Flying With the Dusty Bolts

by Pony Bones

Polished

Mirage had sent Sand Blast out on weather patrol to find the source of the cold front that had settled in Appaloosa that left him to fly alone with his thoughts. He enjoyed flying alone over the beautiful open desert, the only sound was the wind rushing past his ears, and whenever he stopped to scan the horizon the silence was complete there were few other places in Equestria that were this isolated and peaceful, it was beautiful.

It helped him keep his mind off the fact that none of the Dusty Bolts truly knew him; the tough pony face he put on every day was a front. The truth was he didn’t have the rough and tumble foalhood the rest of the Dusty Bolts did which was why he kept to himself as much as he could. He had a loving family who had done their best to raise him right, he wrote them often and missed them more than anything, except for Fluttershy.

He knew that by now the Dusty Bolts had seen something different in him, something with a touch of naïveté and purity; if they had noticed it they must have admired him for it because they never let on. In the beginning he had wondered what he had gotten himself into but when he saw how much the Dusty Bolts depended on each other it compelled him to stay, it was like his second family... a very dysfunctional family.

He hated waking up every morning having to pretend to be sompony he wasn’t, letters and visits from his family were what kept him from losing his mind. Watching the rest of the Dusty Bolts was depressing to him knowing they had been cheated out of a good life.

In his first letters home he had tried to spare his family from the depravity he dealt with on a day to day basis, but he couldn’t hide it from them forever so he decided honesty would be his best relief for stress. His family told him over and over how proud they were of him but the only ponies who understood what he was going through anymore were the Dusty Bolts and he could hardly relate with them.

That was why he had fallen so hard for Fluttershy because he saw in her a piece of what he had lost in Appaloosa, he was glad that it had gone so well with her and he wanted to see what the future held for her and him. Not only that he just enjoyed being around her and he hoped she felt the same way about him, she was so un-confrontational he was sure that if he didn’t gauge her feelings properly she would internalize everything while he steamrolled over her and that wasn’t at all what he wanted.

Sand Blast decided to pay Crazy Wing a visit since he was flying that way, seeing his statue with his trademark grin brought back a rush of memories and emotions that Sand Blast had almost forgotten, “Hey Crazy Wing, I thought you’d be lonely out here so I stopped by for a visit, sorry I didn’t bring anything.”

Reading over the epitaph brought back even stronger memories, until now Sand Blast hadn’t gotten a good look at what had been engraved but it stared back at him from the dust dulled marble, “HE HAPPILY GAVE HIS LIFE FOR THE PONIES HE LOVED”

Sand Blast knew that Crazy Wing wouldn’t have wanted him to get broken up over his death but he couldn’t help it. It didn’t look like anypony had been back to the cemetery since the funeral if the condition of the memorial was an indicator, the brass was already starting to oxidize and green, and the marble was faded and dusty. Sand Blast wouldn’t be able to do anything about the brass unless he came back with an ammonia scrub pad but he started wiping down the marble with his bandana bringing back the glossy polish.

He had two days to find the source of the cold front so it wasn’t like he was short on time, polishing Crazy Wing up just seemed like the right thing to do, Sand Blast always tried to do the right thing, “There, you look better already.” Sand Blast said staring at his reflection in the marble.

“Mirage finally proposed to Applejack, but you were there weren’t you? I wish you could have seen it they are so happy together.” Sand Blast couldn’t stand it anymore he knelt down and bawled into the dirt at the base of the statue, but he knew it would be alright.

As miserable as he felt after digging up the memories of Crazy Wing he knew it was something he had to face. He needed to keep Crazy Wing’s memory fresh in his heart or he would bury it with the cold stoicism he needed to be a Dusty Bolt.

Once he got ahold of himself he sputtered out, “I…. I, gulp, finally found, sniff… I finally found a… special somepony. You’d, sniff,… You’d like her.”

Once Sand Blast’s breathing had normalized and his eyes had cleared he gave one last look at his friend, “Sorry, I got to go, you know how it is Dusty Bolts always got to stay busy.”

Sand Blast knew he had to leave but he didn’t want to, he felt as though Crazy Wing would step down off his marble pedestal and the Dusty Bolts could go back to life as normal.

“Reality check Sand Blast this is no time to turn schizophrenic.” Wait, that voice sounded familiar,

“I know Crazy Wing, there’s no way you can hear what I’m saying to you. It just feels good to say it anyways.”

“I never left you.” Crazy Wing said standing beside Sand Blast.

Sand Blast knew that he should have been spooked but he wasn’t, he missed Crazy Wing too much, who cared if he indulged a little insanity? Sand Blast’s vision filled with stars and he heard a ringing in his ears, when it cleared Crazy Wing was still with him.

“Hey slacker, I’ve been looking everywhere for you! We’ve got to find the source of this cold front before we head to Cloudsdale for the selection screening.” Sand Blast shook his head frantically, what was he doing?

“I don’t know who your waiting on I’ve been ready to go.” Crazy Wing said trotting in place,

“You’re not real.” Sand Blast said passing his hoof through Crazy Wing’s body,

“It doesn’t matter, Mirage needs us to find the source of this cold front, we won’t find it with you standing there looking at me like I’ve got a wing growing out of my forehead.”

Sand Blast clenched his eyes trying to shut out the intruding apparition, he had heard about these sorts of things before; pony’s being locked up in institutions for committing crimes the “voices told them to do.” Then again what if he was legitimately haunted? He had never heard of a spirit being so vivid but he wouldn’t know he’d never seen one before. The hair on his coat stood on end, either way he was bucked, if he was haunted nopony would believe him and he’d wind up in an asylum anyways.

“Sand Blast, you alright? You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.” It didn’t matter if Sand Blast closed his eyes he could still hear Crazy Wing as clear as if he were in the flesh.

“Crazy Wing you’re not alive.”

“I know, this is all in your head, I’m here because you can’t let me go.”

“I’m keeping you from your rest?” Sand Blast was surprised, if there was one thing he respected it was his team mates rest time

“Yeah kind of, I don’t mind though a Dusty Bolt never leaves a job unfinished. I’m sticking with you until you can come to terms with my death. Hey do you want to see something cool?” Crazy Wing took his head off and gave Sand Blast a road apple smile, “To be, or not to be, that is the question.”

Yep that was Crazy Wing alright still the same goofy old pegasus even after death, just like nothing had changed, “Come on let’s go find where this frost is coming from.”

What could it hurt? It wasn’t as if Crazy Wing was telling him to murder Silver Lining for being sweet on Brayburn after his death that would just be bucked up. Crazy Wing was flying circles around Sand Blast impatient to get going, “Jeez Sand Blast I always knew you were slow but I didn’t think you were this slow, you really let yourself go after I left.”

“Crazy Wing you may be a ghost but I’ll still kick your flank.”

“Just try it; you’ll have to catch me first.” Crazy Wing taunted spitting raspberries at him,

Sand Blast reared and bolted pell-mell after Crazy Wing, “Your tongues going to be sticking out with my hooves around your neck!”

Sand Blast flew after Crazy Wing until he thought his wings would burst into flames and he had to slow down, Crazy Wing pulled up beside him, “Toldja.”

Sand Blast could hardly speak past his heaving breaths but he gasped out, “Wheeze wheeze, Crazy Wing, wheeze wheeze, shut up wheeze dead wheeze wheeze wheeze dead ponies wheeze wheeze aren’t supposed to speak.”

After that they flew on in silence scanning the skies and ground for any sign of the source of the frost, then Crazy Wing started whistling and Sand Blast joined in slowly they started singing one of their favorite songs, Sand Blast thought it was ominously ironic but he was well past second guessing himself so he sang with gusto, “Yippieio yippieiay ghost riders in the sky.”

Once they were finished singing something caught Sand Blast’s eye, “Hey Crazy Wing did you see that?”

“I can’t see anything I’m dead, remember?” Crazy Wing smiled as he flickered out like a candle,

“Sand Blast what are you doing? This is my patrolling sector.” A scowling Silver Lining flew through where Crazy Wing had been,

Sand Blast looked around searching for the movement that he had seen, “I think I saw something.”

Silver’s scowl turned to a look of concern as she asked, “Are you alright Sand Blast? It sounded like you were talking to Crazy Wing.”

Sand Blast couldn’t tell Silver she’d think he lost it, “Crazy Wing is dead, dead ponies don’t talk.”

“Yeah.” Silver said giving him a doubtful stare,

Sand Blast saw the movement again, “There it is!” he pointed excitedly.

This time Silver saw it, “Let’s go get a closer look.” She said diving after it,

Whatever it was they were chasing led them down a canyon they hadn’t flown before. If they didn’t keep catching glimpses of it they would have sworn they were chasing the wind. Sand Blast and Silver almost crashed into the canyon wall when they tore around a sharp bend and pulled up almost face to face with a cornered Windigo. It looked frantically from side to side then realizing it had nowhere to go sized them up, snorted, and started pawing the air causing miniature ice storms to crackle to the canyon below.

“Hey Silver I think we found the source of the cold front.” Sand Blast joked morbidly,

Silver looked at Sand Blast with her straightest poker face, “Sand Blast move your flank.”

“Agreed.”

Time seemed to slow as the two scrambled to get out of the path of the stampeding Windigo they briefly felt a stab of cold run up their legs to their elbows and stifles before losing feeling completely, fortunately that was as far as the ice went and they were able knock the ice off and beat feeling back into their legs with their wings which brought another stab of pain as their circulation returned. Turning to find the maverick Windigo Sand Blast suggested, “We should probably show the poor guy out of town.”

“Be careful you almost got a one way ticket to see me.”

Without thinking Sand Blast responded, “It’s not like I was trying to kill myself.”

Silver shot him a questioning look, “Who are you talking to?”

Sand Blast facehooved there was no hiding it now, “Silver I think I’m being haunted by Crazy Wing.”

Crazy Wing’s head sprouted out of Sand Blast’s shoulder and glared at him, “No you don’t think you’re being haunted you are being haunted.”

Sand Blast rolled his eyes, “Ok, ok, I AM being haunted by Crazy Wing.”

“Should I be worried?” Silver asked in what sounded more like a threat than a question,

Sand Blast shrugged, “I don’t know I’ve never been haunted before but I do know if we don’t go after this Windigo it may decide to trample Appaloosa into a hockey rink.”

Crazy Wing flew upside down in front of Sand Blast with his hooves on his hips, “I go to all the trouble of showing you where this thing is and you just hoover around shooting the breeze?”

“We’re going, we’re going!” Sand Blast said indignantly flying after the Windigo,

“Wait I don’t understand, so you’re haunted by Crazy Wing?” Silver Lining asked sprinting after him to keep up,

“That’s what he said.” Crazy Wing crossed his eyes and stuck his tongue out in a bucktoothed smile, “I think she’s even prettier than when I was alive, Brayburn that lucky mule.”

Sand Blast tried to shut out Crazy Wing’s voice so he could respond like a sane pony, “He says he misses you.”

Silver had to wipe her eyes and pull her goggles down as she gritted her teeth, “Then he shouldn’t have thrown his life away.”

Then something happened that completely surprised Sand Blast, as cold as it was and as high up as they were the largest and bluest butterfly he had seen fluttered in and landed on Silver’s nose. “Please don’t say that Silver, you’re making me homesick.” Crazy Wing grieved gently brushing her mane out of her goggles.

This made Silver break up even more and she had to pull up her bandana to keep snot from dripping down her face, “Celestia, Crazy Wing, if you can hear me, I loved you. I probably should have told your nervous flank when you were still with us, maybe you wouldn’t have decided to fly into that sand storm like you did.”

Crazy Wing tried to hug Silver but fell through, he looked straight at Sand Blast and through ghostly tears choked out, “Tell her my only regret in death was that I never told her how I felt about her.”

Sand Blast was a hard pony being with the Dusty Bolts had made him that way but seeing his friend so shattered and not being able to tell Silver himself broke him, “Cough cough, uhhhh, Crazy Wing says his only regret was not confessing his love before he died.”

Silver snorted and laughed bitterly, “Great now that we’re all sobbing like little fillies let’s chase down this Windigo.”

Sand Blast quickly got ahold of himself and gave a determined smile, “Buck yeah, that’s the only way to do it!”

Comments

[Pony Bones]

Author's note, This chapter was meant to be a back story on Sand Blast but then it kind of morphed into more time with Crazy Wing. Writing Crazy Wing as a ghost without making it too cheesy was head to the keyboard painful, but it opened up a whole other can of worms with Silver which kept the story going nicely I think. By the way if you're wondering what I look like typing up these stories you can picture me as that creepy Matrix nerd off of Grandma's Boy.

[Flutterstrucked]

Hahaha, this chapter meaningful and funny, made my day, sorry that I've been late recently in the readings, you know how some things can get, but still like how its going. I like the send offs that this story keeps giving. Make me think what other send off can be right round the corner...