//------------------------------// // Restoration // Story: Detour // by Jetset0099 //------------------------------// Morning came along, bringing a sunny sky and warm air with it. The C-130 sat out in the field, it's fuselage reflecting the bright sunlight. This gave a certain rainbow-maned pegasus a perfect place to lounge. She was laid out on the right wing of the aircraft, fast asleep enjoying the Celestial rays. However, her world of relaxation was cut short by a small stick coming up over the prop and landing by her face. She snapped up and looked over the wing to see who threw it, and saw that it was none other than Jake. She rolled her eyes and floated down, landing between him and the access door. "What gives? I was trying to sleep." The pilot walked passed her and opened the door, letting the staircase drop down. "Sleep later. We have a big day ahead of us." A couple minutes later found the two strapped in in the cockpit, and ready to go. Jake fired up the engines and aligned the nose facing the town. Rainbow, who was used to taking off over the Everfree Forest, looked over and pointed out the windshield. "Why aren't we taking off the other way?" "The winds are against us if we did that. It's easier to go this way now." Without another word, he slowly pushed forward on the throttles, letting the engines whine with power. The lumbering plane sped up, and about fifty yards from the closest building, lifted off the ground with ease. Jake quickly banked left and headed for Sweet Apple Acres, and within seconds, he was able to see Macintosh and Applejack working the orchard below. The black dodge was seen parked right behind them full of apples, it's chrome stacks reflecting off the sun. After making his pass, he turned around and headed for Canterlot, ascending to twelve thousand feet, which was just about how high the Capitol City was perched on its cliff. Several minutes passed in silence between the two. Finally, Rainbow Dash turned to him with a concerned look. "You don't look ok. What's the matter?" Jake looked over with a raised eyebrow, then turned back to the windshield. After a couple more seconds of silence, he sighed and told her the problem. "Some idiot scratched the Dodge last night. I think I know who, but I'm not too sure. It's not that big of a deal, really. It's a work truck, not a supercar like the Ferrari was. But still, I really liked the black gloss look. That scratch just ruins it. Sorry for being a stick in the mud. It just got to me is all." Dash waved it off with a hoof. "Pssh! No worries. I would be mad to if somepony defaced my property like that." "Thanks for understanding." "You bet. Hey, lets turn some music on to liven things up. What'cha got?" Jake un-fastened his seatbelt and got up, leaving Dash at the controls, even though it was on autopilot. He came back a minute later with a CD album in his hoof. The cover was white, with the title Pat Metheney Group: The First Circle, printed in what looked like crayon. He popped it in and put on the song the album was named after, and cranked the volume up. He sat back down in his seat and turned to Dash. "This is kind of different. You need to really listen to appreciate it." ------------------------------------- http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dcXEkg26d-I ------------------------------------- An intricate clapping rhythm started the song, followed by some heavy piano chords in the background. Rainbow Dash concentrated on the music, and started to let the sound take over. A nylon guitar solo started. It was smooth, and worked its way up and down several scales very fast. Jake played along with the drums using his yoke as an improvised set. "Here we go." ------------------------------------- Applejack bucked the last apple tree in the row, sending its fruity contents tumbling down into the bed of the Dodge, where Mac was sitting ready to pull ahead to the next row. They stopped for a quick break, sitting down under the shade of a tree. Applejack looked around at the almost-completed orchard, and nodded to herself. "Yep. Ah think if we work our flanks off, we'll have it done by tonight." Mac was surprised at hearing her say this. He had intended to wait until Jake returned the next day to finish. "Are ya sure about that? With nopony else ta drive the truck, yer left buckin' trees on your own. Now ya remember what happened the last time ya tried doin' all this by yerself, don't ya?" "Yes Mac, ah do. But there ain't much more to go. Ah know we can do this." Her brother chuckled and stood up. "If ya say so. Break time's over. Lets get back ta work." ------------------------------------- Twelve thousand feet up, Jake and Rainbow Dash were really getting into the music as it progressed. It finished with a bang, leaving Dash amazed at the unusual sounding tune. "I've never heard anything like that before. What was it even called?" "The First Circle by Pat Metheney. Besides Pink Floyd, he's one of my favorite artists. All of his music is intricate, and he never seems to run out of ideas." They finished off the album just as Jake touched down on the cloud-based runway. When he came to a stop, he was surprised at the sight of The Wonderbolts and Starfyre, accompanied by Celestia and Luna. "I wonder what they want?" The engines shut off, and they both exited the aircraft. Dash bowed down before the Princesses, prompting Jake to do the same. The Sun Goddess smiled. "Rise." The two did as told, and Jake spoke up. "What brings you two here?" Luna stepped forward and handed Jake an envelope. "We want to invite you to the pre-show party Friday night in Canterlot Castle. It's obvious you all would attend no matter what, but the tickets enclosed in the envelope will prove to the guards your authenticity." Jake lit up at the thought of a pre-show party. "So this is a big deal, I'm assuming." Soarin walked over and put a hoof on his shoulder. "You bet! Because its our last show, we want to celebrate before hand and give the team a chance to say thank you to our fans for all of their support. Also, a lot of big-wigs who have donated generous amounts to the team will be there. So it's also a thank you to them. There's gonna be food, drinks, and music. Make sure you look the part, because anypony who's anypony will surely be there." "Alrighty then. I can't wait." The pilot turned back to Celestia and smiled. "Thank you for the invite, and including my friends as well." Luna spoke up. "Not a problem, Jake. We couldn't expect you to go and leave them behind." Celestia donned a sly look on her face, and looked over towards an empty patch of tarmac. "Also, this isn't the only reason we came here today. After hearing about that incident at Sweet Apple Acres, we worked many hours to pick up the pieces and put them back together. We tried many spells, and only one worked, but I think it turned out ok. Take a look for yourself." Her horn began glowing with a yellow aura, and in seconds, it caused a massive golden orb of energy to be suspended above the ground. It slowly lowered itself down, and faded away, leaving a sight that almost caused Jake to go unconscious. For there, sitting in front of him, was the red Ferrari in all it's glory. The two Rulers had managed to restore it with powerful magic. "I...I don't believe it." Luna started to say something, but was cut off by a giddy pilot running over to the car and jumping in. He started the engine and red-lined the RPM needle. The noise flowed through him, and vibrated the ground around the car. After several more minutes of Jake playing around with his newly restored toy, he shut off the engine and got back out. "I can't thank you two enough! I am forever in your debt." Celestia laughed. "It's our pleasure, Jake. After seeing it in action back in Applesoosa, I was devastated to hear about it's destruction." Spitfire walked over and nodded at the Princesses. She turned to Jake and pointed to the plane. "Listen, Jake. I understand that this is a big moment for you, but we need to stick to the schedule. This is our last practice before our biggest show in the history of Equestria. Lets not screw it up, ok?" "Right. Lets get to work." Luna outstretched her wings and turned to her sister. "She's right. Let us leave and allow them to return to their work." "Very well. Goodbye for now, everypony." With that, the two Rulers of Equestria took off into the sky, bound for the Royal Castle. Spitfire walked over to Rainbow Dash, who had been conversing with Starfyre about the Sabre rockets. "Ok, Dash. This is it. Lets run the entire stunt and see if all these hours of practice payed off." She saluted and lifted off the ground, striking a heroic pose. "I won't let you down, Spitfire!"