Lightning Dust sighed as she sat at the only open table left at the bar, and as soon as her rear touched the splinter-ridden stool she instantly knew why the rest of the bar was avoiding the section like the plague. She would have much rather taken a nice cushy seat to lounge in and enjoy her drink, but Washout Training had taken more time than what she would want. She was expecting for them to be done by the time the sun started to set but it extended to when the moon and stars decided to come out and watch. But she had to make sure the drills were ready for the next performance in the next couple of days. The last thing she needed was a newbie ending up in the hospital with a numb for a hoof because they didn't know what they were doing. So she was stuck with the leftover seat, a table that looked like it hadn't seen any kind of washing since it was put into the bar, random dark stains soaked into the wood, and the entire thing creaked when she sat her cup down.
But at this point, her aching feet and wings would have been happy to sit on a throne of shattered glass. She also had a drink in front of her that would soon take the edge off and, hopefully, make her forget about her worries for a bit. The brown foamy liquid that slushed around in the cup always had a way of calming the nerves of the teal pegasus. So carefully bringing the wooded cup to her lips she took a sip of the concoction. The fizzy bubbles popping and tickling her nose and threatening to make her sneeze. But she just paid more bits on the drink than she had ever before; it would have been cheaper to drink at home. But another price you had to pay for coming in so late, the value of the drinks soared almost as high as she did this late at night. But she didn't let that discourage her as she took her first little sip. The sour taste of the drink instantly made her tongue curl as she swallowed, a small smile appearing on her mouth as she sat the cup down and turned to see what the rest of the crowd was doing.
In the dim light of the bar let the leader of the Washouts see the bar was filled with ponies ready to party. Horses of every size and color were either pounding drinks, dancing in any open space they could manage to squeeze in, or throwing darts at a target hanging from a wooden beam. The darts mixed with the strong drinks and dancing always added a thin layer of challenge to the game.
"Lightning Dust?" A young male pony said, getting the pegasus' attention. She was immediately greeted with the sight of a cherry red pegasus around her size, dressed in the black and green tracksuit that the Washouts wore. "I didn't know you were going to be coming here tonight." He said with a wooden cup in his hoof. White foam bubbled over and ran down the side of the mug to just splash to the ground.
"Yeah I just felt like unwinding a bit," She said, a small smile on her face as she reached back and grabbed her drink. "And Bubble Fizz knows how I like my drinks." She said before raising the glass in the air towards the bar that had a lone pony tending it. An orange earth pony was currently polishing a see-through glass with a rag and simply nodded his head toward the Pegasus before spitting into the clean glass. Seeing that made Lightning's stomach twist in a knot as her eyes glanced down at her glass. But she just shrugged her shoulders and decided to assume that her cup hadn't been spit-cleaned. "Besides I got those newbies to pull off the Devil Reapers Revenge Tail Spin-! If that isn't worth a damn drink I don't know what is!" She cheered, thrusting the cup in the air again.
"I second that Captain!" The Washout cheered, raising his glass. "And here's to a frickin good performance tomorrow!" He cheered before turning and going to the party with the rest of the ponies. Making Lightning Dust sigh in relief, she wasn't in the mood to get into anything even if it was with her crew. Her days of living reckless and trying to do a bunch of stupid unplanned stuff were far behind her. Now she was just a boring pony who liked to do dangerously stupid planned tricks.
"Ok, out of the way, light weights!" A new voice said over all the crowd, making Lightning almost choke on her drink as she heard it. She would never forget the voice of this pony and hearing it she knew this calm night was about to be anything but that. "Yeah yeah, I got your guy's first couple of rounds." The voice said as the crowd of ponies squeezed together to let this new party pony in. A group of pegasi dressed in blue and yellow tracksuits were all filing in, a cyan pony with a rainbow-colored mane and tail leading their charge as she had her head towards them. "But I swear if I have to pay for a window to be fixed again because you feathers can't handle a couple of strong ones then you're cleaning the bathrooms with nothing but a toothbrush, got it?!" She barked at them, getting a couple of gulps and head nods from her crew.
"You're gonna give them a toothbrush this time?" Lightning called out to the leader, "Last time didn't you tell them they had to lick it clean?" She asked, watching a smile grow on the pony's face as she turned to meet Lightning's eyes.
"Uh oh!" The leader of the other crew said, zooming over in a rainbow blur to Lightning. "Who let this slut back in here?!" She asked, wrapping a leg around Lightning's shoulder and playfully bumping into her. "Yo Bubbles you got a freeloader in here, better watch the complimentary nachos!" She said before laughing. But if the bartender found the joke amusing he didn't show it as he rolled his hazel eyes and picked up a new glass to polish.
"He loves me," The cyan pony sighed as she flapped her wings, pushing herself into the air, and swiftly landed next to Lightning. "So what's the word hummingbird? Washouts doing good? Anyone die yet?" She asked, bumping into her again before looking at the ponies in the blue jumpsuits, all looking at her in anticipation "Oh right, you lot. Let Bubbles know that I got your tab tonight. But remember, Wonderbolts; toothbrush, bathroom!" She reminded her team, bringing a hoof to her eyes and twisting it to point at them. Silently telling the crew I got my eyes on you. But pleased with the answer the half dozen pony's all nodded their heads and rushed over to the bar area. "And to answer your question, regulation states that I have to give them some sort of tool to clean with." She said, a proud look twisting on her face as she puffed her chest out. Lightning guessed that was because the captain of the other team was showing off she knew a rule.
"So in other words, someone ratted you out?" The teal pegasus guessed, taking a big gulp of her drink this time.
"Yeah, they big time ratted me out." She sighed, her chest deflating like a balloon. "And they won't tell me who reported me." She grumbled.
"Sounds like they're a close stitch group then." Lightning laughed, slapping Rainbow Dash's back.
"Yeah, real close group that one. I just wish that it didn't involve me getting called into the office and being yelled at." She spat, crossing her arms in a toddler-like pout. "But hey if it makes it so they'll trust themselves in the air then I'll take it as a win."
"And then take all the credit, saying that the entire thing was a test to see if they would stick up for their team?"
"I didn't even think about that!" Rainbow Dash groaned, her arms dropped to her side as her head craned back, "Where were you when I was getting yelled at?"
"Dealing with my own group of nitwits." Lightning said as she tipped the bottom of her glass up, finishing her drink. "How about you stop pouting and buy me another drink?" She 'offered' her frenemy, making the girl shoot a glare towards Lightning.
"Haha, very funny, I'm already footing my own team's bill," She pointed out, pointing at the bar where all the Wonderbolts were cheering and drinking from wooden cups. It made Lightning wonder what the point of Bubble Fizz polishing the glass cups was. Was it just to look busy or something? "Why should I get you a drink?"
"I just figured you owed me." The leader of the Washouts said as she slammed her cup on the table, shrugging her shoulders. "You know, for your pipsqueak sister ruining my trick all those years ago. I never even got an apology card for that." She said, smirking, knowing that was one of her friend's buttons, one she loved to press.
"Oh come on," Rainbow Dash groaned, rolling her eyes, "One, that was like TEN years ago! And two, you wanted a filly to try to do some crazy death trick!"
"Excuse me, that crazy death trick has a name," Lightening informed the pony, using her hoof to spin the cup on its rim, "Well it had a name, and it was the Double Dozen Flaming Wagon Flight ™, and Half-Pint Dynamite had some potential as an OG member of the Washouts."
"Yeah, but thankfully she had more brains than she had potential." Rainbow Dash shot back.
"It's a shame really," Lightning sighed, stopping her absent-minded cup spinning, pausing for a second before scoffing. "Rainbow, your sister almost fucking died!" She laughed, covering her face with her spare hoof. Admittedly the event of the flightless Pesgasus trying to ramp over twenty wagons and fire wasn't funny. But it was something the Washout captain could look back at and laugh.
"Dear Celestia, I know!" Rainbow Dash said, her wings and arms sticking in the air. "And she wouldn't listen to a damn thing I said! I thought about just tying her up and leaving her in a basement until you guys left!" She said, a smile appearing on her face, also able to look back on the memory without burning hatred now, "That girl might have beaten me for the most reckless filly to ever exist!" She said letting her body rest against the table, looking like she had a few war stories to tell concerning her little sister. "I'm just glad she always wore a helmet!"
"Yeah but probably a good thing she came to her senses." Lightning admitted, "Short Fuse had to take a four-month break after failing to complete the Double Dozen Flaming Wagon Flight ™. That's when we had to start rethinking about how we were going to do our tricks and stuff." She admitted. The Washout had always been a bit more extreme than the Wonderbolts, who had some flashy yet tame performances.
The Washout performances had more flare and danger to them, but after her stout red pegasus friend got hurt they decided to reign back on how stupidly dangerous the stunts were. Now they were still stupidly dangerous, but there were some safety measures thrown in. Heck, a couple of days ago Lightning flew through a storm cloud with a metal rod in her hooves and had to outrun a bolt of lightning. But she had a pair of rubber booties on her hooves just in case the leader couldn't outrun the bolt of electricity. She did manage to weave and dodge it, of course, but it was a safety measure. If she had been hit by the lightning it still would have hurt and maybe landed her some time in the medic tent. But it wouldn't have almost ended her life.
"Yeah, but I didn't think she would have gone in the complete opposite direction," Rainbow said, waving her hoof at Bubbles to signal for a drink, knowing she wasn't getting out of the conversation anytime soon. "She's probably doing the least exciting thing now, being a teacher!" She said, making Lightning's eyes grow wide. If the teal pony had anything in her mouth she would have spat it out. "And I was a teacher, I would know how exciting that is!"
"No. Fucking. Way." She said, each word slowly falling from her lips, as she stared at Rainbow Dash, hoping the girl would say it was a joke. "Yes is-? Really? The Half-Pint Dynamite can't be? Really?"
"Yyyyyyyep." She sighed as one of the Wonderbolts brought her a drink. "And like if she's happy doing that then I'm happy for her. I just would have never expected it from somepony trying to emulate me."
"Maybe I should have tried to talk her into coming back and joining us." Lightning pondered, "I never thought she'd end up as an egghead!" She sighed and shoved her face into her hooves as if she had been told she had a week left to live. "Should I swing by her classroom and try to talk her into coming back?"
"Nah, leave her be. She's doing what she wants to do, helping fillies and other kids." Rainbow Dash assured the Washout leader before bringing her drink to her lips and started to chug the mixture as if it were a glass of water. Slamming her cup on the table and using her arm to clear the leftover brownish-white foam off of her face. "Hey, Bubbles another one please!" She called out to the earth pony.
"You know you should pace yourself," Lightning said, though she waved her own hoof to signal for the pony to get her a refill as well. "It's dangerous to drink and then fly."
"Ha shut up!" Rainbow said, lightly slugging the girl's arm. "A Washup talking about something being dangerous, that's hilarious. But that's beside the point. I could slam twenty of these bad boys down and I'd be totally fine to perform for Princess Twilight the next day."
"There is no way in hell that a goody goody like you can hold down twenty drinks." Lightning said, looking at Rainbow Dash with a skeptical glance.
"Twenty drinks is nothing, Dusty." She said, a sly smirk on her face as she lifted her second drink and chugged it. "AH!" She sighed as she slammed the cup down again, this time she didn't bother clearing the foam from her face. "NU-UH-THING. Maybe it's a bit too much for a feather like yourself. But when you're as awesome as I am you could get fifty drinks down and maybe just start to feel a little buzz."
"Ok, yeah right." She scoffed as one of her Washouts brought her another drink. This time instead of slowly savoring the drink Lightning followed her frenemy's example. Lifting the cup up she chugged the drink and sat the cup down. "If you can drink fifty then I can at least drink one hundred!" She declared. Though it was a bluff, she knew if she got maybe ten in her it would be a miracle sent by Celestia if she could even get out the door.
"That confident huh?" The Wonderbolt said, leaning her arm on the table, "How about we make it a bit interesting? Whoever can drink the most without passing out or calling it quits wins!" She said, her eyebrows narrowing as her magenta eyes pierced Lightning Dust.
"Really, is that all?" Lightning Dust asked. She liked being considered the best at something as much as the next pony did. But she didn't need nor want to have the worst hangover that Equestria had ever seen. "How about we make it more interesting? The loser has to pay the tab for both ponies and they have to wear the opposing team's uniform at their next performance?" Lightning offered, making Rainbow's smirk grow into a wicked smile.
"I don't think I would want to have it any other way." She declared, holding a hoof out for a shake.
"I'm glad we agree." Lightning said, returning the smile and shaking her opponent's hoof as a Washout brought her next round. Flapping her wings the teal pegasus rose above the sea of ponies. "Ok Bubble Fizz, keep the rounds coming until a pony drops!" She announced. The silence that followed was deafening, as you could have heard a pin drop as the eyes of everypony landed on her and Rainbow Dash. It would have been enough to cause a normal pony to cower in fear, to suddenly have a room turn its attention to them. But these two were not normal ponies and were used to the attention.
As she felt the eyes stare at her Rainbow Dash's, the teal pony's heart started to race and her nerves tingle. As if she were getting ready to start a race for a big shiny trophy or for a chance to meet Princess Celestia and Luna. She was ready for this and she was sure her opponent was also ready for the competition.
As soon as Rainbow Dash landed Lightning made sure to keep a hold of her cup, and met her opponent's magenta gaze. Soon her rival had a new wooden cup in her hands and raised it, ready for Lightning to follow suit. The Washout didn't need an invitation to do so and she quickly placed her glass against Rainbows.
"Ready…" Lightning said, not breaking eye contact with the cyan pony.
"Set…" Rainbow Dash continued, knowing where it was going.
"GO!" The two cheered at the same time, shooting the cups to their mouth, and immediately starting to chug their drinks. Lightning waved to a member of her crew to go and get her next drink ready so she wouldn't have to wait for the next round. Everyone was chanting for the two leaders as they continued to pound their drinks down, and shiny gold coins were being brandished as bets were being placed.
Of course, Lightning Dust couldn't blame them, any time the Wonderbolts and Washouts got together it always led to an interesting time. Impromptu competitions were bound to happen and they always were at least twice as entertaining than any planned show. Case in point, when were ponies going to see the two flying troop leaders having a drinking competition?
"One down!" Rainbow said, a smug smile as she finished her third cup and reached for a fourth one that was already prepared for her. "You sure you want to do this? You can back out now and I'll just make you pay for the drinks." She offered, leaning forward. The sour smell of the drink was heavy on the girl's breath. But all that resulted was Lightning Dust rolling her eyes as she finished her third drink for the night. She might have been a bit slower than Rainbow Dash, but the competition was whoever could drink the most drinks, not who could get them down the fastest.
"Please, I should be the one offering that to you!" Lightning spat as she sat her empty cup down and grabbed her other drink, immediately starting to drink it. She didn't want to get too far behind, as a long game of catch-up could be the end of her, and her wallet.
"Ok, don't say I didn't give you a chance to back out." The cyan pony sighed, shaking her head, and turned to her troops. "OK guys, lay them out." She ordered and a half dozen Wonderbolts slammed cups down on the table in front of their leader. "Let's get this over with." Rainbow Dash sighed, rolling her neck as if she was getting ready to start lifting weights, soft but audible clicks, and cracks came from the girl's neck. But in a rainbow-colored blur the pegasus down the drinks. An explosion of foam shot off of the pony, and a continual click click click sound came from her as the table shook. But in maybe 5 seconds all the glasses on Rainbow Dash's side of the table all clattered and rolled across the table, empty.
"WHOA!" The crowd behind Rainbow cheered as if the Wonderbolt had just performed some sort of miracle. Bits continued to jingle and flash in the dim torchlight of the bar. But the crowd behind Lightning was all too quiet.
"I wouldn't if I were you," Lightning grumbled, turning her head as she saw some movement, a lime green pony trying to shuffle her way over to the Wonderbolts' side. But the pony froze, turning into a statue from Lightning Dust's glare, she returned her attention to Rainbow Dash. "You know Dashy, this isn't my first rodeo. I'm sure you can imagine that a lot of my tricks have me holding my breath for long periods of time." She said, before quickly guzzling down the concoction in the cup. "So it was cute seeing you have to down those one at a time." She scoffed as she looked at her team and nodded her head.
Taking a deep breath in, Lightning grabbed the edge of the table, again ignoring the splintering wood. But as she tilted her head up the pony let her jaw go slack and closed her eyes/ But before anyone could ask or try to figure out what was going on her fellow Washout's started to flap their wings and float into the sky. Then they flew over their commander's head, pouring the contents of the cups in their hoves into the teal pony's mouth. Unlike Rainbow Dash's performance, not a single drop managed to escape her guzzle. The drinks went down the pony's throat as if it was a sink just mindlessly absorbing water, and though it wasn't as fast as Rainbow Dash's performance, the numbers were tied yet again.
"Gah, blah, guh." Lightning gasped for breath, leaning against the old wooden table in front of her. "How… about… that?" She asked her opponent, heaving as she took deep breaths. It wasn't exactly an easy feat drinking a half dozen drinks in one go. But now the crowd behind her started to cheer, a member of her team even shaking her shoulders for a few seconds.
"That was almost impressive." Rainbow Dash said, shrugging her shoulders, an unamused look on her face as she started to look at her hoof. "Almost. So that leaves us at nine drinks each?" She asked.
"Yeeeeeep!" Lightning responded as she used the table to support herself. "Why ya wanna know? Sssscared?" She asked, her words slurring as her body swayed from side to side. Apparently, the drinks were already starting to take their toll on her. But Rainbow Dash looked as if she had been drinking nothing but water. If it wasn't for the fact that a tan bubbly liquid was pouring out of the empty glasses Lightning would be tempted to ask if the Rainbow maned pegasus was cheating.
"Nope, just wondering how many more drinks I will have to get through before I feel a slight buzz. What about you?" Rainbow Dash asked, planning a leg on the table and leaning forward. "You doing ok pal? You feeling…. Tipsy?" She pressed. "Maybe like you couldn't handle another damn drink?"
"Ah shut up you… you…" Lightning said, struggling to find the right words to say at the moment. Groaning, she thought about when Rainbow Dash burst through the door. "Slut." She said, getting a gasp from everypony there. Apparently, they hadn't heard the Wonderbolt throw out the insult when she had done it.
"Ouch, my feelings." Rainbow Dash said, holding a hoof up, and another drink was placed in it. "Ah! How refreshing!" She declared as she brought the drink up to her lobs and started to drink.
"Ey, you lot, get me anudder one!" Lightning ordered the nearest pony, who just happened to be the teal pony. The unicorn let out a high-pitched ah and rushed over to the bar.
"You sure you should try to press on, Captain." The red pegasus that had addressed her earlier asked, whispering in Lightning's ear. "I don't think it's a good idea to push yourself like this."
"HA PUSHING MYSELF?!" She asked, turning to the pony, "THIS ISN'T PUSHING MYSELF! WHO IN THE GOOD DAMN NAME OF CELESTIA IS YELLING?!"
"You're the only one yelling, Captain." He said as the unicorn brought the drink over, the cup covered in a yellow mist of magical energy as it floated in front of Lightning.
"NO, YOU'RE YELLING!" She declared, turning and grabbing the cup. "WOULD SOMEONE GET ME A REFILL?" Lightning asked before looking down at the cup, "THANK YOU!"
Bringing the cup to her mouth she quickly downed the drink. Slamming it down on the table, making the rest of the cups littering the table jump, she glared at Rainbow. The other pony still had a smirk on her face.
"You know what, Dusty-Wushty?" Rainbow asked before giving a hiccup. "That stupid trick you made my witta Scootawoo do-." She started to say before Lightning interrupted her.
"It's called the Double Dozen Flaming Wagon Flight ™!" She reminded her drinking enemy.
"Yeah that stupid one," She said, holding her hoof up and giggling before letting her voice drop to a whisper. "That is the dumbest. Stupidest. Fucking. Awfulest name I have ever heard." She said before her head slammed on the table and pounded her hoof against it as she laughed out loud.
"How… Dare you…" Lightning spat as another drink sat beside her. "I was up all NIGHT thinking about that name!" She informed Rainbow Dash.
"You should've taken another night," Rainbow Dash roared, throwing her head back, "There were twenty wagons, not two dozen of them. Like where did you learn how to count? In like a school or something?!" She asked, acting as if that was a solid burn.
"Don't you daaaare say I went to school like some sort of egghead!" Lighting spat, "Where did you learn how to fly? Your mother?!" She asked, grabbing her next drink and starting to drink it. Though as her stomach groaned and twisted she knew, even in her not-so-sound mind state that she didn't have much more in her.
"Hey, that's my mom you're talking about!" Rainbow gasped, covering her heart with her hooves. "And yesh, yesh she did. Cuz she the most momly mom to ever mom in the existence of moms!" She declared, swiping another drink and starting to chug it down. "And she is gonna be soooooo proud of me when I tell her about how I kick your butt tonight!" She declared.
"Well, she gonna be even prouder of me when I kick your butt!" Lightning Dust said, not even thinking about the fact she had her mom to tell the news to. "And everyone will go to the Washout shows after they see you in one of our uniforms."
"Ha yeah ok!" Rainbow scoffed, "And we're gonna have to build a bigger stadium when all your fans see you wearing a Wonderbolt outfit. Those are about 20% cooler than those boring things that you guys wear."
"More like 20% more likely to make me vomit!" The teal girl shot back, slamming her hoof on the table as they each got another drink. "Blue and yellow, what a boring color scheme!" She spat out.
"Hey, respect the colors!" Rainbow declared, pushing herself up, though she swayed from side to side. She brought her drink up, but she didn't instantly down it. This time she took a swing before wincing and holding the mug away from her. "Yuck, these aren't tasting as good as they were. Bubbles must be giving us the bad stuff now." She groaned as she crashed back into her seat. "I'm gonna have a word with him after I'm done beating you."
"How are you gonna have a word with him? Bubbles doesn't talk?" Lightning asked, looking between Bubbles and Rainbow Dash. She had been coming to the bar for years and was pretty sure she hadn't heard the bartender say anything. He just groaned and polished his glasses.
"I'm not gonna have a word with him, I'm gonna talk." Rainbow clarified, not answering the question. "But first I gotta finish up here."
Looking down at her drink Rainbow winced again, her cyan color shifting to a light green color. She was looking about as bad as Lightning was feeling at this point. But both of them knew they couldn't just give up now. The bill was higher than the steaks and neither wanted to take care of it.
"Had enough?" Lightning asked, seeing Rainbow Dash squirm a bit, "Want me to finish that one up for you?"
"No! Of course not, don't be stupid!" She huffed, bringing the drink to her mouth and taking another small swig. "Mmmmm uh, yummy… Just like how my wife makes it. It's so good I'm going to sit it right here and save it for later!"
"Suuuuuuuuure, who's the feather now?" She asked, finally taking a sip of her drink. A chill ran down her spine as she forced the sour drop down her throat. "Eh, I think I'm with you there." She grimaced, sitting her cup down as well. "BUT I'M NOT DONE!" She specified as she leaned against the table. It was the only thing that was keeping her from collapsing. "BUT I might close my eyes for a few…seconds…" She said as her eyelids suddenly felt like lead weights were pulling them down.
"Sounds like a plan to me… but once I open them I'll finish the drink and beat you!" Rainbow said before her head cashed on the table, Lightning's head following suit. Leaving the entire bar silent, their bets in their hands wondering what to do next. Both sides had drunk the same amount before passing out.
"I uh… guess this is a tie." The red pegasus announced, unsure what to say. The crown of ponies all gave an aw before breaking away and going back to whatever they were doing before the competition. Leaving the two leaders to sleep off their buzz.