//------------------------------// // Chapter 23: Fathers // Story: Piercing the Heavens // by Calm Wind //------------------------------// MLP: FiM Piercing the Heavens By: Calm Wind Chapter 23: Rainbow Dash floated grumpily through the mess hall, carrying her tray, and looking for one specific pony. Other cadets were instinctively moving out of her way. She was pretty much radiating irritation. Why did Storm Front save her three times during the crazy pipe flight? Fleetfoot made it clear beforehoof that they wanted to see competition. COMPETITION. As in try to reach the goal before your opponent. As in why the hell would he help her? It made no sense. Dash’s competitive brain was screaming at her to get answers. Not only that, but Dash was sure it didn’t look good to the Wonderbolts that she needed to be saved three times. She was a tough pony! She could’ve taken a few painful crashes! It wouldn’t have been the first time. She hovered up to get more of a bird’s eye view. It was still hard to find a specific cadet even though the crowd was considerably thinner since day one. It didn’t help that Storm had a fairly generic color scheme. Dash spotted Matteo instantly. It was pretty hard to miss him. Dash was in luck. Maybe their earlier teamwork in the fake mess hall had bred some camaraderie, because Storm was in the process of sitting down across from Matteo. Target locked. Intercept. Dash hovered back down and quickly made her way over to the table. Matteo glanced as she moved in and tried to greet her, but Dash didn’t even look at him. She slammed her tray down, plopped down in the seat next to Matteo, and glared straight ahead at Storm. Storm blinked as his eyes met the attack of hers. “Uh… hi?” he greeted quizzically. He and Matteo glanced at each other as Dash took a large bite out of her wheat roll, and chewed it angrily while continuously staring at Storm. “What?” Storm finally asked. “I’m trying to figure you out,” Dash said with her mouth full of bread. She swallowed and took a swig of her water. “What’s your game? What are you trying to pull?” she sharpened her glare further. “Wait, are you talking about the test?” he put together. “No shit Thunder Back!” Dash rolled her eyes. “What was with all of the damsel in distress catching?” she got right to the point. Storm just kept eyeing her and blinking, and then it hit him. “Wait… you’re angry because… I caught you?” he furrowed his brow. Dash stood up. “It was a competition! Why would you help me?” she grilled him. “Uh…” “And come on, do I look like a frail little flower? I can take a few bruises!” “I just…” “I don’t need your help to get through this stuff, I can—” she was cut off as Matteo reached over, clamped his talons over her head, and forced her to sit back down. “Rainbow Dash, calm down. If you want to know so badly, you’ll have to let him speak,” he said while holding her down. Dash huffed, puffed her cheeks, and crossed her hooves, whipping her tail around fiercely behind her to vent her anger while she waited for an answer. “Thank you,” Storm said to Matteo as he took a deep breath, sighed, and looked at Dash. “First of all, you're welcome,” he said sternly. “And second? I don’t like seeing other ponies get hurt, I—” “I can take a little pain you know, I’m not a weakling!” Dash lost her restraint and lashed out. “I DON’T care!” Storm retorted strongly, surprising Dash. “Look,” Storm put his elbows on the table and rubbed his hooves against his temples. “I don’t care who it is, or how tough they are. I hate seeing ponies get hurt. If I see a pony in danger, and it is in my power to save them from harm, I will. It’s a reflex. It’s just who I am, okay? I would’ve done the same for anypony,” he put his hooves down on the table and looked at Dash. Dash’s expression had changed completely. She suddenly felt terrible. All she could think of was how his actions affected her. His kindness was clear, and she was grateful for him saving her the pain, but all she could see was his actions humiliating her. Humiliating how? Okay, so he stopped her from taking a few blows. Sure, the Wonderbolts saw her slip up, but his actions also gave her the ability to finish the course cleanly… and here she was yelling at him? “Oh gosh… sorry,” Dash’s ears drooped. “Geez, now I feel like a bitch.” “Don’t worry about it,” Storm shook his head. “I can see how you may have taken it the wrong way. Now you know why, so no offense taken,” he let it go so easily too. He was too nice. Dash felt like she had just stepped on him and he just let it go? Storm glanced up at her again as he chewed on some spinach leaves. Dash looked mortified. She was frowning, her ears were dropping as far as they could go, and she stopped eating. Storm quickly tried to change the subject. “So during the test… I glanced back just in time to see it before the finish line. You used my Surface Tap move. How did you know the steps?” he asked, trying to make her feel better with some praise. “Heh,” Matteo let a chuckle slip, catching Storm’s attention. “You aren’t the first she’s copied,” he smirked while glancing at Dash. She saw them both staring at her and blushed sheepishly. “Oh, uh…” she rubbed the back of her head, “I guess… I’m just a fast learner.” “You used Soarin’s signature move earlier too,” Storm smiled and nodded at her. “You can copy abilities you only see once? That’s quite a talent,” he complimented. Dash blushed a little harder. She loved getting praise. Whenever she got it from other ponies who were also awesome, she never knew what to say. She quickly cleared her throat and puffed her chest out pridefully. “Thanks! I mean…” she quickly deflated. “Well… yeah I can copy abilities, but I don’t really have one of my own. When I make a sonic boom, the light bounces off my mane and tail to make a rainbow effect… but that’s not really anything special.” “You think being able to do other new moves on the fly isn’t special?!” Storm chuckled as he threw back some water. Matteo let a snicker go as well. “As Storm said, that is quite unique,” Matteo took over. “I did some research on the Wonderbolts before traveling here. I wanted to know if they were worth my time. There was an interesting bit about there being only one other pony who had a similar mimicking ability. You are a rare find for them to be sure,” Matteo patted Dash on the back a little hard. “OOF!” She grunted and almost went face first into her plate. “Say Matteo, you had a little mishap in the last test,” Storm smirked at Matteo. Matteo’s eyes widened very slightly. “I even saw a bunch your feathers in the tree pipe,” Storm chuckled. Matteo grunted and moved one of his wings to cover the patch of missing feathers on his left side. Dash joined in the friendly jeering. “Yeah big guy, you were walking all funny afterward too! What happened there?” she nudged him. Matteo sighed. “I’d rather not talk about it,” he stated firmly. Dash threw her hooves out. “Aw, come on. I got humiliated by the hoovesy white knight over here. Level with me!” “Hoovesy white knight?” Storm murmured to himself. Matteo rolled his eyes. “I hit something you don’t have… really hard… then lost control and got stuck between two trees,” he explained before quickly digging back into his food. Dash blinked, but Storm reacted quickly. “OOOOO!!!!!” Storm winced and put his hooves between his legs. “I felt it just thinking about it!” “Huh?” Dash flattened her brow, then her eyes widened and her ears flopped down. “Oh! OH! HA…HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!” Dash fell sideways onto the seat beside her as she cracked up. “Oh jeez, don’t laugh Dash! You have no idea how painful that… Oooo, and at that speed?” Storm chuckled. “Mares are so cruel," he and Matteo both joined Dash in finding the amusement of the situation. They all shared a light laugh as Dash glanced up at both of them. She came in here on a warpath, did her yelling and got it thrown right back at her, but she liked these guys. Just as with Soarin, she loved her Ponyville friends to death, but it was very nice to hang with others who shared her direct interests. Dash looked at Storm specifically, curious about something else they had mentioned briefly the first time she really sat down and talked to him. “Say Storm, we brought up our parents before…” she didn’t notice, but Storm flinched slightly. “I’m still curious if they knew each other. Where did your parents work? My dad worked at the weather factory on the edge of town and my mother was on the weather team,” Dash finally noticed something was up. Storm’s ears had slowly drooped down while he was talking. “No, neither of them did those things,” he began before sighing. Before, the topic of parents skimmed right by, but asking specifically seemed to bring up some less than good memories for Storm. “My mom was a cloudscaper… my dad… I don’t know what my dad does,” he looked to the side while putting an elbow on the table and rested his cheek in his hoof. “Oh, uh…” Dash gritted her teeth. “I don’t mean to pry.” “It’s alright,” Storm shrugged. “My mom and dad… don’t really get along. In fact they aren’t married. Apparently I was the product of… a drunken night,” he explained. Dash’s eyes widened. This got heavy real quick. “My mom is always yelling and complaining about ‘my good for nothing father, who knocked me up and left me with a son.’” “So you never knew your father?” Matteo asked straightforwardly. Dash was too nervous to speak. Storm sighed and shook his head. “No, I saw my dad every month or so. He always flew in when my mother wasn’t around, asked me how I was holding up, dropped a bag of bits in my lap, patted me on the head, and would leave before mom could get home. He stopped showing up about half a year ago,” Storm shrugged and smiled. “My mom can say all she wants about him, but he always came back and always dropped off money for us. I don’t know how he got it, but he cared enough do his part in supporting us. I hope he’s alright.” “Gee… I… uh…” Dash didn’t know what to say. Storm chuckled and waved a hoof. “Sorry, depressing sob story. I like to think I turned out fine… I guess the way my dad cared and tried regardless of my mom rubbed off on me.” “That’s putting it lightly. You’re like… nice guy 101.” Dash found a path to humor and quickly took it. “Then I am doing something right I guess,” Storm smiled and sat back up straight. Dash smiled back, and then looked at Matteo. She found herself curious here too, and since they were on the subject, why not? “What about you big fella?” she asked. Matteo blinked and looked down at her. “I bet you were a hoofful when you were younger. What are your parents like?” “Hmph,” Matteo looked up proudly. “My mother is a lieutenant in the Griffon Royal Guard. My father was the former Master of the Sky.” “Whoa! Of the Sky Wings!?” Storm reacted before Dash could. How did Dash never know about them? Looks like she was just THAT focused on the Wonderbolts. “I see you know your griffon history,” Matteo cracked a small smile at Storm. “Correct. My father was once Master of the Sky.” “Yet they still turned you away?” Dash recalled. Matteo sighed. “Lineage means nothing in the Sky Wings. Every griffon must earn their honor.” “But you were… ‘too big.’” Dash pouted in disgust. It seemed so hypocritical. Matteo grunted. “Their ways are strict. I would not be useful in their combat style,” said Matteo reluctantly. Storm thought over Matteo’s words. “So you said ‘former.’ Did your dad retire?” Storm asked. “No. He was killed in combat three years ago.” Storm flinched hard and Dash spat her water out across the table. “Whoa! That’s… I’m sorry to hear that…” Dash was caught completely off guard. She fought for words to say, but couldn’t find any. Wow, Dash suddenly felt like she had had an easy life. Storm was an accident and had two parents who never got along… and Matteo’s father was killed? “Save your sympathy. For a griffon warrior, the only true way to leave this world is to die with a weapon in hand, fighting to your last breath,” Matteo kept his eyes firm, and free of any sort of emotion. “He’s your father,” Storm bravely stated while giving Matteo a look of disbelief. “And he died honorably.” “But he’s your father!” Storm held his hooves out to his sides. “Aren’t you at least a little sad he’s gone?” Dash blinked and looked between Storm and Matteo. The two had locked eyes. Matteo was glaring daggers at Storm, but Storm was holding firm under the crushing gaze. “Hmph…” Matteo looked slightly away. Dash certainly wasn’t expecting Matteo to back off first. “Do not mistake me. It’s not that I feel nothing… I seek something that is forbidden in our kingdom,” Matteo explained while grinding the tips of his beak together. Dash looked up at Matteo, wondering what he was getting at. “Revenge?” Storm blurted out. “Revenge,” Matteo repeated and nodded. Dash eyed Matteo with interest. There was so much about the Griffon Kingdom she just didn’t know. Every time he spoke it was like she was being exposed to a whole new culture. “Was he challenged for the honor of Master of the Sky?” Storm pressed. Matteo shook his head slowly. “He was killed by a pony.” “What?!” Dash and Storm exclaimed in unison. “Yes. A pegasus,” Matteo specified. A pegasus. A pegasus strong enough to kill the strongest of all griffons… Only one thing came to mind. Shadowbolts. Dash shivered as thoughts of Nightshade poured into her head. They never found out what happened to her, but Nightshade was like a nightmare that never truly went away. Although… Matteo did say his father was killed three years ago. Nightshade may not have even been the captain yet. This is also if it even was a Shadowbolt who killed Matteo’s father. Who knows what other forces might be out there in Equestria… after meeting the Shadowbolts, Dash wouldn’t be surprised if there were others. She didn’t know of the Sky Wings until now after all… Dash was jumping to conclusions. She felt like asking but— “I do not know their name, or who they represent. The report was returned by a griffon beaten within an inch of his life who died shortly after in the infirmary. Griffon law dictates that revenge is dishonorable. To seek revenge on the killer of a fellow griffon is to tarnish their honor with your own blood,” Matteo slammed a fist down on the table. “But that pony already tarnished my family name by ending my father’s life long before he could bring us the glory he truly deserved. And… as you say Storm Front, he was my father. I refuse to let it just slip by. One day I shall find them, and I shall finish the battle my father started.” “Hmph…” Storm huffed as he listened. “I don’t question your reasons, but is revenge really worth it?” “You’d never understand, you are not a griffon,” Matteo calmly retorted. “Fair enough,” Storm shrugged. The two went back to eating. Dash looked back and forth at the two of them. Those were crazy stories… she had nothing to compare to those. She started snickering. Both Storm and Matteo looked up at her, confused. Dash saw them looking and her snickering grew louder. “No! No… it’s nothing…” Dash tried to hold it in, but the snickering turned to chuckling. “What?” Matteo glared. Dash didn’t even flinch beneath his stare. “My dad makes rainbows,” Dash said simply before she burst out laughing. Storm blinked and glanced at Matteo before he too started losing his composure. Soon Storm was laughing along with Dash. Matteo blinked and looked between the two. He let a snort escape his nose before even he, the mighty stoic griffon, released a few chuckles of amusement. “You guys… are so interesting. It’s pretty awesome really…” Dash wiped a tear from her eyes as the laughter finally died down. Soarin made his way across the mess hall towards the dirty tray racks. The sound of a familiar, snarky laugh met his ears. He glanced over at a nearby table to see Rainbow Dash sharing a good laugh with Storm Front and Matteo. He smiled as he placed his tray into the rack and looked back at them. Dash was having a good time. He had a feeling she would be, but seeing it himself made his heart flutter. He just wanted her to be happy at all times. She was one little bundle of tough, sassy, confident, and competitive. Those were some of the things he adored the most about her. There was plenty more to love… but he was in public and didn’t want his wings to give away his thoughts. “Excuse me, sir.” Soarin snapped from his thoughts, realizing he was standing directly in the way of the tray racks while staring at his mare. He moved out of the way to let Wave Chill by before refocusing on Dash. This was hard. Every time he saw her, he had to resist the untamable urge to rush up to her and give her a big hug. The need to feel her touch was so great that his body nearly ached when he held himself back. He missed the comfort she gave him. It was a comfort he could really use more than ever right now. Especially with all this crap with his inner magic, the “strap-on” horn… he just needed her and— Soarin blinked and looked towards the mess hall doors just in time to see Wave Chill’s tail disappear through them. “Wave!” Soarin called, but the door closed. He was so lost in thought about Dash that he had forgotten he wanted to talk to Wave about Spitfire. He just walked right by him too. They had a good chunk of time to spare while squad three set up the last test of the day. It was perfect timing for a talk with Wave that Soarin felt needed to happen sooner rather than later. Soarin moved towards the doors with a quickened trot. He reached forward to push one of the doors open, but right before he could— “Did somepony call my n—” Wave opened the door from the other side the moment Soarin lunged to push the door. “WHOA!” Soarin lurched forward and bumped face to face with Wave. Wave grunted and stumbled back a little as Soarin regained his balance and shook his head out about a step outside the doorway. “Damn, sorry about that Wave I AHHHH!!!!!” Soarin yelped painfully as the door closed on his tail behind him. He quickly reached his wing back and yanked the door open, flicking his tail free. “Ooo! Owww!” Soarin groaned while reaching back to his flank, grabbing his tail and blowing air on it. Wave blinked as he finally recovered from the face smash and wondered what the heck was going on. Soarin wanted to talk to him, but this was one hell of a graceful start. “S-sir?” Wave addressed Soarin. Soarin took a deep breath and let his tail drop back down. Soarin had had close calls while flying and had been in battles to the death, but he was more than certain their compound was more likely to kill him first. He’d gone a few weeks now without getting himself into avoidable mishaps. He hadn’t tripped over anything recently in the halls, so that was a start, but his current run was ended by running face first into Wave and then getting his tail eaten by the mess hall. “Sorry,” Soarin chuckled as he moved up to Wave and put a hoof on his shoulder. “Got a minute?” Soarin asked casually. “Sir! Yes, s—” Wave stopped and his eyes widened. “Wait… this isn’t about—” “It’s about Spitfire,” Soarin winked. Wave stared directly at Soarin for five seconds. His left eyelid twitched and his right ear fell down against his head. He quickly turned and started trotting away at a very fast pace. “HEY!” Soarin galloped after him. He moved in front of Wave and placed himself firmly in his path before he could get very far into the hallway. “Seriously Wave… this has to stop. Watching the two of you stumble around awkwardly has been like watching somepony’s face go through a glass pane in slow motion,” Soarin held his hoof out against Wave’s chest as Wave’s eyes darted around for another escape route. “Um… SIR! I, uh… THERE IS NOTHING WRONG! Er… NO SIR! No way, no how, sir, nope, nadda, nothing, sir, oh man, what am I doing?” Wave let his head droop down. Soarin sighed, reached down, and pulled Wave’s face back up. “First, look at me. Second, I’m not Spitfire or Silver, drop the formalities. Third, talk to me! Spitfire’s been my best friend for my whole life. You can ask me anything about her!” Soarin offered with a smile. Wave looked away again and Soarin quickly pulled his face back towards him. “What did I just say about that?” “Sorry sir!” “And that?” “I…” Wave gave in. “Sorry Soarin. I just don’t know what to do. So many bad things have happened.” “Bad things?” Soarin asked while tipping his head. Wave nodded. “You saw the first… Spitfire… rubbing against me.” “But that wasn’t even real,” Soarin rolled his eyes. “That’s not bad. Discord’s just an asshole.” “The effect it had on me though…” Wave continued. “She actually cornered me later to ask me what was wrong… she refused to let it be so I had to tell her about that.” “Oo…” Soarin winced. “Okay, that’s kinda bad.” “And if that wasn’t awkward enough, just now before the second test, I ran face first into her… plot,” his ears drooped. Soarin tipped his head back and forth. “Okay, so maybe a few bad things have happened,” Soarin shrugged. “But what are you planning to do about it?” “I… I don’t know,” Wave admitted. “I think it would be best if I just let it all go,” he so easily accepted fate. Soarin sighed and shook his head. “Look Wave, I’m going to speak from experience here. THE WORST thing you can do in this situation is avoid her,” he poked Wave in the chest. “Spitfire is in a funk about this just as much as you are. You have to go to her and try to fix it.” “Me? But…” “Wave, mares are strange creatures. We stallions share the same emotions as them, but the way our brains work about those emotions couldn’t be more different. You feel at fault for giving her a nose to the plot, right? Then start by apologizing for that,” Soarin moved beside Wave as he talked. “But… is she angry at me for that?” Wave had fully given in and was listening intently. “Hell if I know!” Soarin chuckled. “But it doesn’t matter. Just apologize. Trust me, when it comes to mares, the stallion is always the one at fault. Even if she isn’t angry and knows you did it by accident, go apologize. Calmly, not while running away,” he added with a smirk. “That’s the first step.” Wave Chill remained silent while staring blankly at Soarin. “Wave?” Soarin blinked. Wave just sighed and shook his head. “I can’t do this…” he pulled away from Soarin and began walking down the hallway. Soarin growled. Wave was giving in way too easily. “Wave Chill,” Soarin trotted with heavy steps around and in front of him again. “I’m sorry commander, I just—” “Do you like her?” Soarin cut him off sternly. Wave’s eyes widened at the straightforward question. Yes or no. That’s all Soarin was looking for. Of course, he said neither. “Captain Spitfire is my superior officer. It is improper for me to—” “Oh sweet Celestia alive! SHUT UP!” Soarin stomped a hoof, both effectively quieting Wave and drawing a few confused looks from others passing by in the hall. Wave held his lips shut tight. “I’ll ask you again, and I want you to give me a straight up, honest answer… OKAY? Do. You. Like. Her?” he thoroughly emphasized each word. Once again, Wave stared silently. This time however, it looked like he was actually thinking. He averted his eyes from Soarin. Something Soarin was really getting tired of. “Y…yes. I do like her.” “Was that so hard? Then what’s stopping you from trying to make things right?!” Soarin smacked Wave’s shoulders lightly with his hooves. Wave shook his head. “I’m way out of my league to begin with… I’m not worthy of her.” “ARRRGHHH!!!!!” Soarin pressed his hooves to his head. “Are you kidding me Wave?” he flattened his brow. Wave looked back and forth. “I’m not,” he added. Soarin shook his head. “Don’t give me that bullshit. She’s been enthralled with you since you helped her during the Shadowbolt incident,” Soarin tapped one hoof against the side of the other to make sure his point got across. “Plus, weren’t you just in her room the other night?” “Er… we were just talking,” Wave tried to dodge the subject. “You know she never invites anypony into her room besides Fleet and I right? At least not until recently. Keep trying to convince me you aren’t worthy. If you can’t convince the captain, you most certainly cannot convince me,” Soarin crossed his hooves and bounced his eyebrows. “But… I couldn’t possibly…” Wave stubbornly continued. Soarin sighed and walked around Wave. “Wave… let me put it this way. You have… one of the most extraordinary mares in the history of Equestria… interested in you. And you are trying to dodge her?” “She’s not interested in…” “Stop talking,” Soarin reached a hoof over and placed it firmly over Wave’s mouth. “You have a mare unlike any other within your reach. And you’re avoiding her. I simply cannot see how your brain is putting this together for you,” He removed his hoof from Wave’s mouth. Wave stood still, Soarin’s words circling in his head. “Talk to her,” Soarin continued. “Make things right. I know she’s a big time pony, but be a stallion and make the first move to fix things. Trust me… I’ve been in your horseshoes. The sooner you do it, the less painful the whole thing will be.” Wave looked down and took a deep breath. “Fine… I’ll talk to her,” he said with a hint of reluctance, but he at least said it. “That’s the spirit!” Soarin patted him on the back. “But maybe later,” Wave added quietly. Soarin looked straight up and groaned. “Dammit Wave…” he shook his head as the two began walking again. While Soarin was frustrated with Wave, he couldn’t help but wonder if this was the exact way Spitfire felt back when she drilled him about Dash. This whole scenario was making Soarin really miss Dash. Fortunately for Wave, the moment following his drilling wasn’t that of a magical tornado… but Soarin hoped he would get a moment similar to the one he had with Dash. He could remember it like it was yesterday. How frantically Dash stumbled clumsily across the hospital room just to know for sure that he was alive. It was one of the most touching moments of his life. He hoped for the best for Spitfire and Wave. Both of them could use a little pleasure. “WHOA!” Both Soarin and Wave looked up to see Fleetfoot with her back up against the wall as they drew near. She had her eyes locked on them as they stopped and eyed her quizzically. “What?” Soarin asked, sensing a bad joke. Fleetfoot shook her head and beckoned them along. “Please keep moving, I don’t want to get drawn in!” she frantically requested with a small smirk curling on the edges of her mouth. “To what?” Soarin rolled his eyes. “The two clumsiest Wonderbolts! I dare not make physical contact!” she pressed herself harder to the wall. Soarin scoffed. “Very funny Fleet…” “Soarin, tripper of wet floor signs and buckets of water…” Fleetfoot began overdramatically. “Wave Chill, the oblivious walker and stuffer of nose into forbidden places! BACK! BACK I SAY!” she yelled while waving her hooves out in front of her. Soarin flattened his brow and ears. “Just keep walking…” Soarin said to Wave Chill, but then— “WHOA!” Soarin jumped just in time to avoid a wet floor sign blending in with the blue floor. He glanced back at Fleetfoot, who was snickering while peeling herself off the wall. Soarin puffed his chest out triumphantly as he kept looking at her and continued walking. “Sorry to disappoint you FLEET. But—” “Commander! Look ou—” Wave chill yelled out. Soarin walked directly into a folding ladder that was set up to change one of the fluorescent lights in the hallway. Soarin fell into it, got tangled in it, toppled it, and fell to the ground with a loud crash. A toolbox fell off the top of the ladder as it tipped, the tools spilling and scattering all over the floor with loud clangs and clatters. Wave winced and flinched as he watched Soarin completely wipe out and land in a heap on the floor with his limbs intertwined in the ladder and tools everywhere. PFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!! HAHAHAHAHAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!” Fleetfoot immediately burst out laughing. She clutched her stomach and leaned forward so hard that she did a forward roll, landing on her back. She proceeded to guffaw her lungs out while tipping back and forth. “Uh…” Wave leaned back and forth slightly at the mess in front of him. “Are you okay… sir?” Soarin lifted his head from the rubble, the open tool box fixed atop his head, held in place by the fake horn. If anything… the new metal headband was as sturdy as Discord said it was. Soarin took a deep breath and sighed as Fleetfoot started log rolling down the hallway past other Wonderbolts while endlessly laughing her hooves off. “Dammit…” --- To Be Continued ---