Ever Free

by Loehlenco

Rating: everyone
Tags: Slice of Life, Adventure
Length: 5055

What does a pegasus think about while working for the Royal Guard's weather wing?

Loehle is a wing commander working with the 353rd Pathfinder Wing, a weather unit based in Canterlot. The 353rd works in keeping the skies clear in between the cities of Equestria, and supporting other Royal Guard units during missions which require clear skies.

Every chapter is a new day, some are vital and important, others are just bored placeholders written by a Pegasus who has nothing to report.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2012-09-01 04:24:02 UTC

News, and an Airshow

To start out this story, why not a news article? Everypony loves news.

Canterlot-  With the change of seasons from winter to spring the start of re-qualification for the 129th long range weather wing after being grounded due to the risk caused by flying into severe icing conditions, where any other time of the year there would be rain.

         Yearly re-qualification is both a good time for commanding officers of the 129th to maintain effectiveness, as well as for various journalists to see what the LRWW do.

          “It’s a great opportunity for many of the flight officers to have their yearly proficiency test, as well as for many to get a feel for what we do.” the commander of the 129th, Air Cdre. Jumper said about the simulated operations taking place both at the southern canterlot guard base as well as the northern training grounds within the everfree mountains, of which the long range weather patrol is tasked with maintaining during the spring to fall.

         The proficiency test is largely comprised of tasks that any pegasi who has graduated from weather courses in cloudsdale would be familiar with, with added difficulty in the addition of long transit flights to location, and additional environmental threats, including heavy ridge lift , and down-bursts.

    “The entire course takes the weather wings through all their various jobs, it’s a great time for everypony to break out of their winter duties around base and get some airtime in before their deployed to their spring to fall sectors.” Wg Cdr Loehle of the 353rd pathfinder wing, which is in charge of weather  Reconnaissance as well as providing support to various other units of the Royal Pagasus Guard.  The 353rd is stationed year round at the south canterlot base.  The 353rd is commonly deployed with the 129th during attempts at intercepts of large squall lines and category five storms to allow for accurate control and intercept procedures.

          “ Although they are incredibly alike, they both have two differing skill sets, which often end up being used along each other for safe and effective operation, therefore proficiency testing is done with both units together to gain confidence that they still are effective together. ” Air Marshall Red, commander of the south canterlot base, stated after being asked about the joint training operation. “Each unit’s command structure changes over the winter months typically, as well as the strategies, techniques, and equipment. It’s important that we make sure that their improvements are improvements not just for themselves, but for the units that they may be embedded with.”

          Of these changes that have gone on over the winter months the most major is the addition of corpsponies with three pathfinder units.

          “Due to the trend of the past years growing more severe in weather patterns in the controlled sectors of the everfree airways there was a request by commanders of many units for a larger medical ability to be provided with the pathfinders to allow not only for recon, but then to provide for any medical situation that may arise during operations.”  Wg Cdr Loehle explained to the group of reporters and journalists who were present during the emergency medical training that was part of the proficiency test for the ten new corpsponies of the 353rd.

          “It’s really a great time as well as a great honor to be a part of this test of the effect that our training can provide to these important ponies.” Honeywagon, one of the embedded corpsponies from the 204th guard, which many canterlot inhabitants know of due to their part in defending against the changeling invasion prior to the marriage of Princess Cadence and Shining Armor.

          The proficency and qualification testing for the pathfinders and LRWW will continue on until tomorrow at 11:00PM, which will give a stunning view of their identifier lights against a scheduled overcast sky starting at 10:00PM.

This week was the big airshow stop in Canterlot, and with it’s arrival my wing was switched over from keeping air routes clear from KCLT to KMHN (Canterlot to Manehatten) and was dropped into maintaining security and providing aid to any of the spectators for the week.

    Lucky for me I only had to work today, as the rest were inside doing paperwork to qualify as an instructor for my unit. ,because it beats getting hit by golf ball sized hail in flight.

     On the day’s schedule were the Redtails; a team from Trottingham, Vanilla sky; which is an act devoted to cloud manipulation (a newer performance, rather interesting), as well as the various units from around Equestria and, as always, the Wonderbolts.

     The airshow also brought along with it vendors for any aviating need, even the non-Pegasus machine aviators. I was lucky enough to pick up some Wonderbolt gear for my nephew, who is absolutely obsessed with the team. I hope he wants a wonderbolts flight suit for his birthday, along with a signed poster from the entire team.

     Also notable was meeting up with Red, the Marshall of the entire pegasi weather ops. Being a relatively high ranking officer I was of enough importance to her to get thirty seconds of conversation about current equipment and ideas on how to better it. The most I had to say about the equipment was that we needed better communications equipment because some of the units are barely understandable. I’ll try to get a sample of the audio from one of them tomorrow so whoever is reading this can hear it for themselves.

     She also asked about family, because weather units are some of the few who actually get deployed away from their family in the Equestrian guard, which can lead to trouble on the home front. My response was that I’m not currently married, nor do I have kids, but that my parents and siblings’ families do ask for me to visit more often, and that I do miss the occasional birthday part for my sister’s kids, and in fact the closest one was my nephew’s which was in three days, but what can you do?

     She asked about what my nephew’s interests were. After she found out that my nephew loved the Wonderbolts she got that look that anypony knows as her ‘I have an idea’ face. She advised me that I should drop by the HQ for the airshow staff and to ask if anypony left a package for me.

     And that’s where I got a package containing the before mentioned Wonderbolts presents as well as a note from Red, which reads;

     I hope you have a good time during the party. I dropped by your unit’s command to let them know of your leave, so you shouldn’t have too much work to do after your R&R. which should make it that much more relaxing.

And please don’t try to pay me back for the gift, think of it as a reward for being grounded during such a beautiful day.

-Mshl Red

     Four days R&R, presents for the birthday colt, and a surprise visit back home, all this for doing my job and being friendly. I should try that more often.

-Loehle

Leave

     Day one of my leave is almost complete and was comprised of sleeping until the sun was past it’s apex. I really should set an alarm or something to wake me up earlier.

     The rest of the day was packing for the trip to Trottingham, my hometown, and the home to everyone I call my family, excluding honorary family members of which there are many across Equestria.

I stopped by the airfield to pick up an ELT, Emergency Locator Transponder, as well as my flight uniform. The ELT should aid them in finding me if anything goes wrong during my flight. Lucky, the commander of another wing from the 353rd, as well as a buddy of mine, he saw the ELT I had and made the remark that ‘when you plan on loosing that, make sure you turn it on so we can find it again.’ hinting that I have a habit of loosing anything expensive or vital to the unit’s well being, even though I’ve lost less than he has, his current list exceeds five emergency locators, two VHF radios (both were lost during vital intercepts of storms along heavily trafficked airways, and misplacing an entire box of new uniforms, which took a month to have made, and cost more than what anypony would have expected.

Good ol’ Lucky.

-Loehle

I’m writing from a whole side of Equestria now, hooray for cross country flight. I made it into Trottingham with only the slightest bit of daylight left, so most of the inhabitants of Trottingham were outside enjoying the night air.

While they were enjoying the night, I was flying above them towards an inn that the attendant of the fixed base operator* had told me was one of the best for your bits.

The inn is quite a fine place for inspiration, the woods that surround it are old growth, so many tall trees rise high into the sky. The food and drink that are sold here are all local and extremely well prepared. If anyone wants to visit Trottingham and needs a place to rest, I’m definitely recommending Tá súil Inn.

Tomorrow I surprise my family by showing up to the birthday party for Caffeine, as we all call him, for reasons most can deduce.

Time for me to close up this journal and blow out the bedside candle, I’ll write more tomorrow.

-Loehle

*Fixed base operators are companies that work around airfields in support of pegasi aviators, they typically provide a place to rest, directions, and some I have visited have been so kind as to shelter me for three days during bad weather, providing a place to sleep, decent food, and good company for all three days.

Happy birthday Caffine, or as your surprisingly large cake said ‘Happy Birthday spéir’. spéir means, as you might be curious to know,  sky. So Sky was his usual self, hyper and excited about everything, Including the fact that I was there which made him even more excited.

     My family was more than pleased with my surprise arrival, though I expected more questions about why I don’t show up more often. The foals of the family were all over me, which is to be expected considering I actually attempted to look good today, which is a challenge for somepony who never even bothers to spend a few bits on a decent manecut.

    The party was full of good laughs, usually caused by my sisters ragging on me about anything in my life. Spending too much time with the fancy Canterlot crowd, not having a ‘special somepony’ at my age, and topics from my work were all brought into topic, which all ended with us all laughing as I couldn’t find a good comeback and would only grow more frustrated making them laugh only harder. Great to be back with family so they can abuse my feelings again.

That last sentence wasn’t sarcasm, it really is a good time.

    Eventually it came time to open presents. The usual games and toys came out of the bags and boxes along with clothes. Eventually my presents came along and were adored for their moment before the next box of unknown goods came along. I get it, they had their moment, but there’s new stuff all of a bag away.

    I would like to note however that I noticed that the poster was quickly taken and put up by Sky as soon as the gifts were all opened.

    I declare myself the best uncle ever.

    The party quickly slowed down and not soon after that ponies started to leave. I was one of the last to leave, mainly because I have nowhere to go today, and also because it was nice to stay with family.

Now I’m back at the Inn with nothing to do other than fly back tomorrow to report to duty the next day. Back to the fancy Canterlot crowd and the posh lifestyle of keeping the airways clear over the Everfree forest.

-Loehle

Day four is coming to an end as Luna brings the moon into the sky and I write my nightly two bits. I doubt anypony even reads this other than the typical adoring fans (which I lack).

The flight back I ran into Lucky while he was en route to the northern mountains for cold weather training. The eventual goal of that course is to get any tools to allow operation through the winter versus having to switch over to a unit designated specifically for the winter who train way too much to allow their wings to ice up to a certain degree and still fly. He’ll have an interesting time ahead, considering he came from much warmer climates than 0*c and lower average.

I stopped in at the airfield to check if anything came in for me mail wise, which is a big ol’ nothing for the four days I’ve been gone. Somepony has actually been doing my work, rather than leaving it for me when I get back.

Good night Equestria, I’ll see you all in the morning.

-Loehle

Deployment

If anypony had read my last little entry, specifically about how my mail was all taken care of, I lied. It turns out it was all taken and scattered across my desk. Three days of papers ranging from actual important stuff (transfers and long term weather plans), to the usual junk mail that instead of being dropped at my apartment is now being dropped at my work. Because I really want to know about ‘The latest spring fashions you aren’t wearing’.

Relating back to work though, my squadron is back at base today for a day off before heading to the Canterlot to Manehatten airway. The lack of interesting things to write about daily concerns me, who will be missing my annoyingly long text document on their Tumblr or other equivalent blog page?

Do not fear! I will start putting random ideas for the day unless I get something fun and annoying to post (fa-nnoying?)

-Loehle

I was given the go ahead for instructing the next pathfinder course. Good for me.

However until that day comes I am staying around 20km south of Manehatten controlling weather just outside of the ring of control for their weather units. Luckily for me I get to take the night flights. Compared to the day weather the night tends to have less turbulence and other annoyances, plus I don’t have to look into the sun when I’m trying to hunt down where somepony else is at.

The weather has been nothing extraordinary, allowing the flight to spend much of the time on the ground talking about topics until there is an unplanned cloud in the sky. When that happens a lottery is set to see who gets to take the cloud, not common protocol, but it works.

Eventually we got onto the topic of families, of which most of the officers of my rank have. The normal complaints from husbands or wives about not being home enough shows up in conversation, which then ends with the statement that they will find a job that doesn’t take as much time away from home.

Tough luck guys, anyone in this unit who has made it anywhere is too specialized to get an equally paying job, or one that would pay for their housing. That’s why I’m happy with my little apartment, it doesn’t cost much, and when I get sick of this job I can go flying mail around and still get paid enough to live there with plenty to spare.

But, until that day I get to spend time out in the middle of the everfree forest, where I get to meet new ponies and creatures, and get paid to sit around for a week or two before heading back to do base work while the other half of the unit goes out.

No pony has probably gotten to this part of the entry, but whatever, I’m gonna keep writing down my thoughts.

Tomorrow is most likely a fog bank in the morning, followed by a rainstorm which we may allow to move through for the flora., though my guess is only an educated guess, I’m not the interpreter in this group.

-Loehle

you ever get the feeling that maybe your in the wrong place at the right time?

While we were intercepting a thundercloud on the western border of the airway we were flagged down by a downed pegasi in a clearing. It turns out that she had been hit by some hail from the previous day’s storm and had been grounded. Lucky for her Honeywagon, the unit’s corpspony, was with us for the flight due to the risk involved with the system. Honeywagon was able to do a field exam of the pegasi, who during the exam told us her name was Rose. Rose had a fractured right radius, which meant that she wouldn’t be flying anywhere. Being close to two days walk to our camp we opted for an emergency two pony carry, which can be dangerous, but with Rose being able to glide down if anything went wrong, we decided to try it.

A two pony carry involves using a sling between to pegasi, lifting the casualty into the air and to the destination, in theory it works great, in practice there’s been some mishaps. Lucky for Rose she had the highest rated flight in the 353rd lifting her off the ground into the sky.

We made it back to the camp with no issues, which is a feat considering the storm that we were running from after setting Rose as the priority. A second flight was sent off to disrupt the storm while a full examination was being done by Honeywagon along with another corpspony who I have never gotten the name of.

The full exam kept Rose on the ground with a fractured right radius, she also was dehydrated due to the warning to not drink water from the everfree forest without filtering it. Other than that she was found to be stable. The plan for shipping her out of here is to keep her until the rotation is over, and having her fly back with us to Canterlot, her original destination. A messenger was dispatched to report to her destination that she was going to be late by a week or two, and that she was fine.

This development should give me the chance to listen to a different story than the ones that I keep on hearing about family and the complaining about the lack of anything to do out here.

-Loehle

It’s been about a week since I’ve finished reading vent dans les arbres A great novel about a unit of earth ponies during colonial times who had to survive a winter in the northern forests after a major snow storm swept in without warning, making movement near impossible. Great read if you are into historical reads.

    Now I am without packaged entertainment.

     Rose, as it turns out is an independent film writer. After joking that she should write about the whole incident said that,

“Writing a good movie about this would require so much fabrication that you would end up as a troubled veteran aviator, honeywagon would be some sort of mad doctor, and we would all be running from something one step behind us at all times.”

    That would probably make a few more recruits show up for the basic training courses to try to get into this unit.

    If anypony has a good piece of literature on film writing drop me a line, I could use it right now. Striking a conversation about film techniques sure beats listening to Turtle, as we call him, talk about the lack of good furniture being made in Canterlot, and how he has to order from Trottingham or further for something to match the rest of his house.

-Loehle

I got a package from a friend of mine who works at a bookstore.

It contained

‘1x Everfree and you; surviving the forest (A running joke)

1x Canterlot exists (a novel I was hoping to read)

3x boxes of overleven chocolade (survival chocolate, great stuff)

I hadn’t heard of Overleven Chocolade, but it’s the greatest stuff ever. Chocolate in the middle of the Everfree is both funny to me, and a good morale booster.

The gift of literature came at a perfect time, Rose turns out to be a bad conversationalist, though I did find out that I’ve watched a few of her films. Everfree and you is a joke because I’ve always told everypony about how ‘terrifying the Everfree forest is’ and mocked the entire fear of the forest. Eventually one of my friends decided to give me ‘the complete guide to the Everfree’ and ever since then it’s become larger as more books, documentaries, and survival equipment has been given to me.

‘Canterlot Exists’ is supposedly about a group of earth ponies who decide to move to Canterlot with the intent on making the entire city their sandbox to do with as they wish. I’ve been told it’s anything from a comedy to a serious look at modern day Canterlot’s up tight mannerisms. It should be able to keep me occupied for a few days, then I may actually have to read ‘Everfree and you’ until the end of the rotation.

Off I go then, to ingest the written language on the page before me.

-Loehle

As it turns out ‘Canterlot Exists’ is a rather good story. I’d recommend it, just in case anypony cares to read based on a stranger’s opinion. The sad part is I finished it in one day. Everfree and you here I come.

     Rose has been sitting around writing down notes, hopefully for a based on a true story film? Most likely it’s a journal of how terrible our hygiene is out here. No running water or proper showers can make a pony rather fragrant by rotation.

     The weather has grown colder, which is of concern because it’s still far away from winter. It was cold enough at altitude to warrant using cold weather uniforms, something that we normally wear when it’s 10*c on the ground. It was around 19* today, and 4* at altitude, which made clouds a challenge to break while avoiding icing.

     I got a message from Canterlot about instructing the next pathfinder course. My position is planned as instructor for ground school, which is fun because I have less physical work and more sit around base time. Unless they pull me out as a flight instructor last second, which would then make me wake up early and fall asleep late, doing all the work the cadets will do with them. It’s like doing my work now only with brand new recruits, and having to teach them at the same time.

Sounds like something I should have Rose document in a film.

-Loehle

I’ve been stuck here with clear skies today. Nothing to do, and with it came sitting around reading Everfree and you. It’s capitalizing on fear. All this talk about dangerous creatures is hilarious. It’s almost like the horror films where every door is locked down the hallway as the mass murderer stalks closer. All the talk of hydras and their body count is not compared to the crashes that happen. Compare it to any reason outside the everfree and it becomes just one of those things.

Granted, if anypony reading this lost somepony to a hydra or any other creature of the Everfree, then by all means message me and curse me out there.

I’ve been listening to more stories from the ponies of my camp. Much of them are still the same dull stuff I mentioned earlier, some actually have value in them, but only for the moment. We are all pretty dull out here, anypony who cares to stop in and give me a decent book or even a projector and a film to watch, preferably directed by Rose.

Life continues to be dull and blank here, I’ll see what happens tomorrow, maybe a giant change will make this fun again.

-Loehle

I got mail from Sky today. It was a drawing of him with me, and get this, the Wonderbolts. That foal must think I’m the best pegasi in the entire guard.

I decided I have to return the favor, I don’t know how or when I will, but I shall return it.

Also notable is the fact that we actually had a cloud in the sky to break today. For the first time since I’ve been here we actually raced to get to it, just so we could do something other than sit around and do chores.

Please take the days travel from wherever you are to hunt down our camp and visit. I’m bored as can be.

-Loehle

Ať žije Luna

Princezna v noci

ona může vést k nebesům stoupat a klesat

a večer zase přijde

That little text above is from what I could understand a song that those in the Everfree forest who place themselves under the rule of Luna say every sunrise. I tend to believe that there is a reason for why ponies and creatures do what they do, so I translated it and I now try to do it as the sun rises.

Long live Luna

Princess Night

She can lead to heaven rise and fall

and the evening comes again

It is probably rather rough, as I don’t know the language very well, nor am I able to write down everything exactly as I hear it, though I am quite accurate if I do say so myself.

I’ve heard some of the other pegasi of my unit do their own rituals, or seen them do something before every flight. I guess a bit of superstition never hurt anypony, as long as it wasn’t not breathing or something odd like that.

Cooper, for example starts each morning before anypony else, by raising the sun along with Celestia. Granted he probably doesn’t do any help, but it helps him so no pony bothers him about it.

I’ve seen some other ponies from another unit wear their uniform inside out until the sun or moon hit a certain point in the sky, and would flip them again when the sun/moon went down again.

Superstitions ain’t the way indeed. More guards use them regularly than what they would admit.

-Loelhe

Rose’s wing won’t be healed enough by rotation’s end to fly back under her own power. That means cross country with another pegasi’s weight being carried by us, along with all the supplies we brought out. She could care less about that fact and continues to write in her little journal and sit around as dull looking as we are.

There is supposed to be an update coming down the line about finalized instructor positions and pay. I forgot to mention that the additional work gives me a decent pay increase. Not that I need it considering I live in an apartment with nopony else around.

A friend of mine every year would bother me about how I was the only stallion of Canterlot who wasn’t trying to have a special somepony during hearts and hooves day. For whatever reason it’s fashionable to have one during that one day. When they were out being romantic I spent my time reading a book and enjoying the night. All the romance stuff never made sense to me.

See the above paragraph, that’s the point I’m at right now, going through my memories for anything entertaining. There is no weather, no decent conversation, and no good literature or entertainment of any kind other than flying; and even that I’ve grown tired of. The same scenery over and over again. Trees, trees trees, I guess that’s why it’s called a forest.

A few more days and I’m out of here, back to Canterlot.

-Loehle

Today there was nothing of importance.

However while stalking around the Everfree due to boredom I found Rose writing in her journal and I was able to get a view of what is inside the pages of the book. There were tons of sketches of our camp, and writing that was too disorganized to read. There was even a sketch of me inside on a corner of the page. Don’t start pairing us together just yet though because there are sketches of a dozen others from camp.

I was able to get away without her noticing me, I guess the page will stay in the book for whatever evil plans she has for it. I vote some sort of ritual spell, that would be fun. That last bit was partial sarcasm just in case you didn’t catch it.

Tomorrow we set back for Canterlot, and hopefully I get report on what position I will get for instructing, as well as a change in scenery.

-Loehle

The flight back today took well later than it should have, even with a casualty stretcher carrying Rose in between the strongest flyers of our flight.

We made it back just as Luna was raising the moon, you could easily see her from our perspective, and it was a nice welcome back.

Now the moon is high in the sky and I am back at the place I call home, with clean(er) clothes, a week’s worth of newspapers and mug of tea. I don’t care what the proper vessel to drink tea from is, I’m using a mug.

The noise from the Tuesday festivities (Canterlot never sleeps) is still sounding from the fancy gardens of the elite. The sound of polite society is a one-eighty from the camp life, where anything could be said, food was slop but filling, and it didn’t matter what you were wearing because we were all wearing the same thing.

Which reminds me. Note to self; clean out uniform before next deployment.

-Loehle