KING pushed up harder on U Mad Bro's hull, forcing the ship's bow to pitch upward. Despite the fact the Miranda-class was a starship, Gust had never taken the ship into space, instead preferring to raid neighboring towns on his home planet. The result was that he had no need for the ship's extensively sophisticated life support systems. He had most of the starship's immense power capabilities tied into the weapons, including the artificial gravity. So, as the ship and the ship's bridge continued to rise at an ever-widening angle, he found it difficult to maintain his position at the console.
Holding onto the controls, his legs began to dangle as his view became completely vertical. "I didn't ask for a lift, Blueblood! It's time for you to get off!" Gust targeted the golden Magic Gear with the lower phaser banks, scowling when he saw the ship's lack of nacelles. He got Blueblood in his sights and fired.
Red beams flashed from the ship's lower 'teeth' cannons, firing at Magic Gear KING. The port bank missed widely, scorching empty sky but the starboard one continued swiveling as it fired, aiming closer at Blueblood. The Gear turned and blocked the blast with its hoof, protecting its face and the cockpit. Its left hoof was blasted by the thin beams, scorching it and knocking the Gear back. The sword it held fell to the ground, scorched and melted.
"Gahh!" Blueblood felt the impact in the cockpit but maintained his grip on the controls.
"Hahaha! You underestimate my ship's power, Blueblood!" Gust clapped his claws at his successful attack. "AHHH!!" And immediately fell to the back of the bridge when he let go of the controls. Momentarily unable to reach the controls, Gust was also momentarily unable to control the phasers. The starboard cannon continued firing, passing Blueblood in its arc and vaporizing the port cannon.
"Looks like you do as well, feathered blowhard!" Swinging around, the Gear punched the starboard cannon with its own hoof. Not quite strong enough to crush the phaser bank, it still shorted out its mechanisms, breaking it.
Gust flew back up to the controls and pressed downward. With KING preoccupied, he pushed them forward and leveled the ship out. "This has gone on long enough, princess!" Beak teeth gritted, the griffon keyed the phasers again.
"Weapon systems offline. Please contact a repair technician."
"Rrrrrggg," he growled. "All right, then. That's how it is, I'm taking all of you with me." He transferred all of the ship's power into the engines and pushed forward, angling the ship towards the ground. "Nothing is beyond the reach of Gust Grasp, sky marshal of the griffons!" He aimed the ship's bow at the library and throttled forward.
KING's hooves scraped against the hull plating of the ship, grinding off of the underside of the immense vessel. It slipped away from Blueblood and sped towards the Golden Oaks Library. Blueblood watched as the ship dove, his own stomach sinking just as fast. He knew what he had to do. Gunning the Gear forward, he dove to catch up with it.
Back inside the library, Dan and company burst into the control room. "We're all good, Blueblood! Get clear and we'll blast Grasp outta the sky!"
"I don't think that's gonna work, captain." Blueblood's voice said, sounding strained.
"What's wrong?" Phoenix asked.
"Blueblood, we've got a clear shot! Break off!"
"Can't really do that at the moment…"
"What do you mean?"
"Dan- look!" Twilight pointed at the view screen. The U Mad Bro was aimed right for them but wasn't moving. It was clear to see why; Magic Gear KING was holding onto the top supporting arch that held the photon launcher. Using its own leg jets, the machine was countering the vessel's engines, preventing it from ramming them.
"Blueblood!"
"Fire the cannon! Now!"
"Blueblood, you'll get hit!" Twilight said.
Chrys shook her head. "This gun was made to kill Gears, Bloomers, you'll be vaporized!"
"The thought had occurred to me, yes but if I let go, you'll be destroyed."
"Blueblood…" Shining and Cadence echoed.
"Blueblood, get the hell out of there!" Dan yelled. "We'll ditch the library! Just get out of there!"
"Then there won't be anything left to stop this ship with. No, this is the only option." He gripped the controls tightly, grinding against the force of the other machine. KING was losing the battle to hold the ship in place, its leg jets struggling to maintain the force. "Fire the cannon! Take him out!"
Dan slammed the ion cannon's console with both of his fists.
"Careful," Blast Fuse cautioned. "We just got done fixing that."
"There's got to be some other way!" Dan yelled. "Shield the house and… or we could try to…" his mind raced with the possibilities, searching for an answer. He looked at all of his friends. They stood behind him, the same message in their eyes.
Phoenix stood rigidly next to Dan. The taller human put a hand on his shoulder, his other hand clenched in a ball. Tears fell from Phoenix's tightly closed eyes. "Blueblood…" the lawyer said. "Why are you doing this? What are you trying to prove?!"
"I'm not trying to prove anything, Mr. Wright. This is my decision. I… I don't know if it makes me a hero or not. But I… I thank you, thank you all… for helping me make it."
"Blueblood…"
"Fire…"
"Blueblood!"
"Fire!"
"BLUEBLOOD!!"
"NOWWWW!!!"
Dan hit the button. The cannon fired. A blue bolt of ion energy erupted from the cannon, a massive ray of energy. It struck the U Mad Bro square in the bridge. The ship's power systems all exploded in a shower of sparks. That was the thing with ion weaponry- they were non-lethal to electronic components and only disabled things. They caused no damage… unless damage had already been done.
The engines of the ship exploded and the huge Miranda-class began to tumble through the air, propelled by all of its overloading thrusters. The weapons console Gust Grasp held onto exploding, scorching his talons black. He was blasted to the bridge's ceiling onto his back. The g-forces exerted on him pinned him against the ceiling. As the ship tumbled, he watched as the viewport cracked into static and erupted into flames.
"Well played," Gust said. "Well played… Zen, if you can hear this, they got me. They're clever, more clever than I or any of us realized. I may have been a bit overconfident… but they're definitely more crafty than we thought," he smiled. "They got me, Zen. You're up next, general. Good luck- you're gonna need it."
Elite Bosses
The Invisible Raider- Sky Marshal Gust Grasp
The Invincible General- General Zen Zeal
The Indecipherable Spy- Admiral Sonar Scope
The Breaker of Harmony's Balance- Vice Grip
Darkest Threat- The Director
"Brace! EVERYBODY BRACE!!" Dan yelled.
The ship's bow dipped low at the treehouse, too low. Shining, Twilight, all those that could produce a shield did and summoned one just before the front of the U Mad Bro could hit the library. It bounced off the final fluffy shield, grazing it but not breaking it. The ship continued tumbling end over end. Powerless, Magic Gear KING clung to the ship's bar, blocking any attempts to fire stray photon torpedoes with its own body.
The ship tumbled into the Everfree Forest, breaking through the tree line. It broke through dozens of trees, finally scraping against the ground. KING did not let go of the stabilizer bar. The Gear was smashed into the dirt between the weight of the ship and the ground. It exploded, breaking off the ship's bar. The U Mad Bro's bow plunged into the dirt and broke off, tearing the entire ship in half. It finally came to a rest somewhere in the Everfree Forest, quite near where Dan first landed and exploded in a ball of fire.
The explosion of the cruiser was massive. It could easily be seen from Canterlot and might even have gotten close to Cloudsdale- had there still been a Cloudsdale for it to get close to. The force of the blast was so powerful it rocked the Golden Oakes but did no damage.
Dan and company were huddled together and held each other tightly until they were all sure it was safe. Then, they held each other for several long moments after just because.
"Everybody okay?" Dan asked.
"We're okay," Chrys answered. "We're all here."
None of them said a word after that. They all bolted out the door as quickly as they could. They ran, flew as fast as they could. They didn't stop until they reached the crash site.
The Everfree Forest, as thick as it was with magic foliage, provided a stable buffer zone between the fire and the town. Derpy and Rogue Squadron quickly went to work dousing flames and dropping water on the fire. Even as Dan and friends arrived, the flames were already contained.
"I don't see it," Dan said, looking around the wreckage.
"Don't see what?"
"Kingsley, I don't see Kingsley yet."
"Here- wait! Here it is!" Shining said, holding up something. "Or… at least here's part of it." It was a golden panel, part of the Gear's armor.
"Back here! There's more of it back here!" Twilight called.
They picked through the parts and pieces of the ship's stabilizer bar, finally finding Magic Gear KING. The remains of the robot were burned and still burning, only small parts of its golden hide still showing through the flames. Fluffle Puff couldn't look at it. Chrys held her.
"He… he couldn't have survived that," Shining said. "Blueblood… he sacrificed his life to save us all."
"I… he…" Dan stammered. He was overcome with emotions he seldom felt in small amounts. Now, they were coming in droves, flooding his entire body. A single tear rolled down his cheek. He was at a complete loss for words. He balled his hands, broke down to his knees and yelled,
"BLUEBLOOD!!!!!"
A voice echoed back. "What?!" They all looked up in its direction, back to the remains of the burning ship. "Did you really think you could get rid of me that easily?"
Bruised, blackened and mane a disheveled mess, Blueblood walked out from the flaming wreckage with a beaten Gust Grasp on his back. The ship exploded behind him as he walked, blowing his hair to one side.
"Blueblood!!" they all yelled. The entire group ran up to him.
The prince huffed. "I hope everybody got a good look at that… because I have no intention of ever doing it again."
"Bloomers, you pompous SOB," Dan slapped him on the back.
"AUGH! Please… no touching," Blueblood winced.
Twilight gave him a hug. "Blueblood, you really had us worried there. But you saved us! You saved Ponyville, you saved Equestria, you saved, well, everypony!"
The prince gave her a modest smile. "Twas a group effort, your highness. We all played our part for princess and country."
"And it was a huge effort," Phoenix said. "You helped us out in a huge way, Blueblood. You were a real hero."
"Eeyep," Dan nodded, slapping him on the back again and making him wince. "Ya really saved our hay bacon back there, Bloomy. Thanks for taking one for the team… in more ways than one." For some reason, Chrys started drooling at the sound of that.
"Hooray…" a dazed Gust Grasp said, strapped to Blueblood's back. "The Powerpuff Girls saved the day again! Woo~"
"Would someone please get him off my back?" Blueblood asked.
Phoenix and Dan obliged, removing the incapacitated griffon.
"Thanks," Blueblood said, smiling. "Now if you don't mind, I think I'll pass out." Before they could say anything else, the prince teetered to one side and collapsed. High above them, the All of My Yes slowly edged into view.
So, is Dan voicing his vendetta to the world or what?
7235919 He didn't really know any other way to express himself.
The Boss Announcement System reminds me of a certain game, but it's under my tongue...
7235970 The bosses were alluded to in another chapter. Now, we know what Dan will be facing next.
Everyone, Blueblood did something amazing.
So that means theres noone at the defence controls?
Someones about to Tirek the Golden Oakes.
Well, at least Blueballs saved Grasp. Poor Reliant, though.
... All of my yes is the humongous main ship of the armada, isn't it?
Wait, coming to think of it, what happened to Reliant's shields? I don't remember them ever coming into play.
7236003 Blueblood's sword broke through them. OP x 10 And yeah, Yessy's the big gal of the fleet, the carrier. I almost want to say super carrier but I think we need to design a few more ships before we start making super versions. Not that that won't be done, just that there are steps first.
7236001 The Golden Oakes will always have defenders.
7236022 Came close but she survived. She's more valuable than the others and captained by a cautious and heavy-drinking griffon who acts more like a hotel owner than a commander. Gusty ordered her and a couple escorts to fall back so they were over Canterlot while Dan and company essentially played Missile Command with the rest of his fleet. The missile that attracted all the trained parasprites hit the Yes's escorts and blew up, incinerating all the sprites and taking out one of the escorts but there's still one left along with the Yes.
The rest of the fleet landed briefly before releasing the parasprites and Derpy destroyed them all with a massive pair of comically oversized dentures in a style similar to Pac Man. Rogue Squadron blew up the rest with lasers. Really, freaking cool lasers. So there's like two or three ships left including the Yes.
We have plans for the survivors and the Yes.
7236009
Watch out for calling things super carriers. After all, If a normal water ship carrier a thousand foot long can have a thousand crew, then something ten times the Scale, can have a Million crew. And many fictional supercarriers are much bigger than 2 miles long. If you dont carry tat many crew, its because you are carrying fusion reactors or weapons mass, such as a couple hundred rounds of ton weight 18 inch shells or more likely 100 km/s plus rail gun slugs.
Once you get into the mile range, you can start to use Plumbob cannon. Or Verne cannon, or Clarke Cannon, or Orion Cannon, depending on where you first saw the use of a tactical nuclear warhead being used as the propulsion charge for a ton or so of tungsten. Call it a low end BOLO. Or, just use the scale up, add fusion reactor magnetic confinement to the barrels and have reactor banks that you cycle thrugh the breach as propulsion or direct plasma emmision. If you texture the barrels correctly you wont even have to add complex dynamic plasma modulation in order to cause phase coherent conversion up to neuron and gamma levels.
A rough guide is, a ship just over a mile long can carry a brute force Star Hammer, and a ship ten times the scale size is big enough to carry the population of a planet in stasis. And still be small enough that landing it on its tail in the ocean has a good chance of its nose not sticking above the water.
I really should try having more than 5 hours sleep before thinking about such things. I get carried away and remember the stuff in The Vault.
7199342 Bro, have you even played Trials and Tribulations?
OOooohoohoohooo, glorious chapter well done man, well done!
Hahahah, full o laughes and pure awesomeness, as always~
7238010 What specifically made you laugh if you don't mind me asking? Was it funnier than the last two or not as much? And thank you, as always, you're an inspiration. In fact, we concocted a nice little surprise for you based on that inspiration involving a certain pair of mares… which will be elaborated upon very, very soon.
7238394
Hehehe, when Gust clapped his claws and flew back and when he said, and I quote:
Hahahaha, hearing about those three takes me back to when Cartoon on TV were actually good.
Hahah, so nice job well done! It was certainly funny, as for the last two, hell it was about the same, maybe more, I was feeling like laughing today, hahah. Inspiration? Aww, warms me heart Barro~ thank'ee~
Oh? Really? That makes me very giddy and happy~
Keep it up man!
Darn it I missed the Saturday chapter post! Oh well, better late than even. Now:
WHAT?! Not Bloomers! Nooo! Sweet Celestia, Luna and Almighty Faust! No! *begins bawling eyes out* TT--TT wait! *reads rest of chapter* YES!!! Also:
Oh BlueBlood you wonderful Colt-Princess I love you
But Gust didn't go down with his ship ... does this mean a possible boss rematch later? Also who's flying All of my Yes? I thought Zen and his troops were being slow roasted in Saddle Arabia? Oh I don't even care! You're on a role team! Ponies (and miscellaneous other species) Assemble!
Thanks again for another AWESOME boss battle, yours are always 120% cooler than any other boss battle (except maybe Malus from SotC that motherbucker was big!)Bloomers redeemed himself and now I can watch more stuff go boom!
Awesome as always and can't wait for more ^_^