Just A Slice

Aeroslash looked upon Cloudsdale from miles above. Small towers and buildings appeared the size of beetles, the entire city, like a sheet of parchment. The air was so thin his breathing was uncomfortable, but tolerable as his wings had to beat all the harder to keep him aloft as gravity gripped his after each beat of his wings. His wings rubbed metal with each flap, the strange metal weighing hardly anything at all did not make his flying any harder, flexing and shifting with the powerful muscles in his wings.

The near-stellar pegasus readied himself, drawing in a deep breath, his heart thrumming in anticipation for what was to come. He felt so calm, so at peace this far up that he didn't want to begin his inevitable descent. He looked up to see a dark sky and pushed upwards into a slow back flip, his wings spread to suspend the arch for perhaps less than a second but to Aeroslash, it was an eternity. He felt the air begin to nudge his nose and gave one powerful flap to jump start his speed. The wind exploded in his ears and his nose burned as the wind broke around it. Pushing his fore hooves took much more strength than he expected but the relief his nose felt was worth it.

Aeroslash tucked his wings to his sides as there was no more air to push against, and held out his rapid descent. Cloudsdale slowly got bigger but his target was not Cloudsdale. His speed increased at an exponential rate until he felt his acceleration halt and his quickly gave a flap and felt his speed continue its climb as he closed his eyes.

He fell like that for almost 30 seconds, blind to whatever might meet him. With one more flap his eyes shot open and he saw Cloudsdale rushing at him, imposing even though the ground was made from clouds. But he did not focus on the floating city, but on small silver dot that hovered just outside the city's boundaries. The air screamed at him and his body shuddered, every bone in his body vibrated with increasing frequency as he spread his wings, angling them so that they did not impede his speed. The silver dot turned to a small metal rod as the streak neared, held aloft by a wisp of cloud.

His eyes set, grim determination roared in his soul as he felt a shock go through his left wing. Barely twitching his right, he swerved at an alarming degree and as he flicked his wings upward, he shot like an arrow, no faster than any arrow could hope to move, into the wonderful cyan above.

Aeroslash felt his ascent cease and his reactivated his wings to fly to the clouds at the edge of the wall where a familiar pony sat waiting for him.

"Perfect hit. Cut clean through. Now let me have a look at the blades."

She seemed as if impassive, wasn't even smiling or cheering like a normal pony would do. Just ran her hooves over the clean sheet of metal latched over his feathers, examining the blade it boasted.

"Not a scratch on the temper and not a nick on the edge. That was half inch steel cable you just cut. Seems as long as you actually hit your target it cuts through with ease. Aeroslash flinched at the several memories of his misses and and failures to test the blades.

Finally that half smile of her lit up her face and she gave him a peck on the lips. "You get a treat for getting it, but don't get greedy now." He made a grab for the flirtatious pony but only squeezed a puff of cloud. She was gone quick as a flash of lightning but he knew where she would go. One strong flap and he was over the wall and bolting to the concession stand.

He found her sitting on one of the sofas, a coffee cup in her hooves. "'Bout time you got here, my mocha was getting cold." She hadn't had a sip he knew, but he said nothing as he sat next to her. He leaned over and whispered in her ear.

"You didn't give me a chance to sweep you off your feet." "First you would have to keep up with me." He could almost hear her grin stretch it's way across her face. He was about to make a witty flirt when a voice sounded behind them.

"Awwwww, isn't it cute? Flashfire and Slowbro together."

"Nice to see you too Fal," he managed to get out before the shoulder his head was supported on vanished.

"His name isn't Slowbro! It's Aeroslash! And he is a hell of a lot faster than you will ever be."

"Not with all that metal on him. Trying to keep your boy from getting hurt when he crashes?" several ponies snickered behind him

Aeroslash slowly got up and turned around to see his girlfriend with her muzzle in Falco Gryschons face, or rather beak. Wordlessly he grabbed Flare by her fetlock and practically had to drag her screaming curses from the stand before she kicked Falcos behind and got in trouble. Once outside she calmed down a little but still fumed and brooded. Twining his spiky tail with hers and just started walking. She reluctantly matched his pace and they walked with each other to Aeroslash's dorm room. Once they arrived Flashfire began unmounting the blades on his wings and set them on the stand on his dresser.

Her dark blue rump made her cutie mark stand out: a smiths hammer in a blazing fire. Flare caught him checking her out and she sat on the bed with him and sidled closer, tucking her head into his lap. Aeroslash absentmindedly stroked her silvery hair as she asked him, "Tell me about the time when you got your cutie mark." He chuckled, "I think I have told you a thousand times."

"I don't care I love to hear it." He agreed and began regaling the events that led to the appearance of his cutie mark.

Indeed Flare had heard the story countless times and she knew the story by heart as well as the cutie mark that the story was about: a small line with two streaks sprouting from either side of it, the speed she had witnessed just a few minutes ago. She only wanted him to tell the story because it was the only way to get him to talk for an extended period of time, as he was such a quiet pony. And she loved to hear his voice, it calmed her in a way that nothing else did. Soothed, Flare shifted her head against the dark green colt and fluttered her wings.

As if on cue Aeroslash wrapped a hoof around her belly and stroked just the right spot under her wing making her shiver, he never even paused in his story. She fell asleep soon after.

Aeroslash woke her about 9:40 telling her she needed to go to her dorm lest the wardens catch them. She only pressed her lips to his and whispered, "Then we still have twenty minutes." They lay together on the bed in each others embrace for too short a time when she had to go. "Goodnight, my love." were the last words she heard before she flew out his window to her dorm.