“Hey! Yo Dash! Wake up, girl, you gotta get your head together!”
Julia struggled to wake herself up from her stupor. She literally got three hours of sleep the night before and was having trouble getting out of bed, but the sky over Equitem had to be cleared. She spoke into the radio after yawning.
“Don’t worry about me, Thunderlane, I got it!” Dash said as she adjusted herself in her seat. Thunderlane’s booming voice over the radio was enough of a shock to wake her up.
“Well hurry up then! You’ve been hovering there for five minutes! Soarin’s gonna have our asses if we don’t clear these clouds by noon,” Thunderlane said from the other side of the radio.
“Hah! I’ll have it done in no time at all! Get the timer ready,” Julia said as she gripped the controls of the jet tightly. She began to breathe slowly, trying to remain calm and focused.
“That’s my Dash! Alright… Go!”
Time stood still for a moment for Julia. She felt and heard the roar of the crystal engines. For the slightest moment, she felt as if she and the plane were one. The jet shot through the clouds faster than you could blink. Julia expertly maneuvered the plane through the clouds, dissipating the clouds behind her. To the untrained eye, she was nothing but a blur, however, to fellow Cloudwalkers, Julia made cloud clearing look like an art. After only a few moments, the once cloudy sky over Equitem was clear as crystal. Dash slowed her jet down and turned it towards Cloudsdale. Every time she cleared the clouds, she got a huge rush that was a feeling unlike anything in the world to her. Even now her heart was thumping loudly. Thunderlane appeared from above and began to fly along side Julia.
“Damn! Another fantastic performance by Rainbow Dash!” Thunderlane said over the radio, laughing.
“Yeah, it was pretty awesome,” Julia said cockily. “What was my time?”
“Ten seconds flat! That’s one for the record books,” Thunderlane said back. “Hey, wanna race back? Loser buys drinks for the gang!” Thunderlane barely finished his sentence before he realized that he was staring at the back of Julia’s jet. He shook his head and grinned before he took off after her.
Julia walked out of the locker room only to find Thunderlane and the rest of the gang waiting outside. They all ran up to a surprised Dash and gave her a big cheer as Thunderlane hoisted her into the air.
“H-hey! What’s all this about?” Julia said while being paraded around on Thunder’s shoulders.
“Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten your own birthday,” Thunderlane said. “We’re gonna treat you to night on the town. Dinner, drinks, and a damn good time!”
“Aw, you guys didn’t have to do this,” Julia said as Thunderlane set her down.
“Are you kidding? We’re your friends, right? Besides, Erika insisted on it,” Thunderlane said. “Right, Flutter?”
Julia hadn’t noticed Erika standing in the back of the group, hiding behind the others. She was hanging her head, but when everyone turned towards her, she looked up briefly at Julia. “Yeah, I mean… It was the least I could do,” Erika said softly.
“Thanks. It really means a lot,” Julia said with a smile. Erika shrunk back in embarrassment.
“What are we waiting for? Let’s get going!” Thunderlane said followed by a cheer by their cohorts. The group walked together towards the hangers, chattering along the way.
“Hey, Thunder, where are you guys taking me?” Julia asked.
“I was thinking Manehattan. I know this great place that me and my sis used to hit up all the time down by the Broncs,” Thunderlane said as they reached the hangers. “Alright, saddle up!”
The group entered and scattered in the darkness of the giant building. Despite the darkness, Julia didn’t need light to know where here ride was. By memory, she walked over to her bike and hopped on. She smiled as she inserted the keys and watched the entire bike begin to shine with the light of the crystal engines. The bike gave a satisfying growl when she revved it up. Soon, the entire hanger was filled with crystal luminescence and the sound of engines being turned on. As soon as the hanger doors opened, Julia and the rest of her group sped out, heading straight towards the edge of the clouds. One by one, the bikes sped off the side of the edge of the floating city into the clouds below. Julia drove off last and saw her companions below her, heading nose down towards the ground. They stuck to a free-fall for a while, but once they had gotten below Cloudsdale, they pulled up sharply and let the jets kick in. The flying machines slowed to a halt in midair. The group came together in a circle and Thunderlane spoke up.
“Alright, just follow me. Once we get over to the Broncs, descend to ground level and switch to ground mode. It’s a no fly zone above there, got it?” Thunder said. Everyone gave an understanding nod.
“Can we stop by the bakery on the way?” a voice piped up from behind Thunderlane. “I’m running out of muffins…”
“Whatever you say, Suzy,” Thunderlane said with a chuckle. Suzy gave a squeal of joy and sped ahead of the group full of excitement. “Hey! Wait up!” Thunderlane went off after her, and the rest of the group followed, laughing. Julia smiled as she rode through the sky, knowing that tonight was going to be the best night ever.