Dirty Birds

by TheFlyingHippogriff

One Rail Pony

The old pony workers that started the project bully us and call us names. They refuse to work with us on the canal. They have their problems, let them solve it by themselves. Yet there is one stallion, and his family that stood out from the pack. He and his family were the only ponies in all of Kingstown. It didn't matter to us. His name is Rail Rider.

His job is very important. He has to haul out the earth and rock we dig out to sending it to the processing area to be made into top soil and gravel. He is a good stallion, a loving husband and a devoted father to his son and daughter whom attend the local school. Her name is named Summer Lilac, and she works as the village school teacher.

His eldest son Steel-Driver and daughter Little Bessy often watch us work from behind the fence after classes. Steel-Driver is just like his father. Strong as a mountain, but has a heart of gold. His daughter was a little tomboy that liked to hang out with the boys, and play ball in the streets. Rail Rider would always blow the whistle to his children.

Rail Rider loved his job. So much so that his locomotive was part of his family, and he named her Rhododendron or 'Rhodie' as we call her. Months had passed since the canal project began, and the progress was beginning to show. Millions of cubic yards of earth were being removed as we worked on, and we were setting records in said category.

His pelt is the color of iron with a black muzzle and a silver-grey mane and tail and blue eyes. His cutie mark is a pair of railroad tracks crossed with a pick axe. His wife is a stunning unicorn. Her pelt is a shade of lilac purple with eyes matching her violet mane and tail. She also wears oval, wireframe glasses. I sat down with him at suppertime.

"I wish more ponies would answer the call," Rail Rider sighed, "my family and I are the only ponies in Kingstown,"

"Yet none of us on the work site look at you as being any different from anyone else on the worksite or in the village," I replied with a friendly smile, "your hooves walk the same path, you work your hardest everyday, and you treat Rhodie here as you would treat yourself, I'd say that more than enough," I patted him on the shoulder, "brother,"

"But you're half mare," Rail Rider replied, I tittered, we hippogriffs are rare, but we are no different than anybirdy else

"Hasn't stopped me in the least bit," I said to him, and we shared a hug between friends. I will look out for him as I look out for the others on the site. I tipped my hardhat to him, and went to go get some supper. Gwendoline made a pot of butternut squash soup for supper. As I walked away, I heard him lightly chuckle, "What?" I asked, chuckling,

"Fatty," Rail Rider teased, some joking between friends never hurts.

"Oui, I have a big butt, just don't let your wife catch you staring at it," I advised, and got the bowl of my mess kit filled with soup. I am as tall as Big Macintosh, and just as strong. Suddenly, there was the sound of hooves and the flap of dozens of wings. It appeared we had uninvited guests. It was the old pony workers that started the canal.

All the griffons and workers were all stunned to see them. They had wicked smiles on their muzzles, "Well, well, looks like you guys have done great work on the project, but it appears your part in this project is done," said the leader of the pack, a veteran stallion named Sledgehammer. Gabby was the first to intervene, and firmly express herself.

"You can't do that! We've worked too hard for this! You can't do this to-," Gabby pleaded, but got interrupted,

"Muzzle that beak, Fat-Face!" Sledgehammer hissed, Gabby started crying, Gilda and I had to hold her back so she cold cry in my shoulder, "now then, you Catbirds are off the job, so says Princess Celestia and Princess Luna," he said, showing us the signed form that informed us that we were being let go. I could not believe they would do this.

"You really think that you could win the favor of the princesses, you filthy buzzards? We're the ones who started the project, and we'll be the ones to finish it," Sledgehammer vowed to the unison nods of his hench-ponies. Our machines came up from the to the ponies standing against us, "you're all living on borrowed land, Equestria is for ponies!"

"Last I checked, we are no different than you, we fly in the same skies, breath the same air, and work to make this a land where everyone can be happy, what gives you the right to say that the friendship you ponies preach is reserved for ponies only?!" Gilda asked, demanding an answer. We griffons stood out ground with Rail Rider on our side.

"If you think these griffons are going to leave, then you have another thing coming, I have never met a better or harder working group of workers than these griffons...and a hippogriff," said Rail Rider standing his ground, a stallion among the griffon workers, "you can call me a traitor, but I'm amongst friends, griffons I'd call brothers and sisters,"

"We have better and more modern machines now, better than anything your dinosaurs can keep up with, so why don't you be good little catbirds and step aside and let some real workers go to work," Sledgehammer suggested in a very smug manner, still we held our ground with our faithful machines backing us, "so what's it gonna be?" he asked,

"Gabby is right, we worked hard for this," I replied, "you mess with one of us, then you mess with all of us,"