Pegasi by Aileen Rose

Poking the Old Dragon

  Dusty sat patiently as he let Dottie poke around his back with the magic from her horn, keeping as still as possible.

"Nerve endings check out." she said as she finished her spell.

"Good." Dusty said with a sigh of relief.

Dottie gave him a bit of a questioning look before going over to his wing harness that was sitting off the side. She levitated the feathers back into place and got them fused back in before checking the hardware located on the back.

"And the receptors on your wings look fine."

"Phew..."

Dottie kept looking over the wings carefully before something caught her attention.

"Wait a minute... you've worn out your main connection circuit."

Oh Celestia...

"Oh... I have?"

Dottie gave her questioning glare. "This only happens if you're going at high speeds for extended periods of time, pushing the circuit to its limits with having to receive all the signals to move your wings and of course causing feathers to pop out from overloading the wires that crack under all the pressure." She then smiled, giving an innocent look. "But that's not you, all you do is dust crops at very low speeds."

Dusty nodded, giving his best grin. "Yep! Low and slow."

Dottie levitated a wrench as she trotted over to Dusty. "Unless..."

Dusty gulped. "Unless what?"

WHACK!

"You've been racing again!"

"Ow!" Dusty rubbed his head. "What me?! No! I would never do that!"

"Dusty!"

Dottie and Dusty turned their attention to the door to see Chug trotting in.

"You were in the zone out there!" Chug cheered.

Dusty eyes shrunk a bit as he shook his head rapidly as Chug went on and on about how great he was while Dottie got a very unimpressed look on her face.

Chug! No! Not in front of Dottie!

"We're talking lightspeed! LIGHTSPEED! You're gonna tear it up at the qualifier this weekend-" he stopped talking when he saw the look on Dottie's face. "Oh... Celestia..."

Dottie looked over to Dusty, raising an eyebrow.

Dusty gave his best innocent look, shrugging a little. "Um... I don't know..."

Dottie sighed, shaking her head. "Dusty, you were not built to race, you were built to DUST CROPS. Do you know what will happen if you push it too far?"

She gave him a good whack on the back with her wrench.

"Wing flutter, metal fatigue, NERVE CIRCUIT FAILURE!"

Chug gasped. "NERVE CIRCUIT FAILURE?!"

Dottie immediately began running around using her wrench to represent Dusty. "Oh no I'm going down! Why didn't I listen to Dottie?!"

Chug looked to Dusty. "Yeah! Why don't you listen to Dottie?"

Dusty just shook his head as Dottie went on.

"She's only the smartest Unicorn Mechanic in the Equestria. OH MY GOSH!"

"What?!" Chug asked.

"The orphanage! Fillies, colts fly away!" Dottie slammed her wrench down onto the ground. "KABOOM!"

"The fillies and colts!"

Dottie fell to the ground, eyes shut and twitching. Chug gasped as he kept his eyes locked on the mare.

Dusty just gave a bit of a disturbed look as he looked at Dottie.

"Um... wow... that was vivid... and... specific." he grinned. "And exactly why I need you to come with us, to the qualifier."

Dottie sat up, giving an unimpressed look. "You're unbelievable."

"Ah! You hear that?" Dusty asked Chug. "I'm unbelievable!"

Chug didn't really answer the question. He was still focused on the "orphans" that had gotten hit and was sobbing over it.

Dottie shook her head as she put Dusty's harness back on him.

"Alright, enough of you both, out."

Dusty saluted as he trotted out, Chug following right behind him.

Dottie sighed as she watched them go.

What am I ever going to do with that stallion?

------

Dusty and Chug went straight to Dusty's hangar to relax and watch some TV. They were tuning into the racing network, getting up to date with the news on the Wings Around Equestria.

"I think we got a good shot at this Chug." Dusty said between sips of his water.

Chug nodded. "Oh yeah, especially if I finish this book by the time the race is." He held up said book which was titled "Flying for Dummies."

Dusty chuckled as he turned his attention back to the screen as a show known as "Top Ten Air Crashes" came up.

"Oh! I love this show!" Chug exclaimed.

Dusty and Chug watched intently as they saw various Pegasi crash in many different ways... some very cringe worthy.

Yeesh... that's not gonna heal up well... Dusty thought as he saw another crash.

"Um... Dusty...?"

"Yeah?"

"Erm... I don't think this book will cover everything you could run into out there."

Dusty gave a confused look. "What are you saying?"

"Well... maybe we could use... I don't know, some help?"

"From who?"

"Oh um... the Skipper?"

Dusty's eyes got a little wide at the name as a questioning look came on his face.

"That old dragon that lives in the hangar at the end of the runway?"

"Yeah! He's a war hero. My friend Sparky says he was one of the best fliers in the NAVY. He knows stuff!"

"He hasn't flown in decades, why would I want help from a dragon who doesn't even fly?"

"At least he COULD."

Dusty shook his head as he looked towards the TV... just in time to see the worst crash that had ever happened. He found himself going a little pale as he saw it, Chug too.

They looked at each other.

"So... to the Skipper?" Chug asked.

"Yes... please."

------

The two stallions trotted up to the hangar quietly. It was one of the biggest ones in the town... and for good reason too. Not many visited this hangar, for many were intimidated by the flag that was flying above it. The one that had the Jolly Wrench insignia on it. It was enough to keep any pony away.

"I heard he knocked 50 flyers out of the sky with his fire. I've heard all sorts of stories about his squadron, the Jolly Wrenches."

Dusty nodded, his hooves trembling a little.

"They were the roughest, toughest, meanest flyers in the Navy who showed no mercy."

"Um..."

"NO MERCY!"

Dusty gulped as he looked towards the door bell. With a trembling hoof he pressed the button, trying to keep a strong stance.

"I hope you're right about this."

Dusty looked to see Chug wasn't beside him anymore.

"Chug!"

He looked back to see Chug hiding behind a few barrels.

"I'll wait here." He said ducking down.

Dusty froze as he heard the hangar doors slide open. Looking up he could see a big blue dragon looking down at him with a very unimpressed look. Beside him he could see a young unicorn who he recognized as Chug's friend, Sparky. If he remembered correctly the Unicorn was the dragon's personal medic.

Dusty gulped. "Um... Hey there... uh Skipper." Dusty said with a nervous chuckle. "Say, I'm trying out for the Wings Around Equestria and I uh... I know you can't fly anymore."

Skipper narrowed his eyes. Dusty felt himself starting to panic.

Worst opening statement ever, fix it! he thought, scolding himself mentally.

"But uh.. uh.. they say that those who can't do teach!" he said, giving his best smile.

Skipper's look didn't falter.

I'm doomed... come on, work it!

"Um... Okay, okay, what I mean to say is you're not an Earth Pony so I wondering if you could well... train me?"

Skipper gave him one last glare before he had Sparky slide the hangar doors shut with his magic.

Dusty stumbled back a little at the reaction.

"Go on! He's warming up to ya!" Chug yelled... who appeared to have moved back farther from where he was earlier.

Dusty rang the doorbell again and was greeted with the same glare from before.

"So I heard you knocked out 50 flyers." Dusty said, trying to keep his best smile on this time.

"You looking to be number 51?" Skipper asked, a bit of a spark in his mouth.

Dusty found himself frozen with a nervous look on his face. "Um... no?"

Sparky started to close the doors again.

AH! WAIT!

"No no no! Wait! Wait!"

The doors stopped midway before opening wide again. Sparky was starting to get as irritated as Skipper with Dusty.

Would he just get his point across? Sparky thought as he watched Dusty stumble over his words. Skipper needs his rest and so do I.

"I just-I just figured that with my guts and your glory-"

Skipper growled a little, causing Dusty to grow quiet and have fear come into his eyes. "Your guts would be a stain on a runway somewhere, now go home, you're in over your head kid."

"L-Look you flew all those-"

Dusty didn't get a chance to finish his sentence as the doors were slammed on him and the lights inside went off, telling him Skipper wasn't gonna be answering again... or rather wouldn't be answering the way he had been.

I'd rather not tempt possibly getting roasted.

"Let's try the back door!" Chug called out, once again in a different hiding spot.

Dusty shook his head and started making his way back to his hangar.

How about, let's not try to anger the old dragon who doesn't' like anypony?