him in the dragon lands when I got ganged up on by a bunch of teenage dragons." He explained. "I honestly owe him since he saved me from them."
"How did he?" Cali asked, eyebrow raised. "Did you two end up running?"
"He actually took all of them on and won. And trust me, there were just over a dozen dragons." Hearing the merchant's retelling, the two looked at Flint with wide eyes. It was then Alex laid his eyes on Flint's jacket, most notably the badge on him.
"Wait, yer a corporal?"
"You can tell?" Flint asked, slightly surprised that Alex could tell.
"My grandpa was a veteran of war, course' I can!" Alex exclaimed, lowering his guard and walking over and reaching out. "Tell ye what, lad. I can trust ye fer now. Alexzander's my full name, but as ye can guess, everyone just calls me Alex." Looking at his hand, Fling gave a small smile and took Alex's hand to shake.
"Alright Alex. It's nice to meet you."
"*sigh* I guess this means I have another mouth to feed." Cali sighed, everyone looking at her before she smiled. "I'll be fine with it. Besides, I have another taste tester." Cali walked over to Flint and looked him in the eyes with a serious expression. "Just promise me you won't cause much trouble while you're here in Ponyville, will ya?"
"I give you my solemn vow." Flint said, putting a fist to his chest. Cali kept looking into his eyes, so much so that everyone began to get nervous, even Alex. Fortunately, Cali stopped and backed down.
"Alright, I'll trust you as well." Cali said, walking off. "Now if you'd wait for a bit, I'm about to get started on dinner."
"I can help you, if you want." Flint volunteered.
"I got this, but thanks." While it was a bit tense at the beginning, it looked like everything was going fine.
Nightfall
At least on the surface. But some were cautious about sides hidden behind closed doors. Most notably Xavier as he looked at Flint from the basement stairs. He didn't look for long however as he walked down them to head into the place Zenix stayed in. Unlike everyone else's rooms, Zenix's wasn't as organized. In fact, it was a mess of random odds and ends, trash, and clothing. The only place that wasn't in total chaos was the corner where he kept his backpack and his bed, on it was the owner of the room, simply chilling like he could see his floor.
"Even to this day, you still don't take the time to clean your room by yourself." Xavier deadpanned, kicking a can over to the bed.
"Eh, I blame-"
"Don't even blame the fact you don't have any maids." Xavier countered. "You don't even have the guts to blame Ashley, and you know that."
"...Nyarg fine. What do you want?"
"It's about Flint." Xavier said, Zenix sitting up to give him a good look. "I know you were judging him as soon as you met him, right?"
"Yeah, you got me..." Zenix shrugged. "He's a good guy, I won't lie about that. But I can tell he's not all gumdrops and rainbows. I'm guessing you found something?"
"Well not 'found', but more 'observed'." Xavier mentioned. "I noticed that he seems to have an air of guilt to him. Something that says that, while he isn't exactly untrustworthy, he's hiding something about him."
"I know what you mean." Zenix said. "He's kinda reminding of you since you both have that air of 'I'm hiding my past to keep everyone away.' You get me?" Xavier did not look impressed.
"*sigh* Outside of your... crude... description, yes. He does seem like that." Xavier put a hand to his chin. "The question is, in what way."
"Well I can tell he has no ill intentions like you think." Zenix said as he laid back down. "In fact, he looks like he just wants to befriend us with the sole motivation of not being alone." Xavier looked at him, though he sighed and turned to exit.
"Well I'll trust your judgment. You do have an eye for these kinds of things." As Xavier walked out however, he gave one last turn. "But I still want to keep an eye on him. Out of all of us, he's the most capable of taking a life here."
"Makes sense. I'll make sure to keep a close eye on him." Zenix said with a yawn and a wave of his hand, signaling he was done with the conversation. Xavier didn't say anymore as he walked back up to his room, knowing things would get exciting with Flint along for the ride.
As the sun rose into the sky and the townsfolk began their daily routines, the humans joined in as they all began to enter the kitchen to eat breakfast. To their surprise however they all saw that Flint was helping out Cali in the kitchen.
"Cali, what's happenin'?" Alex asked, looking at Flint.
"Well apparently this guy wakes up way earlier than most of us." Cali began to explain as she kept working. "I was surprised too when I saw him starting up breakfast. I tried to get him to stop and let me handle it, but he insisted that he made breakfast. In the end we decided to work together." She and Flint then began to set the table, some of the others helping out. "Turns out though he's actually got some talent cooking since his had a tendency to help out in the kitchen back on his base. Not much though, he really only knows the basics."
"I'll take that as a compliment." Flint returned as they finished setting the table. As everyone began breakfast, Flint decided to spark up a conversation "So, what is that you do for work. I imagine a house like this is quite expensive."
"Funny story actually." Xavier started. "I never told you the story, but after a... big problem the mayor ended up giving me this house to live in. And at first I thought it was too much even when I got Rune, but as everyone found their ways here I started being thankful."
"I see. I still would like to know what you all do for a living."
"Well me and Jasmine work over at the spa. I'm their maintenance crew while Jasmine is a masseuse."
"I'm one of the chefs at a restaurant here in Ponyville."
"It's not a 'job' per say, but I do take commissions for paintings."
"Ay'm workin' over at the apple orchard that's owned by our friend's family."
"Do I even need to say?"
"No, I think I know what you do." Flint complied. "I will say, you're quite the diverse group."
"And is that a bad thing?" Huston asked.
"No, it's just an observation." It didn't take much longer for breakfast to finish up, everyone pitching in to help clean up. Once they finished up and everyone began to plan for their day, there was a knock at the door. Walking over, Xavier opened it to see Twilight and Spike at the door, the dragon wearing a backpack.
"Hey Twilight. Hey Spike." Xavier greeted. "Everything going well?"
"Yep. We were just about to go and help Rainbow out with training the pegasi of town for the water transfer, so I wanted to ask if you wanted to come along to watch."
"'Water transfer'? What's that?" Cali asked, she and Alex sharing the same curious face.
"It's apparently how Cloudsdale gets their water to make clouds." Huston said, recalling the conversation from yesterday. "We got an idea of why and what they do, but now that I think of it we never got an explanation on how they send the water up."
"He's got a point." Zenix joined in. "If I recall from my research, Cloudsdale is in the sky. It's not like there's a train that flies up there. Plus you said 'training the pegasi' as if this is some kind of sports event."
"Let's not bombard her." Flint said, putting his hand onto the merchant. "I think she's willing to explain it to us, but she's only here to invite us to learn."
"I agree with Flint." Xavier said. "Why don't we follow her to where Rainbow is and we can get an explanation." With Xavier's suggestion, everyone decided to follow along after getting a few things. Once they got them they all departed. "Right then. Twilight, when you please."
"Right. Well Huston and Zenix's questions are warranted. To put it simply, the pegasi of the town create a tornado to to send the water up to Cloudsdale."
"A tornado?" Jasmine asked, sharing the same shocked face as some of the other humans. "That sounds dangerous."
"It can be, but it doesn't happen as often as you'd think." Twilight mentioned. "Anyway, using the power of a pegasi created tornado, the water that is held within our town's reserves is sent straight to Cloudsdale." Once Twilight's explanation was over, Flint began to raise his hand. Right before Xavier stopped him.
"If you're planning to ask how that works, don't." He said gently. "Trust me, it's better to just give up asking questions. Mostly about how magic, physics, and Pinkie Pie works."
"Pinkie Pie-?"
"One of our friends." Cali mentioned. "Trust me, you'll understand what he means when you meet her."
"Right..."
"Though what ye said doesn't explain why Dash want's ta train the pegasi." Alex mentioned. "But knowin' her, she wants ta do the trainin' ta make her look good."
"Now that you mention it, Rainbow did mention that Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts, is going to be overseeing the transfer. I bet that has to do with it." Xavier replied.
"Partially." Twilight said. "She also wants to train the town to beat the previous record of nine hundred wing power by getting one thousand."
"Yep. That explains it." After a bit more walking, everyone made it to the track that Rainbow was training the pegasi. They saw how many of the pegasi were warming up, and after looking for a bit, they saw the leader of this ordeal wearing a coach's hat and a whistle.
"Hey Dash! We're here!" Getting her attention, Rainbow flew over to the group with a smile.
"Hey guys. Didn't know you were coming." She greeted, flying down to give a few of them hoof-to-fist bumps. "But I'm guessing you came to watch history in the making."
"Something like that." Xavier said. "At most we're curious about the water transfer."
"Well you came to the right place." As they talked, Flint noticed that pretty much the entire track was looking at them, most specifically at him. To respond, he stepped forward, getting his newfound friends to notice.
"Hello everyone. My name is Flint, and as you can probably tell, I'm new around here. But please, treat me like you would any of the humans you've met." He greeted. While a few of the pegasi seemed a bit hesitant about the large human, most of them seemed open to him seeing how polite he was. Seeing as how the pegasi seemed peaceful for now, he turned back to Rainbow. "Sorry about that Ma'am. Please continue."
"Sure. But please don't call me 'Ma'am'." Rainbow said. "That's something Rarity wouldn't mind, not me. It's hard enough to get Huston to stop calling me 'Miss'."
"Noted."
"Speak of, Hey! Why'd you stop!" Rainbow yelled to the pegasi. "You need to stretch those wings out if we're going to break a thousand wing power." At Rainbow's comment, everypony resumed their warmups. "That's more like it. Good work, everypony." Rainbow's face dropped a bit however and grew irritated. "Everypony except Fluttershy."
"Wait, you want Fluttershy to join?" Cali asked. "What is wrong with you?" Rainbow didn't answer however as she flew off in the direction of Fluttershy's cottage. "Hey! I'm talking to you!" Cali yelled out as she followed, the other humans tailing them. "Rainbow, are you really that determined to try and get Fluttershy to join in to gloat!"
"I have to agree with Cali." Xavier yelled to Rainbow who didn't slow down. "Not trying to be rude to Fluttershy, but she's is not going to make a difference in your-"
"Why are you even telling me this!?" Rainbow cut off. "You were the one to say to take the chance to show off!"
"Not at the expense of bringing the weakest flyer in the history of Equestria!" As they were following the pegasi, Flint looked at the other's.
"With the way those three are acting I'm guessing this 'Fluttershy' is the quiet one?" He asked.
"You have no idea." Zenix sighed.
"Yeah... I've been told that she's more afraid of her shadow." Jasmine noted. "And I'm worried that those stories are true."
"An' yet she's able ta wrestle a bear, stare a manticore, a cockatrice, an' a giant dragon in the face, an' pet-nap the princess' pet phoenix all to protect animals an' her friends from what we've been told." Alex mentioned. "Yeah you'll understand when ye meet her."
"Alright..." It wasn't long before they made it to Fluttershy's cottage and to her door. Once there, Rainbow began knocking on the door irritated.
"Fluttershy? I know you're in there!" Rainbow shouted. "You're avoiding tornado duty and I want to know why!"
"Rainbow, please!" Cali growled, trying to pull her away. "Just leave her alone! She shouldn't get involved in-" As the two were struggling, the door creaked open to reveal the pegasi of the hour. What they didn't expect was to see Fluttershy in a bed robe covered in red spots.
"Achoo." The pegasi sneezed, though it seemed forced. "Hi, Rainbow Dash. Hi everypony."
"Miss Flutteshy? You okay?" Huston asked concerned.
"Oh, I think I have the pony pox." She answered, sniffing in the process.
"Is that like chicken pox?" Flint asked, getting a shrug from Zenix and Jasmine. It was that question that got Fluttershy to notice Flint.
"W-wait!? Another-" She began to question with wide eyes and surprise in her tone before cutting herself off, her eyes drooping and continuing with less energy. "A-another human?"
"Greetings. My name's Flint and it's a pleasure to meet you."
"Yeah, there's only one cure for pony pox." Rainbow said with sympathy.
"I know, plenty of bed–" Suddenly, Fluttershy was hit by a splash of water. Looking up, all the humans could see that Rainbow was holding a bucket that was dripping a bit of water.
"Cold water!" She announced. The humans turned to Fluttershy to see if she was okay, but to their surprise the spots covering her were dripping off. Reaching down, Huston noticed what was happening.
"This- this is paint."
"Look at that! Those pony pox are clearing right up." While Rainbow looked equally irritated and proud, Fluttershy began to look even more nervous.
"Oh, y'know, all of a sudden, I'm, I'm starting to feel better." She said nervously, treading backwards. "I'll just get out of these robes and–" Suddenly Fluttershy fell over, though it looked forced as well. "ow! Oh, my wing, oh, ow, it's hurt. I guess I can't fly after all–"
"Uh, Miss Fluttershy? I don't think we're falling for that anymore." Flint mentioned, saving her the embarrassment. "And no offence, but the things you're doing are common excuses the younger men did when they wanted to get out of training." Seeing as how everyone was aware of her antics, she stood up to find Rainbow in her face.
"Stop horsing around, Fluttershy." She growled. "We've got a lot of training to do. Come on now, what's going on?"
"Well, y'see, uh, well..." Fluttershy began nervously before falling and grabbing Rainbow's legs. "oh, Rainbow Dash, I just can't do it! I can't fly!"
"What are you talking about? Just a few weeks ago you went into that wicked nose dive to save that falling baby bird right before it hit the ground!"
"Um, Dash? Do you want a repeat of the dragon incident?" Xavier glared, Rainbow tensing up. "I think you're putting words and actions into her mouth."
"He's right." Jasmine said stepping in. "The incident described was an emergency situations. She was only able to do that because it would have put the baby bird in danger."
"Plus, ay get the feelin' that there's more ta the story." Alex added. "Ay'm guessin' she's nervous about the fact ye ponies are treatin' this like some competition. And we all know the lassie has stage fright when there are dozens of eyes on her."
"That... Well... Yeah you got a point." Rainbow backed down. "I'm guessing this also involves flight camp?"
"Flight camp? What's that?"
"Something that me and Fluttershy were a part of back when we were foals." She explained.
"W-was it really that bad?" Cali asked hesitantly, worried about the memories it could bring up.
"It wasn't bad. It was terrible!" Fluttershy yelled out. "All of those foals...teasing me, a lot! They always kept telling me 'Fluttershy, Fluttershy, Fluttershy can hardly fly!'"
"Yeesh, I'm sorry I asked." While the humans were feeling sorry for Fluttershy, one saw something else in her eyes. One that was familiar to him.
"Even still, I need all the help I can get." Rainbow began, this time more sympathetic. "Confidence or no confidence, I'm gonna need every Pegasus to break the record, including you. I need every ounce of wing power I can get."
"Oh, I-I don't think so, Rainbow Dash..." She said, turning down the idea.
"Thanks anyway." The blue pegasus sighed, pulling her cap down as she walked for the door. As the shy pegasus was watching her friend leave, guilt hit her hard.
"Wait." Fluttershy interrupted, everyone looking at her. "I'll do it."
"You will?" Rainbow asked excitedly, flying up to her friend.
"I will."
"You're game?"
"I'm game."
"Alright!" As Rainbow picked Fluttershy up and flew upwards, the humans looked a bit nervous.
"Are you sure about this Fluttershy?" Jasmine asked.
"Yeah, you don't have to do this." Cali added, worried for the pegasi.
"It's fine." Fluttershy reassured. "I can try my best." While Fluttershy wanted everyone to not worry, they couldn't help but to.
Back at the track, everyone began their preparations to gauge each pegasi's individual wing power. At the center of this test was Twilight who was fiddling with a small windmill-like contraption.
What exactly does this machine do?" A pegasi asked next to her twin sister.
"This is an anemometer. It measures your accelerative velocity and translates it into wing power, thus gauging your cumulative H2O anti-gravitational potential." Twilight explained, earning confused looks from just about everyone there. "Any other questions?"
"Yeah." The second twin replied, before turning to Spike. "What exactly does this machine do?"
"It tells you how fast you're flying and how strong your wings are." He explained, this time everyone understood what he was saying. Twilight was not amused at the short and crude explanation, but a cough caught her attention.
"Is that you again, Thunderlane?" Twilight asked annoyed, using her magic to send a spray can of disinfectant over to the pegasi in question and spraying. "Please, we need to have a germ-free environment."
"It wasn't me, it was Blossomforth." He blamed, pointing to the pegasi nest to him.
"Don't worry, Twilight. Thunderlane's just cooking up an excuse to spend tornado day in bed." Rainbow accused. "Why don't you get over here and be our first test flyer, Thunderlane?" Annoyed and with a glance to Blossomforth, the grey pegasus flew up to the starting block. Once he left however, a small cough came out of his friend, and the humans noticed that.
"I'm getting a bad feeling about this." Xavier commented, getting similar reactions from the others.
"It... Can't really be that bad, right?" Flint asked.
"Trust me big guy, I'm the one who came before you. A problem comes along sometime." Zenix mentioned.
"In that case let's just pray nothing bad happens." As the humans talked, Thunderlane made it to the start. He stood ready to take off, and once the whistle blew he did just that. Speeding towards Twilight's gadget, he passed it causing the sails to spin. Once the spinning slowed, Twilight looked at the meter on the side of the device.
"We have 9.3 wing power." She announced, the pegasi voicing their amazment.
"Wow! That's fast!" One of the pegasi voiced.
"YEAH!" Another pegasi chimed, though not only was he loud enough to ring out over everypony with ease, he made Flint look small compared to him.
"Who the bloody-"
"That's Bulk Biceps." Xavier simply answered.
"Hi Bulk." Jasmine waved, catching the large pegasi's attention, waving in response.
"An' ye know him how?"
"He works at the spa as a masseuse." Jasmine answered with an innocent smile. Though the other humans just looked at her concerned.
"Remind me ta never ask fer him." Alex whispered leaning to Huston.
"Not bad, not bad." Rainbow admitted, flying towards the start. Doing a few stretches, she prepared herself to showoff. Once she took off, everyone in her path felt the power as wind followed her all the way to the anemometer.
"16.5 wing power!" Twilight announced, the entire crowd practically cheering at her speed.
"Hell yeah! That's the Dash ay know!" Alex cheered, nudging Flint. "Ye see that!? That there's Rainbow's talent!"
"That's not even her fastest speed." Xavier mentioned. "She's actually fast enough to break the sound barrier. It's made her quite the cocky pony if you couldn't tell though."
"Impressive." Flint said. "I'd imagine she'd be quite popular with the guys at base."
"Now listen up! If each of you can get your numbers up to at least 10.0 wing power by the end of the week, we'll no doubt set a new tornado speed record. We'll be number one!" At Rainbow's empowering speech, the crowd of pegasi all began to cheer and fly into the sky, ready to make history. All but one, laying on the ground nervous.
Soon, every pegasi lined up to test themselves and their speeds. All the while Twilight and Spike recorded their speeds and the humans helping out wherever. Finally however the last pegasi was to step up, and she wasn't feeling ready.
"Fluttershy, your up!" Rainbow announced, blowing her whistle. At said whistle and a bit of hesitancy, she took of slowly. As she flew she noticed that no pony was commenting on her flying, raising her confidence and allowing her to fly faster. It wasn't until she noticed two pegasi gossiping nearby that her confidence shattered, practically stopping as she passed the anemometer, the sails barely turning. The heroes save for Spike all looked at the meter, concerned at how small the needle moved. Fluttershy looked at them nervously, and none of them could muster the courage to tell her.
"You tell her!"
"No you tell her! She's your friend."
"We're all her friends. That argument doesn't work on us." The group huddle up, trying to get someone to tell her. At the end, Rainbow turned to Fluttershy.
"Um... great job, Fluttershy! You measured, uh, uh, .5." She said, trying to sound happy for her as she and her friends all wore smiles to get the point across. It did work though as Fluttershy gave a smile.
".5? Isn't that like...less than one?" Spike questioned, shattering their hopes of letting her down easy. Twilight did whack him over the head, but that didn't stop Fluttershy's mind from running into fear. She began to look around in a panic at everyone looking at her with fear, her mind going back to flight camp.
"Wait, Fluttershy!" Jasmine called out as she ran to the pegasi in hopes to snap her out of it. Just as she reached her however, Fluttershy took off running.
"Fluttershy, wait!" Rainbow called, flying to catch up to her. "So some punks poked a little fun at you and you got stage fright, big deal. You aren't gonna go quit just because of that, are you?"
"Yes!" She screamed, tears flowing like waterfalls. Seeing this, Rainbow dropped her irritation and adopted a sad look.
"But I need you!" She pleaded.
"I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash, I just don't have the courage right now..." Fluttershy sobbed as she ran off, leaving her friends upset at her suffering.
"Well that could've gone better..." Alex commented, worried about Fluttershy. As Xavier looked at the direction Fluttershy ran off, he walked up to Jasmine.
"Jas, I think you should go help her." He said, Jasmine turning to him.
"Me?"
"Out of everyone here, you're the closest to her. You can probably help her feel better. Don't worry," Xavier turned to Rainbow, who was flying back to the track. "We'll be able to handle things from here."
"...Okay."
"If you wouldn't mind, would it be okay if I followed?" Flint asked walking up to the couple.
"Erm, are you sure?" Jasmine asked. "She's not really good with new people."
"I'm sure." He said, not elaborating further. While the two didn't know what to say, Flint's calm personality seemed to loosen their edge.
"*sigh* If you're okay with it, Jas."
"Yeah. C'mon Flint." Getting approval, Flint began to follow Jasmine in the direction of where Fluttershy ran off, ready to help her.
By the time the two managed to catch up to Fluttershy who ran to her cottage, the sun was beginning to set over the horizon. But as they were walking up to the cottage, a squirrel stopped them, it's cheeks bulging.
"Huh? Is something wrong little guy?" Jasmine asked, crouching down. The squirrel chittered a bit, then ran off. "Come on, let's follow."
"Why?" Flint asked as Jasmine stood up.
"Because I think it want's us to follow." She said, following the squirrel behind the cottage. After tailing the rodent for a moment, they saw Fluttershy under a tree, crying with multiple small animals around her, also trying to comfort her.
"How'd you know to follow the squirrel?" Flint asked as the two walked up.
"I... learned a bit from Fluttershy on how to understand animals." Jasmine admitted.
"Interesting." Flint didn't press further, mostly because Fluttershy was a few steps away now. "Miss Fluttershy?" Looking up, the two saw two small streams of tears and a face covered in grass. As they were coming down to her level, the squirrel from before hopped up to her and pulled out a handful of nuts from it's mouth, offering them to Fluttershy. Seeing it's kind gesture, Fluttershy couldn't help but smile a bit.
"Oh, thank you, but I'm afraid a couple of little acorns won't solve my big flying problem." She said, petting the rodent.
"Are you doing better Fluttershy?" Jasmine asked, concern on her face. The pegasus looked at her into the girl's eyes for a moment, before she threw herself into Jasmine's lap, surprising her.
"I can't do it!" She cried, Jasmine putting her hand onto the crying pony's head. "I can't even get to a wing power of one with everypony looking at me and laughing! How am I even going to reach ten!?" Listening to her cries, Jasmine's mind wandered back to her old life at school, so she patted Fluttershy's head in comfort.
"I've told you that I've also had bullying problems because of my day dreaming, right?" Jasmine asked, Fluttershy giving a motion similar to a nod since her face was down on Jasmine's lap. "Well, something's changed, hasn't it? We have friends to turn to now. We don't have to face this alone anymore, we can turn to our friends if somepony bullies us." Even if Jasmine's words were comforting, Fluttershy didn't feel it, looking down. At least before a badger standing on one of the tree's roots began to chatter rather irritated, gesturing with it's forearms to emphasize it's point.
"I know it's important to have confidence in myself..." Fluttershy said, responding to the badger. It began to chatter again, this time even more irritated. "Yes, yes, I do remember. The river was swelling..." Continuing, the badger gave a chitter before falling dramatically onto it's back, holding a flower. "...and you were scared..." And stood up, it's irritation back as it chittered again. "...yes, I did tell you to never give up... and to believe in yourself." Saying that, Fluttershy realized something, and her face grew determined. "You're right, my friends. I shouldn't give up." She said standing up, her animals and Jasmine growing excited. "I will get my confidence up and show everypony that I am a good flyer!" Unfurling her wings, she flew up into the tree, resurfacing a the top a moment later. "A great flyer!" While her close friends were excited to see Fluttershy so excited again, the friend that wasn't as close stayed silent, his face lacking much expression.
The Next Day
With Fluttershy's spirits high, she decided that she would focus on training herself not to crack under the pressure of everypony watching her the next morning, Jasmine and Flint agreeing to help her. Once the sun began to rise, the two of them didn't waste any time, leaving right after breakfast to Fluttershy's (Much to the confusion to the other humans) Once they made it to her cottage, they found the pegasus by a small stream by her home decked in sweatbands and surrounded by some animals.
"Fluttershy, we're here!" Jasmine called with a wave.
"You're here!" Fluttershy said, walking over. "Thank you for helping me."
"No problem. Although..." Jasmine trailed off, looking around to see... nothing that would help her grow. "...How exactly are we going to help train you?" At that moment, Jasmine felt a tug on her skirt. Who tugged on her skirt was Angel wearing a cap and whistle similar to Rainbow, who somehow managed to sneak up behind them. The rabbit then reached behind him, pulling out two masks of ponies from... somewhere and handing them to the humans. "...What's this?" She never got an answer as Angel blew on his whistle, signaling Fluttershy to take off into the sky, flying around a bit. After said bit, The animals watching her pulled out similar masks to what Angel gave the two, putting them over their faces and watching Fluttershy. Once they did, Fluttershy panicked and covered her eyes and tucked her wings in. Sending her careening into a tree hard enough for her head to come out the other side, still hiding her face under her hooves. "Oh, that's how."
It was soon a routine of Fluttershy doing different activities meant for warming up her wings, but with her animal friends (and sometimes Jasmine and Flint) holding the pony masks to their faces, making it seem like she was being watched by strangers. What started out as Fluttershy struggling to even fly while the masks were up, began to show progress as she was able to do the activities even if she did them poorly. As Fluttershy was doing some push-ups with her wings, Flint lowered his mask and turned to Jasmine.
"Miss Jasmine, can we talk?" He spoke, causing Jasmine to jump slightly in surprise.
"Huh? Oh, what's up?"
"I wanted to ask, what are the others like?" Jasmine looked at the soldier in confusion. "I mean, how would you describe them in your words?"
"Oohh. Well..." Jasmine looked up into the sky, thinking about what to say. "Well you've got Alex, he's quite sporty. Though he can be scary at times when someone or something gets on his nerves. He still hasn't fully forgiven Rarity over her going a bit too far, and that was months ago... A-anyways, there's Zenix, he's-"
"I already know about Zenix's history as a Mirmadon, so no need to explain to me."
"Oh, okay. Well, there's also Huston. He's a painter, but he also knows martial arts. He also seems to know just what to say. Cali might seem mean but she's actually very nice, she just needs to warm up to you. She's also someone who is first to act in emergency situations, though it can be a bit violent at times. Still, she's someone we all depend on. And then there's Xavier, oh where should I start? He's strong, smart, brave, kind-"
"You seem to have more words for Xavier than anyone." Flint noticed, Jasmine still listing compliments. "Is it... that you two are dating?" At that comment, Jasmine's train of compliments came to an abrupt stop, her face lighting up red.
"Um!? I-I mean we a-are technically. W-we've only just confessed a short while ago, s-so w-we're still not fully dating! B-but it's not l-like we aren't, b-but... ooh!!" Jasmine fumbled about with her words for a bit, ending with her hiding her face into her hands embarrassed, practically smoking. Despite the amusing situation he put Jasmine in, his face stayed neutral as he watched. It didn't last long though as Fluttershy was finishing up her reps, signaling them to follow, though Flint did have to drag Jasmine a bit due to her still recovering.
Later, at the Track
Despite the incident that happened yesterday, training managed to go smoothly, each pegasus growing their wing power over time. And as Twilight got readings on the crowd's wing power, she and her friends were impressed by the rise of wing power.
"That's wonderful, Flitter. Much better than yesterday." Twilight complimented, Spike taking notes
"This is crazy awesome! We're gonna smash that record!" Rainbow cheered, excited for the results.
"Still, ay'd kill fer growth this fast." Alex grumbled. "Ye ponies go' tit' easy."
"The only way you'd get that kind of gain is if you took-"
"Shut up, Zenix." Xavier cut off, slapping his hand over the merchant's mouth. "We don't need that kind of stuff making their way around."
"I'm just saying." As they were talking, a squirrel fan up to them, catching some of the group's attention. Once it did make it, everyone was looking at it as it chittered and pointed, though no one could understand.
"What did he say?" Spike asked.
"Do I look like I speak squirrel?" Twilight asked. It wasn't until Alex took a glance upwards, doing a double at what he saw.
"Aye, what's goin' on over there?" Looking up at where Alex was looking, they saw a few things approaching. Amongst the things they saw were a few more small animals, both Flint and Jasmine, and the biggest surprise, Fluttershy who was looking confident for once. As she went to the starting block with her animal friends helping her get ready, Jasmine and Flint joined up with their friends.
"Hey, what happened?" Cali asked, her face portraying skepticism.
"Just watch her hard work!" Jasmine said beaming, watching Fluttershy as she began to flap her wings slowly. Suddenly those wings accelerated, sending her forwards quickly as she flew with passion. And as she passed the anemometer, everyone looked at the meter to see-
"2.3?" It read, Fluttershy and her friends in disbelief at the number. "2.3?! That has to be some kind of mistake! I worked so hard!"
"Ye kiddin' me? That right there's improvement the best athletes wish they could get in a day!" Alex said with genuine amazement.
"You did awesome, Fluttershy." Rainbow said proudly, flying up to her friend and
"No, I didn't." Fluttershy retorted, pushing Rainbow off her. "I thought I'd gotten over my nerves, but they still got the best of me! There's no way I'll fly with 10.0 wing power tomorrow!"
"So you won't fly with 10.0 wing power. Every bit counts!" Rainbow said as a way to make her feel better.
"How would you feel if everypony else was flying with 10.0 wing power and you were flying with 2.5?!" Fluttershy retorted tearfully.
"Actually, it was only 2.3 and-OW!" Spike began, but was cut off by the tip of Alex's bat slamming down onto his tail like a cane. It wasn't hard enough to cause damage, but it was hard enough to hurt. And as Spike cradled his tail and looked up at the athlete, he was given a glare and a signal to zip his lips.
"Well, uh...I'd feel...um..." Rainbow Dash stammered, unable to find any words to make it seem better for her.
"Exactly! Humiliated!" Fluttershy cried, shocking everyone with how loud she got. "I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash, I just can't do it!" Fluttershy then took to the air and flew off, no one but Jasmine running to try and stop her.
"Fluttershy! Wait!" She called after stopping a short distance away, hoping she would. Against her hopes however, Fluttershy never stopped as she flew out of view. A few moments after she did, Jasmine slumped in sadness as she walked back slowly.
"It's okay, Rainbow Dash, you've still got plenty of wing power for your-" Spike was never able to finish as he was grabbed by the tail, curtesy of Alex who dragged him off. Once Jasmine reached the others, she went over to Xavier and before he could react, leaned into him. He reacted by hugging her gently as to keep her from falling, but before he could question in classic confusion, he saw the look in her eyes. Once he saw the sadness, he simply stayed quiet, letting her cry softly.
"If only there was a way to lift Fluttershy out of the dumps." Rainbow said sadly, lowering her hat as her excitement for the water transfer began to fade. Her friends mirrored her sadness, feeling upset about their friend's struggles. All but one.
The Next Day, Fluttershy's Cottage
As the sun rose to the peak of a beautiful afternoon, it was calm since the water transfer was scheduled for later in the evening. Although, it was abnormally quiet at Fluttershy's cottage, as the animals that were normally out and about weren't doing that. If they weren't in their dens and nests in silence, they were inside trying to help comfort their caretaker on the couch. She wasn't crying fortunately, but she was in a sad funk laying on the couch. Her sulking however was interrupted by two knocks at the door.
"Miss Fluttershy? It's Flint." The knocker spoke in a kind manner. "I came to check on you." Fluttershy didn't answer. "Can I come inside?" Once again she didn't answer, but she did signal Angel to open the door, the rabbit complying. Once the door opened, Flint entered the cottage and took a look at Fluttershy. "Mmm, would you mind if I use your kitchen? I'd like to brew us some tea to drink." Looking up at the soldier, Fluttershy simply gave a nod. "Okay then, give me a moment." True to his word, some time later he re-emerged from the kitchen, holding a tray that had a pot of tea and two tea cups that he put down onto the coffee table. "I made some chamomile tea for us. It seems like something that would help." As he poured the tea, Fluttershy lifted her head slightly and picking up the cut Flint passed to her.
"U-um..."
"Oh, and don't worry, you don't have to talk if you want. But if you do, we can talk about anything you want." Flint comforted before taking a sip of tea, Fluttershy following suit. As she set down her cup, she looked at Flint who was swirling his cup slightly, watching the tea splash about. She didn't know why, but despite his size he seemed, calming. Like he was someone that would never step out of line and wait for his turn. It was this comfort that allowed Fluttershy to speak up.
"W-well, d-do you have a-any questions?" She asked, Flint looking into her eyes.
"I see." He said, putting his tea cup down. "Can you tell me what exactly happened at this, 'flight camp'? And why was it so bad?"
"W-well, it wasn't the greatest time in my life." Fluttershy began. "Everypony there were fairly skilled fliers before coming, all but me."
"Oh?"
"Yeah, I was never able to fly as fast, long, or gracefully as anypony else. Rainbow was there to support me, but it didn't help when the other foals made fun of me." Fluttershy waited for a response, but Flint nodded as he sipped his tea. "It got to the point that even ponies watching me would cause me to freeze up. I tried to grow stronger, but I just couldn't. Even now, I just can't grow if I wanted." She was stopped by the clink of fine China.
"Miss Fluttershy, I think you have it wrong. You going from 0.5 to 2.3 is a very good improvement. And before you say anything-" Flint put his finger up, telling Fluttershy not to talk yet. "-it is a very good improvement. And yet, it doesn't mean you will have the ability to become a strong flier." Flint picked his tea cup up again, looking into the orange-brown liquid. "Some people, or ponies in your case, just don't have the body to grow their physical strength in the same way as others. Pushing yourself too much can hurt you in the long run, so there is no need to feel bad about how strong a flier you are."
"B-but-"
"Another thing," Flint continued, not letting Fluttershy make a comment. "I understand that ponies in the past made fun of you, but that's the thing. It's all in the past. Take it from me, the ones who grow up staying judgmental bullies aren't going to get far when everyone dislikes them. People grow up and learn to be kind and not judge when they see someone putting in the effort to help like you."
"Uh-"
"But there is one more thing I want to say." Flint stated, still not letting Fluttershy comment. "I think there is something to be said about Miss Dash and the way she 'comforts' you." Flint's face may not have changed much, but one could see that it felt tenser than before. "Before, she didn't show much comfort, rather trying to use the water transfer as a way to help raise your confidence. It's not the best way of helping in my experience." Flint finished up the cup of tea that he was drinking, putting it down for the last time. "I think you should tell her that in more detail than 'I just can't do it.' And what ever you do, don't become a people pleaser."
"People pleaser?" Flint stood up, looking out the window with his arms behind his back.
"It means someone who will do anything to keep other's opinions of oneself high. You never want to be like that even if it's just second nature to you, as it will only cause you to act more like a puppet to the world's whims. Just know this, do what you can do best and never bend to the will of the general society, you'll regret it in the long run. Now, I must ask." Flint looked down at the pegasi, his face emotionless. "What is it you're best at?" Looking up at Flint, Fluttershy felt something stir. What was stirring, was true confidence.
"I-I'm somepony who cares for animals and my friends, and my friends need me now!" Flint gave a small but genuine smile, reaching his hand down.
"Well then, why don't we do that?"
Sunset
With Fluttershy wanting to support in her own way, she and Flint let her cottage to observe and cheer on the others, a few of her animals following along. As they closed in on where the water transfer was taking place they felt the wind pick up as it churned. As they continued it only picked up, so much so that Fluttershy was having a hard time moving, at least until Flint grabbed her and tucked her under his arm like a log. He was able to keep pushing forwards despite the wind, to the point Fluttershy's animals even clung to him. It took some efforts since the winds were practically tornado levels, but they did manage to make it as they saw the massive vortex causing the winds along with Twilight, Spike, and the other humans all clinging onto a large device that looked like the anemometer.
"Seven hundred and fifty wing power!" They heard Twilight call out, watching a needle rise gradually.
"Twilight! Everypony!" Fluttershy called, getting the observer's attention.
"Flint!? Shy!? What in the hell are ye doin' 'ere!?" Alex yelled out.
"I figured... if I couldn't help Rainbow Dash with the tornado... the least I could do was offer moral support!" Fluttershy struggled to yell out thanks to the winds as Flint managed to grab the machine as an anchor.
"Moral support is not going to be enough when eight pegasi are out with the feather flu!" Cali shouted, causing concern between the two newcomers. Though one didn't express as much as the other.
"Is that a bad thing?" Flint asked as he put Fluttershy down.
"More than bad." Xavier explained. "It brought their numbers down enough that they may not have enough wing power to even do the transfer."
"Oh no! That's terrible news!" Just as Fluttershy said that, they heard an unsettling crunch nearby. They looked at the tornado in fear as they managed to catch glimpses of ponies flying out of formation and colliding with others. It wasn't long before the entire tornado fell apart, sending the water that was accumulating back into the reservoir and the pegasi all over the place, including Rainbow as she slammed into a tree.
"Are you okay?" Twilight questioned as she, Fluttershy, and Flint ran over to her, the others running to check up on the other pegasi.
"I'm fine!" She answered, recovering as she got up.
"Oh, you were so close to the eight hundred wing power minimum." Twilight began sadly. "I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash.
"We've got to try again!" Rainbow announced as she took to the skies again.
"That wouldn't be a good idea." Flint said firmly, stopping Rainbow with voice alone. "You and the other pegasi have push yourselves to the limit already." He motioned to many pegasi getting back up with the help of the other humans, some of them looking worse than others. "Trust me when I say that if you break up again, someone will get hurt."
"No! One more time!" Rainbow announced. "I've gotta know we gave it our all! If I'm going down, I'm going down flying!" She then flew over to the other pegasi, all of them looking up at her. "C'mon, ponies, let's make this happen!" She shouted, the other pegasi perking up and cheering, the non-pegasi and Fluttershy all showing their own concerns.
"Let's see what happens now." Flint mumbled, watching the pegasi get back into position as he walked back over to the anemometer with the others. Once everyone was in place, Twilight gave a nod to Spike who stood next to a large horn. Once he blew into it, all the pegasi took off, once again starting up the tornado.
"Okay, here we go... one hundred wing power!" Twilight announced.
"I hate to say it, but I don't think she'll do it." Xavier said, watching the wind pick up, much to the dismay of Jasmine and Fluttershy.
"What?!"
"Two hundred!"
"He's not off." Cali said.
"Yeah. They might've if they didn't get sent flyin' the last time." Alex added. "Since they got hurt, they may not be 100 percent now."
"Five hundred!"
"Well what do we do? Tell them to stop?" Huston asked, clearly not believing it would work. While the tornado raged, Fluttershy watched the tornado in worry, hearing Rainbow coaching faintly through the wind.
"Seven hundred!" Jasmine then took notice of Fluttershy's worry, so she put a hand on her.
"Fluttershy, you need to help them." Jasmine was heard by most of the group, shocking everyone
"What?! No offence but why would ye suggest that?!" Alex shouted.
"They need the help, and I-"
"I'm going to have to cut you off." Zenix said. "I hate to say it but I doubt she can reach the level needed to reach the threshold."
"Seven hundred and fifty wing power!"
"No! She can!" Jasmine shouted, surprising everyone.
"B-but I only have a 2.3 wing power! It's not-"
"It is!" Jasmine said grabbing Fluttershy's face. "You need to stop doubting yourself, you're amazing! You're strong to fight alongside everyone and do things none of us have the guts to do! You need to believe in yourself!" Hearing Jasmine's heartfelt speech lit something in Fluttershy, and turning to the tornado she felt ready.
"It's sticking at seven ninety five! I don't know if they've got any more in 'em!" Spike yelled, worried about the outcome. At least until he and Twilight saw Fluttershy walking slowly up to the tornado.
"*sigh* If you're going on this mission, take this!" Zenix yelled, throwing a pair of goggles to Fluttershy, the shy pegasi catching them and putting them on. "I've got a question for you Jasmine. Why don't you help out? You're the one who can make tornadoes, who's to say you-"
"Maybe if Fluttershy didn't come." Jasmine said as she watched. "But since she did come, I want her to grow." The continued to watch Fluttershy, right up to when she got sucked into the tornado, leaving everyone worried. "U-um... S-she'll be fine!"
"It's moving! She's doing it!" Twilight announced, everyone turning to the anemometer to see that it was indeed moving. In fact, it was going much further than previous tests. "Seven ninety eight! She surpassed her best wing power number!"
"You know what, I'll shut up now." Zenix said as he and some of the others looked guilty.
"Do it Fluttershy!" Jasmine cheered into the tornado, the needle hitting the eight hundred mark just as she said that. Suddenly, a large pillar of water erupted out of the tornado, creating an ark of water straight into Cloudsdale.
"She did it! She did it! They all did it!" The watchers from the ground cheered, all happy there were successful. After a bit of time, all the water was drained out of the reservoir, allowing Spike the cue to blow the horn again, giving the signal for the pegasi to exit the tornado safely. Once on the ground, all of them began to stomp the ground in excitement, cheering for their success. Once Rainbow landed, she looked around, but noticed that Fluttershy wasn't on the ground. When she looked up, she saw that Fluttershy was still in the air, flying around like she was still in the tornado, only stopping when she slammed into a cloud.
"Huh? D-did-" She never finished her sentence as Jasmine hugged Fluttershy in joy.
"You did it, Flutters!" She cheered happily. Fluttershy then looked around, seeing how everyone was cheering, making her feel good. The two soon descended to the ground, there a few pegasi walked up to them.
"Great job, Fluttershy, that was awesome!" One of them said, proud of her.
"Yeah, we couldn't have done it without you." As this was going on, Rainbow watched proudly at her friend, failing to notice the overseer walking up to her.
"Nice job, Rainbow Dash. You may not have set a new record, but you showed a lot of guts." Spitfire congratulated, catching Rainbow off guard.
"Thanks, but if you wanna talk guts, then you've gotta give it to my number one flyer, Fluttershy!" Rainbow announced, gesturing to Fluttershy to her shock. "Let's hear it for Fluttershy!" She was preparing for the worst, but was surprised when she was picked up like a hero.
"Fluttershy! Fluttershy! Fluttershy can really fly!" They all chanted, perking her up as she was carried off to celebrate alongside her, her friends following them. As she was being carried off, she noticed Flint standing and staring at the anemometer with interest. He did notice Fluttershy looking at him, so he turned to Fluttershy and gave a proud mile and a thumbs up, making her feel proud.
"This world is so interesting" He thought as he began to follow the group. "Everyone acts so kind, and yet it's not an act to look good. They strive to better themselves, but aren't opposed to help or support. The biggest thing, they're able to see their flaws and admit them. Those suck-ups could learn a lesson from these ponies." As he caught up to the others, he smiled more. "And yet, it makes me feel like I could live to love this place like the others. Hm, I guess I can try again."