My Little Investigations: Wonderbolts Under Fire

by Metool Bard

Danger Zone

After the incident with the exploding cloud (honestly, I still can't get over that), everything was pretty much status quo. The only important difference was that I was on high alert. Oh, I wasn't paranoid or anything. A good captain doesn't get paranoid and throw accusations around. No, I was just on the lookout for any sign that the assassin would strike again.

Luckily, the other Wonderbolts didn't notice, or if they did, they kept it to themselves. The only ones in the know about the whole situation were Blaze and the security detail, and they were able to keep things on a need-to-know basis. This gave me a lot less to worry about. While looking out for my team's safety, I also had to look out for their morale. And thankfully, it didn't seem to be a huge issue.

"So, did you get around to reorganizing my schedule like I requested?" I asked Crescent Moon as I did my paperwork.

"Yes, Captain," said Crescent, looking at his clipboard. "Tomorrow, there's another Wonderbolt Derby."

"Didn't we just have one of those?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, yes," said Crescent, rubbing the back of his head. "Um, you're not scheduled to race, but Mr. Fancy Pants has invited you to join him in his private box for tea."

I rolled my eyes and let out an exasperated sigh. Let me just get this out of the way: I hate stuffy, high-class events. The only one I tolerate is the Grand Galloping Gala, and that's because I find that it's a great chance to meet my fans. As you're probably aware, I'm not a classy pony. I really don't fit in with the Canterlot elite. Which is why I always wonder how I get so many invitations to these things.

"Did he mention anything else in the invitation?" I asked.

"Just that Ambassador Honor Bound will be joining him."

I looked up from my paperwork and placed a hoof to my muzzle. Now this was interesting. Perhaps Honor Bound wanted to see the Wonderbolts in action. Or maybe he was there to promote the upcoming Ghastly Gorge Gauntlet. Either way, I thought it would be a good opportunity to get some more information about the Proud Pride.

"Let him know that I'll be happy to attend," I said. "What else?"

"Well, the day after, there's a festival in Ponyville promoting the Ghastly Gorge Gauntlet. The Wonderbolts and the Proud Pride are expected to attend," said Crescent.

I smirked. Recently, quite a few new recruits have come from Ponyville, including a particular pegasus with a lot of potential. If they were in the loop about Honor Bound's plans, they were probably gonna make sure this festival was one to remember. Mainly because of me and the Wonderbolts, but eh, what're you gonna do?

"Well, I'm certainly looking forward to that," I said. "Anything else of interest?"

"Apart from that, your schedule is clear, Captain," said Crescent. "The rest is just practice and training up until the big day."

"Good," I said, turning back to my paperwork. "Is that all you have to report?"

Before Crescent could answer, Fast Clip burst in.

"Urgent message for you, ma'am!" he said breathlessly.

"Report," said I.

"We've received a distress call from an airship in Academy airspace, ma'am," said Fast Clip. "We're still waiting on reports from the sentries as to the extent of damage."

I furrowed my brow. This had to be a trap. There were simply no two ways about it. I was certain that once we approached that airship, it was rigged to explode or something along those lines. No way was I dealing with that again.

"Have any of the Wonderbolts been deployed to assist the sentries?" I asked.

"No, ma'am."

"Good. Keep it that way. I don't want anypony in the air until the sentries have a full report."

"Understood, ma'am," said Fast Clip with a salute.

"Sis, we've got trouble!"

Blaze came barging in with a frantic look on her face.

"What is it, Blaze?" I asked.

"It's the sentries! They're under attack!"

My eyes went wide. Some of our sentries are only cadets; a few of them barely out of Flight School. If this was a trap, it was a pretty damn good one. I had to take the bait, otherwise innocent ponies would get hurt.

"Celestia dammit," I spat before tapping the intercom on. "ATTENTION ALL WONDERBOLTS! WE HAVE A HOSTILE BOGEY IN OUR AIRSPACE! SUIT UP AND PREPARE TO SCRAMBLE! THIS IS NOT A DRILL! I REPEAT: THIS IS NOT A DRILL!"

I tapped the intercom off and turned to Fast Clip. "Get some medical personnel on the tarmac, on the double! I want those sentries tended to!"

"Yes, ma'am!" said Fast Clip with a salute.

With that, I marched out of my office with Blaze at my heels. I was fuming. This assassin really wasn't screwing around. He'd go to any lengths to kill me and my team. But man oh man, was he messing with the wrong mare.

"All Wonderbolts, check in!"

"Blaze, standing by."

"Soarin', standing by."

"Wave Chill, standing by."

Each of the Wonderbolts sounded off as we made our approach. To be blunt, it was not a pretty sight. The sentries were already forced into a fighting retreat, and I didn't blame them. Several missiles came pouring out of the airship. Upon closer inspection, I saw that they were fireworks.

"Tsk. Such a waste," said Surprise. "Everypony knows you can only truly enjoy fireworks at night."

"Cut the chatter!" I barked. "We need to focus if we're gonna take this thing out!"

"Right-a-rooni, that's a copy," said Surprise with a nod. Like I said, even though some of the Wonderbolts can be a bit difficult, they put all of that to the side when the chips are down. "So, what's the plan, Cap?"

"The cords," I said. "Those hot air balloon supports are the airship's lifeline. Once we take a few out, they'll be forced to surrender. Now, I want to make this quick, and I want to make it clean. Is that understood?"

"Yes, ma'am!" came a chorus of acknowledgments.

"Good," I said. "Break off into wing pairs on my mark. Ready... Mark!"

The Wonderbolts did just as I ordered, spreading out into their wing pairs as they surrounded the airship. The only one without a wingpony was me, but that was by design. I still knew deep in my gut that this was a trap, and I had to keep my eyes on everypony fighting out there. I was not going to let any of them end up like Misty Fly. Not this time.

The fireworks came hard and fast, but we were all able to outmaneuver them. But believe me, it wasn't easy. I lost count of how many close calls I saw. Dodging one could very well steer you right into the path of another, and dodging that one could lead you into another still. It was like flying through the obstacle course while dragons try to cook you from all sides. I'm sad to say it, but the sentries didn't really stand a chance against such an onslaught.

"I got one, ma'am!" Fleetfoot called out. Sure enough, I saw the airship lurch a bit as one of the cords snapped.

"Great! Don't let your guard down!" I hollered back. "You never know what a cornered beast might do!"

The battle continued for a while, and I was starting to get nervous. When was this schmuck gonna spring the trap on us? We were right there in hoof's reach, so what was the delay? What exactly did this guy have in store for us?

As these thoughts weighed on my mind, I became partially aware that the fireworks had stopped.

"It appears they have run out of ammunition, ma'am," said Wave Chill. "Requesting permission to board."

Wait. Wait, that was it! That's what the assassin was waiting for!

"That's a negative, Wave Chill!" I yelled. "We're grounding this thing! Wonderbolts, attack formation Hurricane Gamma!"

We all regrouped and formed a large vertical line. We then began to spin around the airship in a circle, creating a vortex of wind. The ensuing tornado caused the remaining cables to snap, sending the hot air balloon drifting off into the sky while the airship plummeted like a stone. I smiled to myself.

Take that, you son of a bitch, I thought triumphantly.

"Ah! Mayday!"

My moment of triumph was interrupted by a cry for help. Wide-eyed, I looked up to see that Fire Streak had broken formation and was going into a tailspin. I was about to go after him, but somepony else beat me to the punch.

Once again, it was Mare-Do-Well to the rescue. She had caught Fire Streak, and placed him gently on a cloud. I quickly rushed over.

"Fire Streak, what happened?" I asked.

Fire Streak winced. "Ah! I, dunno ma'am. One moment I was flying, the next there was this *oof* sharp pain in my back."

I took a closer look, and I couldn't believe what I saw. There were two incisions running along Fire Streak's back. It was almost like someone had tried to cut his wings off with a pair of box cutters. I-I had no words.

"Our quarry is good," said Mare-Do-Well, obscuring her eyes with her hat. "Too good."

"Too good?" I parroted.

"The only trace left behind was that cloth I found," said Mare-Do-Well. "There's no evidence to be gathered from this attempt."

"Except that he's not very good at his job," I huffed. "Fire Streak here isn't dead."

"That is indeed puzzling," said Mare-Do-Well, placing a hoof to her chin. "But, I suppose that would depend on the method used to attack, and we can't determine that here."

"Then, what? I should just wait for this prick to strike again?" I said, getting rather fed up.

Mare-Do-Well chuckled.

"What the hay is so funny?" I growled.

"You didn't assume that our quarry went down with the ship," said Mare-Do-Well. "Again, I compliment your sharp mind, Ms. Spitfire. Keep using it, and you'll pull through."

"Captain!"

I looked up to see Crescent Moon fly in with Fast Clip and Whiplash by his side.

"We saw the airship go down, and we wanted to see if you were all okay," said he.

"Fire Streak here got hit," I said glumly. "You'd better take him to the infirmary."

Crescent nodded. "Right away," he said. "I'm sorry, Captain."

I couldn't respond to that. Most ponies say "It's alright," but in this case, it wasn't. I tried so hard to keep my team safe, and the assassin still managed to get the drop on me. So, the only thing I could do was salute as Fast Clip and Whiplash carried Fire Streak off.

"This has not been my day," I sighed. "Well, I guess there is someone out there trying to kill us. You were right, Mare-Do..."

But just like last time, she had vanished without a trace. I sighed again and sat down on the cloud. I felt a presence fly down next to me.

"You want my shoulder to cry on, Sis?"

I gave Blaze a small smirk. "Maybe later," I said. "But, could you stay with me for a while?"

"Sure," said Blaze, draping a wing around my shoulder. "I told you that you wouldn't regret letting me help."

I had to snicker. That's just like Blaze; always ready to take me down a peg. After composing myself, I sighed.

"Mark my words, Blaze. When I find this bastard, he's gonna pay big time," I said darkly.

"Yeah, I know," said Blaze as we watched the other Wonderbolts return to base.

The rest of the day was rather uneventful (thank Celestia), but I knew that I was in for another sleepless night. Not only were the mysteries piling up, but the assassin was pulling all the stops to take the Wonderbolts down. If I wanted to catch this guy, I had to step up my game.

So, this is where I stand now. Misty Fly and Fire Streak were both attacked, and my only lead to their attacker that hasn't exploded in my face is a piece of cloth. Oh, and I have a cryptic stalker with bizarre fashion sense. As you can probably tell, this is not a good start.

Don't worry, I'm not planning on losing my mind or breaking down. That's not how I roll. After all, I'm the captain of the Wonderbolts. I don't believe in giving up until I've given it my all.