It was early morning one day in Ponyville when Zephyr found himself getting called to the Library by Twilight. "You wanted to talk to me?"

Twilight teleports down. "Glad you could make it! There's something I need to bring your attention to. It... involves the Equestria Games Tryouts..."

"Let me guess, I can't join because of my extra set of wings?" Twilight grimaced before nodding, leading to a sigh from the Falconite. "At this point I'm not even surprised. Plus, even if I tied down my secondaries, I'm willing to bet some ponies would still kick up a fuss over my primaries giving me an 'unfair advantage'."

"Yeah if it was JUST your secondaries then it would've been fine, but your primaries having an Alicorn-like build is another factor. If Falconites were more widespread then maybe this wouldn't be an issue. I think Griffons are allowed because their bodies are bulkier then yours and, therefore, their bigger wings are offset."

Zephyr shakes his head. "Don't worry about it, Twilight. Like with the rain-water tornado a while back, I'm more than willing to take on a supporting role for our team."

"Actually, that's something I wanted to discuss with Twilight as well." Rainbow had already known about the whole thing and, as frustrated as she was again, knew it was pointless to argue. "As it turns out, the original referee for keeping an eye on the proceedings for the Aerial Relay had to cancel due to family concerns. He asked around before leaving and I offered up Zephyr as a suggestion, which he was amiable towards. He said "As long as he can look after EVERY team and not just his hometown team, he should be fine"."

"I have no objections if Zephyr doesn't."

Zephyr salutes to that. "I'll do my best! Just be warned that I might have to get a little mean if I want to keep things in order to prevent accidents."

"Can't be any worse than Spitfire was during the Wonderbolt Academy." Was Rainbow's take, which Zephyr rolled his eyes at. "Anyways, I'm currently hunting around for Relay team members, so I'll see you at Rainbow Falls!" With that, she flies out of the library.

Zephyr clears his throat. "If everything's squared away on this end, I'll head out immediately to get things prepared on my end."

"Great! I'll see you there!" Zephyr salutes Twilight before heading out himself.

When the Ponyville team, consisting of Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Bulk Biceps, arrived at the Rainbow Falls tryouts for the Equestria Games Aerial Relay, they noted Zephyr already there. He had a referee's cap, whistle, a shirt adjusted for both sets of wings, and was holding a clipboard in his primary wing. He noticed the recent arrivals and approached. "Rainbow Dash, I'm guessing this is your team?"

Noting his serious tone, Rainbow salutes. "Yes sir!"

He marks something down on the clipboard. "Alright, there's only one team we're waiting on before we allow training to begin."

Fluttershy was about to ask when a loud sound went off and a trio of Pegasi zoomed across the sky. A Stallion gasped in amazement. "The Wonderbolts representing Cloudsdale!"

"Hm, then I guess everyone is here." Zephyr marked down Cloudsdale as present while the Wonderbolts make their landing. "Alright, can I get everyone's attention!" The crowds quieted down as Zephyr cleared his throat. "With all teams present and accounted for, you are now free to begin Relay training. I want good, CLEAN flying from all the contenders, so no 'funny business' in the air. I'll be keeping my eyes peeled, so feel free to bring me any questions, comments, or concerns regarding these activities. Any objections?"

"Oh oh oh I have question!" Pinkie quickly embarrassed the Ponyville team, which Zephyr sighed at before motioning the pink mare to continue. "We're allowed to cheer REALLY loud, right?!"

"Actually, thank you for reminding me." Zephyr sweeps his vision across all potential cheerleaders. "Cheering IS allowed, but refrain from being a distraction to those flying. If you absolutely must go all in on it, I will ask you to take your cheering practice elsewhere. In addition, anyone seen being disruptive of the teams, unless it's sanctioned by the team captain, WILL be removed after 2 warnings and 3 offenses! Am I understood?"

"Wow, the other coach wasn't this strict about it. Who thought this wannabe was a good replacement?" Rainbow heard some other Pegasus mare whisper that snidely and had to bite down her own anger.

"No further questions? Then get out there and show us what you're made of!" Zephyr released all in attendance to begin their preparations and training.

The Wonderbolts approached Rainbow Dash with a grin from Soarin. "Glad to see you here, Rainbow Dash. If Spitfire is to be believed, you'll be stiff competition out there!"

Fleetfoot gives the distant Falconite a curious look. "He's not part of any team? I would have figured he would be a hot commodity."

"He isn't because his larger-than-average wings would be considered an "unfair advantage" by the organizers..." Rainbow made sure to mention with a sad face.

"Ah... it really is a shame..."

Spitfire shakes her head. "At this point he seems used to it. I'm surprised he's here as the referee, though I guess he was scouted if the previous one couldn't make it. Anyways, we're off to practice. See you all in the air!" With that, the Wonderbolts wander off.

The training for the Ponyville team was off to a rocky start, including when Applejack tried to mimic the Cloudsdale team's routine by throwing her treats up to her team. "Sorry, ah' thought ah' could copy them, but..."

"Was this approved by the team captain?" Zephyr had saw Bulk Biceps get shot out of the air by Applejack and had come over to investigate.

"Even I didn't know what AJ was up to!"

That got a sigh. "Then please refrain from doing so without the captain's express permission. Strike one for you, Applejack, and don't do it again without authorization. Also, for the record, the Cloudsdale team is allowed to do that because they DID work it in to their training." Zephyr hears something else going on elsewhere and Wind Boosts away towards it.

Applejack shook her head. "Is Zephyr stressed out or something?"

"He's supposed to remain unbiased when it comes to these tryouts, that's why he wasn't afraid to give you a strike." Twilight made sure to mention as Rainbow tried to go through the baton pass maneuver with her team. "Though... there might be elements of stress in there."

Applejack observed as Zephyr did a fly-by scolding of Rarity for trying to wander off with training equipment. "Ah' do think it's mostly stress, considering he's never been in a position like this." As much as Twilight wanted to believe otherwise, even she was starting to realize it.

While the start of the training was hectic, Zephyr managed to put out all the metaphorical fires that had started right after. He was now patrolling the various training grounds, giving assistance and advice where he could. Turns out the Griffons really respected him for his no-nonsense attitude towards training.

At one point he flew by where the Wonderbolts were training just to see if all was right. He noted the Ponyville team watching one Wonderbolt still practicing while the others were getting some R&R. Hmm, as long as they aren't being disruptive, it should be fine until their captain disapproves it.

A couple of Pegasus mares cheered loudly in the middle of the course, which distracted the flying Wonderbolt horribly. Zephyr noticed and conjured a gust of wind strong enough to force the flyer to a standstill, which made him realize he was that close to breaking a wing joint on a ring. "Whoops, thanks for the assist, Ref!"

Zephyr recognized Soarin and nodded. "Just make sure you pay more attention to where you're flying." He leers at the two cheerleaders, who looked guilty. "Now what have you two learned?"

"Not... to cheer too loudly?"

"You shouldn't be in the middle of the field either. One strike for the both of you." The two mares walk back to the Wonderbolt tent in shame.

Soarin decided to ask what was bothering him and, more than likely, a lot of other training fliers. "How come you're so harsh on ponies being a distraction? Surely it's not that bad--"

"You say that, but you very nearly got hospitalized because of said distraction. Flying, especially high-end sports flying, requires a great amount of focus. Lose it, and it could be a death sentence... either for your career or for your life." Zephyr lets out a sigh. "I know that all too well. I was lucky I walked away alive when it happened to me and I don't want anyone risking similar fractures if I can help it."

Rainbow quickly knew what he was referring to and shuddered. "I'll never forget that, either... though I guess I forgot it long enough to break my wing at least one more time since then."

Fleetfoot looked unamused. "So you're cracking down on ponies for being 'distractions'? For all you know you could be stunting the growth and training of a team by doing that!"

"One: I won't consider it an "unrelated distraction" if it's authorized by the team captain. Were those cheerleaders authorized for such loud cheering in the middle of the space?" Spitfire sighs before shaking her head no. "Thought as much. And for Two: hard to keep improving when you're in a hospital... or 6 meters underground!"

That made Fleetfoot recoil before looking at Spitfire. "Do... you agree, captain?"

"While he could go about explaining this better, he's not wrong either. If Soarin broke his wing badly enough, it's possible we wouldn't JUST be down a member for the Relay, but a whole Wonderbolt for future shows. I understand these activities carry an inherent risk, but we shouldn't be reckless about it if we can avoid it. That's a lesson Rainbow Dash had to teach me." Rainbow had to resist squeeing over her idol acknowledging her lesson.

Fleetfoot scrunched her muzzle, but decided to relent. "Alright, I understand."

"Ref! There's teams by the main camp protesting you!" One of the staff members had rushed over in a panic,

That stunned Zephyr before he sighed. "I guess Spits was right in saying I could've done this better. No matter, guess we'll see what's going on." He takes flight with the staff and heads over.

"Hang on, I'm coming with!" Rainbow quickly takes flight after him alongside her team. Twilight followed close behind, worried about what was going on.

"Me too!" Soarin flies off as well. Fleetfoot looks at Spitfire, who nods and takes flight as well.

When they all arrived, there were a group of angry Pegasi from Manehattan and Vanhoover. One of them pointed an accusing hoof towards Zephyr. "I know what you are now 'referee'! A saboteur sent to ruin our training by one of our competitors!"

"Do tell how I'm sabotaging you." Zephyr asked that as he tilted his head. Twilight made sure to motion to Rainbow not to get involved unless absolutely necessary.

"You told off my cheerleaders, making them too depressed to cheer!"

"Told off? He made mine QUIT!"

"You penalized me without a good reason!"

"I didn't do anything wrong, yet you told me I was this close to being disqualified!"

"You never stopped criticizing me, you unworthy cretin!"

While he tried his best, it was clear Zephyr was getting overwhelmed as more complaints were lobbed at him.

"ENOUGH!" The captain of the Griffon team walked over to Zephyr's side. "All I'm hearing are a bunch of whiny ponies who are upset they got caught playing dirty!"

"Not to mention he actually gave my team good advice!" A mare from the Las Pegasus team stepped forward as well. "If he criticized you, it's because you were being reckless... or stupid!"

Soarin took the time to step forward as well. "Not to mention he SAVED me from having my wings broken due to me getting distracted!"

"Even the Wonderbolts?! What kind of voodoo magic did you use to make them stick up for you? There's no way somepony who couldn't even qualify could be a referee!"

Rainbow got upset at that. "He's not in a team because he CAN'T be in one!"

"It says here in an official letter from the Equestria Games Commission: "Zephyr Windstorm will be unable to participate in any flight-based games on account of his second pair of wings and the Alicorn-sized nature of his main ones. We, however, recognize his potential and are authorizing him to become a coach or referee for the tryouts." Twilight made sure to announce that in her capacity as Princess. "Do you really think he's a referee trying to look after ungrateful ponies like yourself for fun?!"

"Captain, even a Princess is backing him. What do we do?!"

"No worries, we still got our last resort."

One of the Pegasi clears his throat with a grin. "If the issue is your flying skills being called into question, then why not prove it once and for all?"

Another one steps forward with a smarmy smirk on her face. "Race against us and our teams! If you take any place other than 1st, you will not only cease being a referee and leave this place to never return, but you'll never have a Pegasus-related job again!"

Spitfire and Rainbow were both about to cry foul, but Zephyr stopped them both. "And if I do win, everypony in both your teams are disqualified from ever participating in the Equestria Games ever again, not to mention getting a nice room and board courtesy of the Royal Guards. Do we have an accord?"

"Oh, most certainly. As for the race rules, outside of leaving the tracks being an instant disqualification no matter how it happened, anything goes. Feel free to use your second pair of wings if you want... not that it will matter!" With a bunch of grins, the two teams walk away to prepare.

Spitfire looked exasperated. "You're putting both your job and reputation on the line yourself?! Me and Rainbow could've easily wiped the floor with them!"

"And yet that's what they would've wanted. They were hoping for a high-profile team to take the fall for me so that they could strong-arm them into dropping out, giving them a chance at the Equestria Games proper. This way, at least none of you are in the crossfire." Zephyr looks at Twilight. "But just to be sure, tell the officials that this is going on and inquire if the race can be legally sanctioned." Twilight nods and teleports away.

The Griffon captain gives the Falconite a smile. "Not to toot my own horn, but I got a good eye for talent and you my pony friend are a prime specimen alongside the rainbow one and the Wonderbolts! Even if they play dirty, I'm sure you'll be fine as long as you keep your wits about you!"

"Even if your raw flying skills somehow aren't enough, you have your wind magic to fall back on to counter any overly dirty tricks, considering they're the ones saying anything goes!" Soarin made sure to interject with a smile. "I should know, you stopped me cold with it when I was about to break my wing!"

"I'm glad everyone has the same confidence in my boyfriend as I do!" Rainbow grins at Zephyr. "You got this! teach those crooks a lesson in humility!"

Twilight teleports back with a grim look. "While the higher-ups aren't too pleased, they informed me that various troublemakers have been making themselves known during various qualifying rounds. If this is one such group, they'll want to take action." She shakes her head. "While not the way they want to do things, they'll grant permission for the race. Even if you lose, they'll have a lock on at least some of them."

"I won't lose." Zephyr made that determination now. "I'll show them they aren't dealing with a garden variety Pegasus... but one of their Falconite ancestors reborn. Though I'll never be as fast as Rainbow, underestimate my speed at your own risk!" That was met with cheers.

After everything was set up for the provoked race, the ringleader of the challenge grinned at Zephyr. "To reiterate, if you fly outside the sides of the track, you're out. Fly up or down too much, you're also gone! Other than that, anything goes in this race that doubles as an obstacle course."

"Right, meaning expect anything." Was Zephyr's flat answer as he cricked his neck and wings.

"Oh, you wound us!" The mare leader mockingly said. "We were just saying that so you could use your second pair of wings!"

Zephyr chose not to entertain the taunt as he went over his game plan. Even if they play dirty, I'll start with just my primaries. If I feel they're needed, my secondaries will open. If they start getting overly dirty, the wind magic will come out. However... there's a trick I recently thought of that I should commit to throughout the race just in case...

"Racers ready?" One of the staff members volunteered to be the starter to ensure no funny business. As the seven racers crouched for take-off, Zephyr ignored the sadistic grins shot his way. "Three... two... one... GO!!!"

Even with his secondaries folded, Zephyr was still able to outpace even the fastest of the two teams out of the gate, making sure to direct some of his wind magic into his secondaries to build up power for a potential disaster. While the speed was a bit unexpected for the leaders, it just meant their first 'trick' would come up sooner.

As he rounded the corner and started weaving between some light-pink clouds, Zephyr suddenly felt his vision get blinded by something sand-like, slowing him down. "Ow, what the?!"

"Don't stop or you'll lose!" Came the taunt as a few of the racers passed the distracted Falconite.

With a small growl, Zephyr activated Galesight to try and clear his vision. While not a perfect solution, it did help in removing what was left as he quickly caught up to the ones who overtook him. It didn't last long as a sudden turbine activated in an attempt to blow him off the track. Deciding it was enough, Zephyr opened his secondaries for the aerial control, which allowed him to navigate the sudden winds.

As the small crowd watched what was going on through a magic screen, Rainbow frowned and crossed her front legs. "They knew full well they were going to be dirty like that..."

"You think they knew of Zephyr's capabilities?" Soarin asked with worry in his eyes.

Twilight shook her head. "Doubtful. They probably would've triggered them regardless of how fast or capable he was being. If he was fast, it would slow him down. If he was slow, it would further humiliate him."

The Griffon captain crossed his own front legs with a smirk. "And yet Zephyr is countering the traps in ways even a normal Pegasus or Griffon can't. It really is a marvel seeing a Falconite at work!"

"You can do it, Zephyr!" Rainbow cheered with her friends. Pinkie and the two mares Zephyr had lectured earlier were doing a cheering routine for him.

The mare leader noted that Zephyr was slowly scaling up his own tricks to counter theirs. "Hmph, guess we should have expected as much from a Falconite. A regular Pegasus would have been pushed out by those winds. Alright... guess the heavy cannons are coming out soon!"

During a segment of racetrack that was snaking around, one of the clouds dumped a barrel of hot gravy onto Zephyr. Thanks to his higher heat tolerance, that didn't get to him though it did make him uncomfortable. Besides that, the weight of the viscus fluid weighed him down. He did a quick aileron roll to remove most of the gunk and regained his speed, causing exasperation in one of the mooks. "That didn't even burn him?!"

"Just what kind of monster IS a Falconite?!"

Zephyr snorted in laughter. "Your ancestors, feather brain!" The quip earned a round of laughs from the viewing audience.

There was a field of light-yellow clouds ahead that were tightly clustered, but not enough that nopony couldn't circumvent them. However, despite his secondaries giving minor corrections, he bumped into one of the clouds, which got stuck to him. "Sticky clouds? Discord wants his trademark back!"

"Too bad, those clouds are impossible to remove without water!" The male leader smiled at his opponent from the other side of the field. "Good luck flying if you get too many under your wings!"

Because one cloud stuck, it made Zephyr a sitting duck to snowball into a big mass of sticky clouds. He got an idea and managed to Wind Boost them all off, though he needed to put himself through a sideways cyclone to make it work properly. After he was clear, he felt a burst of wind come off his secondaries, which told him they were fully charged. He decided to wait on using it on anything just in case the crooks came up with something truly devious.

It came up when the final leg of the race revealed a massive wall of icy-blue clouds that both leaders got through before it closed. "We must admit, you had plenty of tricks yourself! But this is your stopping point, because going around this one will disqualify you! Time to claim our prize!" The two laugh as they make their way to the finish line.

Spitfire was exasperated. "A blue-Ice cloud wall?! No!"

Applejack gave the Wonderbolt a panicked look. "W-what's that?"

"A cloud made of ice crystals so compact and durable, it takes specialized equipment just to remove it!"

Rarity immediately knew what was going on. "They really did mean this 'challenge' for you and Rainbow Dash... this was their method of ensuring you lost!"

Soarin shook his head. "Rainbow Dash probably could get through if she unleashed a Sonic Rainboom before smashing into the wall with her hooves. But we all know how difficult, if not impossible, that feat is!"

"Zephyr!" Rainbow Dash called out, hoping something, anything, would help her boyfriend out.

Zephyr knew the time was nigh to use his stored magic. He knew exactly what lay in his way and he had every intention of piercing it. "You idiots really thought this would stop me? I guess it's time... to break through it all!"

Using up all the magic stored in his secondaries, he funneled it all into a hyper-charged Wind Boost. The moment he activated it, the burst of speed was so high, it left behind what appeared to be a hurricane in his wake. His wings and hooves were wreathed in wind magic as he smashed through the blue-ice clouds and blew past the two leaders.

They barely had time to register getting passed before a massive gust of wind blew them away so hard, they were disqualified by the rules they themselves set. As Zephyr crossed the finish line, he managed to stop and spread his wings. The magic coating them made his primaries look massive and wisps of wind magic trailed off his hooves.

The sight was glorious as everypony cheered at his victory. Rainbow and Fluttershy were both ecstatic as they flew victory loops. "HE DID IT!!! HE WON!!!"

The two leaders looked enraged by what happened. "You..! You must have cheated!"

"That's funny, what were you two doing this entire race? Now, about your visit with the Royal Guards."

"All of you are under arrest!" The Royal Guard quickly surrounded the two and hoof-cuffed them in short order. "This level of interference in the Equestria Games will not go unpunished!" With nothing they could do available to them, the two teams were hauled away.

When Zephyr returned to Rainbow Falls, he was met with cheers and promptly glomped by Rainbow and Fluttershy in short order. "You did it! I knew you could do it, but you actually did!"

"Thank you all for the support. Their final trap WOULD have worked on me if I didn't think to store wind magic in my secondaries that entire race." Zephyr wobbles a bit, the whole ordeal clearly having taken its toll.

Twilight looks at said secondaries. "They're featherless now... though I guess that doesn't matter since they'll regrow." She smiles at Zephyr. "Talk about that hyper-charged Wind Boost coming in clutch, huh?"

Rainbow laughed at that. "That's no Wind Boost! That's his Hurricane Boost! Did you SEE the storm he left in his wake?!"

"While no Sonic Rainboom, it's probably the closest anypony will ever get to one outside of Rainbow Dash." Spitfire smiles at her foalhood friend. "You really did miss your calling as a Wonderbolt yourself, Zeph. Even with your secondaries and wind magic, I'm sure we could've incorporated them into our routines."

"Sorry, Spits, but that life isn't for me. Besides, Rainbow is all the talent you'll ever need once she's in." That got another glomp from Rainbow Dash.

"Seems I missed all the excitement." A Pegasus stallion approached wearing a referee hat and shirt. "Turns out my family situation was just my parents feeling lonely. I managed to get them to come here so we could spend time while I ref. Though, from what I heard, Zephyr's been doing his best."

"Not perfect, but not bad for a pony who hasn't done it before." The Griffon captain admitted with a smile on his face. "Me and my girls were happy to have a ref who was no-nonsense."

"Plus, he was lenient with ponies who broke the rules with a 3-strike system." One of the Cloudsdale cheermares admitted.

"Heh, glad to know you at least kept everything stable. While I'll be taking over again starting tomorrow, perhaps you'll be willing to help coach your hometown team?"

"If the Ponyville team will let me, then I'll do my best." Zephyr salutes for emphasis.

Fluttershy squees at that. "I promise not to let you and Rainbow Dash down, big brother!"

"YEAH!!!" Was Bulk Biceps response.

Looking at the team he was now in charge of, Zephyr nods. "Alright, but let's save it all for tomorrow. I'm beat..." With those words he unceremoniously falls over, fast asleep much to the amusement of everyone present.

"You say your mom got sick?"

Bulk Biceps, despite his enthusiasm to continue training, had just gotten a letter from his sister saying his mom was sick. He looked worried now. "I'm sorry, but... I don't care if I drop out, she and my sister are all I have--"

"Rainbow, do we have a bench-warmer?" Zephyr knew what he wanted to do, but needed to ask that first.

Rainbow nodded. "It's Derpy Hooves. She agreed to be our back-up since none of the other Ponyville teams wanted her."

"Ah, haven't talked to her in a long time." Shaking his head, Zephyr looks at Bulk. "That's how it is. Go to your family and be there for them!" The muscular Pegasus nods gratefully and runs off. "Lets see if Derpy is nearby."

"Already here, coach!" Derpy announced her arrival with her trademark look and smile. "I saw what happened yesterday. Glad I can train under you!"

"Right, let's get to it!" As the three reps launched and started flying around, Zephyr observed Derpy's flight before quickly interrupting her. "Sorry to do this to you so fast, but let's return to the ground for a bit."

"Uh, okay..." Derpy complied, wondering if she upset her coach already.

Zephyr noted her worried look and shook his head. "It's nothing bad, don't worry. There's something I want to do quick. First, follow the tip of my wing feather for a second." She did so and Zephyr quickly identified what he wanted. "Pinkie Pie, eye-patch emergency!"

"Okie-dokie!" She zips away and returns just as fast. "Here you go!"

Zephyr puts it on Derpy as twilight approaches with curiosity. "What are you doing?"

"As much as I hate to ruin an award-winning face, I figured this might help Derpy with her flying." He stands back a bit to admire his work. "Though you don't look too bad like that either..."

Derpy immediately noticed that her vision wasn't skewed anymore. "Whoa, this is weird... but the good kind of weird!"

"I figured your depth perception was already shot since your other eye isn't aligned properly. I'm sure you've already made attempts in the past to correct them and they didn't work, but fixing them isn't my motive." Crossing his front legs, Zephyr nods. "Alright, let's try that. Rainbow, Shy, practice the baton pass while I get Derpy used to wearing an eye-patch!"

After a bit of time and some creative use of Applejack's baked goods as a training tool, Derpy was able to correct her flying, though it still wasn't perfect. "Depth perception is the main issue now, but no way around that. Alright, let's get your baton passing up to speed as well!"

"I... feel strangely competent now..." Derpy felt like she could do her normal jobs better now that she was wearing an eye-patch. "Was the solution to my wall-eye really so easy?"

Twilight made sure to input her two-bits. "We don't know if constantly wearing one will damage your other eye, so perhaps only wear a patch when doing work or important things."

"And like I said before, it'd be a shame to hide your eyes constantly. While you might not think to highly of it, I'm sure plenty of ponies love you for them." Zephyr shook his head. "Alright, let's finish up your training. I'll help coach Fluttershy after and, even if she doesn't need it, Rainbow. Let's get you ponies past the qualifiers!"

Author's Note

When I was thinking on how to write this chapter, I got inspired by this video to put in the Hurricane Boost, specifically the chorus drop. It just hits really hard like that imo.

Also, the Wonderbolts will get more character development later down the line, don't worry.