Blitz

1

Blitz mumbled sleepily, instinctively covering his head from the rays of sunlight that were penetrating his window after his mother had opened the curtains.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," she sang out in soft voice, "you have a busy day ahead of you. Breakfast is already cooked, and I packed your bags with a snack for later. I also placed your ticket in the left shoulder pouch, so you don't accidentally lose it." He yawned widely, rubbing his eyes and stretching out his small wings. A renewed excitement dissipated the rest of his morning weariness as he remembered what day it was. Winter giggled as he shot past her and down the stairs in record time. He's going to be a Wonderbolt himself someday with that speed and agility, she mused as she floated downstairs.

Alfalfa pancakes were shared across the kitchen table; Blitz ate his portion in one bite.

"My favorite! Thank you!" he exclaimed enthusiastically as he licked the apple syrup off the roof of his mouth.

"A special day deserves a special breakfast, don't you think?" Blaze savored every bit of his own plate, letting the richness of the alfalfa blend naturally with the sweetness of the apple syrup. "That Sweet Apple Acres sure knows how to make a delicious topping... of course it would mean nothing without your mother's absolutely amazing cooking!" he added quickly, catching a stern look out of the corner of his eye. His wife rolled her eyes and shook her head, letting it slide this time.

After a quick shower and a little spiffying up, Blitz tied on his saddlebags and trotted towards his parents, giving each of them a hug and wishing them a good day as they did the same. The electricity in the air was palpable as he stepped outside.

This is going to be a great day. I already kno- "Hey! Blitzey Boy!" Blitz turned to the source of the call and saw an older, and rather pudgy, gray pegasus beckoning to him. It was his favorite person in Cloudsdale, Mr. Mint, who ran the local Soda Fountain. He could sit at the bar and slurp on a soda (always free of charge) while listening to Mr. Mint's stories all day long, which he would often do if his parents were too busy at work and he felt alone in the house.

"Hi, Mr. Mint," he greeted, gliding up to his friend, "How are you today?"

"Well I was just on my way to open up shop. Gonna be very busy today what with the Wonderbolts show later. Why I haven't seen them perform for, oh, thirty years or more. I assume yer going to see the show, what with all the gear on yer back?"

"Yeah, I am! Wait, you saw them live before? What were they like!? Were they amazing?!" Blitz could barely contain his excitement, but the old pony just laughed.

"Why don'tcha come on down and be my first customer of the day, and I'll tell ya all about it?"

"Yes sir!" Blitz hopped in the air, to which Mr. Mint chuckled again.

2

"Pepper! I'm gonna hafta leave you to the wolves... erhm... ponies again. Blitzey Boy here is gonna get another story. This time about them Wonderbolts." Mr. Mint filled a glass to the brim with his homemade rootbeer. It was famous all over Equestria, not to mention it was the boy's favorite.

"Oh, Ande," Pepper said with a smirk, "You're always regaling tales to the lad." Not that she minded. She adored Blitz, and enjoyed having him around. He always seemed to somehow rejuvenate Ande's youthfulness like nopony else could. "You're going to bore the poor boy to death someday."

"No way, Mrs. Mint! I love his stories!" She giggled at his enthusiasm. He really DID love the stories.

"Is that so? Well I'll leave you two to it. Looks like a crowd is starting to pile in anyway." She began to work, filling up everypony's order without missing a beat.

"I'll be along with you in a moment, dear." Ande turned his full attention back to Blitz, the boy's eyes wide with anticipation.

"Now then, the Wonderbolts. It's been a good thirty years since I seen 'em, but I remember it all like it was yesterday. It's a show ya never forget; you'll be telling yer grandkids about what you see today. Just s'long as I get a mention here or there of course... where was I? Oh! Right. It was at this very Cloudiseum actually. Was the usual six fliers with Starfire as their leader. Of course ya know Starfire is that Spitfire's granddad. 'Course I know she's your favorite and all but I still don't think she has a lick of talent that her granddaddy had. He could pull off stunts like you wouldn't believe. Even invented that smokey lightning trail he did! Ah I'm rambling again..." Blitz giggled. Mr. Mint often got side-tracked in his tales.

"Anyhow I was just a young colt with that pretty little filly over there-" he nodded towards Pepper "-and the Air Show was our first date. And boy was it somethin' else. We got ourselves good seats way at the top so we could see everything. The announcer guy practically blew up when he shouted 'and here come the Wonderbolts!'. And boy did they come alright. They flew into the stadium six abreast, which is side-by-side in case you didn't know, and slowly peeled off until they was in a triangle formation. Right at the wall, two ponies went left over the crowd, two went right, one went down, and Starfire went straight up, all in a perfect arc to crisscross in the center." Mr. Mint moved his hooves in the air to add emphasis, flaring his wings out in the excitement. He had almost forgotten just what that show was like. Blitz sat wide-eyed, absentmindedly sucking on a straw that sat in a half empty glass while his entire focus was given to the old pony's story.

"Meetin' up in the center, they all went straight up in the air and grabbed a partner, facing downward while tucking their wings in to spiral. Was a bit scary I'll admit, but right at the last moment they flared their wings and stopped with their noses barely touching the crowd. Some of the lucky ones even got to shake their hooves! Shame Starfire didn't stop and hover above us, but what the hay that's how it goes."

"Whoa..." was all Blitz could muster as he sat awe-struck. Mr. Mint chuckled as he saw the gleam in the boy's eye. He could feel the same gleam in his own eyes.

"After regaining themselves and reforming in the center, they formed a ring nose-to-tail and proceeded to spin in a tight circle and shoot out of it, flying out above the crowd at breakneck speeds. From where we was sitting, they were just a blue and yellow blur. That is, heheh, 'til one brushed Pepper's hair and startled her straight into my legs. For their finale, they pulled out the smokey lightning trick, as it wasn't a common thing like it is now, and flew inches above the crowd, three going one way and three going the other, spiraling upwards until their circle closed and a clash of thunder echoed out from their impact. After that, they took their leave and we gave 'em a standing ovation."

"Wow..." Blitz sat with his chin on his hooves, sipping at the last of his rootbeer with the straw. He could vividly imagine the story as it was being told, could hear the cheering of the crowd and could see the last generation of Wonderbolts performing their revolutionary tricks. "That was an amazing story, sir."

"Glad ya liked it, Blitzey Boy. It's not one I often get to repeat. Speaking of which, ya better get along. Need to getcherself a good place in line for the show. And afterwards, you can tell ME how this one went!"

"Yes sir I will!" Blitz hopped off the stool, squirming to get his saddlebags back in position, "I'll tell you all about it tomorrow! Thank you!" And with that, he trotted off towards the Cloudiseum, waving to Mr. and Mrs. Mint as he left.