Mach I

I awoke from my deep slumber to the awful ringing on my left side. The dreaded alarm clock told me what time it was. I silently pouted for a moment, slipped out of bed, and slowly rose to my feet. Without any hope of going back to bed from here, I walked to my glossy white bathroom and completed my morning rituals of brushing my teeth and preparing to look nice for another day at Denson Aeronautics Center. The thought of an F-22 Raptor made chills go up my spine. I just couldn't wait! Getting to fly in a jet as fast as the F-22 was a dream come true! I could see myself soaring through the clouds in the majestic plane. There would be nothing stopping me from breaking my personal record of flying speed. Commercial jets were not a thing of the past, today I would fly one of the fastest jets around and beat my previous personal record of 450 miles per hour. Realizing I was daydreaming, I gave a glance at my Rainbow Dash plushie that I picked up a month ago and hurried out to my car and started the engine. I smiled to myself knowing that nothing could make this this great day go wrong. Boy, was I wrong.

I pulled into the parking lot and stepped foot on to the hot asphalt. I made my way to the entrance of the Aeronautics Center and was greeted by Gerard, the receptionist. "Hey Chris! Good luck today!" he shouted from across the lobby.

"I doubt I'll need it, but thanks anyway!" I shouted back.

After about five minutes of walking I finally arrived at the massive auditorium-like hangar. I saw a figure waving at me on the other side of the giant space, and I ran toward him knowing who he was. I noticed my friend, or otherwise known as Commander Anthony. "Glad you could make it. I bet you have been looking forward to this day Inferno." he said, grinning. My full name is Christopher Alton Jackson, although some of my close friends call me 'Inferno' after one of my flights ended near fatally as one of my earlier planes resulted in me barely sliding out of the fireball my aircraft became. Apparently a bird had gotten caught in an engine and caused it to explode and set the rest of the plane ablaze. "I'm so excited to do this! If it's alright, I'd like to get started right away." I said enthusiastically.

Anthony let off a small grin knowing his friend had studied the F-22 for over a year."Go on ahead, you know the procedure, after all."

I grinned back at him and ran toward the back of the hangar to get prepared. When I was done I headed to Anthony in the back where the faster planes were kept. I saw the F-22 Raptor, knowing its exact location, and grabbed onto the gray metal handles. After a few seconds of climbing I was inside the cockpit of the jet. Anthony walked up and said "You look like a natural, Inferno."

"I sure hope I fly like one!" I said, obviously overjoyed at what was happening.

My hand went up and snatched the small metal bar above me allowing me to pull the cockpit window down letting the cabin pressurize. There was a small hiss... before everything went silent. The cockpit was seemingly soundproof except for some small thuds from loud machinery. I pulled on my oxygen mask and flipped the engines on with a small toggle switch. I made sure to check all the systems before going. Looking down, I saw Anthony and gave a small salute. I slowly accelerated away with a cheesy grin on my face. My adrenaline was pumping and I wasn't even off the ground yet. The plane exited the hangar and I made my way down the asphalt tracks. I stopped at the runway and took a deep breath.

This is it I thought. This is the moment I have been waiting for. It is time to get my fly on!

The plane accelerated faster then I expected. Much faster than I expected. I slowed down a bit and continued to accelerate. With a small amount of runway left, I pulled up. My jet soared into the air and my stomach with it. I had never experienced such a force before. No amount of training had prepared me for the tingly feeling in my gut. I steadied myself and sailed smoothly through a sea of clouds. I flew through the highest clouds I could see and looked down at the specks of massive building below me. I thought about my speed record and talked into my microphone. "Can someone get Anthony on?"

There was a small fuzziness before a familiar voice came on. "Yeah, I'm here."

"Mind if I test this baby's speed against my previous record?" I said, holding in my excitement.

He replied "Sure, just don't go too fast. I'm not sure the plane could keep up with you."

I laughed at the slight joke, then got serious. I pulled the handle to my side forward more than what was probably needed. The plane distinctively changed pitch to a much higher tone. I watched the airspeed indicator move over to 600mph. I had already blown my previous record away by 200mph without even knowing it! This was become more amazing by every second. The needle spun over to 700mph. The plane began to shake a small amount. I realized I was approaching the sound barrier. The plane began to shake violently, making me almost lose my lunch. I smiled and prepared. My eyes darted from the windows to the airpseed indicator. 750mph. I noticed a white mist fading into view outside my cockpit. A vapor cone began to form as I approached the sound barrier. The shaking seemed to be intolerable until the cone blocked view of the sky. I thought about my Rainbow Dash plushie and smiled. I'd be making her proud right now. As I entered Mach I there was a loud explosion and I couldn't even smile before everything went black.

***

I  woke up with my temples throbbing. Am I dead? Did the plane explode? I can't still be in the airplane, what is that feeling? I could feel softness under me. What is that? I lifted my head up an slowly opened my eyes. I was in a field of grass, clearly, but something was different. I took a look around and shrieked. There was something blue next to me. Wait, that wasn't next to me, that was me! How could this be?! My arms are blue! They are almost the color of the sky. My hands, I have no hands! There are stumps on my arms. No, hooves! I have hooves?! In a sudden instant everything smashed into me like a train. I was a pony. I was a freaking pony. What. The Freak. Wait a minute... Why am I angry? This is awesome! My memory was still fuzzy though, how did I end up here? There had to be a simple explanation. Ah Ha! I must be dreaming! It makes perfect sense! I smiled knowing this would probably be over soon and the parachute would automatically deploy in the F-22. Might as well enjoy this dream while it lasts. I tried to jump for joy, but found myself squirming on the ground with no way of controlling my limbs.. I really need to figure out how to use my new four legs. I mentally wrote down. I looked behind me and saw a tail. My tail and mane were a bright golden color. They almost seemed to glow. I looked at my flank and noticed I had a cutie mark. My cutie mark was exactly like Rainbow Dash's! The only difference was the streaks of rainbow were different hues of a vibrant orange-ish gold.

I slowly got up onto my new legs and took a better look around. I stretched my cramped neck and noticed I had other limbs. I looked behind me and saw two large sky blue wings. I stood there dumbfounded at my wings. I look a lot like Rainbow dash! I laughed and thought, Rainbow dash is best pony after all. I grinned a little and looked around again, hoping for no more distractions, and I saw a small village to my left a kilometer or so away. After about ten minutes worth of walking I made it to the first house in the town. I saw the design on the building and instantly knew my location. I'm in Ponyville! I let out a squeal of happiness.