“See?! Punching and kicking rocks is a lot more fun than it sounds, huh?!”
Optimus tried his best to respond to the Pegasus flying over his head, but the thought of tumbling down the mountain somehow acquired all of his attention. It didn’t help that his hands and legs were sore from “punching and kicking rocks” that Rainbow Dash wanted him to do. She said it would help him learn how to fight better.
He highly doubted it.
As Optimus gripped the nearest stone sticking out of the mountain path, he looked up at Rainbow Dash, who was busy enjoying a relaxing flight in the clear, sunny skies.
“I never said it was fun, Rainbow Dash,” Optimus grunted as he pulled himself up. “I did mention that it could cause serious damage to my upper and lower body, but you seemed to not be paying that much atten-”
“Wow! Would ya look at that!” Rainbow Dash shouted and flew over to the edge of the mountain cliff and their current destination.
Optimus sighed very heavily. All of his interest was completely forgotten when Applejack had mentioned to him that Rainbow Dash was going to be spending the next three hours with him alone. So far, it’s only been thirty minutes.
Once Prime was fully upright, he made his way over to the edge of the mountain side Rainbow Dash led him to. The Pegasus was clearly enjoying herself, something Optimus clearly wasn’t. If anything he wanted to get off this steep slope as fast as possible. Rainbow Dash had other plans, though.
“You can totally see Ponyville from here,” Rainbow announced, the mountain wind making her mane flow wildly past her ears. She turned back towards Optimus with a stern expression. “But we’re not here to go sightseeing! We’re here to train!”
Optimus groaned.
Rainbow Dash smirked and performed small backstrokes in the air. Optimus watched her with little interest. He still paid attention to what she was saying, though. She was a close friend to Twilight after all.
“Applejack wanted me to teach ya how to fight! Well, I guess we can both agree that that worked out pretty well!” She watched Prime gently caress his busted fists. “But playtime is officially over! Twilight told me I was in charge of teaching you how to do one thing.”
Rainbow flew dangerously close to Prime’s face. Her eyes narrowed, her smile widened, and she said with pure glee, “Transform.”
Optimus took a step back from the excited winged pony. Not only didn’t he know what she meant, but the thought of transforming already brought Optimus to yet another bump in his path of finding the truth. How was he supposed to transform, and into what exactly? He looked right into her rose-colored eyes and asked, “What are you talking about, Rainbow Dash? How am I supposed to transform?”
The Pegasus smirked and said, “I expected you to say that!” Optimus continued to eye her carefully. She flew back and forth in front of him, explaining everything she knew about transforming.
“Back when you first showed up on our planet, a friend of your named Jetfire transformed for all of us to see. I don’t really know how it works…but back then you seemed to pull it off without a hitch!” She stared at him and even pointed her cerulean hoof at his chest. “You even transformed out of your car…mode…thing…back at Sweet Apple Acres to show those stallions who’s boss!”
Optimus pinched the area between his optics in clear annoyance. He didn’t even bother to look at Rainbow Dash as he said, “Applejack already faced the same problem you’re traveling to right now. I don’t know anything about the inner workings of my body or how I’m supposed to use it to my advantage. So before you try to argue with me, let me say that I don’t know how to transform and I won’t know how to either. Let’s just…get off this mountain already.”
He turned around to head back to the area they came from. However, he was stopped by a multi-colored blur quickly appearing in front of him.
“That’s not the Optimus I know,” Rainbow Dash said with a frown. “The Optimus Prime I know wouldn’t ‘give up’ so easily! He would fight to the bitter end and always come out on top! Now I know you don’t remember anything, but it never hurt to try once in a while!”
The two stared each other down for quite some time. Optimus was clearly not enjoying this pony’s presence any more than she was enjoying his. He didn’t have an ego, not that he could remember, but this pony did, an admirable one at that. She was one that wouldn’t give up, and seeing a so-called friend trying to give up seemed to bring out the coach in her. He quickly realized she wasn’t doing this because Twilight told her to; she was doing this because she cared for him deeply…just like Twilight.
In the end, Optimus finally gave in.
“Fine,” Optimus muttered, “what is that you want me to do?”
Rainbow Dash’s face scrunched up adorably. She motioned Prime to follow her to the edge of the cliff, to which Optimus did without arguing. Once he stood at the ledge, Optimus looked down and noticed the far drop below filled with jagged rocks and long slopes. He brought his head up when Rainbow Dash started talking again.
“Alright, now I want you to close your eyes…” Optimus closed his eyes, “…now…imagine one of those carriages those stallions that attacked you rode in.” Prime did as he was told and actually remembered those strange contraptions. They were colored dark red and had four wheels that somehow propelled them forward. Once the image was in his mind, Rainbow Dash continued with what she was saying before.
“You can change into something similar to those carriages! Imagine your body shifting and morphing into a larger version of the carriages. Four wheels, an engine, everything!”
Optimus clenched his fists and thought very hard on what Rainbow was instructing him. Body changing, four wheels, a roaring engine, and something very similar to those carriages. Time passed and Optimus remained in the robotic form he once was. His eyes remained closed as Rainbow Dash sighed and landed softly on his shoulder.
“Well…it was worth a shot,” she muttered with disappointed eyes. Optimus opened his and turned his head left to notice the Pegasus sitting on his shoulder. Her sunken expression made Prime feel slightly sorry for her.
Prime looked to the other side. “I’m sorry,” he said.
Rainbow Dash gently patted the side of Optimus’ face, speaking in a warming voice that wasn’t usually hers. “I don’t blame ya, Prime. Heck, I wouldn’t know to fly if I lost my memory.”
Optimus turned his attention back on the Pegasus. Right before he was about to tell her something, she jumped off his shoulder and caught flight almost instantly. She was very well trained, something he kept in mind.
The Pegasus appeared behind him and said loudly, “I do have a second approach to this, however!” Optimus was about to interject, but stopped when he felt a pair of hooves digging into his back. He could hear Rainbow Dash grunt behind him.
“What are you doing?” Optimus asked as his head tried to find the Pegasus pushing on him.
Rainbow Dash flapped her wings even harder than before as her hooves pressed against Prime’s rusty backside. Sweat started forming on her forehead, but she looked up at him and grunted, “I was wonderin’…ah…if jumping off this cliff somehow caused you to transform. You never know! Maybe the sudden adrenaline rush can make you change simply out of reaction!”
Optimus didn’t move an inch from her intense efforts. He shook his head and spoke to her again. “Rainbow Dash…that is a completely asinine idea.” He felt her hooves fall away from his back, causing him to turn around and face her sad eyes once more. “I appreciate your efforts, but I think it’s time we head ba-AAAAAHHHHHH!!!”
Neither Prime nor Dash seemed to notice the dirt cracking under his feet from Optimus’ intense weight. It was already too late and Optimus was sent tumbling down the mountain side.
Rainbow Dash gasped in shock and flew over the edge. Her expressions told the tale. She flinched whenever Prime came in contact with a large rock, she grimaced whenever he skidded into several trees, and she covered her eyes when he hit the bottom of the mountain with a very loud crash.
Slowly removing her hooves from her vision, Rainbow Dash could see Prime’s path of pain leaving an indent in the mountain side.
“Ohhh…” Rainbow Dash bit her lip and said, “Ouch.”
She flew down the mountain and stopped midway. Even from there she could hear Optimus Prime’s groans. Her expression seemed to show worry, but she put on a false smile and shouted, “You did alright for your first try!”
Optimus only responded with more moans. Rainbow Dash quickly followed the path in order to help him out, from the sounds he was making it sounded like he really need it. She could only imagine what that fall did to him and his body.
Maybe Rarity’s idea won’t be so pointless after all.