ZephyrBurst

I think a continuation is fine.

I'd love to have one, someone start it in Ponyville! I would do it, but I don't trust myself with setting the scene, there are others here who can do set up much better than me.

Your bad joke has offended me greatly Starfox. Prepare to... get bombarded by a large barrage of muffins!! Oh yeah, hey there featherquill. Hmm... I've got nothing. I too am going to blame it on the time of day! Hope you enjoy it here, the few times you post and the more times you lurk.

So if I too was a muffin, would you eat me? Also, welcome to Canterlot. Oh and come say hi in irc sometime.

This + Pinkie + Sunny Days, in the same room.

I actually forgot all about the old Thundercats until this new one started getting some hype.

I disagree as this is only what the show as shown to us. It's a forced perspective so that's really up in the air. They've never shown in-depth how the other cities in Equestria are aside from Ponyville. While we've seen bits and pieces of other locations being female dominant, again, this is forced perspective. (In a show targeted to young girls, so females would most likely be shown more.) I'm not disagreeing with the pony type being based on the mother, just the above.

It doesn't seem like it would happen within the show, and really doesn't fit well, at least to me. On the other hand. Let the shippers be pissed if it does happen.

So tired. A few ponies came rushing toward the top 3 runners, Zephyr being one of them. With a wave of his hoof, he gave an unspoken signal that he was okay. He was out of breath and would celebrate later. Excitement rallied all around him. He was just as excited, but the aching in his legs and body had caught up and for the moment, he just wanted to rest. After a moment, a pony had gotten too excited and impatient, she didn't want to just hand him the 2nd place award like that. With the help of another pony, Zephyr was lifted to his hooves and a silver medal was placed around his neck. He had never been part of anything like this before and with it came a wonderful feeling of victory. A smile formed on his face and he saw that he would take in the excitement of the moment. There was another concern of his and he glanced around for the griffon. It didn't take long to spot her, despite the large crowd, due to her size. Zephyr kept a smile on his face as he brushed past ponies to reach the griffon. He had a few things to say to her. The griffon was looking fairly disappointed, and he noticed she had come in 7th. That still wasn't bad with all the ponies that had attended the race this year, but he wasn't going to comment on that, no, he had other things to say. He approached her directly... "You're a great runner..." He paused a moment, letting his compliment set in. "There was really no need to try and cheat or hold any others back like you tried with your rock stunt. You can do great on your own. Next time we race, I'd like to see more of that running potential without any attempts to cheat." He kept a smile and extended his right forehoof in greeting toward the griffon. "I'm Zephyr Burst." He knew there was no need for taunting or anything else of that sort, and had every intention of making friends with the griffon. Or at least making sure there was no bad feelings between the two. He simply wanted to leave it at friendly rivals in a race at best or worst... he wasn't sure, he just didn't want to end anything on a bad note.

I'm looking forward to her reaction to losing to Zephyr. I was actually more anticipating the small rivalry between the two than the race itself. XD

Zephyr gave it his all for the last few moments. He wasn't even looking around him, only straight ahead toward that goal line. This was it, that griffon was NOT passing him up. Unless he tripped or she cheated, she wasn't passing him at this point. He wouldn't have known even if she did, his eyes were locked forward and focused on getting past the goal line as quick as possible. There it was, the finish line, it was just a few strides away. Ponies all around were cheering. He couldn't tell who they were cheering for, it wasn't for one pony, it was all so mixed up. So many voices, but it was so exciting. His heart was pounding, he knew he was close to the front of the race. And then... just then... he crossed the finish line. The ponies cheered even louder right as he crossed the finish line. Did he actually finish first? He didn't know, but he jet past the finish line and slowed down a few paces after it. He stopped, relieved to finally be able to rest. Zephyr was panting hard and sweating profusely. The pain in his legs and his chest caught up to him and he collapsed over on his side to catch his breath. He wasn't sure where his standings were at that time, but he didn't care, he just wanted to rest. At least he had beaten the griffon... he thinks. He wasn't really sure. Zephyr just laid there trying to catch his breath and ease the throbbing pain in his legs and now his chest. He pushed way too hard. But it's okay, it was time to rest for awhile... hopefully... (( OOC: Okay now I wasn't even trying to post first on this one like I did for part 5-7. XD ))

Wow, 2nd place for Zephyr. I didn't see that coming. I knew top 10, but... O_O I think it's awesome that Lyra won first. XD It was way unexpected, at least to me it was. Plus it's Lyra.

I'm pretty sure it was a joke by one of the staff.

He pressed forward as hard as he could for the last stretch. He darted down the path with a sprint, seeming to create a draft of wind in his path. Something amazing happened though. He was now in front of the griffon. He grinned when he realized he could actually do this. He could beat the griffon and could maybe show her some humility. He glanced back to the griffon, who was only a few paces behind. "Not a chance!" He retorted back at the griffon. Zephyr thought about taunting her in some way, but quickly realized that wasn't very sportspony like and would only end badly. Besides, he wanted to keep everything friendly as much as possible. He turns back to look in front and continues his hard pressed sprint to the finish. Wow did his legs ever burn badly now. It was starting to rise up to his lower body. He realized quickly that he had pushed himself too much, he was no runner. Zephyr knew he was in shape, but to do runs like this was different. His body told him to stop, but the race was nearly over and he knew if he pressed on just a bit more, he could beat the griffon. At this point, that's all that mattered. 'Come on legs, we can do this, the end is just up ahead!' In the far distance, he could see the finish line. A wave of relief went through Zephyr. A relieving grin appeared on his face and with added determination, he continued. Which of the two would end up through the finish line before the other? The anticipation set in... ((OOC: This will probably be my last post for the race itself. Seems a fitting end for Zephyr's part in it.))

Zephyr is tied for 4th. O_O I didn't think I'd participate much in the race at first, but I was having a lot of fun with it by the 3rd part. Thanks to the staff for setting this up and keeping it going, especially Manestream. And of course to everyone who participated and made it so much fun. I didn't read through all of the posts. There's a lot. But I went through a lot of them. I might go back and catch some of the arcs I missed.

This was it, the last stretch. No major obstacles were in the way. Just the path the race took, the ponies around him, and the griffon. Zephyr was going to give it his all. The short rest after helping the griffon out of the tree sap certainly wasn't enough and his legs felt like they were on fire. Again his wings ached to stretch out. No, he couldn't though. Zephyr tried to focus on just the race. It was hard though, he thought about how sore his legs were going to be for the next few days. That wasn't going to be pleasant. At least all he had coming up were deliveries and that was mostly flying. There were no big social gatherings coming up or anything of that sort. No expectations of him after the race. Yes, his legs would just have to endure this last stretch of the race, though he knew he wouldn't be as fast as he would like in this condition. Glancing around, he was pretty certain that first place would not be his. There was still a chance to get in front of the griffon though and that would be his top priority over winning the race. He started to see that it was highly possible that the griffon could actually be the one to claim first place. Hmm... if he could just get in front of her, that would be prevented. Despite seeing his odds of winning, it was a fun race and he got to meet some new faces, even a griffon. Though she was pretty rude, it was still interesting to finally meet one. He'd never challenge straight to their face again, he thought back on how silly that gesture was, being within clawing distance like that. Then again, would the griffon really strike a pony, unprovoked, in a place like this? With most of the track and competitors behind him and very little in front, he began to sprint. This was it... the finish line was close. ((OOC: Yay for forum notifications. ))

Despite there being two of them pulling the griffon out, she was barely budging. The muck she stepped in was deep and thick. It seemed like it would take a lot longer than they all wanted, but an earth pony had pushed her from behind. "Just what is your deal?" The griffon murmured to Zephyr. He kept pulling and gave a half-flanked response. "I'll tell you after the race." He grunted as he spoke and pulled back harder just as the earth pony gave a push. With that, the griffon was free. Zephyr took that short moment to rest up with the others there. It didn't last long however, and the griffon sprinted away after calling them all some foreign word. Zephyr wasted no time and took off after the griffon. He still had to beat her after all. The final stretch was coming up and he was ready to give it his all. He just had to avoid those tasty sappy piles.

Despite how much he really wanted to beat that griffon in the race, his legs were getting tired again. This was no good since the race was almost done. The more he continued, the worse the pulsating pain would get. He decided for his own safety that he had better stop and veered to the side of the race path to take it easy. Instead of stopping completely, he decided to walk again. The rainbow-maned unicorn passed him up quickly and began to disappear into the distance around a bend of trees. Zephyr needed to catch his breath and rest his tired legs briefly and then he was sure that he would be fine for the rest of the race. As he continued on, he heard a familiar sound... it was that griffon. He trotted toward the sound to a path through the trees. The brush was thicker and it was much harder to see where the sap was. The air was a bit musty there was well. Zephyr glanced into the side path and there she was, stuck in a nice thick pool of tree sap. Looks like she was trying to take a short cut and she paid the price for it. There was also an orange unicorn trying to help her out and he even called out to her. Zephyr grinned and thought about just passing her by, she got what was coming after all. He tried to pass by, but he couldn't. Even though the griffon was a prideful feedbag, he just couldn't bring himself to ignore. The unicorn seemed to be having a bit of trouble. If anything, she would just pull him into the pool of sap with her. He'd need some help to be sure. She seemed reluctant to receive any help... figures. Despite that, she had reached out to the unicorn. Zephyr decided to make a quick dash into the thick side path. He spread his wings and took flight toward the two. As he came close, he grabbed hold of the griffon's leg she had attached to the unicorn and assisted in pulling her out of the tree sap. The two of them should be able to help her out.

Zephyr still wanted to catch up to the griffon. If he did win, maybe it would show her a bit of humility. Hopefully it would. Her earlier methods in the race were less than admirable. Oh... and if he beat the griffon, maybe he would look good for the cute rainbow-maned unicorn just behind him. Zephyr didn't like showing off, but the race and recent events within built up a competitive nerve in him. He was having fun, despite the griffon playing unfair and unsafe. And if he could maybe talk to a cute mare in the process, despite winning or not, it would end up being a really good day. 'Maybe she'll like me.' He thought. 'Wait, she's behind me right now! Is she looking at me? I wonder what she thinks of me.' The more Zephyr thought about it, the faster he tried to run. Everything was really exciting and the final stretch of the race was coming up. Although, these thoughts were stupid. He didn't even know the mare and he disliked show offs, especially when it was for mares. Zephyr always saw it as a silly gesture. There was no need to get worked up over this. He simply passed off the thought as a high from the excitement of the race. Zephyr refocused back to the griffon, she was still in front of him and he had to get the lead on her without cheating. The rocky surface started to change and they were back to a softer ground. His hooves immediately felt better to not have to pound against the hard rock from before. It was quite a relief. His wings ached to spread, not to fly, but just to feel the wind blow through them. He couldn't though, a gesture like that would definitely be considered cheating and anything this close to the end of the race in that manner would be highly frowned upon. He could do this, he was sure of it. With the change in hoofing, so did the scenery and the smell. Ooh, what was that smell... It was a syrupy smell of some kind. Then he saw it. The tree sap! What a smell that gave off. He saw small pools of tree sap on the ground and he remembered a run in he had with the stuff in the forest close to Manehattan. With that thought, he knew he had better avoid stepping in any of that. ((OOC: Yep, I had to. I can't break this streak. I've had it going this long.))

Wait a minute. If I shatter pottery and such over your head, money will pop out? I do believe I like this. Welcome aboard, to the herd, and whichever other greets all in one. This is also an RP board.

Element of Obsessive Compulsiveness.

The griffon retorted, though Zephyr wasn't sure what the griffon meant by her thinking he would be cool for a moment. He ignored that comment as she had said more, pointing out that it would take some guts to get in her face like that, and he paused, thinking that thought through. The griffon then took off and challenged the ponies around to catch her if they could. Zephyr stared down for a moment realizing he had got in the griffons face just a moment ago. His heart started to beat faster when it all came together in his mind and he suddenly scared himself with those thoughts. Just another moment when he saw his anger would drive him to do something senseless. Challenging a griffon like that was stupid. But now he wanted to beat that griffon in the race, his legs would complain, especially later when they would be sore, but he just had to try beating that griffon now. He zipped down in flight and flew low to gain some ground, dropping to the ground just behind the rainbow-maned unicorn with a plop as his hooves made contact with the rocky surface. His extra speed gave his plenty of boost to get past the unicorn with relative ease. The griffon was just ahead, only a few paces away. He was going to catch up to her, his goal now was to beat the griffon. Maybe it would show her some humility. Zephyr had noticed that not too many other ponies were around, he must be at LEAST in the top 10 at this point. That was an exciting thought. He didn't consider himself much of a runner or to have much speed, and though he cheated a little with his wings earlier, he still considered being this close to the front was really exciting. Zephyr glanced behind him, noticing the rainbow-maned unicorn. She WAS cute, and he passed her a smile. "I'm going to beat that griffon." He turned back and looked onward toward the griffon, and reminded himself that this was no time to speak to mares. With extra determination now, he continued to give it his all, and watching the griffon closely. He remembered that she was kicking up dirt at other ponies earlier and would need to be on guard if it happened again.

That pegasus guard still didn't get it. He was willing to come quietly, but she refused to agree to his terms of going unshackled. She was aggravating at best and he so wished he could knock that point into her head. He was starting to feel better about tackling her earlier. The mood had changed however, as more pegasus guards began to swarm down and close off any exit point, some even hovered in the air to keep any would-be fliers from escaping. Zephyr's anger rose, but fear had started to creep in as well. He just needed to remain calm, they would only keep him overnight right? They wouldn't ask about his past, would they know about that? Are there unicorns that can read minds? He started to get paranoid. Just then, the blue unicorn had gotten upset. His attention was broken from Radiant as he watched Malediction run about and eventually end up next to him. What had that red unicorn... Bonfire was his name, said to her to get her so worked up. She screamed about not wanting to be brainwashed. Had Bonfire really threatened her with that? Could they even do something like that? Mal was scared and had even started to cry. The unicorn from before that scorned and taunted the guards with piercing words was no longer there, but replaced by this poor frightened blue mass. Zephyr felt sorry for her, she was even more scared than he was. She seemed much smarter than him and must know something he didn't, which frightened him more. Zephyr wasn't familiar with what went on when somepony was arrested. The guardsponies all kept their distance for the moment while Bonfire had spoken with another pegasus wearing armor that looked to be worth more than everything Zephyr had ever owned. All these privileged high class ponies, it upset Zephyr. He was torn between wanting to stay compliant, and his fear and anger which said to strike anything within reach. He looked back to Mal, who was still very frightened and on the verge of a breakdown, he decided he had better try to stay calm. Everything was fine until Bonfire spoke to Radiant and asked for her attention. At that same moment, a pegasus guard had come closer to the two ponies being apprehended. He caught the movement of the guard out of the corner of his eye, reason said to remain calm, but fear and panic took over. Whatever this unicorn was so scared of, he wanted no part in it. Without provocation, Zephyr lunged at the pegasus guard and body checked the guard hard, sending the unprepared pony back. "Stay back!" He shouted at the guard. His action alarmed another guard behind him, but Zephyr heard the hoof steps. The guard must have started the moment Zephyr made a move, for the guardspony was close. Zephyr had his weight shifted forward after his lunge, and in a fairly graceful manner, reared low and bucked the oncoming guard in the chest. Zephyr's senses awoke and he found himself completely on guard as the pegasus he first lunged at tried to tackle him down, but Zephyr ducked to the side and body checked the guard from the side this time. His fur stood on end and his heart pounded in his chest. There was no way out of this and that thought had cemented as he felt a sharp pain in his side which left him with his hooves to his side. The guardponies were actually very coordinated and the moment Zephyr hit the ground, he was pinned by two others and struck again. Zephyr was told to stay down from an angry source, not that he had any choice in the decision any longer. Whoever had struck him, hit him hard. He would feel that later and would definitely bruise. Fear overpowered his anger now. With how scared Mal had been, he could only imagine what would lay in store for him. He silently cursed his panic induced actions as he laid helpless before the guards.

Zephyr was so relieved the griffon spoke back to him. She seemed a bit full of herself in tone, but maybe that's just the adrenaline of the race assisting that. Just in front of the two of them was a very cute rainbow-maned unicorn, and not a bad view from back here, he had to admit. He loved multicolored manes and tails. Just then, the griffon took flight up into the rocky slopes. What in Equestria was she doing. Well, it looks like that would have to wait. Maybe he could go and speak with the cute mare just ahead. She was fast for a unicorn, at least he thought so. He was lost in thought for a moment when he heard the griffon shout something out back and from above. He was glad for that break in thought. It was no time for stuff like that, besides, she's just some mare anyway. The race was nearing its end and focus was needed, mares can wait. The unicorn ahead had stopped when he heard a loud crash behind him. He stopped to look what had happened, if it was a rock slide, hopefully nopony was hurt. He caught movement above and noticed the griffon was pushing rocks off the rocky cliff edge. She was trying to block the path, not only was that cheating, it was dangerous. Somepony could get hurt, or worse. He hesitated a moment, before gritting his teeth in anger. He remembered what the griffon had said and knew what he had to do. His wings spread fully and he kicked off the ground as he took flight. A small cloud of dust escaping with the wind he made from the act. He kept the griffon in sight and flew next to her, then hovered. He shouted angrily at the griffon. "What in the hay are you doing?! Somepony could get hurt!" He glared straight into the griffon's eyes, a bit frightened himself. He had just shouted at a griffon, this creature was much bigger and stronger than him. And those claws... Still, anger overpowered fear. "You want to win, then at least be safe!" His expression changed somewhat to a grin. "I challenge you to the finish line! No wings, no rocks, just our legs. What do you say? Surely you can beat some slow pony like me!" In his head, he was pretty sure the griffon would beat him, but he wanted to stop her from pushing any more rocks. He remembered she had said she wanted to win and figured he could play into her ego. Hopefully she would accept. There wasn't much left in the race.