Of Hooves and History

Haven's Haven

The first thing I noticed as we climbed was the air. Back on Earth, if I climbed anywhere above 6000 feet, the thinness would start stifling my lungs and I'd start increasing my breathing depth. Yet here we were at almost 5000 feet and I felt more or less like being at the top of the Empire State Building. Izzy seemed fine, too, an ear-to-ear grin across her face as we took in the view. The smaller hilly ranges spread out wide in front of us, with the sun blanketing the green earth below.

"Where are we going?" Izzy demanded, pointing to the grand mountain peak, towering up into the clouds on our right. "Zephyr Heights is over there!"

I cut the engine and let the wind take us for a short descending drift. "Let me explain. Paramotors don't respond too well to mountainsides. The air turbulence would collapse the wing. Let's gradually climb way up, and then turn around gradually in a circle until we reach the city's outskirts. Then we'll locate the castle entranceway and align for a landing."

"So you're going to land on the royal entrance?!" Izzy exclaimed.

"Yes indeed." I said firmly. "Besides, there's unlikely to be any other place with a smooth long place to run along."

I traced the flight path with my fingers to aid Izzy's mind, then cranked the engine back up to re-initiate the climb. Gradually, we ascended ever closer to the clouds. The view of having the clouds bearing down on you like an evil monster in a kid's nightmare was oxymoronically exhilarating. Izzy reached out and passed a hoof through the white fluff, drenching it in dense mist. Granted, I had done this before – but only once.

The chilly air bit at my face as we rose up into a new atmospheric level. The view was even more amazing than upon our takeoff. We could barely make out the shape of trees, bushes, and rocks on the ground far below, and the clouds billowed like cotton candy mountains around us. The air felt thinner in my chest, and I stretched my diaphragm a little more with each breath. My fingers felt like ice blocks as I pressed a button on the throttle display.

Yep. Just above 10 degrees, and 11,750 feet.

"Let's turn around now – slowly!" I announced to Izzy, lowering the engine speed to just below optimal cruising speed and smoothly pulling the right brake. She grinned and squealed with delight at the lateral G-forces as I tightened the angle. As the U-turn neared completion, the majestic bronze-gold spires of Zephyr Heights loomed into view, perched up amongst the clouds. It didn't take more than thirty seconds to spot the castle, what with its golden pegasus wing ornament and central flag. The entrance, however, was nowhere to be seen.

"Must be on the other side," I thought, snickering as an idea came to mind. "Hey Izzy, should we give this a shot? Let's gain a little height, then smoothly float down between the buildings where the main bridge connects the two major districts of the city. Then we'll rise up and spin around, level out, and glide in for the royal landing."

"Hmmm, Queen Haven may not like us scaring her city's residents like that," Izzy refuted, shaking her head. "But that's assuming they try to take a personal defense initiative – which I doubt. Most pegasi would simply report to the royal guards if something seriously awry were to happen."

"We'll just be cruising on by," I said.

"Should be fine," Izzy added supportively.

I boosted the power a little to gain some height, then reduced it all the way down to stage 1. Leaning off to the left, we snuck in behind the castle and coasted around. Izzy always loved the banking – and so did others. A young mint-green and cream pegasus stallion flew in front of us and coasted backwards, his face illuminated with awe.

"Wow! Who are you?"

It brought an underwhelming relief to my heart that there finally was a pony who wasn't fearful or defensive at first sight of me. So I smiled and waved. "I'm Aiden!"