Dishonorably discharged
The air, almost too thin to breathe at this altitude, was one of the things Wind Rider always enjoyed most about flying. Sure, unicorns may be able to teleport and earthponies could hurl boulders but only pegasi could feel the wind whip against their manes and have complete freedom in the air and the ground. Wings, with movements perfected over many years, adjusted in the slightest manner to reduce drag as Wind Rider soared. Many of the things he did with his wings, like insisting on pulling them back ever so slightly, were no longer necessary. Sure, when he was a commander in the wonderbolts where every day he'd be forced to do maneuvers that many pegasi would die simply attempting, they were necessary but now his body was too old, his bones too frail, to do those maneuvers. Indeed, these movements, just like most of what he now possessed, were a relic of the past, of times when he was still respected, still admired, still... a hero.
Wind Rider soon lost himself within the clouds, movements that took all the concentration of even elite wonderbolts were being performed effortlessly by what many would consider to be the most experienced wings in Equestria. Soon enough, the gentle breeze and the clockwork flight allowed the stallion to slip into his memories, the very fabric of what was real and what was not started to blur for the pegasus as the laughing of wonderbolts long retired started to fill his ears, the desk attributed to the office of a position he no longer possessed shined brightly as he, just for a moment, slipped back into time. Back to who he really was.
"Sir, the ponies in the mountains set alight to the peace treaty yet again, we can't keep losing men to this."
A much younger Wind Rider barely glanced up from his paperwork as the words flickered around him. Muscles honed from years of training and a face that would make even royalty jealous slowly eased their way away from the sheets to face the mare, a much younger Spitfire, barely past rookie. "And what do you propose we do then private?"
The mare's eyes darted round the room as she thought, and her mouth curved up ever so slightly as an idea finally dawned on her. "We could try collapse the rock above the mountain passes, without adequate supplies-"
"no."
Spitfire's smile faltered slightly as the words hit her like a brick wall. "but... sir we-"
"Celestia gave orders to keep the situation peaceful, collapsing the pass indirectly puts the town under siege. Now go back to your chamber and let me handle this."
Slowly, methodically, spitfire left the office. A wonderbolt suit, 2 sizes too big, flapped against her as she left. Wind Rider went back to relaxing fully as the door shut. Truth was, he knew all too well that the negotiations were not going to be peaceful. Indeed, he had even written to Celestia herself to ask express permission to use violence, to which she - reluctantly - accepted. He had considered something similar to the rookie's plan a few days ago, in-fact. Most other commanders would have told that to the private and got on with their day, but he had chose not to. Not because he disliked the mare, but because the plans naturally entailed a risky stealth operation into enemy territory, news which if the private were to realize would make it likely that she would insist he take her, as all members of a commander's wing are necessary for an operation as per section 401.52.A of the wonderbolt handbook. Even ignoring the poor discipline and her rash decisions that commonly resulted injury, she had not even been a week since passing training. She wasn't ready for a mission like that by any regard.
Memories faded once again as a cloud lightly brushed the tip of one of Wind Rider's wings. Most pegasi would have brushed it off as nothing, but Wind Rider knew how dangerous contact with any object could be during flight and he silently scolded himself for being able to get too distracted. A small adjustment to speed to accommodate his distraction and a slight lowering of altitude allowed Wind Rider to once again be at peace with himself, and continue flying. A small uncomfortable dry sensation in the back of his throat was quickly dispersed with a shot of cider from the stallion's hip flask. The edge of stress seemed to lift slightly as the alcohol took affect. Colors rushed past as the stallion took what was once considered a impossible dive and as the clouds were shattered by hooves of steel, the world once again for just a split second, took him back to the past.
The standard issue Pegasus Armour, at least for elite fliers, could barely be called armor at all. A skin-tight suit weakly enchanted and with a more grayed out color-scheme would barely be able to protect a pony against a hornet, if something was to pull a knife on them, it would be over. Still, the brave Pegasi stood unphased and prepared for the mission ahead. The commander, peak of his prime and in a perfect position to receive the celestial badge of military service, took a small breath and faced the other ponies around him.
"Zephyr."
A light grey pegasus mare glanced up from sharpening her knife. "yes sir."
"Cirrus."
A older stallion of a pale blue color slipped his goggles on. "sir!"
"Bolt."
A bright yellow pegasus fixed their suit's zip. "here."
Noticeably absent was another yellow pegasus, though this one with a fiery mane and a much more brash attitude. Indeed, spitfire had been told by Wind Rider that the pegasus fleet was going to a show and she was to take care of the new recruits while they were away. She would have been killed had she came with them, she didn't have the experience. Didn't have the discipline. before the ponies, a mountain pass into a small village stood in a way so calm that it could make even the hardiest stallion uneasy. Wind Rider stood tall and tested the wind with his wing-tip. "Alright: Bolt, Zephyr, you're going round the top of the rock. Place the explosives and get out. If you get spotted, it's over. Got it?"
"yes, sir" the two pegasi chanted simultaneously, explosive packs strapped securely into their saddlebags.
"Bolt, you're on cover fire. If anything goes wrong, fill the place with lightning."
"got it."
Wind Rider, content that the wind was perfect started to prepare for take off when Cirrus stopped him. "wait, sir, what are you doing then?"
"don't worry about me, just do your job right."
Once again, the past faded into nothingness as the wind whipped against Wind Rider. The clouds, now starting to grey as the sun set, reminded the Pegasus all too well of the passage of time. Indeed, he would soon have to go back and sleep. Even elite fliers needed rest after all, and he could never be at top performance if he did not have sleep. That was just a fact. The pains now growing in the base of his wings started to annoy the flier as he twirled towards a cloud.
As his hooves landed on the cloud, the light fluffiness of it started to envelope the pegasi's senses. Indeed, the greatest enemy to the former wonder bolt was not a physical enemy but the allure of resting on the clouds outside his house. The door, creaking almost silently, only accentuated the house's emptiness. The loneliness started to seep into the stallion as he glanced at the trophy cases previously full of medals and now, after having all of his feats as a wonder bolt revoked as part of his dishonorable discharge, just full of memories. In a flash, the sounds of rocks and the clatter of radio completely overtook the pegasus and he fell to the ground.
The radio hissed into life suddenly. "m-my wings... they're stuck! I... I can't move! SIR!- SIR THEY'RE APPROACHING! HELP!"
The commander kept flying, panting heavily, from the scene. A dragon he had just managed to lose in the village after awaking it abruptly continued to rampage. If anypony asked, the dragon would most likely be blamed - not the wonderbolts. The radio continued to hiss. "SIR! YOU'RE NOT GONNA LEAVE ME HERE LIKE THIS, ARE YOU!? I WANNA GO WITH YOU GUYS! I WANNA LIVE! H-HELP ME! PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME HERE!" the wind continued to whip against Wind Rider as he flew, beneath him he could just about glimpse the trapped pegasus. It was too late. He got himself seen, he paid the price. Going down would just get all of them killed. They just won, now all they had to do was play dirty to keep it that way.
The world distorted and twisted, memories, yelling, pain and suffering came sprawling back to Wind Rider as he managed to clamber to his hooves once again. His physical state may still be impressive, but his mental state had deteriorated over time. No longer the sly, manipulative and charismatic commander voted number nine in the equestrian beauty poll, he was now an irritable, impulsive mess relying on his old status and still superb physical prowess to get by. Well, he used to rely on his status. Now he didn't even have that thanks to that arrogant rainbow mare. Who was she, anyway? Sure, she is an element of harmony and sure she stopped a few supernatural forces but she was only scratching the surface of what was truly there. She only fought the threats the wonderbolts had not already got around to deal with. She had no idea how many villains there truly were, how many ponies were lost fighting battles unseen to the public. How many missions he personally had done to stop anypony ever finding out about the chaos on their doorstep. She goes along and deals with what, in comparison, was a garden-weed that overgrew and calls herself a hero and everyone goes along with it. It wasn't fair. It wasn't right. How dare she deface him, THE Wind Rider, the equestrian legend, the strike commander prodigy the... nobody.
Alcohol coursed through wind rider once again as he slumped into a sofa-shaped cloud. The medals, the honors, the uniform... that was in his past. He needed to let go of that before it consumed him completely. He wasn't as good as he was, and a newer commander replaced him. He just needed to accept it. He just needed to go into a normal, mediocre life and... No. Tears revealed the pain of memory as Wind Rider let himself be carried back to the past one more time.
A mare, with the universally recognized four-color mane towered above him. Her wings and horn cast a shadow upon Wind Rider as she spoke. "General Wind Rider, you lost one of the wonderbolt generals in your latest mission. During your write-up you did not even care to mention their name. Explain yourself."
Wind Rider thought back to the scene, how he had left the pegasus for dead trapped by a rock and with hostiles approaching them. It was wonderbolt procedure to never leave a pegasus behind, he couldn't tell her the truth... he just couldn't. Not with all of Equestria listening to his every word. "He got mind-controlled by a unicorn, and went rogue. He jeopardized the whole operation and nearly killed me. I had to take him out, and as you are well aware in the wonderbolt handbook it clearly states that operatives that go rogue are no longer to be affiliated with the wonder bolts. Your write-up asked for a status on the wonderbolts under my command. I delivered exactly on what you asked of me."
The mare was clearly unsatisfied, and clearly wanted to disagree but that would risk her reputation. Her even questioning someone in the position of Wind Rider would be highly controversial and if she turned out to be wrong... She would be ridiculed for years. He had her trapped in a corner, and he knew it. "Fine, continue on with your duties General."
With a fresh smirk on his face, Wind Rider left the room. It was time to get back to work. The doors swing open and as his hoof finally moves back the world finally catches up with him and he finds himself not at a castle entrance full of adoring fans but in his kitchen. His quickly dwindling smirk quickly devolves into tears and he ends up collapsed into a ball of sobbing. What a mess, what a miserable mess. The ex-general of the wonderbolts barely seemed a fitting title to someone who couldn't walk round his own house without breaking into tears. What a joke.
Looking out the window, the pegasus started to think. Maybe he could fix this situation. Maybe he could sneak into the wonderbolts headquarters and steal back the medals and the uniform. He always used to be one of the quietest ponies in the wonderbolts and he knew most of the codes for the headquarters still. It was highly illegal and he'd need a cunning plan, probably involving stealing all the medals so as to not draw suspicion to himself, but it was possible and it wasn't as if he was ever on the right side of the law anyway. Sure, the medals had been revoked but having them with him would mean so much to him... was it not worth the shot? Maybe he could even prepare a little accident for the rainbow mare while he was over there. Yes... a little accident, maybe a little framing... Maybe unfair on her, but well...
Sometimes, just sometimes, you have to play dirty to win.