The name 'Lightning Fast Couriours' seemed to apply to both the runners and the deskponies inside the office. All around the highly active office, message scrolls arrived in flashes of magic light at receiver desks before being sent off to different head runners. Inside the scrolls were orders from businesses that needed things transported throughout the city. Dispatchers sent runners off with their tasks to all four corners of the metropolis in both wing and hoof. The employee entrance was never still as runners dashed out and came back in to rest for a few moments before they were sent out again, never a moment's rest for them.
Like a mountain among an ever churning sea, the head of the organization moved though the ponies as they dashed back and forth. His steps practiced and confident as he lead a smaller pegasus mare to his office, stopping only once to shout an order. "Windstep, I want that package delivered on time today. If you are late, don't bother coming back in. And someone tell Skyrunner to get in my office when he shows up!" He didn't wait for an answer as he went into his office, throwing open the door just enough for the pegasus to slip in behind him before it slammed shut.
The large Earth Pony took a seat this desk and started sorting though some files, not addressing the mare who took a seat in a chair set before the desk. The office was expertly sound proofed, turning the loud din of the office into a quiet muffle so that the loudest thing was the soft rustling of papers and the neverending click of the clock to the right of the desk. The time seemed to drag on as the Earth Pony, Mr Fleetfoot as the name plack on the desk said, read the files.
Just when the orange pegasus in front of him was starting to dose off, he slammed his hooves on the desk as he rose up. "Now then, why are you wasting my time," the earth pony bluntly asked as he went over to a cabinant in a corner, the windowed doors showing rows and rows of bottles inside.
As the earth pony made a drink, the pegasus answered him. "I want a job."
He chuckled before swigging it back. "Everyone wants a job. But what makes you think I am going to give you one?" He made himself another drink and went to his desk to savor this one.
"I'm the fastest running you can have in this building. That paper I showed you is evidence of that."
The boss scoffed at the response, holding up the letter of recommendation in his hoof. "Oh ya, this fancy paper from a very famous pegasus. No possible way this is faked," the sarcasm in his tone was clear as he sneared across his desk.
"Sir, I-" The pegasus was cut off as the door was swung open and the loud din of the office returned with vengeance into the office.
"You wanted to see me, boss?" The pegasus who lead the noise into the office quickly moved around the door so he could close it behind him. He was tall and thin, his wings equally long and thin. His orange body built for high speed.
"About time, Skyrunner," the Earth pony replied, as if him actually showing up was more upsetting than him not appearing. He dug into his desk and pulled out an envelope sealed with red wax and a crest. "I need you to send this across town to West Wicklemac Road. Address and instructions is on the front for when you get there."
"Sure, boss." Skyrunner replied with a wide smile. "It'll only take twenty minutes for me to get there and-"
"Ten minutes."
Both Skyrunner and Fleethoof looked at the pegasus mare like she had just appeared and hadn't been sitting though out the conversation. She looked up at them both with purple eyes and said again. "Ten minutes and it will be done."
They were both taken back for a few moments before Skyrunner laughed at the idea. "Do you know where you are? The skys are always a mess above here. There is no way you can do it."
"I can," she countered glarring at the taller pegasus.
"You can't!" His teeth clenched as he started loosing his temper with the upstart.
"Enough!" A sharp crack of hoof to desk quietted both of the pegasus and made them look to the boss. He glared at the new arrival and leaned over the desk. "You got a lot of fire in ya. But is stoking it worth the test?"
The pegasus nodded only once and returned the look in full. Her action made the Earth Pony smile. "Alright, a test then. Something worth more than this paper." He crumpled up the reference in his hooves as he spoke on, "You have ten minutes from the moment you step hoof out of that door to get this letter to the destination and back her. And no tricks, I will know if you fail. Understand?"
"But sir-" Windrunner tried to interject, but clamped his mouth shut after a sharp look from his boss.
The pegasus stood up and snatched the letter away from Windrunner and tucked it under her wing. "Don't lose track of time." She quickly opened the door just enough to allow her small frame to slip though, leaving the pair in the office as she dashed to the door.
[hr]
As the orange and purple haired pegasus was fixing her helmet, the door from the office flung open, Windrunner appearing with a not so happy look on his face. "Hold up, Rookie. I'm following you to make sure you don't try anything."
"Try and keep up then," the mare didn't stop moving as he spoke to her, flipping out her scooter and securing the parts as she takes up her position on it, the letter secured safely in her backpack. Both hooves on the board as her wings flapped to keep her balance, slowly picking up speed and spreading out further.
Windrunner laughed when he saw the scooter. "What's this, a pair of wheels? You think you can go faster than me on whe-" His words were cut off as a gust of wind hit his face. The backwash from the pegasus on the scooter as she shoot off, nearing full speed in an instant. When he recovered, he looked as her form became a distant speck down the street.
He clinched his teeth as he shook off the shock and anger replaced it, his wings shot open and he flung himself into the air with a sharp flap, a few more and he was flying between the tall buildings of the city in a pursuit course. There's no way she can keep up this speed, his said to himself as he weaved though the air transports moving though the city's airspace. Nearly missing two unicorns in an open carriage as he moved to catch up to the orange and purple pegasus.
The mare didn't show that she knew she was being followed and if she did, she didn't care. Her eyes were focused only on the obstacles set before her by the ever shifting inhabitants of the city. The wheels of her scooter let out a soft grinding sound in protest as she leaned side to side to swerve around ponies walking down the street, the wind she displaced blowing more than a few hats off of heads as she wove around the busy street.
She never really saw any of them as she flew down the street, her eyes only seeing them as forms to be avoided as she sought out the path between the obstacles. When a path was cut off by a horde of shoppers surrounding a stall having a flash sale, she slid her scooter parallel to her attempted path, coming to a momentary stop before she shot around the crowd and back down the street.
Windrunner couldn't believe his eyes at the movements he watched. As confident as he was in his wings, he knew he couldn't have done the same. He could have come to a full stop and have to reassess where he was flying before he'd take off again. For a moment, he had given up until he saw the coming intersection. A large T that split off to the left and right as the street straight to the address as cut off by a large park. Buildings were placed tightly together with only small alleys between them blocked off by fences.
This was the ultimate advantage of flight over wheels. She would have no choice but to take the left or right road and go parallel to the park until finally the road turned to let her head back towards her destination. Though he was still a fair distance behind,Windrunner slowed himself down so he could watch her failure.
The scooter bound pegasus' wings slowed down as she approached the intersection, her eyes quickly darting around before she turned to the left starting down the sidewalk of the road before stopping and pointing her scooter towards an alley between to of the buildings that separated the road from the park beyond.
She only needed another moment before her wings started their rapid flapping again and shot her across the street, her scooter weaving though the traffic until she was upon the fence. She jumped, slamming her scooter against the wood and, using her wings to boost herself, shot up and over the tall barrier. The trust from her wings sending her sailing between the buildings to come down on the grass in the park where she took off again, weaving though trees and ponies going about their day in the park.
Windrunner couldn't believe his eyes at what he saw. The shock only lasted a moment before he put more speed into his wings and tried to catch up. There is no way I am letting her beat me! I'm the fastest flier in this town! But no matter how much speed he put into his wings, she remained a distance figure as she cut a path though the grass and then out of the park's main entrance, just dodging an incoming family as she returned her wheels to the road.
Clinching his teeth, Windrunner focused himself not on the mare, but on his goal. He knew the building the moment that he read the address. He angled himself towards it and shot off, coming into several near misses with other pegasus in flight until he finally sailed down to the road and landed in front of the entrance.
His entire ached, his wings threatened to cramp up on him, he had sweat dripping from his coat but he did his best to look triumphant as he stared down the road, waiting for the mare to come around the corner so he can show that he is still the fastest runner in this town.
"Oh, there you are."
His breath caught as he heard the now familiar voice behind him, the voice of the pegasus mare as she walked down the steps from the building, scooter over her shoulder as she returned to the street. He spun around and looked at her in shock, more so after he saw her condition.
She looked like she had just gone for a light run, her breathing was barely heavy and though she had sweat in her coat, it was a light coat rather than a heavy soak like he had. It only made him feel more tired as he saw how tired she wasn't.
She chuckled and gave him a playful shove with her hoof. "You did keep up, that's cool. Though, uh... I think you should catch a ride for the return trip." She chuckled as she flipped her scooter over her shoulder and took her place on it. "Catch you later," She winked at him before taking off again.
It was then that Windrunner understood her speed. AS she took off, a discarded newspaper was flung up into the wind, the pages of it flying around like caught in a funnel before finally floating down to the ground after she long disappeared around the corner.
Pegasus rely on their wings to provide both lift and thrust for flight. Lift to keep them airborne and thrust to move them though the air. But this pegasus was different. She didn't generate lift, just thrust. Allowing her to fly though the streets on wheels barely hindered by her lightweight form.
[hr]
It was another fifteen minutes before Windrunner returned to the office, the bus he rode having taken the long way around. When he finally stepped off, he saw the pegasus mare setting up her scooter ride again. He kept his head down and headed to the stairs up into the office.
"I told him you were caught by some cops." Windrunner stopped and looked at the pegasus mare, she keeping her head focused on tightening something on her scooter. "That's why you are coming back late. Because they stopped you for flying so fast. Wanted to question were you were going in a hurry. You didn't have a package so your badge wasn't enough to get you off the hook fast enough."
Windrunner clinched his teeth. A thousand things to say came to mind. To tell her to mind her own business, that he didn't need her pity. To brush off her charity and make excuses about how he was going easy on her. The idea of following her home and breaking her wings came to his mind, but as he sighed, they all faded away to one question that was really on his mind.
"What's your name?" He asked, his voice soft, tired from the exertion.
The mare stopped adjusting her scooter and looked up at Windrunner. Her purple hair, now matted by sweat and being in a helmet framed her eyes that had the same color. A strange contrast to her orange coat. She smiled softly before saying,
"Scootaloo."