16. Need of Help
Loud cheering was in the atmosphere, as all of Ponyville were in the town's stadium, watching the annual Ponyville's Talents Performances, judged by the Ruler of Equestria, Princess Twilight Sparkle, who were given more special seats to sit on, alongside the Council of Friendship, and their kids.
Among the regular audience, the Heroic Ten, with the exception of Falcon Dive, were watching the show with great interest.
"Those moves are extraordinary!" Luster could not help but exclaim.
"And that flyer surely must have taken in a trick or two from Physics with those angles and body shape changing," Volcano added.
"Oh, come on, Volcano! Just take a little break from science, would you? And math, and language and...other subjects that you teach?! Basically, just take a break from them and enjoy this annual show!" Alkali told her dragon Best Friend.
"Alkali's right, Volcano. It ain't every day that a show this good comes to town!" Krona added.
"Plus, it's not every time an event like this occurs, one of our best friends is in it!" Buffer contributed, before clarifying, "I mean, involved in it as a non-audience."
"The correct word is 'participator', which means some creature who participates in an event!" Volcano corrected.
"Whatever, just stop talking and start paying attention to the show, because here comes Falcon Dive!" Yellow Bright told his best friends.
As soon as Falcon Dive stood forward to the middle of the stadium, Princess Twilight Sparkle greeted him like he was any of the other participators, "Falcon Dive, it is a pleasure to have you here in this year's Talents Performance. What will you be doing for your performance?"
"Glad you asked, your Majesty. I am going to take off into the air and fly in all sorts of directions, doing stunts until every creature's impressed enough!" the griffon declared like Rainbow Dash would.
The captain of the Wonderbolts could not believe what she was seeing and hearing, "Whoa! That Falcon Dive's got really epic confidence, just like some creature I know," the blue pegasus said out loud.
Back with Twilight, she had responded to Falcon Dive's claims, "Well, Falcon Dive. You have to act fast, because booking for the final slot in the competition has really taken loads of your time away. You only have 2 minutes before it ends."
In the sidelines, Falcon Dive's best friends were shocked to hear what the Ruler of Equestria had to say.
"Only 2 minutes?!" Sunshine Rays gasped.
"Can't Princess give Falcon Dive more time than that?! Krona means that, Falcon saved Equestria and Beyond before, became famous hero! Can't he get more time?!" Krona asked.
"I'm sorry every creature, but hero or not, Falcon Dive and the contestants or...participators have to be treated equally..." Luster explained.
"And it was Falcon's own decision to book last slot," Evergreen reminded.
"Because he is the Element of Selflessness!" Nature Bloom added.
"Being selfless like he is meant to be!" Yellow Bright commented.
"Choosing to give himself the worst slot so no creature else has to suffer from getting it!" Sunshine Rays contributed.
"But don't worry, because Falcon Dive is still epic as he is!" Alkali cheered, causing every creature to pay attention to their best friend's performance.
Like a real falcon, Falcon Dive was flying fas and diving down at great speeds without crashing into any creature nor anything. Going very close to the audience several times in their direction, before making a sharp turn on time to prevent himself from colliding into them as he flew pass the sidelines, maintaining a close distance between himself and the audience, that the audience cold feel the breeze as he whooshed by.
"That's our Falcon Dive, alright!" Buffer exclaimed.
In another part of the sidelines, Fluttershy was watching with her husband Discord, their daughter, Screwball, and their little animal friends. At one point during Falcon Dive's performance, involving the griffon flying very high into the sky, Discord could not help but get too excited, as he exclaimed, "Oh, look! He's going really high into the highest of heights under the sun!"
Discord accidentally batted one of Fluttershy's mice friends of their seat with his draconneques tail, sending it on a dangerous trip, flying towards the ground! Fluttershy gasped as her little mouse friend plummet to its death. Fortunately, Falcon Dive, who noticed the mouse's situation, quickly abandoned his original plan of how he wanted to perform his finale, diving down to the animal's rescue, as fast as a peregrine falcon!
The griffon succeeded in rescuing the mouse's life, catching it on his furry back, just as time was up.
"Time is up! That means your performance can't go on, Falcon Dive, regardless of whether you have finished it or not." Princess Twilight Sparkle informed.
"But that move wasn't the one I planned and practised for my finale!" Falcon Dive complained.
"I'm sorry Falcon, but you are meant to participate like the other participants, despite being a famous hero," Princess Twilight Sparkle apologised, before announcing o the stadium, "Every creature in this crowd, I have made my decision: \the winner of this year's Ponyville's Talent Performances is none other than; Bulk Biceps! His talent of being able to juggle all those dumbbells and lift several carts is the most amazing one I've seen today!"
Bulk Biceps proudly came forward to the stadium to receive the prize trophy from Princes Twilight Sparkle, and getting a photo of himself with the princess.
Meanwhile, Falcon Dive returned the mouse to Fluttershy, who was relieved to see that it was alright, "Oh, thank goodness, you're fine and unhurt!" the yellow pegasus told her mouse friend, nuzzling it before thanking Falcon Dive, "Thank you so much for saving him."
"But, you lost!" Screwball reminded the griffon.
"I know," Falcon Dive responded in a somewhat sad tone, before getting over his slight sadness as he declared, "But tat prize and victory isn't what I cared about the most. As some creature selfless, the good of others is always what I take as the most important, my own good is the least important thing to me."
"So, you sacrificed your victory, to save a mouse?" Screwball asked.
"I sacrificed my wishes, to save a life," Falcon Dive corrected, "And a heart!"
"That is really...awesome!" Screwball exclaimed.
"It's more than that, it's really selfless! Being selfless is the game this griffon is good at! As the Element of Selflessness!" Falcon Dive proudly declared.
After the series' theme song intro played, the scene changed to show more of what happened after the competition.
"Falcon Dive! We're so sorry you lost," Sunshine Rays told her griffon Best Friend in a rather sad tone as she flew to his side.
"Especially after how hard you trained yourself for winning!" Volcano added.
"All that effort...WASTED!" Krona cried.
"But they're nothing to me, compared to the wants, needs, good and lives of others!" Falcon Dive explained, striking a pose.
"Falcon Dive, your show was really...epic!" Rainboom squealed, as she and her twin brother Sonic, plus their parents, Rainbow Dash and Soarin flew over.
"You may have lost, but you really impressed my sister," Sonic informed the griffon.
"Can you please teach me your moves? Growing up, I want to be a Wonderbolt, but now that I've seen you in awesome action, I want to fly just like you! Diving at great speeds, doing tricks, stunts..." Rainboom went on before being cut off by her mother.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, Rainboom! You can do stunts and tricks, but not those very dangerous kinds! Just stick to the Wonderbolts' safety rules, okay?"
"Alright, Mum..." Rainboom sadly responded.
"Oh, the poor filly looks so sad!" Nature Bloom could not help but feel sorry for Rainboom, seen the preteen pegasus upset.
"You know, Rainboom. If you want to learn from me, why don't you hang out with me, and I'll teach you all the moves you want to learn!" Falcon Dive offered.
Before Rainboom could say something in response as her expression changed from upset to happy, Sunshine Rays interrupted.
"Halt! Sorry to say this every creature, but there are some very strict rules about children being with those who are their close family members and friends, and not being allowed to be with those who aren't their close family members and friends!"
"Oh great, Sunshine Rays and one of her explanations of why we shouldn't do something!" Lil'Cheese said in an annoyed tone.
"Like regular rules, these rules are rules to keep you safe! Break them and you will suffer! Not because the rules threaten you, but because you yourself let your sin nature take you over and turn yourself into a monster that causes nothing but trouble as you do what you shouldn't do!" Sunshine Rays explained background information about rules and sin nature, before moving back to the point, "Now, back to the main point, I was saying that there is such a strict rule to keep children safe this way because wandering off with strangers often lead kids to big trouble! They can get in danger, being held captive or worse, given bad treatment..."
"We know! You don't need to tell us..." Sparity impatiently cut Sunshine Rays off.
"Fine, but if you get into trouble by breaking the rules, you got no creature but yourself to blame," Sunshine Rays shrugged.
"Sunshine, can't you be a bit more...nice? I mean, you may be very moral, but not being nice is really something not good!" Nature Bloom asked her pegasus best friend, after every creature else seemed a bit offended by Sunshine Rays' latest sentence.
"Your question should have been 'can you be nicer?', because there is such word as 'nicer', you only use 'more' when there is no such word as..." Volcano began correcting, before an irritated Sweet Caramel Apple interrupted him.
"Enough about all this! We probably should be playing or doing our work right now!"
"But...I haven't got any tips from Falcon Dive on how to...do what he can do!" Rainboom complained.
"I'll show you someday, Rainboom, especially when I'm selfless, I care about your wants and needs, alongside every creature else's, and when those wants and needs are alright, I will try my very best to help them get them!" Falcon Dive declared.
"But sine you youngsters can really use some learning about morality, I would like teaching you kids, too." Sunshine Rays joined the conversation.
"And you kids still have to take your school work and studies seriously!" Volcano added, "I would like to help you catch up on everything you need to know and more!"
"Looks like we found some very suitable babysitters," Pinkie Pie said in a sing-song tone.
"What?! Mum, my best friends and I aren't as little as we were when Luster first got here!" Lil'Cheese protested.
"Lil'Cheese, we all understand, but, you and your best friends can really use interesting virtues lessons, and the Heroic Ten seem to be just the right teachers for the job!" Rarity told the colt.
"But what about what Sunshine Rays just said?" Precious Treasure asked.
"She has plenty of good points of why something is right or wrong," Applejack honestly stated, before turning to Sunshine Rays, "Do you think it's alright to let ten kids visit the Heroic Ten in the Castle of Friendship for lessons?"
"Well, since it will be like a teacher with a class, it will most likely be alright, especially when the teacher is some creature trustworthy..." was the answer, before Big Sugar asked the white-coated pegasus.
"Then why did you hold big protests against Rainboom and Falcon Dive hanging out as Falcon teach her?"
The kids then started to overwhelm Sunshine Rays, gathering around her with unpleasant tones as they sounded like they were booing her.
"Well...rules can get quite complicated at times, and what is truly best can be a bit...difficult to identify..." the pegasus tried to explain.
Meanwhile, Falcon Dive was having a conversation with Rainboom and Sonic's parents about the mentioned foals.
"So you're going to fetch them after sessions with them are over?" the griffon asked for a final time.
"Totally, just make sure that they're...totally safe and alright!" Rainbow Dash answered.
"Don't worry, I'll do my very best to teach them selflessness the right way, plus some of my flying tricks!" Falcon Dive responded.
"Spoken like a Wonderbolt!" Rainbow Dash commented.
The next day, Falcon Dive was in the Castle of Friendship's hallway, right in front of the castle's golden gate entrance. The Lil'Heroic Ten were all pitted in two rows of five in front on the carpet, as he explained selflessness, "Being selfless means putting others' good before your own! And that means, you are willing to sacrifice your own time and wishes to help them! But that help is only good when it is not helping them do something wrong! So the entire time, selflessness had mostly been combined with..."
"Morality, I'm really absorbing Sunshine Rays' words about that virtue," Bulk Junior interfered.
"Right, anyway, do you all want to know something very cool about me and selflessness?" Falcon Dive asked.
"Cool?! Of course we will want to! I mean, please tell us, Falcon Dive?" Rainbow exclaimed before politely asking.
"Wow, you really must have taken in niceness from Nature Bloom," Screwball commented Rainboom.
"Alright, the coolest thing I mentioned is...just like how Sunshine Rays picture morality as her hero, I picture selflessness as a superhero!" Falcon Dive declared.
"Really?!" Muffin Whooves asked in shock.
"But, selflessness is a virtue!" Sweet Caramel Apple pointed out.
"And not a real creature!" Big Sugar added.
"Who says that heroes are just any creature who saves others from getting crushed by falling objects, falling to their dooms, getting shot and all those?" Falcon Dive asked, as music started to play, before he began to sing.
"Whenever trouble arises,
we used to hear stay-out-of-it advices.
But there's always a need for a rescuer,
to dive in and save the one in danger.
Many may think that a brave rescuer,
is a one true superhero,
but think again!
It's the characteristics and virtues that make them them.
If it weren't for such good values,
rescuers won't even be heroes to save you!
So for one to really do such deeds,
selflessness is the virtue that they need!
Like real superheroes,
selflessness saves others in such scenarios.
More concerned for others' needs,
to the point you will do such deeds!
Willing to sacrifice your own good,
in situations as big tough as boulder, or light as wood,
all for the sake of others' goodness...
That's Superhero Selflessness!
If you think that heroes only save every creature from disasters,
falling items, falling into a pit, or villain attacks!
You will be proven wrong sooner or later,
as such heroes can be overwhelmed by many setbacks!
So the best thing for us to have,
is every creature being able to save others like heroes!
Turning others into do-gooders,
will save more than ever,
and make one a real superhero!
Like real superheroes,
selflessness saves others in such scenarios.
More concerned for others' needs,
to the point you will do such deeds!
Willing to sacrifice your own good,
in situations as big tough as boulder, or light as wood,
all for the sake of others' goodness...
That's Superhero Selflessness!"
After the song ended, Rainboom could not help but respond, "Selflessness is really awesome! I take back what I said about loyalty being the best, because selflessness is really better!"
"Um, Rainboom? I don't think Mum and Dad will like to hear you say that about loyalty! I mean, loyalty is what Mum represents, especially when she stayed loyal to her friends, plus showed Dad's team the spirit of loyalty at Rainbow Falls during the Equestria Games Tryouts!" Sonic reminded his twin sister.
"Whoops," Rainboom nervously chuckled, before Falcon Dive giggled, assuring her, "No worries, Rainboom, you can combine virtues! Every virtue needs another or a few more to set a limit so creatures who possess them will not go too far! And I'm sure your parents will understand if you ever liked selflessness more than loyalty."
"Or maybe I will equally love them both!" Rainboom exclaimed.
"That works for me," Falcon Dive replied, just before he could hear commotion coming from outside the Castle.
"Do you hear that?" he asked the kids, before they ran towards the window and saw a puff of black smoke coming from Ponyville.
"Where there's smoke there is fire!" Falcon Dive cried, "Sorry kids, but I got to help in any way I can, especially when some creature can be in trouble!"
The griffon dashed out of the Castle and towards the problem. Rainboom, immediately rushed out of the building through the front gate like her hero did, and was quickly followed by her best friends.
"Rainboom! Where are you going?" Lil'Cheese asked.
"ISn't it obvious? I'm going to see Falcon Dive and superhero selflessness in action!" Rainboom exclaimed.
"What?! Are you out of your mind?!" Sonic asked.
You better stay out of trouble!" Precious Treasure aded.
"Fire is not safe!" Sparity contributed, "Even for dragons at times."
"But I got to see what Falcon Dive does! I mean, how else can I know what some creature selfless does in a time of crisis?" Rainboom asked.
"Don't you already know that they use to the rescue and help?" Muffin Whooves asked.
"Yes, but I got to see how he does it!" Rainbow exclaimed, before rushing off.
"Rainboom, no!" Bulk Junior cried, but it was too late; Rainboom was already gone.
At the burning house, a crowd of creatures had gathered around it, watching Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich, in their fire fighter uniforms trying to put out the furious flames.
"We're going to need more water mist!" Pinkie Pie called.
"Don't worry, I'll get some water from a cloud! Be right back!" Rainbow Dash called back, before leaving in a flash.
"All the animals have escaped, but there's some pony still inside!" Fluttershy cried.
Every creature else gasped to hear what Fluttershy said.
"Are you sure, darling?" Rarity asked.
"The last animals that got out told me," Fluttershy nodded.
"But which part of the house?! Wherever that pony is, we got to save him!" Applejack declared.
"The pony is a 'her', I mean, she's a female," Fluttershy corrected.
"Say no more!" Falcon Dive shouted, diving into the house like a rocket.
"Was that Falcon Dive?" Rarity asked.
"Sounded mighty like him," Applejack stated.
"And was very fast like him," Fluttersy contributed.
"Are you saying that I'm not fast?!" Rainbow Dash asked in an annoyed tone.
"Not really," Rarity responded.
"Falcon Dive? Where'd he go?" Rainboom asked, arriving at the scene.
"Rainboom? Shouldn't you be inside the Castle of Friendship with the rest of your best friends? Attending some of the Heroic Ten's lessons on the Elements of Purity?" Rainbow Dash asked her daughter.
"Falcon Dive was teaching me and the others when there is this commotion, and I got to see him and selflessness in action!" Rainboom exclaimed.
"What?! Are you crazy?! He just dove into a burning building that can cook and roast a Wonderbolt, or any creature!" Rainbow Dash replied in a somewhat angry tone.
Just as soon as Rainbow Dash's sentence was finished, Falcon Dive rushed back out with an Earth Pony mare in his claws. The crowd cheered to see that their hero had saved the day, with Rainboom being the most excited.
"Way a go, Falcon Dive! You're a real superhero! Like selflessness!" Rainboom cheered.
"Um, Rainboom, Facon Dive himself is selfless," Applejack pointed out.
"He was saying that selflessness is a virtue, and a..." Rainboom began, but was cut off by Falcon Dive.
"Sorry, Rainboom. But I don't think that what I told you and your best friends is something alright to be known by the public, I mean, there are some truths that are better off being kept as secrets! And since selflessness means caring about others more than caring about yourself, you got to put their good, needs and wants before your own! So, if you want to tell others something about some creature that they say is not something tat the public should know..."
"Alright, alright, I will abandon my desires to tell every creature about what you just let me and my best friends know," Rainboom gave in.
"That's actually pretty similar to an Element of Harmony!" Pinkie Pie commented.
"And we all know which one she's talking about, right Rainboom?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Sure, selflessness!" Rainboom answered in a calm, confident tone, to her mother's shock.
"What?! I was saying an Element of Harmony! Or...maybe it was Pinkie...anyway, which Element of Harmony were we talking about?!" Rainbow Dash asked.
"I didn't hear you say any Element of Harmony names," Rainboom responded, making the Captain of the Wonderbolts even more shocked and unhappy.
"What in the kingdom is this?! Your Dad and I told you about that Element of Harmony saving the day a million times as you grew up under our care!" Rainbow Dash reminded, "How can you forget it all?!"
"I am so sorry, Rainbow Dash!" Falcon Dive apologised, "I will just tell her that selflessness and loyalty are still different in certain ways, and she has to value them both alongside many other virtues!"
"You better!" Rainbow Dash replied in a commander's tone.
After Rainbow Dash left and the creatures disperse, Falcon Dive turned to Rainboom, "Well, Rainboom, I only got a few more minutes left, but I'm sure I can..."
"Falcon Dive, what happened to your wings in there?!" Rainboom suddenly gasped and asked, stopping Falcon Dive's sentences.
The griffon looked at his wings and saw some cuts and slightly red patches at the tips, "Oh, those are the parts of me that got touched by bits of flame and all, nothing to worry about."
"Are ou sure? You told me that being selfless means being more concerned about others than you are concerned about yourself! And I am showing concern for you! Right now!" Rainboom informed.
"Thanks, Rainboom, you're a quick selflessness learner, but I'm pretty sure I'm fine, besides Volcano and Nature Bloom know Biology says that cells can quickly multiply and repair damaged tissues, so it will just heal all by itself!" Falcon Dive assured.
"But didn't science says it needs time, and it won't heal fastest if you don't rest?" Rainboom asked.
"Rest because I'm injured? No way, Rainboom! I have fought pain and injuries all my life! No reason I should be out of action because of one, when there can be plenty of other creatures who can need help any moment! A whole town full of them, that is!" the griffon declared.
"Alright..." Rainboom replied, "Since abandoning my own wishes for the sake of the wishes of others, makes me selfless, I can just give up opposing you..."
"Rainboom! Falcon Dive!" Lil'Cheese called, rushing over with the rest of the Lil'Heroic Ten.
"Are you alright?" Screwball asked in a concerned tone.
"I am, but Falcon Dive sure isn't. He got hurt when he was in that building on fire!" Rainboom explained.
"It's just minor burns and cuts, nothing to worry about when you're some creature who usually dives in to rescue others at the cost of your own good," Falcon Dive assured, "I mean, I do that a whole lot of times before I became a famous hero alongside the rest of the Heroic Ten."
"So you keep on getting yourself injured?" Big Sugar asked.
"And don't rest?!" Sweet Caramel Apple added.
"For years?!" Precious Treasure contributed.
"Well, I can't stand not doing anything about those poor creatures I see that are in trouble," Flon Dive replied, "But don't worry about it, because getting hurt to save others is a major part of selflessness!"
"But what would morality say about it?" Bulk Junior asked.
"You mean, what would some creature moral say, Bulk." Muffin Whooves corrected.
"Sunshine Rays will understand if it was really for some creature else's good! Plus, it's not like I'm giving in to some creature's immoral wishes!" Falcon Dive confidently declared.
"There you all are!" Yellow Bright could be heard saying, as he arrived.
"Yellow Bright! How did you know we were here?" Muffin Whooves asked.
"Well, seeing smoke in the sky gives me one clear guess that Falcon Dive raced out to save the day, abandoning his lecture," the yellow-coated Earth Pony stated, while looking at his griffon Best Friend.
"Well, you can totally take over teaching them from this moment, plus I got to go back to doing my lookout job!" Falcon Dive told his earth pony Best Friend.
"But what about your cuts and burns?" Rainboom asked with concern.
"Burns?! Falcon Dive, you should totally stay away from the sunlight right now, I mean, you learnt in Physics that heat from the sun is transferred..." Yellow Bright began, before the griffon cut him off.
"Through radiation as the light waves do not need a medium! I know, Yellow Bright!"
"But do you know that you got to ret to get better?" Screwball asked.
"This griffon never lets his guard down," Falcon Dive began, before suddenly saying, "Especially when some creature is about to get hurt by a falling pot!"
Yellow Bright and the Lil'Heroic Ten watched Falcon Dive dash to an unseen creature's rescue, and the sound of the pot hitting the ground could be heard...
That evening, every creature gathered for dinner at the Dining Table as usual, but when Falcon Dive entered, things quickly became very different from usual days.
"Falcon Dive! Why do you have all sorts of cuts and burns on you?! Where were you all day?!" Sunshine Rays asked.
"Well, there was a house burning, a pony inside it needs sting..." Falcon Dive explained, before being cut off by Krona.
"Ponyville has fire extinguishers and fire fighting force! Falcon Dive should let hem put out the fire!"
"Not to mention rescue the pony," Buffer added.
"Then, he saw some creature about to get hurt, dashing off to the rescue and hurting himself as he did," Yellow Bright reported.
"What?! Falcon Dive, what were you thinking? You were already her from that fire, and you go on getting yourself hurt even more?!" Sunshine Rays asked.
"I was saving some creature else's life!" Falcon Dive responded in a tone that expressed opposition towards Sunshine Rays' words.
"But...what about your injury?" Nature Bloom asked in her usual, soft-spoken like Fluttershy, tone.
"I care the least about my conditions! Because I'm very..." Falcon Dive began, before being cut of by Luster Dawn.
"Selfless? We know that you're always like that, Falcon Dive, but you got to..."
"Be more thoughtful towards others?! Yes I know, because ever since that incident of breaking Volcano's helium particles collection, I never dove down towards the Castle at great speeds, ever again! And always tried thinking twice or thrice or more before I do something!" Falcon Dive intervened.
"What I was about to say was 'more thoughtful towards yourself', " Luster corrected.
The statement caused Falcon Dive to give out an immediate reaction of opposition, "WHAT?! No! I always care the most about others and the least about myself, and I'm going to keep it that way! There's no way I'm going to care that much about my safety, needs, wants, and conditions!"
"But Falcon Dive! Caring about yourself like that doesn't make you selfish!" Evergreen pointed out.
"Yeah, it's only when you cared more about yourself than others, that will make you selfish!" Yellow Bright explained.
"I'm not taking any chances of having such a vice like selfishness!" the griffon denied.
"We do like the fact that you're selfless, Falcon Dive, willing to save any creature in need or trouble, but if you're hurt, you got to sit it out!" Volcano informed.
"What about my lookout protector duties?!" Falcon Dive asked in a somewhat insane tone.
"I'm sure every creature will understand! I mean, you can't go out under the Sun with burns that can worsen because of radiation, and you got cuts that need time to heal..." Alkali began, before being interrupted by Falcon Dive.
"There is no way I'm going to sit out even for a day! Or an hour? Or a minute?! Anyway, I am the Element of Selflessness, always selfless! Care the most about every creature and everything else's goodness and conditions!"
"And care the least about yourself to the point you don't care one bit about getting yourself hurt!" Sunshine Rays sarcastically finished for her griffon Best Friend.
"Exactly!" Falcon Dive responded, somewhat striking off a pose.
"But Falcon Dive, what about your poor cells and tissues? I mean, they are what makes you you, building up your body! Injuring yourself means damaging and even killing some of them! And just like creatures, they are living things!" Nature Bloom pointed out.
"The last thing I ever remember about cells from hearing your Biology thing is cells naturally dies quickly, so they are meant to die!" Falcon Dive responded, offending the others with what he had to say about cells.
"What?! It's the Red Blood Cells that die quickly because they don't have a nucleus like typical cells! Although, other cells do die at a fast rate, but not as fast as the red blood cells, but hat still doesn't give yourself any right to keep injuring yourself and giving them a hard time to multiply and replace the damaged!" Volcano clarified.
"Whoops...sorry every creature, but you know me, I can't help it when I see some creature in need of help! I'm just so.used to being selfless!" Falcon Dive told his best friends.
"Can't you be selfless and...care more about your cells?" Nature Bloom asked politely.
"I'm sure they're fine like usual! As for usual! I get hurt a million times before in all my life and recovered! Plus, I care more about every creature else's cells compared to my own!" Falcon Dive claimed.
"There's just no way to convince him to care about himself..." Sunshine Rays sighed.
The next day, sometime during the afternoon, Rainbow had her best friends to help her practise Falcon Dive's moves by building an obstacle course out of rubber tyres and haystacks from Sweet Apple Acres.
"Are you sure about this, Rainboom?" Sonic asked his sister.
"Of course I am sure about this! I mean, I got to practise some hero moves so I can save any creature in need like Falcon Dive does!" Rainboom confidently exclaimed as her answer.
"But, aren't there any safer, better, ways to do so?" Screwball asked.
"Like uniting all of your species to help fight a threat and save Equestria?!" Sparity suggested.
"Just like Professors, Silverstream, Ocellus and Smolder!" Lil'Cheese listed.
"And Uncle Sandbar and Aunt Yona!" Precious Treasure added.
"And Captain of the Royal Guard in Canterlot, Captain Gallus!" Big Sugar contributed.
"Don't forget Rasberry Dazzle and Hyper Sonic!" Bulk Junior finished.
"As if something like that's going to happen so often!" Rainboom responded, not taking in much of what her best friends had to say, "I'm going to train and train and train and become the hero Falcon Dive is! And even better, like a superhero! Saving creatures from danger!"
"I don't think you're at that level, Rainboom..." Sweet Caramel Apple informed.
"Maybe you should wait until you are older?" Muffin Whooves suggested.
"As if! This world always needs saving!" Rainboom declared, before spending into the obstacle course with her best friends watching as her audience.
"Well, so far, so good..." Lil'Cheese nervously chuckled as they watched.
But as soon as that sentence was finished, Rainboom tripped on a small stone and was sent rolling towards a tower of haystacks! The filly's best friends gasped in horror before a sudden strong gust of wind swooped pass them, and got Rainboom to safety. It was none other than Falcon Dive, who was still not recovered from his scars.
"Falcon Dive, thank you for saving me! I really admire your heroic doings, but not the fact that you are still hurt!" Rainboom told her hero.
"Hurt?! I don't care about how hurt or injured I get, because I am selfless, and fight pain! I fight every struggle and setback and help others no matter what! And that means sacrificing my own good for their good! Care the least about my safety, the most about every creature else's..."
"We always hear you say all that!" Lil'Cheese complained, having gotten annoyed of hearing the same sentences over and over again from the one same creature.
"Sorry, I just got too used to saying it! But the main point is, one part about selflessness is willing to hurt yourself, as that shows you care less about yourself, plus you got to save other creatures at the risk of your safety at times. And sacrificing your own life to save other creatures' lives, is no doubt, the most selfless thing!" Falcon Dive explained.
"Selflessness is really unique, being a virtue that puts whoever that possess it at risk!" Sparity sarcastically commented.
"It is pretty much about sacrificing! But there are some smaller, more harmless sacrifices like sacrificing your time and..." Falcon Dive began smoothly, before his tone suddenly turned into an unarm, panicked tone, "Time with loved ones when some creature is in need of help!"
The griffon then dashed off once again, due to seeing some creature that could use his saving.
"That's totally Falcon Dive, alright!" Big Sugar commented.
"Being very selfless!" Sweet Caramel Apple added.
"I just hope that Falcon Dive doesn't get hurt even more..." Screwball whimpered.
That evening, during dinner time in the Castle of Friendship, things did not go any better compared to the previous day.
"Falcon Dive! Look at you! You're in terrible condition! Haven't you seen your reflection in a mirror or pool of water or something?!" Sunshine Rays asked.
Falcon Dive was in a condition worse than just injured, he was all messes up, covered in dirt, leaves and twigs, and even more injuries.
"That's not all, your scarf is ripped!" Evergreen pointed out.
"Madam Rarity might faint to see a horribly ripped scarf like that!" Krona commented.
"You probably should get a replacement or just take it off with no replacement," Buffer suggested.
"What?! No way! This scarf is passed down to me from my Dad! I can't just replace it!" Falcon Dive protested.
"But you did ruin it really badly..." Volcano pointed out.
"While I was busy saving other creatures, as for usual!" Falcon Dive stated.
"Falcon Dive, I know that being selfless is the virtue that you value the most, but you must not think that caring about your conditions means being the opposite of selfless!" Nature Bloom told her griffon Best Friend.
"I already told you all, every creature! That hurting myself is part of being selfless!" Falcon Dive argued, "I can't just stand by and watch other creatures get hurt! I have to help them!"
"But how can you help them if you cannot even help yourself?" Evergreen asked.
"You must be in good conditions to help yourself before you help others!" Luster contributed.
"Help yourself before you help others?! That sounds kind of selfish to me, putting yourself before others..." Falcon Dive protested.
"Listen, it is not being selfish, it's true! You need to be able to help yourself! Have the abilities to do things to serve yourself! If you can help yourself, then you can help others! Because being able to help yourself is the basic! Proving that you have the ability you need for doing more, which is helping others!" Volcano explained.
"Can help myself or not, I always help others!" Falcon Dive still resumed ignoring his best friends' words.
"Where is your listening spirit?" Buffer asked, trying to get Falcon Dive to snap out of his (Falcon Dive's) unwilling to listen behaviour.
"There are times when others are wrong, so that means sometimes you should listen to yourself and trust yourself and your thoughts!" Falcon Dive argued, "Lee you cannot believe a theif who says that they steal powerful magical objects for safekeeping, that easily!"
"In a scenario like that, you mostly should not listen, but there are still scenarios that require..." Sunshine Rays began, before being cut off by her griffon Best Friend.
"See?! I don't care what you all think about my selfless ways! I am never going to care that much about myself! There's no way I'm going to risk becoming selfish!" Falcon Dive declared, before exiting the Dining Room and slamming the doors shut.
"Isn't not willing to listen to others somewhat selfish?" Alkali asked.
The next day, Falcon Dive flew up to the sky as usual, doing his lookout duty. This time, he had a bit of difficulty flying, feeling pain kicking into his body.
"Why do I feel so much pain? I haven' gotten any extra injuries!" the griffon asked himself out loud, just before he heard an explosion and spotted the Cake Twins, Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake in the middle of the Everfree Forest, surrounded by a huge pack of hungry Timberwolves!
"Come on, sis! We can handle them!" Pound encouraged his exhausted sister.
After firing another beam at the Timberwolves, Pumpkin collapsed on her hooves, weakly saying, "I'm...too...tired..."
A large Timberwolf charged at the Twins, but just before it could reach them, Falcon Dive bravely swooped in and pushed the beast from the beast's left side, changing the direction it was taking, saving the unicorn and pegasus in the process.
Unfortunately for the griffon, the pack splitter up with three quarter taking on the twins, and the remaining quarter after him. Falcon Dive attempted to fly high up into the skies once again, but was prevented from doing so by his conditions.
"What?! No! I can't fly so well!" Falcon Dive cried, just as he was surrounded by Timberwolves. Without his flight, the griffon bravely dodged the beasts and ran to the ponies' rescue.
But unfortunately for Falcon Dive, Pumpkin Cake had shot a beam at the Timberwolf in front of him, who quickly dodged it, resulting in the beam hitting the griffon instead.
"Falcon Dive!" the Cake Twins gasped as they saw the famous hero got hurt. The two ponies ran towards the fallen creature, winding up getting surrounded by the whole pack of Timberwolves.
"Leave our Best Friend alone!" the rest of the Heroic Ten's voices could be heard saying, as they appeared and faced the beasts in a battle.
Luster teleported herself around frequently, as well as shooting beams at the Timberwolves around.
Yellow Bright annoyed a few Timberwolves with tactics similar to the one Pinkie Pie used against Queen Chrysalis on the day Twilight's Coronation was supposed to happen on.
"Try your luck, wolfies! Come and catch this pony, yellow like a duck!" Yellow Bright exclaimed, before popping all over the place. The Timberwolves tried to pounce and land on him, but constantly failed.
"Miss! Miss too! Three times missed! Close, but no free points!" the Earth Pony kept on jumping around and having fun like he was playing a game.
Sunshine Rays and Alkali worked with Krona and Buffer to take down several of theTimberwolves, the former two tend to swoop down to grab the beasts' attention, while the later two would use the chance to charge and knock the wolves down.
"Hey Timberwolves, look at who's up in the sky!" Sunshine Rays called.
"Two of the Heroic Ten, Sunshine Rays and Alkali!" declared Alkali, as she swooped down to fly over the Timberwolves' heads.
Krona and Buffer charged at the distracted Timberwolves, shattering the beasts into sticks.
"Krona smash!" Krona loudly shouted at the very last second the Timberwolves she and Buffer took down, existed.
"That was kind of fun!" Buffer added, after the defeat of several of the wolves.
Evergreen, as a Nirik, ran circle around the Timberwolves, trapping them in an enclosure of fire that only she could touch without harm. Volcano used his fire breath to scare most of the remaining Timberwolves away.
"That's right, leave!" the dragon called to the frightened Timberwolves.
Unlike every creature else, Nature Bloom had tamed one of the Timberwolves throughout the entire battle, currently telling the latter as if it was a dog, "You are such a good boy, being able to stay calm like this throughout a situation."
"Nature Bloom!" Luster called, catching the changeling's attention.
"Oh, right." Nature Bloom responded, before turning back to the Timberwolf, "Sorry, we both got to go follow our packs. See you around if our paths ever crossed again!"
After the Timberwolf left, the Cake Twins approached the Heroic Ten.
"Thank you so much for saving our lives, Heroic Ten. Even though we were the one reason there was all this trouble, coming here to look for an ingredient for a cake!" Pound Cake apologised.
"And we're even more sorry about what happened to...one of your members..." Pumpkin Cake added.
"And I think you all know who they're talking about..." Falcon Dive said as he walked towards his best friends, crawling like a vey weak, old creature.
"Falcon Dive! What happened?!" Sunshine Rays asked.
"Well, I was battling the Timberwolves to help the Cake Twins, but got even more injuries and now..I can't fly...and can't do anything much really." the griffon explained.
"So does that mean that you can't help any creature?" Volcano asked.
"What?! I will still help creatures!" Falcon Dive shouted.
"What Volcano meant was, do you still have the ability to help creatures?" Alkali asked.
"Well...in this condition, I don't think I can do well..." Falcon Dive said in pain.
"Exactly, Falcon Dive! Without the ability to help yourself move around, you won't be able to help any creature else! You need to be able to help yourself, then you can help others!" Luster stated.
Finally learning that what his best friends had been telling him for a while was true, Falcon Dive finally gave up on his self-hurting ways to help others when he was already injured. "You are right, every creature. I finally see that now, thanks to this incident and experience, I'm really sorry that I ignored what you all say, especially when our Element of Listening had been nearby the whole time!"
"It's not that bad! Listening can be quite tricky at times! Like, you can have trouble working out who to listen to among many others, or you might find it difficult to understand something some creature says, or misunderstand it," Buffer listed some examples.
"We're glad that we all came just in time!" Evergreen added.
"At the sacrifice of our own time," Volcano stated, "Alkali and I should be teaching our students at Improvement Academy right now!"
"Oh, right! Sorry, we got to go! Lessons can't start without the teachers!" Alkali announced, before spreading out her wings to fly to her destination alongside Volcano.
"Krona and Buffer got to go, too! Go to work!" Krona declared.
"Sorry we can't stay any longer!" Buffer apologised.
"I got things to do, too! And they are quite important." Evergreen contributed.
"So do I! Sorry, even creature!" Yellow Bright added, leaving as well.
"Now that every creature mentioned that they got things to do, I remembered that I got things to do, too! I should be doing those things right now! Sorry, I have to leave and get back to work!" Nature Bloom informed, before flying off, leaving only Luster and Sunshine Rays with the injured Falcon Dive.
"Well, that just leaves us to take you to the Hospital, Falcon Dive," Sunshine Rays told her griffon Best Friend, "You really need it."
Time flew by and it was late afternoon. Rainbow was up to another stunt to train herself to beready for action like Falcon Dive. Dodging sharp tails and chairs this time.
"I don't think that's safe, Rainboom!" Bulk Junior told her.
"And didn't Mum and Dad keep telling us that safety is the most important thing?" Sonic reminded.
"Falcon Dive says that being selfless means willing to sacrifice, and that includes sacrificing safety to save others!" Rainboom declared.
"But, no creature's in trouble!" Muffin Whooves pointed out.
"Except for you, maybe." Screwball told Rainboom.
"Screwball's right, Rainboom." Sweet Caramel Apple stated.
"IT's not safe!" Big Sugar added.
"Even though tables and chairs are nothing compared to fire and lava..." Sparity contributed.
"Sparity! It still isn't very safe!" Precious Treasure informed.
"Maybe we should have cakes and pies?" Lil'Cheese asked.
"No pies for me!" Sonic responded.
"I was saying cakes and pies for an obstacle course! They aren't as hard as tables and chairs!" Lil'Cheese clarified.
"Maybe pillows and blankets are an even better choice?" Muffin Whooves suggested.
"Never mind! I need to be brave and willing to risk my safety!" Rainboom declared in a brave, confident tone.
At the Hospital, Luster and Sunshine Rays were still with Falcon Dive, being beside his bed.
"So, if you really want to fly super fast, how are you going to do that?" Luster asked the griffon.
"Fly up really high, gain as much gravitational potential energy as possible, before flying down with an undefined gradient like in a graph where x=any one number, so I can fall quickly in eagle-dive position, with lots of my gravitational potential energy converting into kinetic energy as I fall..." Falcon Dive was saying his answer out loud before being cut off by Sunshine Rays.
"Um, guys? What do you think Rainboom and her friends are up to on that hill? With plenty of tables and chairs?"
Luster approached the window and saw what Sunshine Rays was seeing from far away, since the floor they were on was the third floor, they could see things that were quite far away.
"Let me have a closer look," Luster said, before using a spell to summon a magic circle that worked like a magnifying glass to take a look at what the kids were doing. "Rainboom's dodging tables and chairs! And some of them are unstable, threatening to fall on her at any time!"
"What?! Oh no, I got to save her!" Falcon Dive declared, but his pain prevented him from doing so. "Ow..."
"No Falcon Dive, you do not have the ability to help any creature right now, so we're going to save Rainboom." Luster informed, before rushing out of the Hospital with Sunshine Rays.
Rainboom was successful in avoiding most of the tables and chairs, but she was not very lucky as she accidentally bumped one of the table stacks, resulting in a domino effect of the rest of the obstacle course shaking uncontrollably, about to collapse at once.
Fortunately, Luster and Sunshine Rays arrived right on time, due to Luster's teleportation spell. The unicorn used the same spell to teleport Rainboom to safety, right beside the two mares.
"Thanks, Luster and Sunshine Rays! For saving my twin sister." Sonic thanked.
"No problem saving her," Luster replied.
"But the problem is, why would you set up such a dangerous obstacle course?!" Sunshine Rays scolded, "Didn't I tell you that real best friends do not put any creature in danger?!"
"I'm sorry, Sunshine Rays. But I was practising my skills so I can be selfless like Falcon Dive! Willing to sacrifice my own safety to save others!" Rainboom apologised and explained.
"WHAT?! If it was a practice, you should have used cushions, pillows, blankets, and things that are more safe and soft!" Sunshine Rays informed.
"But, Falcon Dive said that the most selfless thing is sacrifice!" Rainboom told the white-coated pegasus mare.
"Only when there really is some creature else in trouble!" Sunshine Rays explained, "Creating a practice that puts you in danger means causing trouble for others! See things that way!"
"And you really got to be more careful with your virtues understanding in this rate..." Luster added.
"Speaking of virtues understanding, Falcon Dive still hasn't fixed you on selflessness and loyalty! If he doesn't, Mum is not going to be happy..." Sonic warned.
"In that case, we'll take you to the Hospital to see Falcon Dive, but my teleportation spell only works outside, being blocked off by magic-absorbing shards so that no creature can suddenly teleport in and cause a shock. So we're going to have to be careful once we walk inside," Luster told the filly.
"And remember, there are plenty of other creatures there, so you better be thoughtful and think of them!" Sunshine Rays added.
The scene then changed to show what happened later in the Hospital, with Lustre writing a letter that Falcon Dive wanted to send to Princess Twilight Sparkle, about the latest lesson he learnt.
Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle,
I always thought that selflessness means helping other creatures at any situation and condition, and only helping others when I can help myself means being selfish, but I was strongly proven wrong. You really cannot help others when you cannot help yourself. In my case, I got injured really badly, and was unable to do much, not being able to move around much! Not being able to move around much disables me from helping others as well, unable to help myself, and unable to help others! In addition, selflessness may mean sacrificing your own good to help or even save others, but it should not be taken too far with practices of risking whoever wants to be selfless! Selflessness shows itself only when the time is right, and it can be from as big as saving others' lives, to as small as just being thoughtful of them and giving them what they need.
Signed, one of your faithful student's best friends,
Falcon Dive.
After the letter was magically sent away, Rainboom approached the injured griffon, "I'm glad that you really cleared things out now, but are you able to teach loyalty? I mean, you always have been more focused on selflessness."
"Don't worry, Rainboom. Now that I know that I can only help when I have the ability to do it, I figured to ask an expert of Loyalty." was the response. The next second, the door opened, revealing Rainbow Dash's husband Soarin.
"Dad!" Rainboom greeted her father.
"I got a letter from Falcon Dive saying that he needs help bringing back your loyal senses, so your Mum won't be upset. And come to think of it, calling me here really is a good choice, instead of trying his best to teach without the right abilities." Soarin explained.
Falcon Dive nervously chuckled, "Right..."
Every creature around the griffon's bed then shared a laugh.
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I knew you was pretty good I mean bulk did have multiple jobs lol
Yeah because one not going to repeat that mistake after Lightning Dust stunt she pulled
Good Lord sunshine you are a pretty strict character I mean I get some of the rules are very important but you just got to let loose a little bit but not too crazy you just need to balance it out
Well, since it will be like a teacher with a class, it will most likely be alright, especially when the teacher is some creature trustworthy..." was the answer, before Big Sugar asked the white-coated pegasus.
"Then why did you hold big protests against Rainboom and Falcon Dive hanging out as Falcon teach her?"
Yeah Sunshine it did sound a little hypocritical😅
"I didn't hear you say any Element of Harmony names," Rainboom responded, making the Captain of the Wonderbolts even more shocked and unhappy.
"What in the kingdom is this?! Your Dad and I told you about that Element of Harmony saving the day a million times as you grew up under our care!" Rainbow Dash reminded, "How can you forget it all?!"
Yeah I mean what the heck do they keep forgetting about that thats not cool after Twilight Sparkle and her friends did not only that they also forget about the young six they also help out 2 I mean what the heck
Dude you're basically killing yourself I know you want to help out and that's great but sometimes you have to take care of yourself For God sake please you got to listen
Yes that is correct and he seriously is going to hurt himself even more
"Try your luck, wolfies! Come and catch this pony, yellow like a duck!" Yellow Bright exclaimed, before popping all over the place. The Timberwolves tried to pounce and land on him, but constantly failed.
"Miss! Miss too! Three times missed! Close, but no free points!" the Earth Pony kept on jumping around and having fun like he was playing a game.
Wow kid pinkie pie taught you pretty well lol 😆
Wow ok then so falcon really want to help other creatures which that's pretty awesome but the thing is when he got hurt he didn't even realize he's hurt but ignore to rest because he wants to help out other creatures 24/7 and basically he's entering himself even more instead of resting basically you got to help yourself before you help others and he has to learn that sometimes take care of yourself is not that bad this was a pretty good lesson