//------------------------------// // Special Delivery // Story: Thunderlane's New Life // by The Delirium //------------------------------// The city of Cloudsdale was bustling with activity. Pegasi were flying around, moving from place to place. It seemed that the only pegasus not rushing around was the black colored stallion with an icy blue mohawk. Thunderlane was slowly flapping his wings, which meant he was barely hovering above the ground. Thunderlane was going so slow because he needed to look in to the window of every shop and store in the city for a help wanted sign. The stallion was looking for a job and so far he had not gotten any luck. At first, Thunderlane had tried searching for a job deep in the heart of the city. He found that all of the job openings there were either too low paying or impossible for him to do. There weren't many businesses in the residential area of Cloudsdale, so he skipped right over it. Now, he found himself on the outskirts of the city, where a couple of decent job openings could be found. Unfortunately, Thunderlane had been searching here for an hour and had not had any luck. He stopped to sit down on a bench and take a break. "I don't think I'll ever find a place to work." Thunderlane sighed to himself. "It's hopeless. I should just turn around and go back to Soarin's." Just as he was about to get off the bench, a red blur whizzed passed him. Thunderlane was knocked down as he watched the blur speed he away. Suddenly, the blur stopped in front of a small building he hadn't noticed before. Thunderlane saw that the blur turned out to be a stallion with red fur and a silver and pink mane. The stallion, who was carrying a large package, entered the building. Curious and with nothing better to do Thunderlane flew over to the building and landed right in front of it. The front had a sign that simply said, "Special Delivery's Delivery Shop." Thunderlane grinned to himself when he saw a wanted sign in the window. He walked into the shop and looked around. It was bigger than it looked from the outside. Boxes of all shapes and sizes were lined up against the walls. Pegasi were grabbing the boxes and flying out the multiple windows the shop had. At the back, there was a counter with the red furred pony he saw from earlier behind it. Suddenly, the pony looked up and noticed Thunderlane. "Hey, you!" he called. "Can I help you with something?" Thunderlane nervously approached the desk. "I saw you had a help wanted sign in the window. I'm here for a job." The stallion then looked Thunderlane over and nodded. "Alright. You look like you could do the job right. Tell me, have you worked any place before?" "Weather control. In Ponyville." "Really? You need to be strong to be in weather control, right?" "Yes. It can get pretty rough at times." "Good. That means you have stamina. That'll come in handy?" "Look, I know I'm the one applying for the job, but can you please tell me what kind of job it is." "Are you serious?" Thunderlane only nodded his head. "It's a delivery job. You'll be one of the pegasi carrying these boxes all over Cloudsdale." "Seems kind of lame." "You would think so, but no. Some of the boxes are heavy and some of them need to go the other side of the city. That's why we need strong pegasi. Oh, and it pays well too." "How well?" "Very well." Thunderlane looked hard at stallion and saw that he was being sincere. "Want to work here?" "Sure." "Great. The name's Special Delivery. I run this joint and am the boss. Here, come with me." Special Delivery led Thunderlane behind the counter and into a back room. As he walked in, Thunderlane saw even more boxes than before piled all the way to the ceiling. He also noticed a griffon with their back turned to him was putting items in the boxes and sealing them. "Gilda!" The griffon turned, revealing she had purple tipped feathers atop her head and was wearing a blue vest with a box on it. "What is it, Special?" "Got a newbie here for ya. Think you can show him the ropes?" "I though I would be making deliveries, not packing boxes." Thunderlane whined. "You have to make your way up to delivery pony." Special replied, handing him a vest similar to Gilda's. "I'll be back in a little to see how you're doing. Try to keep up with Gilda, okay." Special Delivery left the room, leaving Thunderlane alone with Gilda. "Well, come on then. I have to show you what do." Thunderlane walked over to the griffon as she eyed him menacingly. "It's not rocket science, okay. Here's what going to happen. I'm gonna pack and seal the boxes. Then, I'm going to hand the boxes to you. You are going to put the boxes over there. Can you handle that, dweeb?" "Uh, sure." "Good." So, Gilda and Thunderlane went to work, packing, sealing, and moving boxes. It took a little while for Thunderlane to adjust to Gilda's quick pace, but he got it soon enough and they were soon working in sync. After what felt like hours to the stallion, Special Delivery came through the doors and stopped their work. "Alright, you two. That's enough for today." He flew down to them and pulled two envelopes out of his saddlebag. After Gilda quickly took one, Thunderlane hesitantly grabbed one as well. Opening it up, he saw that the envelope was filled with bits. One hundred to be exact. "One hundred bits! You weren't kidding when you said this job paid well. Why so much?" "We make deliveries all over Cloudsdale, including the Rainbow Factory and Wonderbolts Headquarters." "Really?" "Yep." Just then, Gilda walked past them and was about to leave the back room until Special Delivery stopped her. "So, Gilda. How was this guy?" Gilda turned around and spoke. "He did okay." She then unfurled her wings and flew out the door. "Wow. That's the best thing she's ever said about a newbie. You must really be special." After Thunderlane had left his first day of work, he flew into the city to get something to eat. He finally decided on a street side pizza joint. As he was about to walk in, Thunderlane was stopped by a pair of mares. They stepped in front of him and blocked the door. "Can I help you?" "Actually, I think we can help you." said one of the mares. "I like your mohawk. It's edgy, but you need something more to complete the look." "Something more?" "Yep. Come with me and my sister. We have a clothes shop down the street. I can tell you're new in town, so we won't charge you one bit!" Before Thunderlane could respond, the mares dragged him down the street and to their shop. Once they got there, the mares pushed him into a seat and began picking out clothes for him to wear. They made him try every outfit on, until they found one they liked. It was a grey shirt with a red scarf and included a few fake nose and mouth rings. Looking in a mirror, Thunderlane had to admit it went well with his mohawk. "And you said this was all free?" "Yep! I must say, this must be some of our best work." "Well, thanks." Thunderlane said as he began to head out the door. "I'll tell other ponies about this place." "Great! That would be wonderful for business. Just don't say we give out free clothes!" After leaving the shop, Thunderlane walked back down the street and to the pizza place he had been waiting to go to. Unfortunately, the restaurant was now closed and the lights were turned off. Thunderlane sighed and took off into the sky. "I guess I'll just see what Soarin's got for dinner."