Aviator

Windigo

The nine a.m. Manehattan train chugged on through the dissipating morning mist, bouncing up and down along the old track. Inside, Nimbus groaned and rolled over in his seat. He hated trains. They were loud, uncoordinated, and impossible to get any rest on. He’d mentioned to his parents the previous week that perhaps renting a carriage and flying out would be easier. His parents quickly refused.

“It’s pretty hard to be raided by Buffalo when you’re in the air,” Nimbus had pointed out matter-of-factly, to which his mother responded that she knew for a fact “where the Buffalo roamed,” and it was most certainly not in the Northeast mountains of Equestria. Five days later, here Nimbus was, teeth rattled by the motion of the steel goliath he was now riding in.

“Hey.” A hoof tapped him on the shoulder and Nimbus looked over at the seat next to him which was currently occupied by Whirlwind.

“What’s up, Whirly?” he said.

“Look out the window on the other side of the train,” Whirlwind said, “you can see Manehattan!”

Sighing heavily, Nimbus rubbed his eyes and decided to see what all the fuss was about. Whirlwind’s trembling hoof was pointed out the opposite window, and when Nimbus followed the gesture, his jaw nearly hit the floor. Rising majestically out of the morning fog, he could see the silhouettes of the Manehatten skyline. While he’d been to the city before, it had been years ago, and the sight was something a pony from a small town never quite got used to. Massive skyscrapers faded into view, seeming to grow from out of the very air, and above it all towered the Starswirl Building, named after the famous Starswirl the Bearded. It was Equestria’s tallest structure by far, and to actually see it made one wonder whether its creator was either ingenious or incredibly insane to construct something of its magnitude.

“Okay,” Nimbus said to his brother, “I’m awake now.”

…

The train chugged to a stop at Manehattan station and Nimbus and his family exited, taking with them most of the contents of Nimbus’s room, contained within two suitcases and a trunk. His mother was an efficient packer, to say the least.

Looking around the train station platform, Nimbus took in the new world he’d be living in. The air had a distinct industrial smell to it, but it wasn’t necessarily unpleasant. Ponies rushed to and fro everywhere; there was nowhere he could go where he wasn’t surrounded. He wasn’t particularly fond of crowds, but Nimbus supposed it was something he could get used to.

“There’s our carriage,” Updraft said, pointing towards a checkered yellow taxi carriage at the entrance to the station.

“Or that’s our carriage, or maybe those over there,” Nimbus said drily, pointing to a line of identical taxi carriages behind it. Manehattan was confusing.

“Nimbus and family?”

Nimbus looked over the crowd at the voice who’d called him. It was a taxi-puller on one of the carriages at the front of the line. “Over here,” he called back, waving. He motioned for his family as he raced ahead.

“Welcome to Manehattan, Nimbus,” the puller said, “let me help you with some of your things.” The two ponies were loading items onto the taxi carriage, and were nearly done by the time the rest of the family showed up.

“Hello, everypony,” the taxi puller said to the family, “I understand you’ve got a particularly special trip to make today?”

“My brother’s in the Air Force!” Whirlwind piped up, “we’re going to the base!”

The puller chuckled, “well, that’s quite an accomplishment. If you folks would like to climb up in the back, we’ll be off shortly.”

Nimbus stepped up into the carriage and took the farthest seat from the door, right next to the window. He wanted to see as much of his new city as he could. A slight jerk indicated that the carriage was rolling.

“So you’re an Aviator, then?” the puller called back, “my brother applied for that, but found out his heart was elsewhere. Became a sky carriage chauffer up in the Starswirl District of Manehattan, and he visits Cloudsdale every day, but I digress. You’re on a noble path, Nimbus.”

“Thanks,” Nimbus said, “I really appreciate that.” His words were directed at the puller, but his eyes wandered out the window. The city of Manehattan was amazing. The streets were alive with bustling ponies, musicians played at street corners, vendors had stands set up, selling their wares, and taxi carriages raced every which way, carrying ponies to work. Hollow Shades simply didn’t compare on a scale of sheer magnitude and activity.

“Like the city?” the puller called.

“It’s a little overwhelming,” Nimbus answered, to which the pony chuckled.

“I’d imagine it is. I grew up here, so I guess you could say I’m used to it. Give us about twenty seconds or so and you’ll be able to see the bay.”

Nimbus craned his neck, trying to look around a department store they were approaching. As the building passed, a huge, shining blue bay was revealed, filled with boats of all shapes, sizes and colors- some civilian, some military. On the beach, several ponies were enjoying their summer vacations; fillies and colts ran and played in the sand while older ponies swam and sunbathed.

“Whoa, can we stay here?” Whirlwind asked. Comet Stream rubbed her son’s mane playfully.

“Maybe later this summer, kiddo. We’d need some reservations first.”

As they passed closer to the outskirts, the buildings dwindled in size, eventually working down to a few small suburban houses. They were getting closer to the base. Outside, they passed by older, smaller buildings. Nimbus was immediately feeling more comfortable. This part of town felt like a larger version of Hollow Shades. The big city influence was still present- ponies dressed and acted the same way- but the atmosphere was much less intimidating. Nimbus’s head shot up as two distinct rushing, tearing noises split through the sky above. He poked his head out of the carriage just in time to see two Pegasi in full Aviator gear fly by in formation overhead. Following their flight path, he could see them lining up for a formation landing, though the airfield was still blocked from view by a few scattered buildings. His heart began to beat faster. His career was only moments away now. The carriage took a sharp turn and stopped just outside of the city buildings.

“This is it- Bayside Air Base.”

Nimbus stepped down from the carriage, looking around. If Manehattan had been enormous, this was nothing short of scrubland. Not that he minded, of course. The flying weather would be perfect here. A few buildings dotted the airbase, including several houses, and the entire complex was surrounded by a simple wire fence. The most impressive construct, however, was a massive hangar overshadowing the airstrip. There could only be one thing in Equestria that a hangar of that size would have been built for- the Sol.

“Second Lieutenant Nimbus?”

Nimbus looked up as a guard pony approached from the gate entrance. “Yes sir?”

“Good morning, and technically I’m the one who should be calling you ‘sir.’”

Nimbus blushed. He’d known this moment would come, but it was still tough to get used to the fact that he was considered senior to a pony with much more experience than himself.

“If you’d follow me please,” the guard continued, “I’ll start your inprocessing and arrange for some visitor passes for your family.”

“Thank you,” Nimbus said, hefting his saddlebag and heading towards the small office building just inside the main gate. As he crossed through the entrance, he felt a sense of pride. To him, it was as if he’d passed through a gateway into a new life- one he hoped would be full of exciting experiences and promise.

…

Thirty minutes later, Nimbus decided that life had determined that his ‘exciting experiences and promise’ would have to wait behind mountains of paperwork and bags upon bags of new gear and uniforms. By the time he’d exited the inprocessing building, he could have sworn he’d been carrying more than twice his weight in clothing alone. The taxi puller had been kind enough to stay by the front gate with the luggage- Nimbus’s family’s plan was to drop him off at his squadron building and leave his luggage in his off-base apartment for later.

Now, Nimbus found himself walking down a dirt path in his dress blues with all of the arid summer heat bearing down on him. There were next to no trees on the base, and Nimbus could already feel the beginnings of a sunburn.

“How much farther?” Whirlwind panted, melodramatically leaning against his mother.

Nimbus consulted his map, scratching his mane. “Looks like… we’re nearly there.” He looked up, then pointed to a dull, square building ahead, near the airstrip. “That’s the one.” The side of the building appeared to bear a representation of the squadron patch on it. Interested, Nimbus squinted his eyes to make out what it was. The patch bore a white upward streak in the background, with a Windigo as the centerpiece. The ancient beast seemed to fix Nimbus with its steely, cool stare, and the Pegasus inadvertently shivered. Of all of the creatures from Equestria’s folklore, Windigos were some of the most feared. Their reputation was strengthened by confirmation that they had, in fact, existed in early Equestrian history, unlike many other beasts that still held mythical status.

“Aw cool, a Windigo!” Whirlwind said, “hey Nimbus, race ya!”

Without a warning, Whirlwind took off for the building, leaving Nimbus choking on a cloud of dust. “Alright,” the orange Pegasus said, spitting grit out of his mouth, “you’re on.”

“Don’t destroy your uniform!” Comet Stream called after her son as he took flight, still wearing his dress blues. Nimbus pumped his wings, gaining on his brother, but Whirlwind was quick. Just as he was about to overtake Whirlwind, the colt managed to land a hoof on the building. He’d made it first. Unable to stop, Nimbus took the corner at full speed. Rounding it, he came face to face with what seemed to be a walking pile of luggage. Gasping, Nimbus dug his hooves in and screeched to a stop in front of the pile.

“Bravo, good sir,” the pile said, “I applaud your stopping skills.”

Nimbus raised an eyebrow. The voice was familiar. He removed two flight suits from the top of the pile, revealing an equally familiar grey mane. Combining this with the blue hooves he could see beneath the pile, Nimbus did a complete double take.

“Wait a minute- Storm Runner?”

“The one and only!” Storm Runner said, popping his head up over the uniforms, “how’s it going, featherbrain?”

“Not too bad, how about yourself?”

“Hi, Storm Runner!” Whirlwind said, galloping up to the two. “How was your summer?”

“Oh, you know…” Storm Runner smirked, “saved Equestria, fought some Griffons, had dinner with Celestia and Luna-“

“Oh come on,” Nimbus groaned, poking him in the ribs with his hoof, “he’s seven and still impressionable. He’s gonna believe you.”

“Sounds like a fib to me,” Whirlwind admitted.

“Sure is,” Nimbus agreed, “and don’t believe a single word that comes out of Storm’s mouth. He’s-“

“Oh hello Storm Runner!”

Nimbus turned around as his parents joined them at the front of the building. Storm Runner nodded courteously to them.

“Comet Stream, Updraft, pleased to see you again.”

“That’s quite a stack of things you’ve got there,” Updraft said, indicating the pile of laundry and equipment Storm Runner was standing by, “we could take that for you if you’d like.”

Storm Runner glanced back at his things. Offering them up to Nimbus’s parents felt like forcing more work on them- something he could never bring himself to do. On the other hoof, he and Nimbus were both expected to be inside in the next five minutes…

“It’s really no trouble,” Comet Stream added.

“Okay,” Storm Runner said hesitantly, “thank you very much.” He looked up at Nimbus, “so now we’re heading inside, then?”

“Might as well get it over with,” Nimbus admitted, waving goodbye to his parents and brother, “can’t help but admit I’ve been a bit apprehensive about this meeting.”

“With our Squadron Commander?” Storm Runner said, pushing open the building’s double glass doors, “yeah, I agree. But you never know. Maybe he’ll be cool.”

Just inside the front door, a mare wearing blues and bearing the ranks of a Colonel looked up from the receptionist desk she was leaning against. “Lieutenant Nimbus and Lieutenant Storm Runner, I assume.”

“Or she,” Nimbus whispered.

The mare walked slowly over to the two stallions, sizing them up. “So you’re the two newcomers from the Royal Equestrian Air College, eh? I happen to know Dusk Shine very well, and he spoke highly of both of you. Have you had a chance to get a look around the base yet?”

“No ma’am, to be honest,” Nimbus said, “I arrived about an hour ago.”

“Same with me,” Storm Runner said. The mare nodded.

“Follow me, then. I’ll take you around the flight line and show you a few of our facilities. If you two are feeling up to it, we’re on patrol over Manehattan tonight. It’s a good way to meet the squadron and the learning curve’s short.”

Nimbus looked to Storm Runner and back to his commander, “yes, Ma’am. I think we can both do that.”

“Good to hear. The name’s Cloudsplitter. I’m your Squadron Commander. You’ve both done your inprocessing, so it’s my pleasure to welcome you both to the 132nd Aviator Squadron, or ‘Windigo’ as we call it here.”

Nimbus nodded excitedly to Storm Runner as they walked out the building’s back door and headed to the flightline. A few Pegasi were taking off from the runway at high speed. “We’re official now,” he whispered, grinning like a lunatic.

Storm Runner rolled his eyes “don’t let it get to your head.”

“Too late,” Nimbus countered, “it’s already there.” The ponies crossed the runway and made a beeline for the large hangar. Up close, it was even bigger than Nimbus had first thought. He was about to make a comment to Storm Runner when he noticed his friends eyes wandering to Cloudsplitter’s flank. Frowning, he kicked Storm Runner, who shook his head quickly and focused back on the hangar, grinning sheepishly. This time it was Nimbus who rolled his eyes. For a pony who’d lost his marefriend just a few months ago, the stallion was bouncing back from the edge of depression like a champ. Nimbus still hadn’t told him the truth about Sun Blaze, of course- that he’d been forced to kill her in defense of Canterlot- and he intended to keep things that way. Sighing, he suppressed his thoughts. The subject of Sun Blaze had a tendency to get him thinking deep thoughts, and he was not in the mood for such things at the moment.

Cloudsplitter stopped in front of the hangar, knocking once on the door. A slit opened up on the steel door and two eyes appeared.

“Good morning, Colonel. Who is accompanying you?”

“The newest squadron members. I’ll vouch for them.”

“Very well.” The door’s lock opened with a heavy “click,” and it swung open slowly.

“Stallions, allow me to introduce you to the Sol,” Cloudsplitter said, “the primary reason Windigo exists.”

Nimbus stepped inside the door, letting his eyes adjust to the dimly-lit hangar. Slowly, a massive shape began to form in front of his eyes. He’d read about the Sol before, and he knew exactly what to look for. First, the massive envelopes came into focus. Journalists hadn’t been lying when they’d said the envelopes were longer than two city blocks. Between them hung the most ornate and sleek gondola Nimbus had ever seen. Even in the darkness, its polished wood and gleaming brushed metal and chrome shone like beacons. Cloudsplitter smirked at Nimbus’s and Storm Runner’s slackjawed awe.

“You two stallions look like you’ve never seen a record-breaking airship before.”

Nimbus blinked, shaking his head. “Ma’am, this is impressive. Has it already-“

“Flown? No. Though I can assure you that when it does, we’ll be going up with it. You see, Windigo squadron was created to-“

Cloudsplitter was cut off by the sound of a siren, wailing to life outside.

“That’s a scramble siren. You two are fresh, and the others aren’t on alert at the moment. I assume your flight suits are back at the squad building?”

Both Nimbus and Storm Runner nodded yes.

“Good. Tour's over for now. Suit up and meet me on the runway. We launch in five minutes.”

“M- ma’am?” Nimbus stammered. Cloudsplitter glowered at him.

“You heard me, Lieutenant. You’re not in training anymore. Equestria’s relying on you to do a job, and I’m here to make sure you do it. Meet me in five.”

Nimbus didn’t need to hear it again. He was out the door of the hangar in less than a second, hooves clacking hard against the concrete as he dashed for the squadron building. Griffons, Dragons… he didn’t know what he was about to face. Either way, he was certain this was the fastest anypony had been introduced to the Aviator life. He raced past his surprised family, digging through his gear and slipping on his uniform and helmet. Storm Runner did the same nearby. Nimbus tightened his helmet and nodded to his parents.

“Duty calls,” he said, grinning, “I’ll be back for dinner later. Bye!”

And Nimbus was off with Storm Runner, leaving his parents as completely befuddled as he found them. Whirlwind, however, had something else to say.

“Go get ‘em, big brother!”

Nimbus smiled. Up ahead he could see Cloudsplitter waiting for him.

It was time to finally show off some true Equestrian airpower.