//------------------------------// // Prologue: Closing Doors // Story: Broken Sky // by Fyn16 //------------------------------// Prologue: Closing Doors The dry rasp the paper made as it was pushed across the polished oak desk cut through the silence, ringing in Nimbus’s ears like an alarm bell. The orange and black Pegasus didn’t dare look down at it as he held the position of attention, rigid as a board in his Wonderbolts Cadet uniform. Instead, he kept his eyes fixed straight ahead, staring at the golden-yellow pony sitting on the other side of the desk, resplendent in her Wonderbolt dress uniform. She stared back, emotionless, until she finally spoke. “I assume you know by now what this is, Cadet Nimbus?” “Yes ma’am,” the orange and black Pegasus responded, not moving. The Wonderbolt behind the desk sighed. “Stand at ease, cadet, and look at that paper. Tell me what you see.” Nimbus loosened his legs and turned his gaze towards the paper. It was an orders sheet- he’d recognize the format anywhere- and as such, there wasn’t much to see- mostly just official jargon. Two words stood out, however: below the main paragraph, the words “retain” and “disenroll” were written in large, bold font. “Disenroll” was circled with a red pen. Nimbus’s heart sank. “Ma’am, these are my official orders regarding my disenrollment from the Wonderbolt Academy.” The Wonderbolt nodded, standing up and walking around her desk to stand next to Nimbus. She sized him up briefly, searching for what to say next. Nimbus thought he could see something like sorrow in her eyes, but he didn’t want to presume anything. He certainly wasn’t in a position to do so. “Your observation was spot-on,” the Wonderbolt said at last, “I’d expect nothing less of a cadet. You realize by now, then, that the only reason you’re talking to me right now is that you are going to leave the Academy. You made some mistakes, and you did not recover from them. This is not acceptable for a Wonderbolt. Can you tell me where you went wrong?” Nimbus stared down the yellow Wonderbolt, almost choking. “Well, I… I, uh…” “You failed the Dizzitron exam. Three times. As I recall, we have a three strikes and you’re out policy, which is considerably generous. We gave you two chances to correct your mistakes and you did nothing. This alone is not terribly serious. We’ve disenrolled other cadets who simply didn’t have the flying ability to pass, but do you recall taking your flying aptitude test before entering?” Nimbus nodded as the Wonderbolt began to pace. “You passed the aptitude test with one of the highest scores we’ve ever seen here. On a scale of one to fifty, you achieved a forty-eight. That’s near Wonderbolt material already, so when you fail three Dizzitrons in a row, I see a red flag going up. Someone with your abilities should be passing these with ease. My diagnosis- you were lazy, and you rested on your laurels. You figured you were already capable of taking whatever we could throw at you, and you didn’t bother to prepare because of that. I’d wager that you didn’t even read the chapter of your maneuvers book on how to recover from a Dizzitron spin, did you?” Nimbus looked at the ground. He couldn’t even bring himself to meet the Wonderbolt’s eyes anymore. “No, ma’am, I did not.” “I thought so,” the Wonderbolt continued. “Nimbus- I really don’t want to be here talking to you right now. I want you out there with the rest of the cadets, flying around. When the decision was made to disenroll you, I fought for you. I wanted to give you another chance- a waiver maybe, but some things are beyond my power entirely. Regardless of whether you’ve learned from your mistakes or not, these are the consequences you suffer.” The yellow pony walked back to Nimbus, lowering her voice to a solemn tone. “At this point, you will turn in your Wonderbolt pin. Tradition dictates that I do this myself. I can’t even imagine how painful this is going to be to you. Just… try to ignore it.” Nimbus gritted his teeth as the gleaming, metallic pin was removed from his uniform. Losing it was like losing a part of himself. He’d been stripped of everything he’d earned entering the Academy in one single moment. The pony placed the pin on her desk, then turned back to Nimbus. “What are your plans now?” she asked simply. “Major Spitfire, I will-“ “Please,” the Wonderbolt cut him off, “you’re not a Wonderbolt anymore. There’s no reason to use the usual customs and courtesies. It’s just ‘Spitfire’ now.” “Alright,” Nimbus said, collecting himself, “well- I understand why I’ve failed, I think. My goal is the same, though. I want to fly in service to Equestria. I’m going to follow my backup plan- applying to the Royal Equestrian Air College.” Spitfire nodded. “I see. REAC is a good school. There’s an Aviator Training School located there as well.” “Yes ma’am,” Nimbus said, nodding, “and I’m going to apply for it.” “Then allow me to share some advice with you,” Spitfire said, “here, at the Academy, you’re guaranteed a place in the Royal Equestrian Air Force when you graduate. At REAC, that’s not the same. It’s an Aviator Training School, so you’ll be competing with your classmates for slots. Being middle of the pack isn’t good enough. You’re really going to have to work to give them a reason to choose you over somepony else, especially with this disenrollment on your record.” “I understand,” Nimbus said, “but I’m ready to try.” Spitfire shook her head. “Trying’s not good enough. You need to be confident enough that once that year-long program is over, you will be an REAF Aviator.” “I will, ma’am,” Nimbus said. Spitfire took her place behind her desk once again. “If you say you will, then I’m going to hold you to that. The pressure is on now, Nimbus. Do you have the power to change? To become a new pony? I can’t answer those questions. You’ll simply have to find out. All I know is that I for one believe you can. Whether I believe it or not is, of course, irrelevant. You need to prove to me, and most of all yourself, that you have the commitment to stick with the goal you’ve set for yourself.” Spitfire placed Nimbus’s Wonderbolt pin in a drawer, shutting it away, then looked back at the former cadet. “Any last questions?” Nimbus shook his head. “You are dismissed, then,” Spitfire said. “Good afternoon, ma’am,” Nimbus responded, saluting as per custom. He was grateful when he finally turned his back on Spitfire. She wouldn’t have to see the single tear that was brimming in his left eye. As he walked outside, he could see the other cadets practicing aerobatics, all well on their way to becoming masters of speed and precision. Nimbus felt a pang of grief knowing now that he could not be one of them. He stepped into the carriage that was waiting for him just outside Spitfire’s office with a heavy heart. Yet somewhere within, he could also sense a flame- a flame of determination. It was small, almost undetectable, but it was there nonetheless, eager to try again. As Nimbus secured his belongings inside the carriage and sat down, he knew that this didn’t have to be the end. To him, it was a new beginning- a clean slate. And he intended to make the most of it.