“Luna’s Stars, it’s Cloudsdale!” Silver Lining squealed as the city came into view,
“Don’t forget why we’re here Silver.” Mirage cautioned,
“I know I won’t forget why I’m here.” Tumble Weed said nuzzling Apple Bumpkin in their open air carriage.
He had been talked into riding to Cloudsdale instead of flying like any pegasus would due to the condition of his eye which was still very raw. Doc Hollineigh had strongly protested but had admitted that Tumble Weed couldn’t hurt himself any more than he had by taking the trip.
Mirage ignored Tumble Weed’s obvious lack of focus, then he noticed Filly the Kid looked unusually thoughtful, “Is something wrong Kid?”
Avoiding his gaze she flew ahead to where Sand Blast and Silver were, “It’s nothing boss.” She answered coldly.
Mirage racked his brain for some reason that Kid would act this way, then it hit him, St. Hurricane’s Orphanage. The screening was taking her unwillingly back to the place she hated, he’d have to keep an eye on her. If his instinct hadn’t completely failed him, he was willing to bet she’d pay a visit to the orphanage to find closure for what she had been avoiding ever since she had shown up in Appaloosa. Kid had grown up and it gave Mirage pride knowing he had been a part of guiding her on the way.
What about the rest of his team? Sand Blast had been really wound up lately; he was talking to himself right now in fact. Silver, well Silver was just hard to read but she had given no indication that anything was wrong. She did seem excited about seeing Cloudsdale for her first time, and Mirage already knew what Tumble Weed was thinking about, she was sitting in the carriage with him.
It might be a problem if Kid and Sand Blast couldn’t get their heads right, this wasn’t just another sandstorm drive or even like the battle they had just survived, they were choosing the pegasi who would be taking over for them. His Dusties had to be above scrutiny, he would give them the benefit of the doubt for now they had pulled off some amazing jobs in worse condition.
Tumble Weed wouldn’t be much of a problem, he was more of the Dusty Bolts mascot than First Stallion now with his eye the way it was there wasn’t much else he could do. Still a good pegasus, just not fit for weather duty in Appaloosa, it would be good for the candidates to see Tumble Weed with his eye patch get them to think about whether being one of his Dusties was what they really wanted.
The team pulled up on the hotel where they would be staying, the Cloud 9. Checking in quickly and tossing their luggage in their rooms they met up in the lobby for the flight to the Cloud Coliseum for their selection screening, “Remember we represent Appaloosa while we’re here, DON’T embarrass me, are we ready for this?” Mirage asked
“Ready to rock boss, let me at em’!” Kid said head banging causing a halo of dust to form around her,
Mirage couldn’t help but smile, some days he really loved his job this was one of those days. “Alright let’s do this, for Crazy Wing.” He said lowering his Rainbow Bans and his Dusties did the same, Mirage couldn’t remember the last time his Dusties had been this excited. Flying towards the stadium the anticipation increased tenfold,
The Dusty Bolts launched themselves one hundred feet above the Cloud Coliseum and wingtip to wingtip they rocketed in for a pass over the mob of candidates, buzzing their heads they pulled up and while they were still climbing they rolled as a team until they stalled and burst in to a pierced heart maneuver before diving in and landing on the platform that had been set up for them in perfect formation.
Tumble Weed trotted out from the platform and glared menacingly at the cheering candidates. “SHUT YOUR MOUTHS AND GET IN A PONY BOX!”
The candidates looked at each other in confusion and shuffled aimlessly, “HURRY UP!” Tumble Weed screamed his face turning red, this got the candidates to move faster but they still couldn’t decide what they wanted to do.
The candidates silently obeyed and once they were finished Tumble Weed paced back and forth in front of them like a dragon eyeing a gem and the Dusty Bolts watched silently behind their sunglasses as Tumble Weed shredded the candidates, “Well we’re off to a bad start already, my name is Tumble Weed and these pegasi behind me are the Dusty Bolts, our Team Captain is Mirage von Stäube, to his right is Sand Blast, next is Silver Lining, and our youngest wing mate is Filly the Kid. Let me make one thing perfectly clear, until you wear this bandana you will address all of us as boss, is that understood?”
“YES BOSS!” The candidates shouted in unison,
“Alright, it better be it’s the only time I’m going to say it. If I catch any of you mouthing off to Kid over there, once she’s finished with you, you’ll have to answer to me.” He gave them a good look at his eye patch for emphasis, the candidates just stood frozen in terror. “YES BOSS OR SOMETHING BUCKING ACKNOWLEDGE ME!”
“YES BOSS!”
“YOU ARE NOTHING BUT HORSESHOES TO ME UNTIL YOU CAN PROVE YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO EARN THIS DUST DEVIL AND CROSS BOLTS!”
“YES BOSS!”
“Right, Dusty Bolts their all yours.” Tumble Weed said stalking off out of the Cloud Coliseum.
What followed after that was a blurred mess of screaming and pounding wings, Sand Blast wasn’t even screaming words he was just screaming and it took every ounce of concentration he had to keep from smiling as he watched the candidates nearly mess themselves.
Kid had rounded up half of the mares and was flying them laps around the Cloud Coliseum flying circles around them, “HELLO FLYING, WE ARE FLYING!”
Silver who looked too delicate to knock heads together and hadn’t even yelled in the battle of Rainbow Hot Springs was smoke checking her half of the mare candidates with wing ups.
Mirage’s candidates were already begging for somepony to put them out of their misery, “So you don’t want to do the exercise together? Good to go, on your hooves, on your wings, on your hooves, on your flanks, HURRY UP!”
Tumble Weed had gathered thick rainclouds above the miserable gathering and crow hopped until they were pouring on the candidates, “It’s ok you can cry for your Mommies now, we won’t know.”
After half an hour of straight hazing Mirage assembled the candidates again and made sure they could all hear what he had to say next, “Right now you need to think about what you really want, I have to say from what I’ve seen none of you will make it as Dusty Bolts, this is your opportunity to leave while you can! I guarantee nopony will look down on you for it; the life of a Dusty Bolt is not for everypony, so if you’re finished leave now, or stay and the pain will resume in five minutes! For those that decide to stay this is your time to drink and rest, so relax!”
A quarter of the candidates galloped limped or flew for the Cloud Coliseum exit and Mirage’s heart sunk, to be honest he hadn’t expected much from the candidates they wouldn’t be used to this kind of stress but he knew that all of them had potential for so much more. Even the ponies who were leaving now had seen the challenge for the Dusty Bolts and thought to themselves, “I can do that, I want to do that.” and they gave up on themselves. What he had said was true he didn’t look down on them, but he was disappointed to see them go without giving their best.
“For those of you that stayed you have my gratitude, having said that it is only going to get harder from here on out, consider yourselves warned!”