A Dream

by totallynotabrony

Sonic Rainboom

Working in a swamp to recover a busted robot while the dead carcass of a hydra lay nearby was not a pleasant task. Throw in the Cutie Mark Crusaders, and it became a real headache.

“You really ripped your way out of the stomach?” asked Scootaloo.

I nodded. My mouth had been bandaged shut to heal from the shards of glass from broken sunglasses that I had used to get out.

“That’s amazing!” said Apple Bloom. I struggled to lift part of AJAX-FF so she could slip a block under it. I had to find the hydraulic leak, fix it, and then get the boiler system drained so it would hold a fire and build steam.

Working slowly, the three fillies helped me get the robot out of the water. “Didn’t you say that the other robot is sunk in the lake?” Sweetie Belle asked. I nodded.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders Deep Water Salvage!” they cried. They ran to the edge of the bog, Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle piling into a wagon pulled by Scootaloo on her scooter. They zoomed off.

I shrugged. I had tried everything to get the old PEX robot out. I couldn’t hold my breath sufficiently long to even get deep enough to see it. I had given up hope of getting it back. I still remembered who was responsible, though, and I decided that as soon as AJAX was back in working order, I was going to do something about them.

With a couple more hours of work, the fire was finally relit, and I was able to drive the robot back to the library. I’d also taken time to extract one of the hydra’s teeth. I was going to make a sweet-awesome necklace out of it.

The robot was covered in bog silt, various bits of plant material, and scum. It would take a while to get it cleaned up, and I decided that it was too late in the day. I was hungry.

My food intake had been restricted since cutting my mouth. Everything had to be soft and in small pieces. It sucked.

I did wonder how this could still be a dream I was having. It seemed rather like real pain that I felt. Of course, that crazy stuff I did to kill the hydra couldn’t have actually happened in real life. This had to be a dream.

“Hey Valiant,” said Twilight as I came in. “Would you like to go to the Best Young Fliers Competition? Rainbow’s entering.”

I nodded. Finally, a chance to see the pegasus in action so I would know what I was up against.

“Oh, and don’t worry,” she said. “I’ve already figured out a spell to let us walk on the clouds.”

Rarity swooped in through the open window. I fell over backwards in surprise. She had a giant pair of butterfly wings!

“Sorry to startle you, darling. I just came to return your outfit for the Gala. I don’t understand how you managed to get it so soiled. I don’t even know what that red stuff was.”

Seeing my surprise, Twilight explained, “I tried a spell on Rarity to let ponies fly, but it was too difficult to do more than once.”

I nodded. Rarity and Twilight made some plans for the next day. We would all be going up to Cloudsdale to watch the competition.

I got all the bog stuff cleaned off me and sat down to a bowl of soup. Not what I had in mind, but it was all I could handle. Stupid sliced lips. After that, I went to bed on the couch.

Twilight roused me early and I got in her hot air balloon with the other ponies. I wasn’t completely sure I trusted the spell she had put on us all, but luckily I didn’t have to be the first one to step out of the balloon and test it.

Walking on clouds was rather strange. Almost like snow, except you didn’t sink in unless you tried. Rainbow and Fluttershy showed us around Cloudsdale. We visited the weather factory, but didn’t have time for anything else because Rarity was being such an attention hog with her wings. The pegasus stallions were drooling over her.

When it was time for the competition, we went to the stadium. It was made of clouds, just like everything else in the city. Rarity had decided to enter the competition too. She and Rainbow disappeared.

Quite a few ponies performed, showing off tricks or some other act. Rainbow and Rarity came out together at the very end.

Rainbow was clearly having problems and not putting on a great performance. Rarity was wearing what appeared to be pounds of makeup and show sequins. She was being all glamorous and stuff. Boring.

For her final act, she flew up above the arena, letting the sun filter through her wings and bathing the whole area in colored light. Then she went all Icarus and the wings burned.

“Oh no! Her wings evaporated into thin air!” shouted Twilight.

The Wonderbolts, a local acrobatic team, were judging the competition. As Rarity started to fall, they leapt from their perch and went after her. She somehow managed to kick all three of them in the face while they tried to save her, knocking all unconscious.

Rainbow had climbed above the stadium in preparation for her next trick. She spotted the four ponies falling and dove after them.

“Oh, I can’t look!” squeaked Fluttershy.

I leaned over the edge of the stadium seating. Was that a Mach cone building up around Rainbow’s front hooves? Good God, that pony’s going transonic!

With a burst of rainbow, Rainbow went through the sound barrier, grabbed the falling ponies and somehow managed to avoid hitting the ground.

“A sonic rainboom! She did it! She did it! WOOO!” screamed Fluttershy, hurting my ears.

Rainbow brought her passengers back up to the stadium. The Wonderbolts seemed pleased that they hadn’t died. Rarity apologized for causing the problem.

Princess Celestia showed up and pretty much decided that Rainbow was the winner of the competition. I thought that there should have been some kind of selection process even if what Rainbow had done was win-worthy, but she was a dictator and her word was law. I couldn’t even mouth off about it.

After we returned to Ponyville later in the day, I stopped by the hardware store to see if Rusty Nail had gotten the improved generators that I would need to power a Tesla coil. I had to hold a pencil awkwardly between my hooves and write the message out. He told me they weren’t in yet.

“Strange thing, though. A couple ‘a fillies stopped by earlier and got some industrial grade winching equipment. Said somethin’ about the lake.”

If I could have, I would have laughed. The Cutie Mark Crusaders were going fishing, and I seriously doubted that they would pull anything out.

I walked back to the library to begin scrubbing the robot clean. I was going to have to wait on the new generator set. Rainbow was way faster than I had thought, and there was no way I would be able to do anything to her with slow mechanical means.

Also, I had to get new sunglasses. If the Tesla coil was going to put out pegasus-zapping levels of energy, I would need eye protection.

Comments

[DavidPony]

the final robot is sooooo gonna kill celestia

[Bloodpool]

311564 That's gonna be fucking awsome to read.

[quill and ink]

Well this just go 20 % coooler here take this your gonna need it

[The Fateweaver]

2130726 Since when? I don't remember canon stating that pegasi were resistant to the elements. Sure, they can manipulate the weather, but I wouldn't go as far to say that they're resistant.

[deli73]

Totally loving this story so far.

[The Slending Angel]

311837
311564
You are both extremely sick bastards. GTFO and go read Cupcakes!!!!!!!!

[Frankie2]

I did wonder how this could still be a dream I was having. It seemed rather like real pain that I felt. Of course, that crazy stuff I did to kill the hydra couldn’t have actually happened in real life. This had to be a dream.

[Hipparcos]

I don’t even know what that red stuff was.”

Oh, these poor ponies and their naiveté.

[Gravity012]

7509202
We know right? Who wouldn't recognize strawberry jelly?

[Wildfiretiremile]

Rarity swooped in through the open window. I fell over backwards in surprise. She had a giant pair of butterfly wings!

I really want him to kill them

[Rhombicosidodecahedron]

9656581
he meant because his lips were sewn shut