//------------------------------// // Chapter 4 // Story: Among the Stars // by Typographical Error //------------------------------// Chapter 4: Discoveries Part 11: Troubles “When everything is said and done Two looking for answers, if only one” Doctor Whooves galloped out of the front door of his building. Turning, he could see Derpy looking out of the window down at him. He waved, almost tripping as he did. Picking himself up, he continued on his way. He could almost hear Derpy laughing, and he smiled slightly as he ran. He reached the wall, and he stopped looking around. He just remembered that he had no idea where Twilight lived. Just then, static filled his ear, and her voice flowed out. “East side! Third building on the right! Top floor!” Then her voice cut off, leaving him in silence. He shook his head, then turned and ran towards her home. He was scared. Something had to have gone wrong. Terribly wrong. But what could it be. His mind went into overdrive as he ran towards her home. Finally he reached it, and he flew through the door, mashing the elevator button. The door opened and he rushed inside, mashing the button again. He felt his stomach drop out as the elevator rose. It bounced back as he reached the top floor and the doors opened. He rushed out of the elevator, and into a bizarre sight. Twilight was pacing in a circle, piles of papers surrounding her. Her suit had been thrown to the side in apparent annoyance. Her expression was one of fear and worry. But when she saw him, it lit up. “Oh, thank Celestia!” she said, trotting over to him. “I need your help!” She lifted a piece of paper off the floor with her magic and floated it over to him. He plucked it out of the air, staring down at the field of stars and the words. It was a moment before he spoke. “Where did you find this?” he asked, not sure what to think. “Up here with all the rest of the papers.” she pointed at the piles littering the floor. “They all say the same thing. “Unmovable”. It says that on every page.” Doctor Whooves sat down on his haunches and began to look through the pages. Twilight just watched him, biting her bottom lip. “All these schematics. They all show the same thing.” he said, filing through them. “Do you have any ideas?” he asked, looking up at her. She shook her head. “No. I was hoping you would.” Twilight said, crestfallen. Her one shot at information was gone. Doctor whooves went back to looking at the pages. Silence once again fell over them. The only sound was the rustling of pages, and the occasional sigh from Twilight. Finally, after what seemed like forever, Whooves spoke. “We could go to the Bridge.” he said, looking at her. She had laid down on the floor, but now she jumped up as fast as possible. “You’re right! I can’t believe I didn’t think of this!” She rushed over and embracing him. “Wait,” she said, letting go of him, “Do you know where it is? He reached down into the hood of his suit and pulled out the map of the ship. He unrolled it on the floor so that Twilight could look at it as well. Their eyes slowly took in the entire ship. They had not realized it before, but it was enormous. “Here!’ Twilight said, pointing at a spot on the map. “That’s weird. It is just above the cryo level.” “And look at this.” Whooves said. “There are a pair of thrusters on the main part of the ship, but also on the cryo level. And what is this?” He ran his hoof along a thick, white line running just above the Bridge and the cryo level.” “I don’t know. But we need to make that our first destination.” She rolled up the map and handed it back to him. “Ready?” He nodded. “Alright, let’s go.” Together, they walked into the elevator and took the stomach floating trip down. They made their way back to the wall. Twilight brushed the walls, releasing the stairs. When they reached the top, she looked down at the city. Just two days ago, it had seemed so beautiful. Now that beauty was marred by the information she had just learned. Whooves was standing next to her, unsure about their whole situation. Finally, Twilight turned and began the long walk back down the hall. She opened the door to the familiar sight. The screen glowed silently, it’s hoofprint inviting her in. She had a sudden thought and rushed over to the screen. She placed her hoof against it, starting the information video. Whooves walked up next to her. “What are you doing?” he asked, worried about her. Celestia’s face appeared on the screen and began talking to them. “I just want to see something.” she replied. I just want to know I am not crazy, she thought to herself. Finally, the video reached the part where she told how long they had. She could feel herself tense up. 9y:05m:23d:13h:07m:12s Doctor Whooves gasped. “But, that’s the same as yesterday!’ he said, walking towards the screen. Twilight nodded. “Yes. And the same as when I woke up. Something is very wrong on this ship.” she said, walking up to him. “And I need you to help me fix it.” Doctor Whooves stared at her for moment, then nodded. “Yes, yes you do.” he sighed. “Lead the way, Miss Sparkle.” Twilight nodded and walked towards the elevator, Whooves in her wake. She pressed the button that would take them to the Bridge. She could feel her stomach lift, but this time it was not from the elevator. This time, it was because of fear. She didn’t know what she was going to find. And if she had a choice, she wouldn’t want to find out. She felt her stomach fall back into place, and the door opened onto the Bridge. Part 12: Unearthing Rainbow was sitting in her room, pillow over her head. She hated being on the ship. She couldn’t see the sky. She couldn’t play with the clouds or do anything that she had back on Equestria. She ended up just flying around her room, seeing how fast she could go without ramming into one of the walls. But, after a few bumps and bruises, even that got boring. So she just layed in bed, staring up at the cold metal ceiling. She could feel herself stirring inside, the need to go out and fly. But she couldn’t, all there was was the metal, and the building. Then she sat bolt upright in bed. “The forest!” she practically screamed. Her hoof went straight to her communicator, a huge smile plastered on her face. “Fluttershy!” she said almost immediately. A soft voice answered her call. “Hey Fluttershy! You want to go out for a fly?” Rainbow asked, her breath fast. “Yeah sure!” Fluttershy responded, almost as eager as Rainbow was. “Meet at your place?” “Yeah. See you in a couple minutes.” Then she hung up. but her hoof went back to the device. “Derpy Hooves.” Derpy’s husky voice responded to her. “You want to go out for a fly with us?” she asked, hoping she would agree. it was always more fun with more ponies. “Sure Rainbow. I’ll be over in a moment.” Then it was cut off. Rainbow smiled. She had not felt this happy in a while. She looked out over her room. It was larger than the others she had gone into. With a double sized bed and a larger bathroom. It also had the only visible window in the entire city. It looked out over the whole ship, glinting in the fake sun. It would be an amazing place to live, if only she wasn’t trapped in it. Something caught her eye. A grey blur rose from the ground, flying towards her. Right behind it was a yellow blur. She smiled as Fluttershy waved, happy to be off the ground. Rainbow rushed downstairs, meeting them as they came in. “So, what do you want to do?” Derpy asked, looking at Fluttershy and Rainbow at the same time. She had somehow cut out the wings on her suit, just as Fluttershy and Rainbow had done. “Well, I wanted to go fly in the forest.” Rainbow said, walking outside. “it is the one area closest to Equestria. I thought it would be a good place for a fly.” “That’s a great idea.” Fluttershy said, floating into the air. “Yeah, I’m in!” Derpy said, jumping into the air. but she forgot to flap, so she dropped back down to the ground. Rainbow shook her head as Derpy tried, successfully, to get flying. Rainbow took a running start, gently floating into the air once she had gained speed. “Alright then, let’s go!” she shouted, speeding towards the forest. Derpy caught up to Rainbow fast, she was always a speedy flyer, but they were leaving Fluttershy behind. So Rainbow put on the brakes, waiting for her. Looking around, she could see Twilight and Doctor Whooves galloping towards the wall. What could be going on there?, she wondered. The galloped up the stairs. Then Twilight looked around, as if looking to see if she was being followed. Oh my, does she have herself a stallion? , Rainbow thought, smirking. That would be something new. She turned away from the scene, as Fluttershy had just flown up, breathing hard. “Sorry about that.” Rainbow said. “I will fly slower next time.” “Thank..you” Fluttershy said, breathing between each word. She floated in the air for a couple moments, then nodded at Rainbow. “Ready.” Rainbow took off, slower this time. She could feel her energy building, but she was going to save it for the forest, when she could really let go. Looking over her shoulder, she could see that Fluttershy was keeping pace. Turning back around. She could see that they had almost reached the forest. They passed over the wall, and it was like all her tensions had been lifted. She felt that she could breathe properly for the first time in ages. She could enjoy the wind in her mane. The way that her eyes watered against the cold air. She didn’t care if she left Fluttershy behind. She just wanted to fly. And fly she did. She swooped and soared. She dived towards the trees, pulling up at the last second. The feeling of the sun on her back, even through the suit, was amazing. She felt her eyes watering, but not from the air. Oh, geez! Are you crying Rainbow?, she yelled at herself. But she was. It just felt exhilarating to be back up in the sky. To be where she belonged. She looked down seeing Derpy and Fluttershy flying over the tops of the trees. This was going to be the best day she had for a long time. ***** “Oh, look at that!” Fluttershy said. Looking down, Derpy could see a clearing in the trees. The clearing was filled with dozens of kinds of windflowers. Yellows and reds and blues exploded in the center, Dwindling as they reached the sides of the clearing. Fluttershy dropped down as Derpy continued to fly over head, doing flips and spins. She walked in slow circles, the aroma of the flowers almost overpowering her. She had not smelled anything like it in almost three hundred years. Slowly, she began to move towards the center of the clearing, circling the whole time. A small grin crept onto her face, widening the whole time. Finally, it was stretching from ear to ear and she took in the scene in front of her. It was marvelous. Finally, she reached the center of the clearing. Looking around, she saw something amazing. A single lily grew in the center of the flowers, taunting the rest of them with its beauty. She took a step forward, then tripped over something lying under the flowers. She landed on her face next to the lily. Hutting, she turned over to see what she had tripped on. She screamed until she passed out. Part 13: News Mouths agape, they stepped out onto the Bridge. Twilight couldn’t believe it. She had never seen anything like this before. Rows upon rows of complicated buttons, switches and gauges covered the walls. A soft ping went off every four seconds, timing perfectly with a small green light on the ceiling. She took a step forward, but then pulled back. It just didn’t feel right to be on this level. Shaking her head, she took another step, walking towards the control panels. She reached out, touching the smooth metal of the panels. This was where it all happened. The brain that had kept them alive for almost three hundred years. But it was also the brain that had allowed them to be woken up early. She turned around to Doctor Whooves, who was smiling. “What?” she asked. “This is more like it.” he said, walking towards one of the panels. “This is nice.” “What!?” Twilight asked again, annoyed. “I know how to work some of this. I was on the team that helped to design the machinery on the ship.” He started to walk around the small room, taking in every inch of the metal. he stopped in front of a small button. Smiling, he pressed it in. Twilight shrieked. He had opened a hatch to the outside! She closed her eyes, not wanting to see. But when she didn’t feel the air being pulled out of her lungs, she opened them. Stars. That was the first thing she saw. Stars. Billions upon billions of them. All shining away happily in the vacuum. It was stunning. She had never seen this many stars before. Even in the observatory back on Equestria. She could feel a stupid grin spreading across her face as she looked out into the void. But her companion did not share her feelings. “Oh, no.” Whooves said, walking towards the window. “Oh, no. Oh, no” He seemed to be stuck on those words, repeating them over and over. “What is it!?” Twilight asked, afraid. Whooves turned to look at her, genuine fear on his face. He launched into a techno-babble speech. “This ship uses Xenon ion engines. They were created to slowly propel us towards our destination, then run out of fuel when we reach out top speed.” he said hurriedly. “And when we got close to the planet, we would begin to slow down, using thrusters of the same type on the front. We were traveling at slower than light speeds. So, with ten years left, we should be able to hear engines slowing us down.” He stopped talking, his ears pricking up. Twilight listened as well. She strained herself to hear something anything other than the soft ping every four seconds. “Nothing.” she said finally. Whooves nodded. “Also, at slower than light speeds, we should be able to see Centauri a and b. If not those, then definitely Centauri Proxima.” He pointed out the window. “Tell me, what do you see?” Twilight looked out the window, and saw why he was so agitated. “Nothing.” she said, hope fading. She felt tears enter her eyes as she realized what this meant. “We are dead in the water.” Whooves said for her. He stared out the window for a few minutes, not saying anything. Twilight just stood there, silent tears rolling down her muzzle. All the hope she had just had, gone in an instant. She felt like her heart had been ripped straight out of her chest. There was silence, then Doctor Whooves rushed to one of the panels, searching for a specific button. “What are you doing?” Twilight sniffed. Doctor Whooves didn’t look up to reply. “I am looking for a specific button. I just can’t see to....AAHHA!!” With a triumphant yell, he pushed in a glowing blue button. A section of one of the walls moved, then disappeared into the wall, only to be replaced by another panel. “This ship is equipped with two clocks.” he said walking over to it. “One internal clock, that she ship runs off. And another atomic clock that is there for emergencies. That clock, will show how long we have been here. This is that clock.” he said, tapping the clocks frame. All Twilight could see was a series of lines, slowly moving around the outside of the face. The lines seemed to be racing each other, but one always seemed to be going faster than the others. Doctor Whooves stared at it for a moment, his breathing seemed to have stopped. “Doctor?” Twilight said, walking up to stand next to him. “What is it?” “It’s terrible, that’s what it is.” he said, turning around to face her. “We haven’t been here for almost three hundred years. It has been much longer than that.” “How long?” Twilight asked, afraid to hear the answer. “We have been here for almost four hundred years.” Twilight’s heart dropped out of her chest. She couldn’t believe it. One hundred years, adrift? “That explains why we woke up.” Whooves said, starting to pace. “The ship is old. A century older than it should be. And it is breaking down. If we don’t find a way to fix this soon, all five hundred ponies will be awake. And who knows how long we will last then.” “So what do we need to do?” Twilight asked, a spark igniting in her chest. They might have a chance! “We need to get some sort of bearing on our location.” He pulled the map out of his hood again. “There should be a hatch to the outside somewhere. A hatch for repairs and such. Here it is!” he said, pointing at a spot on the map, two floors down. “Right under the cryo level. There should be suits and repair tools down there. All we would have to do, is get in a suit, go outside, and figure out our bearings. Simple!” Twilight snorted. That didn’t sound like simple. “But what about the engines?” “They either fired already, or didn’t fire at all. And right now, they are of no worry to us. We don’t want to go backwards.” “Well then, I guess we should--” She was cut off by a burst of static in her ear. Rainbow’s voice flowed out. “Twilight! Twilight are you there?!” She sounded scared and worried. “Yes, Rainbow, I am here. What is it?” “It’s...it’s...Oh buck!” she swore. “You have to get up to the forest right away!” she said, then her voice cut off, leaving Whooves to stare at her. “What is it?” “I don’t know, but it sounds bad.” she said, galloping back to the elevator. “Ugh! I don’t want to waste time! Come here.” she said, holding out her hoof. The Doctor walked over and took it in his own. Her horn started to glow, and she felt the familiar feeling of teleporting come over her. She picture Rainbow in her mind, and she felt the floor disappear. Only, this time, she didn’t feel it reappear. She found that she had teleported five feet off the ground. She fell to earth with a loud thud. Groaning, she picked herself up. Rainbow was floating a few feet away from her, smiling sheepishly. “I guess I should have been on the ground.” Twilight nodded. “What is it? What is so bad?” Rainbow’s expression changed up instantly. She pointed at a spot a few feet away, in the center of the clearing she now found herself in. “There. but let me warn you, it might come as a shock. Fluttershy passed out when she saw it.” Twilight nodded, walking in the direction that Rainbow had pointed. She continued walking, but she didn’t see anything. Then her hoof hit something soft. Looking down, she moved some of the flowers away, and almost had a heart attack. Staring back at her, was the face of a deceased pony. Part 14: Dead End Twilight scrambled back a few steps, a scream caught in her throat. When she had overcome her fright, she turned to Rainbow. “Did you just find this?” She nodded. “Ok, well.” Twilight swallowed. She took another step towards the body, fear scaling down slightly. She brushed some of the flowers away, revealing more of the dead pony. It was a mare, Twilight knew that for sure. But other than that, she had nothing. The pony, a unicorn, had a tinted white coat and a light blue mane. Her mane was pushed back with a purple headband. Her tail was the same color as her mane, with a purple stripe running down the middle, matching the headband. Her front hooves were crossed over her chest, and she had a couple objects tucked under them. Twilight gently pried her front legs apart, freeing the objects. They rolled and landed in the grass next to her. Twilight gingerly picked them up. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. One was a hoof written note, paper still as white as could be. The other, was a syringe, it’s plunger still pushed in. She took a few steps back from the body, the others crowding around her. “Is that what I think it is?” Whooves asked. Twilight nodded, dropping the syringe as if it was burning. She turned to the note, holding it out for everypony to see. She began to read it out loud, her voice growing thicker and thicker as she worked down the page. Hello. I know whoever reads this, will never know me. I will be dead long before anypony wakes up. I am making this in an effort to record exactly what happened here. But all I can saw is that, I don’t know. I woke up, and I tried to find answers. I found none. You can’t say that I didn’t try. If you look, you will find my attempts littering the floor of one of the buildings. There is no way that I will be able to survive, I accepted that fact long ago. I have tried, for the sake of trying, to right the wrongs. But I was unsuccessful. Now, as I feel my sanity starting to slip, I know I must do this, or face something worse. I pray that Celestia does not judge me. I did what I had to. I know I sinned, but I had a reason, and I had no way around it. My life, one that could have been so fruitful on Equestria, was squandered on this ship. I do this now, so that I will not have to pay the price. If somepony ever finds this, and we somehow make it there, bury me next to the ocean. I always loved the beach. I want to be buried on a cliff overlooking the ocean, if possible. That is my dying wish, and I hope that whoever you are, you are able to honor it. I feel the drug taking effect, so I will make this quick. I give you all I have, my hope, and my prayers, that you will someday reach your destination. This is all I have to give, so take them, and, please, treasure them. Cora ~Lyrics...Pendulum-The Island Pt.1: Dawn