“Thanks again, Doc… Just wait here a moment… You’ll know if you’re needed,” Glimmer says to the gray unicorn as they enter the auxiliary gym. The Alpha recruits are easy to spot, especially since their current routine involved Aurora and Blitz playing with fire. Nimbus hovers near-by with a thin layer of cloud, and Zealous Leaf sits off to the side, watching the rest with bored disinterest.
“Sure thing, Glimmer,” Witching Hour responds, smiling slightly as they approach the darkened corner of the gym. The dimmed lighting was necessary for the effects, since they used the fire along with mists to create dazzling light displays. Witch peels off to the side a little ways from the group, settling down near the wall, while Glimmer joins her squad.
“Hey Nimbus! Put it out! Squad talk!” Glimmer calls up, getting a nod from the pale orange stallion. It looks like he taps the mist but it zooms downwards to collide with the streams of blue and gold flames between Blitz and Aurora, sending a burst of steam upwards, and Aurora pouts as her blue fire goes out.
“Hey Cap,” Blitz greets her with a smile as he takes off his flint pads. Nimbus joins them on the floor soon after, and Aurora follows after. “Paperwork dealt with?” Blitz asks.
“As much as it can be…” Glimmer temporizes, dodging the topic slightly. “I see you two found Zee… Thanks for that…” She casts a glance over at the skulking member of the squad. “OY! Zee! Get your plot over here! I’ve got enough headaches without your attitude.”
Snorting and muttering, Zealous Leaf joins the loose circle, obviously as happy about being with them as they are to have him. Glimmer sighs, recalling fondly their first year together, when Zealous Leaf really was zealous about working with the newly formed recruit squad under the new leadership of the Ace Squad… She still couldn’t figure out what had changed, but each year since, their relationship with him had only gotten worse.
Admittedly, their initial optimism had faded since then, especially after Starbolt managed to jump up to Squad Nine after three years, and Nimbus Prism replaced her… Yet they were still Wonderbolts. Recruit or Elite didn’t matter… Did it?
Glimmer shakes her head, dispelling her thoughts. “Alright folks… Squad Nine’s been rescheduled to the Fillydelphia show. I know we were hoping to have some time with Starbolt, but Spitfire thinks our routines are too similar.” Zealous Leaf gives another derisive snort, but Blitz, Aurora and Glimmer ignore him.
“So which High Tier are we going with? Twenty, us and Charlie aren’t enough for a Los Pegasus show,” Nimbus asks, cutting to the heart of the problem.
“Squad Two isn’t scheduled that I’m aware of…” Aurora offers, sounding excited. Glimmer can’t help but snicker at the thought of several days with Aurora and Blaze in close proximity, but her laughter has a nervous edge to it.
“Well… It is a Command Squad…” Glimmer starts, and even the detached Zealous Leaf flinches. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that with the Lead Squad out of the question, and without a direct confirmation of Aurora’s theory…
“WHAT?!”
Nimbus scrambles to a near-by bucket of water as the flint pads on Aurora’s hooves spark with blue flames that quickly catch on the mats. Nimbus tosses the water over the small blaze… and Aurora, leaving her sputtering and spitting. Still seething, she turns on Nimbus and gathers herself to leap at him, but Glimmer acts faster, tackling her to the soggy mats.
“LET ME GO!!!” Aurora yells, struggling against Glimmer’s hold.
“No!” Glimmer responds sharply as she pins Aurora to the ground, a hoof on her squad mate’s head, pressing Aurora’s cheek into the mat while straddling the younger mare. “And you are going to listen to me, Aurora Streak… You don’t have to like it, but we are doing this show with Squad Three, and you are not going to cause any problems. If I have to get my ass chewed out by Spitfire because of something you do on this trip, I promise… Your plot will be next… Do I make myself perfectly clear, Recruit?”
Art courtesy of PenumbraGlow0290
Though she stops struggling, Aurora keeps cursing. Glimmer lets up on Aurora’s head briefly, only to slam it back down to the mats. “That wasn’t an answer, so I ask again - do I make myself clear?!”
Growling, Aurora winces. “Yes Captain…” she grumbles.
Glimmer sighs and gets up, using the time it takes for Aurora to get up to steady her breathing. One problem down…
“Zealous Leaf… Where the hell were you this morning?”
Off to the side, Witch watches in bemusement as Blitz and Nimbus both try to get their wings to fold back after the scene of their captain straddling their squad mate while said captain turned her temper on another. If things continue as they have, Witch might not-
Witch ducks quickly as the orange-maned stallion comes flailing towards the wall, having been punched by his irate captain. Quickly amending her thoughts, she reaches into her medkit to grab an ice pack.