The Alicorn Problems

by TheTimeSword

Problem 7: Rainbow's Rapid Ruin

Rainbow Dash resisted her face's desire to grimace, though it got its way more often than not. Disappointment was the word of the day, and tomorrow's would most likely be failure. There had not been a single new arrival to the Wonderbolt Academy, and the Cloudsdale Flight School held even less promise of new students. The three foals she watched from the bleachers were only a few weeks into flying, prior to the change. There had been more, the instructor had told her, but they'd gone off with their new horns and resilience. The same case for all of Cloudsdale.

Rainbow Dash wore a full captain uniform. A dark blue jacket buttoned over a white undershirt, black tie, badge and medals on the left. It mimicked what she'd seen Spitfire wear back before her departure. The special sunglasses Rainbow had received on becoming captain sat covering her eyes. She didn't want anyone to see the daggers she shot at the world. It wasn't the school's fault, she knew that. The culprits had already been dealt with—the Society of Secret Sorcery. They had caused all this, they had ruined the Wonderbolts, and at this rate there was no saving it.

With haste, she wrapped up the little demonstration and thanked the instructor for their time. There would be no future for the Wonderbolts if she simply waited on these three foals. Rainbow Dash knew she didn't have the patience for that.

How had Spitfire dealt with problems? Rainbow wished the mare was still around to ask, but she had no idea where the old team went in their search for new passions. The question did give her a small idea, however, to search records and information at the academy. There had to be years where pegasi simply didn't desire to join the Wonderbolts, as impossible as it was for Rainbow Dash to imagine. A shortage of members couldn't be too uncommon, not every pegasus flew like she could. A few years of ponies like Fluttershy couldn't bet against the odds.

When she returned to the academy, Rainbow headed straight up to her office. Practically ripping off her uniform and leaving it strewn about, she went to work. Upon search of the desk, she found one drawer on the left side filled with folders of paperwork. Dragging a few of these folders out, Rainbow Dash dreaded what she might find. She thought it might be old files on the Wonderbolts or dangerous flying stunts too deadly for real practice. Instead, she found what she feared more than anything else. Accounting stats, business ledgers, performance reviews, and previous event details. Hours upon hours of paperwork. A shiver ran down her spine as she eyed one folder named 'Tax Brackets'.

"No," she told herself. "I can do this. Just gotta imagine it like a Daring Do before it's edited into one complete edition."

She turned over the first folder and found some sort of report. It didn't have a title or category. It didn't even start off with an explanation about the contents. "Where's the chapter name?" she mumbled, and tossed the folder closed again. "Chapter fourteen, paper cuts." Laying her face in her hooves, Rainbow Dash gathered herself. There was so much more work to understand as captain. While learning a routine and practicing choreography proved difficult, this was on a whole other level. "Maybe it's time I give it up."

Those last words sounded like they came from somepony else. Certainly not Rainbow Dash. Yet it was her mouth that moved, her vocal chords producing the sound. And worst of all, her heart felt the truth to it. There was nothing left.

A sudden knock to the door sent Rainbow straight up in her seat. "Come in!" she shouted, only to notice the stains on her hooves. She quickly wiped the few remaining tears from her eyes, hoping whoever wouldn't see. She stopped when she saw Fluttershy—she wouldn't tease Rainbow for crying. "Fluttershy, what's up? You going back to Ponyville?"

Fluttershy blinked as though surprised, yet her face remained unbroken of any emotion. "Rainbow Dash? Are you alright?" she asked in a voice of concern.

"Ye-yeah, I'm good. Need something? I'm just working on some paperwork," Rainbow replied, taking the folder and tapping its end on the desk. "Real busy as captain, you know. Lots to do. Even went by the flight school this morning. You wouldn't believe how many flyers we'll be getting once they grow up. This place might not even be able to handle it."

All Fluttershy did was stare with a blank expression, not uttering a word.

"Oh, Fluttershy, it's awful!" Rainbow Dash broke, stretching her forelegs across the desk. "I've got no new prospects, no new trainees, and barely anypony at all!" Fluttershy glided over, wrapping her in a hug. "I think the only thing keeping me from closing this place down is that it's not just me. Sky Stinger and Vapor Trail remained behind, unlike everypony else."

"There, there. It'll be okay. If there's anypony that can handle it, it's you," Fluttershy cooed, and gently patted Rainbow's shoulders.

"I even had to send those two home, Fluttershy! Since no one else is here, they're breaking PDA rules whenever they think I'm not around!"

"Uhm, P-D-A?" Fluttershy asked with an arch of her brow.

Rainbow looked up at her with a flat stare. "Public displays of affection. I do not need to see that. I can't even tell them to keep their minds on their routines, because there isn't enough ponies to actually practice!"

Fluttershy's cheeks went red. "Oh my."

"I'm a failure, Fluttershy. The worst captain in history. By the end of the week, I'll be closing this place," Rainbow said as she slumped back in her chair. "I should've packed up too when Spitfire shut this place down."

"Rainbow Dash!" Fluttershy said sternly, earning a side eye from Rainbow. "You've never given up before! I know you can do this. I believe in you. You need to believe in yourself too! You've always stuck up for me, and I refuse to let you fall into such a pit of despair! If you need help, I'm here. I'll join the Wonderbolts."

Rainbow let her mouth fall agape as she stared at the yellow mare in disbelief. It only lasted a few seconds before a burst of laughter erupted from her throat. "F-Fluttershy? You?" she said through gasps. Pressing her hoof to her mouth, she tried to stifle the laughter. When she managed to settle herself, she continued, "I'm sorry, Fluttershy. I know you're just trying to help, but I think the funniest thing is that I'm in such a place where I'd actually consider letting you join. Maybe that's just another sign to throw in the towel."

But Fluttershy pursed her lips as she floated above the desk. With hooves on her hips, she stared down with a frown and said, "Rainbow Dash you need to—"

Another knock on the door cut Fluttershy off, and the mare must've known who knocked by her sudden change of body language. "Hey, Shyfly, you done yet? The bakery'll stop selling the day old yogurt biscuits in half an hour if we don't hurry." Zephyr Breeze stopped entering once he saw the two mares. "Oh, Rainbow Dash's here?" he said, slicking his hair back, only to brush against the bun atop his mane. "The way this place is dead, I thought she'd be gone too."

Rainbow glared at him for a moment before looking up at Fluttershy. "Why is he still hanging around with you? Please don't tell me you've let him stay with you." Fluttershy darted looks between the two, her front hooves fidgeting against each other. "Fluttershy! He's a bum!"

"Yeesh, leaderships takin' its toll on you, eh, Rainbow?" Zephyr Breeze slowly trotted across the room, looking like a newborn trying to walk. Rainbow assumed he did that on purpose, probably thinking it made him look attractive. "It's okay. I'm here to help," he said as he placed a hoof atop hers. She instinctively shuddered and pulled it away. "Whatever you need—whenever you want it, I'll be there. That's just the kind of guy I am."

Fluttershy landed next to her brother, one eye covered by her mane. "Actually, Zephyr helped a few other ponies learn to dress hair. He's uh—well, since he's practiced on a bunch of different ponies, it's helped with everypony having a horn now."

"Yeah, I'm a pretty big success now," Zephyr agreed.

"That's not what I meant—" Fluttershy tried to argue.

"And if you want a new style, Dashie, it's on the house," he added, overriding Fluttershy's words.

Rainbow Dash squinted at him. "Dashie?" she asked coldly. "Zephyr, the thing I need to do right now is get back out there and try to find new ponies to sign up." He looked like he would say more, but she knew what it would be. "Fluttershy has already volunteered to help, I don't need you and your hair tips."

This time she couldn't cut him off. "If you need help getting more ponies, look no further. I'll bet I could round up a few for you."

"Yeah, I don't need hairstylists, I need ponies who actually want to fly and perform!" Rainbow hopped up from her seat, glasses in hoof, and trotted to the door. "Come on, Fluttershy. Let's see if we can find you a uniform."

It took Fluttershy a minute to catch up in the locker room. Rainbow Dash knew why—Fluttershy always let Zephyr have an easy way out. She even expected Fluttershy to say something about how she had treated him. When Fluttershy didn't say anything on the matter, Dash asked, "You think I'm making the wrong choice?"

"Wrong choice? What do you mean, Dash?"

"Trying to do this. To refill what the Wonderbolts have lost. For a moment there I almost thought about putting Zephyr in a uniform and letting him strut his stuff. If I'm willing to debate both you and him joining, I'm really at a low point." She pressed her head against a metal locker for a moment before the position became awkward—this new horn really had become annoying.

"Rainbow Dash, I will do whatever I can to help you, but you must stop this destructive self-agonizing. You're better than that." Fluttershy tugged on Rainbow's shoulder, a strong grip for the shy mare.

"Thanks for believing in me, Shy. I don't think any amount of training could make you a good enough flyer, though." She tapped the leg Fluttershy held on her shoulder. "But I won't turn away your help if you'll lend it for today. I can put you in a uniform and we can go a few places around Cloudsdale to try recruiting." She saw the panicked look in Fluttershy's eyes. "Don't worry—I'm the one doing the talking. I just need someone to model the uniform and sort of act like we're doing alright."

Fluttershy gave a sigh of relief, though the notion of being a focus made her wince. The costume, one of Fleetfoot's old leftovers, formed tight in the chest and sagged in the neck. Still, it would have to do. "And the goggles on top of your head. There you go. Now you look like a real Wonderbolt, Fluttershy."

"Oh my, I feel like I could move a thousand miles in an instant in this thing," she replied.

"If you feel that way, I'll race you to our first stop!" Rainbow shouted from the doorway, bursting out into the day's light.

There were plenty of places around Cloudsdale that hosted ponies who might be interested in joining the Wonderbolts. The first was the Flight Camp—which they found vacant. The Cloudsdale arena was second, but ponies only used it to test their new horns. Rainbow led Fluttershy to many places, all of which were empty, unused, or repurposed for something else. Cloudsdale seemed at a loss for ponies flying for sport or fun.

Without Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash would've returned to the academy, given up for the day. But the yellow pony suggested one place Rainbow thought might have some real talent. "Cloudsdale's own weather factory. I'll bet somepony might want to give up creating clouds to become a great flyer! Great idea, Flutters!" Rainbow stared up at the clouds being produced from towering stacks. "Just make sure to point out the ones who might be a bit more like your dad. You get your soft side from him," Rainbow said, poking Fluttershy in the chest.

"I'll do my best." Fluttershy nodded with a slight grin.

Unfortunately, there was little difference from the rest of Cloudsdale. Ponies had left, gone off to try their hooves at being princesses or alicorns or whichever they named themselves. Aside from clouds, the factory had gone silent. Production had halted, and when the two came upon one worker, it became obvious they'd risen the corporate ranks by accident.

"You want to take more ponies!?" the short stallion said with a leap of dismay in his voice. "But it's just me and three others! You can't! Captain of the Wonderbolts? Oh, geez." He busily wiped the sweat from his brow with a dirty rag. "We still need clouds. You want to trade? I'll join the Wonderbolts if you can work the rain levers."

Rainbow stared down her nose at the twig of a pony. He stood shorter than most, probably not even taller than some colts, and looked to be near that age too. "Do you know how to work the rain levers?" Fluttershy asked before Rainbow Dash could.

"I—" He stopped and wiped his brow, then his cheeks, before his brow once more. "Listen, I need ponies. Someone big is going to come down here at some point and wonder why we're not meeting quota. I've been trying to get the guys I have back to work, so I can't go hire more ponies yet. Don't take them away!"

"If your fellow workers left, what makes you think the ponies who would come look at your quota haven't left also?" Rainbow Dash asked. She almost connected her situation to his—a sudden jump to power, a higher rank with a lot of responsibility. Of course, looking at how he took the new rank versus how she'd taken it, she saw less and less of herself in him. "The three aren't working? I'll talk to them. The Wonderbolts will need clouds for our aerial shows at some point, best to get them straightened out now." She didn't want to do this, but she made it her duty, and she didn't want the Wonderbolts to fail.

With the sweaty stallion on her tail and Fluttershy at her side, Rainbow Dash almost felt confident that she could rein in the fools. She lost that feeling when she saw the three bullies who'd always been a thorn in her side. Keeping her face stone, Rainbow refused to waver. "Of course it had to be you three I'd find," she said, spitting acid.

The three were standing around some controls, chugging back bottles of soda, and smashing them against each other's head. They wore their protective helmets while they did it, but Rainbow Dash believed not having the hats wouldn't have stopped them. "Look who it is, Rainbow Crash," the tall bully said as he smashed a bottle on the littlest member. Hoops, light brown in fur and brunette mane, would've been an alright member of the Wonderbolts. Of course, Rainbow wasn't desperate enough to take on these three. Even Zephyr Breeze would've been more palatable.

"That's Captain of the Wonderbolts, Rainbow Crash, to you," Rainbow replied. Rainbow Crash became an honored name now, thanks to the Wonderbolts, and one she no longer resented. "You're free to salute me, but I wouldn't want to interrupt you getting brain damage."

"Captain of the Wonderbolts?" the second tallest gawked. "There's no way. But look at that outfit."

"Looks like you jumped a few ranks," Hoops commented, and she assumed he eyed her up. Not that he could see past those long bangs of his. Even his new horn didn't push the hair from his eyes, it only made it worse. "What? Everyone else leave? No difference here."

Rainbow Dash could almost smell the uncertainty of the three. She had jumped rank to leader, proud and strong, whether or not she was the only one left. These three had bullied her and Fluttershy, and now it couldn't end in anything other than revenge. In their eyes, at least. "I'm not here to hang out. The Wonderbolts need clouds for our routines, and I come to find that you three slackers are playing spin the bottle instead of doing work. I don't care if everypony left, you three didn't and that means you three need to work. Understood?" She kept the firmness in her voice, and debated lessening it out of fear of pushing them further from their work.

Of course, these three featherbrains were too blind to see past her strong voice. "Understood," they murmured in unison, each straightening as best they could.

"What was that?" she shouted in response, a hoof to her ear.

"Understood, ma'am!" they shouted back, a salute going to their heads and knocking their helmets forward.

"That's what I like to hear. Carry on." She didn't bother asking if they wanted to join the Wonderbolts. Even if they accepted, even if they managed to follow orders, there would still be that tingling feeling in the back of her mind. To punish them for the past. But that time had passed, and Rainbow could outrun those negative feelings. "Let me know if they start slacking again," she told the small, sweaty stallion. "And I'll see if I can find some ponies to fill in for your other departments."

"Thank you! Oh, thank you, captain!" He fell to the floor, almost kissing at her hooves. Sweat rolled from his nose, dripping from his cheeks. She officially wanted to leave, and did so at a quicker pace than when she had entered, Fluttershy at her tail.

Outside, the sun lowered with grace. "I don't think those three recognized me at all!" Fluttershy gushed as she wrapped herself in a hug. "This outfit is wonderful."

Rainbow stared at Fluttershy for a long moment. The fears she had being trying to put off were coming close. "You want it, Fluttershy?" she asked, and Fluttershy looked up at her with shock. "It's yours. Keep it." Rainbow then hovered, readying to take off. "It'll be a nice memento to look back upon, now that the Wonderbolts are finished." Without waiting to hear Fluttershy speak, Rainbow blasted off back to the academy. She didn't want to be seen crying again.

Comments

[duckmagee]

honestly for once i feel bad for zephyr he honestly try to help rainbow dash in his own egotistical way, there just being mean and belittling him instead of giving him a chance,
feeling bad for zephyr every pony being alicorn is not the only strange thing in this brave new world i guess