On The Wings of Wind

On a train heading towards the Crystal Empire, the band Three Night's Grace was discussing their trip to the restored city. Electron in particular was excited to go. "I can't believe we finally have an excuse to go there!"

"You... do realize you could go whenever you wanted, right?" Was Snare's incredulous response.

"I-I know that, but it's always nice to do so as a group!"

Burst shakes his head. "Don't forget that some ponies dislike traveling alone, Snare." He looks out at the sight of the Crystal Castle's spires coming into view. "Still, it's great we were able to plan this trip at all."

"Don't forget we aren't JUST here as tourists." Strings reminded the group. "We're also here to see if the Crystal Ponies are willing to host a concert to see if they'll enjoy more modern music. For that, we're lucky we have Zephyr along."

That earned a flat look from the Falconite in question. "Way to say I can take advantage of my "hero" status in the Empire. I really dislike leveraging my title to get what I want..."

"Well... yes and no. Yes in the sense you're using it to get somewhere, but no because you'll be able to earn it by skill after the fact."

Snare rolls her eyes. "At least we're getting the business out of the way first. It never feels right sightseeing and the like when you know you got things to do."

"As you should. It just proves you're not a slacker... though some ponies could argue that relaxing first with sightseeing might make your work more effective." Electron thinks about it before shrugging. "One of those "no one size fits all" things."

Zephyr chuckles at how animated his band was being. Despite their reactions being more subdued, he could tell even Burst and Strings were excited to do this. Iron had to go to Manehattan to prepare the documents for a potential concert in the Crystal Empire, hence his absence. "Ah, we're here!"

Due to the expectation that the band will be there for at least 2 days, they gathered their luggage and headed onto the station platform. Electron marveled at the crystalline structures around and in front of her. "So pretty..."

"You always had a thing for shiny rocks, huh Electron?" Snare elbows her band mate with a cheeky grin, earning a flat look at the interruption.

"Not as bright as I thought it would be." Was Burst's observation. "With everything being made of crystal or something similar, I would have thought all the buildings would be refracting or reflecting light all over the place."

"The crystals used might be a non-reflective, highly opaque type to prevent that from happening. Have some faith in Crystal Pony architecture." Strings observed the Bearer's of the Elements in the distance escorting a yellow mare with a green mane with interest.

Zephyr shook his head but a brown mare wearing a purple business suit caught his eye, especially when she checked her watch impatiently. With is instincts nagging him, he approaches her. "Excuse me, my lady, but are you waiting for somepony?"

The mare was surprised a bit but rolled her eyes. "I am and they're late. At this rate, I'll have to go by myself. This will not due for professionalism..." She looks back at Zephyr, only to adopt a surprised look when the rest of his band approached as well. "Oh, but wait... Three Night's Grace is here as well?"

Strings, knowing her true identity and wanting to respect her privacy, nodded. "We're here to see if the Crystal Empire would be willing to host a concert some time in the future."

"Yup! We want to see if the more 'modern' music will jive with the Crystal Ponies!" Snare injected with a grin.

The mare thought about it before nodding. "I understand. Apologies for the late introduction, but I'm Ms. Harshwhinny and I'm also here on official business. Since my "escort" isn't arriving anytime soon, may I accompany your band?"

Electron, while not expecting the request, was more than happy to. "But of course! Er... if Burst--"

"You said it before I could, Electron." Burst gives his band mate an amused glance. "The more the merrier and it would have left a bad taste in my mouth if we just left Ms. Harshwhinny out to dry like this."

"Then it's official. Let us know where you're heading and we can escort you there!" Zephyr bows with a primary wing.

Ms. Harshwhinny afforded herself a small smile, thinking it wouldn't be as bad as she thought. While it wouldn't be true incognito considering she's with a band, it'll take the attention off her so she can judge the Crystal Empire properly.

After the band members introduced themselves and Zephyr picked up Ms. Harshwhinny's bag, the group headed into the Empire proper. Not long after entering through the gates, one of the Crystal Ponies gasped. "The Winds of Freedom have come to visit!"

That stunned most of the group as Zephyr let out a huge sigh. "I should have expected as much, but I was hoping we could have gone for longer without me being recognized..."

"Look at Mr.Bigshot over here with a title!" Snare teased the Falconite, earning a glower. "So since you've been here already, perhaps you can guide us? We await your direction, oh Winds of Freedom!"

"Snare... shut up..."

Ms. Harshwhinny had offered the suggestion that, instead of attending to their 'official businesses' first, they explore the city and get the lay of the land. While it made some uncomfortable, the reasoning was so they could find a good building for a venue. Strings had an inkling as to why she suggested it, but didn't know anything definitive.

As the group explored for a venue the band could use for a concert, both Ms. Harshwhinny AND Strings got splashed by a speeding pie cart. Snare found it slightly amusing, but Electron gave the hair-trigger response. "WATCH WHAT YOU'RE DOING!"

"Sorry!"

Strings let out a sigh. "Getting splashed with water was not on the agenda today..." That got a nod from his fellow soaked pony.

Burst looked at the puddle with curiosity. "Snare, Zephyr, did either of you find out if the Crystal Empire got rain yesterday?"

"They didn't, but I'm guessing it's from the Crystal Ponies trying to clean the city up for something big." Snare eyes the puddle. "yeah, this isn't rainwater."

"Well... let's see if I can't dry you two off." Zephyr raises a hoof and conjures a light whirlwind around the two who got soaked. Not long after, both were dry thanks to Burst adding a bit of heat with his own magic. "There, apologies for the impromptu air-dry."

"How... never mind." Ms. Harshwhinny was stunned at the magic display, but decided it wasn't the time or place.

Electron lets out a sigh. "Maybe it's a sign we should take a quick break. How about that cafe?" She points to a cafe that looked decently busy.

"A cup of tea does sound good right now..." Ms. Harshwhinny figured it would be a good time to test if the Empire's food and refreshments are up to standard.

Turns out the Crystal Empire had "Gemstone Tea" as something no other city can offer for the time being, though the proprietor admitted to wanting to expand to other cities in Equestria once his business takes off. While the effects of certain teas overlapped with others, some had unique effects. The shop was kind enough to list the effects each tea had on the consumer.

Ms. Harshwhinny sipped her amethyst tea, said to improve energy and emotional levels on top of being calming, as she silently gave Zephyr credit. The owner wanted to give the whole order for free since it was one of the heroes that was ordering it. Zephyr did his best to turn it down, but ultimately compromised on getting his beverage free while he paid for everypony else's.

"You wouldn't think tea made from gemstone leaves would taste good, but this emerald tea is quite delicious!" Zephyr had ordered that one, which everypony thought was on-brand for him.

Electron, after sipping her own amethyst tea, gives her band mate a curious look. "Your control over your wind magic seemed pretty good now. Did you figure out where you were lacking?"

"Kind of. I realized something about it that made me switch gears. However... going from 'controlling wind magic' to 'guiding wind magic' was quite the struggle. It was only after a visit with Discord could I start making headway."

Burst shook his head. "I still can't believe you made friends with the Spirit of Chaos. Didn't he try to plunge Equestria into a permanent state of disarray?"

"Yes, but my sister believed he was capable of changing for the better. With her trying her best in her own way, I decided to try my hoof at befriending him in a different way. I guess it helped with his change of heart, though it wasn't the primary reason." Zephyr levels a glare at the others around him. "Just because he was bad in the past doesn't mean he can't change for the better. He might still be... a troll, for lack of better words, but that's no different from everypony else having their own quirks."

"Yeah yeah, we get it." Snare was still sore over the 'Chaos Incident' and wasn't going to forget anytime soon.

Strings lets out a cough to refocus everypony. "Ms. Harshwhinny, you mentioned having an idea of where we could set up a venue before we got splashed? "

"Ah, yes. One building in particular looks good for your purposes, but it'll require a thorough inspection before we can clear it for that. I can assist in that since I arrived to inspect something else."

"Oh, we wouldn't want to impose--"

She cuts Electron off with a waved hoof. "Consider this my thanks for making the day better than it could have been. I thought it was going to be one of 'those' days when my initial escort failed to show up, so it's the least I can do."

With the plan in mind and their teas finished, the group went into the building Ms. Harshwhinny had marked out. After checking everything from seat comfort to acoustics to even the quality of the food and drinks, she gave it her seal of approval. With the venue secured, the band decided to help her with her job in return.

While Zephyr was constantly getting stopped due to his status as a hero, they eventually made their way towards a particular building. "I think... one last thing I'll do before concluding my business is check out the spa treatment."

"Hm? Is the stress of being the Equestria Games Inspector still getting to you, Ms. Harshwhinny?" Strings dropped that bombshell nonchalantly, much to the shock of his band mates.

"Ah, so you knew my identity from the start but chose to keep quiet? Thank you for that, I was able to get a better feel for the city without all the grandstanding getting in my way."

Snare started giving off a cold sweat. "I uh... I apologize if I was acting untoward during the process..."

"It's quite alright! You ponies had no stake in the Games being here or not so your actions have no effect on that. However..." Ms. Harshwhinny got an idea. "While I'm getting my spa treatment, why don't you head back to your room? I'll bring you to my final destination for the day after I'm done. You'll see why!" With that, she enters the spa.

Burst was confused but shook his head. "Might as well do what she says. Not like we have anything else to do besides sight see."

"I know she said what she did, but I still hope we didn't give a bad impression of our band..." Zephyr's anxiety started rearing its ugly head again. The sentiment was mirrored by Snare and Electron.

The group returned to their hotel, which was newly built according to the owner, and had another round of tea. This time the whole band had a cup of amethyst tea since it also had the benefits of chamomile tea. After what felt like a long time, Ms. Harshwhinny finally showed up again. "Apologies for the delay, took a quick detour but there's someplace I want to bring you all."

With that, she escorts the band into the Crystal Castle, which didn't help nerves that much. When they got to the throne room, who should they see but the Bearers of the Elements with Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor. Rainbow Dash was shocked at the new arrivals. "Zephyr? Your band is here as well!"

Cadance quickly made the correlation. "So these were the ponies who made your time here in the Crystal Empire more enjoyable... by complete accident, no less!"

"Indeed. Thanks to their escort and Ms. Peachbottom's testimony, this place really is an inviting place for the Equestria Games. Despite not knowing about my real job until I entered that spa, they helped me gain an unfiltered perspective on the Empire as a potential host. Which leads me to the idea I had and the reason I brought them here."

Twilight smiled when she figured it out. "You wanted to make Three Night's Grace the official band for the Equestria Games?"

"Correct. They wanted to hold a concert here as well so it works out. While coming up with the 'theme song' might incur a lot of pressure, I'm confident it'll be a mountain they can climb!"

Zephyr thought about it before getting a flash of inspiration between Ms. Harshwhinny's words and what the Crystal Ponies went through. He was brought out of it when Rainbow glomped him to the floor. "Thankyouthankyouthankyou! I thought it was over when we picked up the wrong pony but you were there to make up for it!"

"Get a room, you two!" Snare grins at the couple as they both blush, earning a laugh out of everypony present.

Burst cleared his throat to get his laughter out of his system. "We would be honored to create the main song of this year's Equestria Games."

With the announcements made to resounding cheers and hope, which the Crystal Heart responded to, the Bearer's of the Elements decided to head home. "A shame we can't go back together, but I guess your band has some other things to do here."

Zephyr made sure to hug his girlfriend reassuringly. "Don't worry, just some admin stuff once Iron gets here with the paperwork. I'll be sure to bring something home as a souvenir for you, Shy, and Scoots."

"Never said anything about needing one, but thank you!"

Fluttershy nuzzles her brother. "Good luck with getting everything sorted!"

"Thanks! Apologize to Scoots for me when you get back for always transferring her between our houses." Little did Zephyr know, Scootaloo already heard that apology.

Strings had a thought and turned to Twilight with a questioning gaze. "Why didn't you bring Spike, Ms. Sparkle? I'm sure the Crystal Ponies would've appreciated seeing one of their saviors alongside Zephyr."

"I, ah... wanted to save his next appearance for the Equestria Games when it starts. Gives it more presence, as Rarity would put it."

"Interesting, but do at least reassure him about it." Strings had already caught a glimpse of the Dragon hiding in one of that train cars, alongside a bunch of animals and three fillies. His training as an agent made him quickly catch on to their "attempts" at stealth.

"All aboard!"

"Right, let's get going. See y'all back in Ponyville!" Applejack waved to the band with her friends as they boarded. Soon after, the train departed.

Electron breaths a sigh of relief. "To think out trip here turned out so eventful! Glad everything worked out!"

Burst nods. "Let's get back to the hotel and plan what we're doing tomorrow. I'm sure Iron will arrive with the paperwork needed to finalize our plans then."

"I also need to start writing the song for the Equestria Games!" Zephyr had a confident smile as he said that. "I got a flash of inspiration earlier before I got tackled down and I need to put it to paper before I lose it!"

"Look at you already with a plan! Still, I wonder why your girlfriend was so grateful to you for picking up her slack with Ms. Harshwhinny?" Snare wondered that out loud when she thought on it more.

"She told me once that she was disappointed Cloudsdale wasn't chosen for the Equestria Games one year and it stuck with her ever since. Hence, her enthusiasm for trying to make sure the Crystal Empire doesn't go through the same thing."

Electron giggled at that. "A mare like her would definitely take something like that hard. Good for her in helping the Empire out!"

"As unintentional as it was, I'm glad we were able to help with that." Zephyr smiles at the colorful lights streaming from the top of the Crystal Castle. "It just makes this trip all the more worth it!"