Chapter 8 - A Little Trouble
Octavia took a deep breath before allowing herself to collapse onto one of the cockpit’s benches. It felt good to still be breathing.
“Are you feeling okay, Miss Octavia?” Ditzy asked, hopping onto the bench beside her. Or, at least, she tried to. The pegasus’ back hooves did not make it all the way onto the bench, forcing her to scramble desperately to avoid falling.
Octavia gave her a moment to actually situate herself on the bench before she answered, “As well as can be expected.”
“And your friend?”
“The same. She was probably already exhausted from fighting Trixie and helping me to the docks, and then our departure ended up being quite...” she trailed off, not wanting to be too rude.
“Exciting? Thrilling?”
“Harrowing,” she finally admitted. “It was probably just too much for her. I know it was nearly too much for me.”
The pegasus tapped her forehead with her hoof and stuck her tongue out. “That’s fair! But you have to admit, I did get us out of there in one piece!” She must have caught Octavia staring at the console whose front panel had fallen off, because she quickly added, “I broke that last week, so it doesn’t count!”
Despite everything, a quiet chuckle escaped from Octavia.
“Got you to laugh again!” Her voice softened and the cheery imbecility fled her face as she spoke up again, “Now that we’re clear of Manehattan, do you think you could you tell me what happened to Flash?”
The dull thrum of the ship’s engines filled the space left by Octavia’s silence. She wondered if the two pegasi had been friends. “I... am not absolutely sure,” she finally mumbled, staring at the ship’s scuffed and battered floor. “We ran into some trouble and then... then we... then we got separated.”
The pegasus’ smile returned, as if trying to coax the words out of Octavia. “I may seem a little silly, but I’m not stupid. Is he dead?”
Octavia cringed, unable to look up from the floor. She had not expected the question to arrive so bluntly. “I don’t know. He might be.”
“But you don’t know for sure?”
“No. Commander Lulamoon knocked him off one of the tiers. I know he’s a pegasus, but the spell she used… he might not even have been conscious after he got hit.”
“Oh, is that all?” Ditzy asked, her mellow smile brightening, “ I’m sure he’s fine then. Flash is really tough! You should have seen some of the accidents he got into at the Wonderbolts Academy, especially when he was partnered with me! But, no matter what happened, he always managed to walk away.” She glanced at the ceiling thoughtfully. “Well. Not always walk. He had to crawl away in a couple cases and roll away at least once, but you get the idea.”
Octavia searched Ditzy’s face for any sign of the pony who had just asked her point-blank if Flash was dead, but gave up. At the moment, the pegasus just looked even more pleased with herself than even Vinyl tended to.
“You still want to go to Ponyville Station, right?”
“Well, probably,” Octavia started, taken aback by the sudden change of tracks, “But are you sure you—”
“Yes!” the pegasus interrupted. “I agreed to deliver you to your destination! As a professional courier, I can’t very well abandon my job right after starting it, can I?”
“Yes. Yes you can.”
That caused Ditzy to pause for a long moment before breaking into laughter. “Well, you got me there. I technically can. But I won’t! I have a reputation to maintain!” She spread her wings suddenly, almost hitting Octavia on the snout, and continued, “Ditzy Doo: She always delivers! Eventually! I’m not going to let a little trouble ruin that.”
“It is more than just a ‘little trouble,’” Octavia grumbled, choosing to not bring up the Element of Loyalty that the pegasus had accidentally burdened her with. “Are we even going to be able to dock at Ponyville Station after what you did? I have to imagine that every station in the Empire is just waiting for your registration number to show up in their systems so they can be the lucky ones to arrest us.”
“Oh, that? That’s not a problem. Drifter here has, like, a dozen different reg numbers it can display. As long as I remember which one I used in Manehattan, that shouldn’t be a problem.”
“It… what?”
“Private couriers have to be really careful, because ponies tend to use us for jobs they don’t want going through the Empire’s couriers. So, reg masks, departure hacks, and all that is kind of important!” Sheepishly, she added, “Plus I’ve accidentally broken a few docking clamps, and, while I’m really, really sorry about it, I really, really can’t afford to replace them.”
Staring, mouth agape, seemed like the right reaction. It made sense that the shuttle that the pilot taking them to Ponyville Station would be one willing to take on what was, essentially, smuggling. But that did not make it any less surprising to hear her admit it so brazenly.
Ditzy stifled a yawn with one of her wings, her smile turning apologetic. “Oh, excuse me! I guess time is finally catching up with me.” She glanced over at the flickering consoles, then nodded. “We’re still on track for Ponyville Station, so why don’t you go make yourself home while I take a nap? You’ve already seen the passenger cabins, the bathroom thing is right by them, there’s a little kitchen-slash-dining area down the hall, this is the cockpit-slash-meeting room, and that’s probably everywhere on the ship that’d interest you!”
“Do you know how long it will be until we reach Ponyville?”
“Two more jumps should get us there, so forty-eight hours or so?” She must have noticed Octavia’s displeasure as she continued, “Sorry! Drifter’s got an old jump drive, so it takes a while to recharge.”
A number of questions floated to the top of Octavia’s mind, but she quashed them. Councilor Shimmer had vetted this captain, and, more to the point, even if she was actually untrustworthy or incompetent, Octavia had exactly zero options aside from riding it out until they reached Ponyville Station.
Besides, as odd as the pegasus was, Octavia could not deny that she had gotten them off the station. It just took effort to reconcile that competence with the image of the clumsy pegasus who had dropped the Element of Loyalty into her life.
“That is fine. And thank you.”
“No problem! If you need anything, just come bother me up here, okay?” Ditzy said, stretching out on the bench.
Heading back into the belly of the ship, Octavia nudged open the door to the cabin she had left Vinyl in.
The mare sat up on one of the room’s three wall-mounted beds, staring resolutely at her own hooves. While Octavia couldn’t see Vinyl’s face, she could see her trembling slightly, her ears and tail twitching whenever the engine’s rhythm changed.
“Are you okay, Vinyl?”
“Great! Fantastic!” she said with forced cheer, turning just enough to see Octavia out of the corner of her eye. She shuddered as the ship bounced, squeezing her eyes shut. “Totally awesome!” she squeaked.
Despite everything that had happened, a tiny smile crept across Octavia’s muzzle. She knew it was cruel, but the fact that the seemingly unflappable Vinyl Scratch apparently had a weakness somehow comforted her. “Not a fan of shuttles?”
“Y-you think?” Vinyl growled, the sudden ferocity surprising Octavia. “Buck me, this was a stupid bucking idea.” Another tiny rumble caused her to hunker even lower.
“It was,” Octavia said softly, laying a hoof on her back. “In fact, that seems to be the gold standard for your ideas.”
The mare laughed weakly.
“Still, I am glad you showed up when you did. What were you even doing there?”
Vinyl seemed to relax a little under the pressure from Octavia’s hoof. “I was looking for you. Lyra… Lyra told me what you were doing, the whole helping Shimmer find the rest of those rocks thing, so I decided I’d help you.”
“Why?”
“‘Cause that’s what good friends do: help when you’re in a jam.”
“Then you have a very different understanding of that word than I do.” She sighed, staring at the mare’s back and trying to sort through the emotions swelling inside her. “You do know you are in this as deep as I am now, right?”
Vinyl offered her another uneasy – nearly manic – laugh. “Well, hey, at least you’ll have a friend in Everfree? Maybe they’ll even let us share the same cell!”
Octavia stared intently at Vinyl’s mane and sighed, but her smile lingered. “I need to let Councilor Shimmer know what happened. Do you think you could help me figure out the tablet she gave me?”
“Sure. Probably.” She blanched and curled up a little tighter as the ship groaned. “I might get sick all over the pad, but as long as you’re cool with that, I can probably help.”
~~~~~
Lyra couldn’t sleep. Despite the distinct lack of caffeine or sugar in her body, she still felt wired. Thrashing about under her sheets, counting sheep, reading a book, and even staring vacantly at the ceiling failed to help. Ultimately, no matter what she tried, her mind kept returning to the challenges that bearers of the Elements of Harmony had faced in the past.
With a sigh, she crawled out of bed, struggling to find somewhere she could actually feel carpet.
Manipulating Vinyl had been depressingly simple. Lyra had half-expected her words to just roll off her old friend, but no. Barely five minutes after leaving Vinyl’s unit, she’d seen her run out the door and sprint for the lifts.
She told herself it was for the best, but part of her wished Vinyl had been the same lazy, self-absorbed mare that she had known. If that were the case, maybe she’d be able to sleep.
She flicked on her console’s screen, cringing as the brilliant light temporarily blinded her, filling her head with thoughts of a sun she had never seen. Rubbing her eyes with her hooves, she forced the thoughts to the back of her mind.
Focus on the world around you, not the magic messing with your head.
After she had gotten home, she had spent her time researching all the ways that the Elements of Harmony had been used in the past, referencing as many sources as possible. At the least, since the hallucinations had started, the feeling that the books were trying to hide things from her had faded.
Which, in retrospect, might not actually be a good thing.
She shook her head. Focus!
The Elements always seemed to end up being used to purge or purify creatures that threatened the safety of ancient Equestria. Nightmare Moon. Discord. Tirek. Every story that featured the Elements followed the same basic structure: a bad thing appears, the Elements appear, and then the chosen ponies use the Elements to defeat the evil abomination.
Which is exactly what worried her.
Her hooves tapped on the desk as she read the entries for the dozenth time, the text refusing to lead her to a different conclusion. Whenever the Elements appeared, it was because Equestria had been in danger and their power was needed to stop it.
Lyra laid her head on the desk and sighed.
Sombra wanted them for whatever plots he was hatching. Shimmer wanted them because Sombra wanted them. But neither of them actually needed the Elements: they just wanted new toys to use in their stupid power struggles. The significance of the Elements’ appearance, the ponies who were supposed to carry them, the implications that rose from them even existing… they didn’t care about any of it.
If somepony was going to make sure the Elements stayed safe and were used correctly, it apparently had to be her. The only problem was that it meant she was going to have to outplay the councilors at a game they’d already crushed her in, and she would have to do it on her own.
Her eyes caught the messenger window where she still had Hooves’ network address saved.
It was a long shot, but what did she have to lose? The stallion had certainly seemed sympathetic towards Octavia and Vinyl, he seemed to understand the Council, and he either knew something about covert operations or had watched far, far too many spy vids.
After quickly composing the message and sending it on its way, she laid on the cushion, wondering if her brain would finally give in to exhaustion. Unfortunately, just as she settled comfortably into her new position, the console chimed, causing her to sit bolt upright. A new message already? She hastily brought it up.
Madam Lyra Heartstrings-
Your presence is requested at the office of Councilor Sombra tomorrow afternoon. Please respond to this message at your earliest convenience so that we can arrange an exact time for the meeting.
We appreciate your swift response.
She stared at her screen, her mouth hanging open and her tail swishing manically. The immediate question was what kind of slave driver was Sombra to have his staff still working at this hour, but it was drowned out quickly by more relevant thoughts. Why did Sombra want to talk to her? Did he suspect she was working with Shimmer? Did he know that she knew about Octavia and the Element of Loyalty?
She ruffled her mane desperately with her hooves, trying to think, a strangled noise escaping from her throat. She wanted to scream that things could not possibly get worse, but challenging the universe at this moment seemed like a bad idea.
Turning the invitation down wouldn’t work, but it was difficult to imagine any conversation with Sombra going well. On the other hoof, he could probably just send the Council Guard to drag her if he really wanted to talk, so, despite knowing Shimmer would chew her out for it, replying was probably in her best interest.
A glance at the clock told her it was nearly five in the morning.
She needed to think things through, but that was growing increasingly difficult. The right thing to do at this moment was hold off on replying until she could talk to Shimmer. The more open and straightforward she was, the more likely it was that Shimmer would continue to trust her. The more Shimmer trusted her, the easier it would be to get Shimmer to do exactly what she wanted.
She didn’t know if Shimmer would pick up a direct call this early, but Lyra did know she tended to work late and rise early, so it was worth a shot.
To her surprise it only took a few seconds for Shimmer’s image to appear on the screen, looking only slightly less haggard than Lyra, her mane in uncharacteristic disarray and her coat strangely scruffy. “What is it?” she growled.
“I just got a message from Sombra’s office. He wants to talk with me tom— later today.”
Magic flared around Shimmer’s horn and, for just a moment, it looked like she might destroy her tablet and the table it was resting on. “That smug, self-serving, bull-headed… he has been playing with me this whole time!” she snarled, slamming her hoof into the table. “Damn him straight to Tartarus! I am not going to lose!”
Lyra stared vacantly at the screen. That reaction was a little more extreme than expected. “Are you okay?”
Shimmer took a deep breath, the swirling energy around her horn dissipating. “No. I got a message from Octavia a little while ago. Trixie ambushed them. Apparently she had been watching my home for the last several days in case I did something stupid like listen to you and let Octavia out and the Element out of my sight.”
A cold chill ran down Lyra’s spine. Perhaps they had both been taking Sombra too lightly. If he really ordered surveillance on Shimmer’s home, than he wasn’t that afraid of the Council or the public turning against him. If he ever felt comfortable enough to drop the gentlepony mask and act directly against them, than all the plots in the universe weren’t going to save them. “But they did get off the station?”
“The groundling got off the station. Flash didn’t.”
“Is he…?” she trailed off.
“I don’t know. Maybe. I haven’t heard from him. I’m just going to have to hope that he manages to drag himself into a clinic somewhere.” Shimmer’s eyes dropped to the floor, but the moment of weakness vanished as her hooves slammed onto the table again. “Celestia damn Sombra and his pet guard!”
“Well, if Octavia got off the station then we’ve still got something over him, right? He wouldn’t have had to set Trixie up like that if he knew exactly what we were planning.”
She sighed. “Right. And he wouldn’t have just asked to talk to you.”
Lyra nodded vaguely, her throat tightening. She wouldn’t put it past him to invite her for a pleasant chat and then arrest her the moment she set a hoof outside his door. From everything she had ever seen, Sombra was all smiles and friendliness right until the moment where he went for your throat. “What do you think I should do?”
“Go talk to him. You don’t really have a choice in the matter, do you?”
“No, I guess not.”
“And don’t even think of trying to sell me out to him, Lyra.”
Gritting her teeth, Lyra glared at the monitor. “What?”
“I’m just warning you: if you even think about trying to cut a deal with him, I’ll make sure you regret it. You’re in this as deep as I am, and I still have a lot more friends in the Empire than you. If this goes bad, I’m not going to be the one left drifting.”
Sombra did have that going for him: he at least dangled a carrot in front of you. Shimmer seemed to prefer just using the stick. Swallowing the bile she wished she could hurl at Shimmer, she said, “All I want is to find the Elements and make sure they’re used correctly.”
“Good. Call me when you get back from your meeting. I’ll let Fancy Pants know what’s happening and see if we can’t come up with some counterplay.” The call disconnected before Lyra could get another word in edgewise, leaving her staring at the black screen.
Her hooves shook, though she couldn’t decide whether it was because she was afraid of what the next few hours held or because she was furious. If anypony was going to go crawling to Sombra, Lyra would bet everything she owned on it being Shimmer. The idea that that pony had friends was laughable: to her, everypony was either a tool to be used or an obstacle to be overcome.
Rubbing her eyes with the back of her leg, she ran through the conversation one more time. Octavia and the Element of Loyalty were probably safe for the moment, as was her destination. Vinyl remained a mystery, though. She hoped the mare had managed to find Octavia, but it didn’t seem like Octavia’s message had mentioned her. That could go either way.
Lyra yawned hugely, her jaw cracking.
She hastily composed a response to the message from Sombra’s office, letting them know that she was available to speak anytime after two. It gave her a few more hours to try and get some sleep, or, failing that, get food, get cleaned up, and pretend to be a civilized member of society instead of a mare teetering on the edge of a breakdown.
~~~~~
Vinyl glared at one of the cabin’s running lights. Despite keeping her ears flat against her skull, the old light’s faint hum found a way into her ears. It was the perfect icing on her misery cake.
“This was so bucking stupid,” she mumbled to herself for about the thousandth time since she’d gotten on the ship, trying to drown the noise out. She’d been pretty awesome when she totally managed to save Octavia and give Trixie a much deserved flank kicking, but now…
Her stomach rolled and her heart pounded as the ship trembled.
“Hey, Oct… Tavi, you awake?” she asked, raising her voice slightly.
The mare on the bed across the narrow cabin grunted and stirred. Even in the dim light, the flicking of her ears was easy to see. “No,” she muttered.
“Sorry, j-just can’t s-sleep,” she said, trying to keep the tremor out of her voice.
“Neither can I, apparently,” Octavia grumbled, shifting slightly before finally raising her head.
“I seriously screwed up, huh? Not even like, five hours into joining you on some epic, awesome quest and I’m a total wreck.” She sighed, trying to force a smile. “Pretty bucking embarrassing, huh?”
“Yes.” Her voice softened as she continued, “But, then again, you did manage to look almost competent while dealing with Commander Lulamoon. That probably balances out against a little space sickness.”
Vinyl laughed weakly. “Yeah. Every amazing hero has gotta have some sorta weakness, right?” Like not being able to stop shaking since I realized we were off the station. “Since you owe me for saving your flank again, you can’t tell anypony about it, ‘kay?”
“No promises.” Yawning, Octavia rubbed her eyes with the back of her foreleg and asked, “So is there anything I can do to help?”
“Prolly not.” Vinyl dangled her hoof over the edge of the bed, watching Octavia blink blearily in the cabin’s faint light. It felt stupid complaining about all this, but talking helped distract her. “I usually just pop a Lunasta, throw on a vid or some music, and zonk out whenever it happens.” After a moment of judgmental silence, she added, “I just don’t usually sleep super well, okay?”
“You seemed to sleep just fine at Hooves’ home.”
“Well, you know, I was sorta concussed and high. Besides, even when that started to wear off, you were…” Vinyl trailed off, realizing how dumb the end of that statement was going to sound.
“I was…?” Octavia prompted impatiently.
“It was just easier to fall asleep when you were laying next to me,” she mumbled, embarrassment somehow managing to briefly overtake her discomfort. “It just sorta helps to know somepony is there and all.”
Octavia made a sound that sounded distressingly close to a suppressed laugh.
“Forget it,” Vinyl grumbled. “There are two passenger cabins, right? I’ll go sit up and entertain myself in the other so you can—” She stopped dead as Octavia slid off of her own bed, grabbed her tablet, and then put a hoof on Vinyl’s bed.
“Scoot over a little,” she commanded.
“Huh?”
“Scoot.” She nudged Vinyl in the side for emphasis as she continued, “It will be a little cramped, but you are probably more comfortable to lean against than the ship’s wall anyway.”
“Oh. Uh. Okay.” Vinyl pressed herself against the wall, providing just enough room for the two to fit on the bed. She could feel her face heating up as Octavia’s body pressed against her. Was Octavia teasing her? Because this was way less fun than when she did it.
It took a few moments of fidgeting before they were both satisfied, after which Octavia pushed the tablet forward and leaned it against the head of the bed where Vinyl could reach it. “There. Better?”
“I… y-yeah.”
Yawning, Octavia laid her head down and closed her eyes. “Good. Then you should try to sleep. You can put on music or something if you would like, but try not to pick something too awful, please.”
“Thanks, Tavi.”
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Huh?
Science Fiction with technicolor ponies?
I am intrigued.
This goes straight on my Read Later list.
Will write more, after I had the time to actually read it.
Once, a century or three ago, there was sea sickness. Coupla groggy pirates. Just a few dozen decades ago, though, carriages were coming. Good times. Well, there were shootouts and all, but you know. Then I remember cars... Little lazy, but they work. Now we got planes. Still having a hard time with that one, but it's fast.
But you gotta let me on that carrier! Space! Space sickness! Is that a thing? I bet it is, but space! FINALLY!
*breaks reality and boards shuttle*
Alright, what's the big... Oh no. No no no. It's a thing. Oh Celestia, it's really a thing.
*thud* Help. *engine starts*
Oops.
Interesting developments with Sombra. I'm looking forward to the next one. So far this chapter upped my suspicion of Lyra as the new element of magic.
Why does this story not have more likes and views!?
Okay, with that out of the way...I really like the universe you've set up here. Your environments are written well and immersive, the characters are believable and the tension is still real. I love this interaction between Tavi and Vinyl. I don't really trust Sunset at this point, but that may change.
Also, you won't believe how badly I want to hoofpunch Sombra right in his big, fat muzzle right now.
Anyways, liked and followed.
Mmm. This is getting ever more interesting! Element of Laughter = Ditzy? Looking forward to seeing the secrets of the space stations revealed..... :D
I am really liking this story.
I eagerly await the next chapter.
So...
Time for Doctor to the rescue?
Still not sure who would be honesty. Shimmer is too much of a dick to be an EoH.
On that note, I haven't seen some new ponies in space epics for far too long. Last big one was Outside the Reaching Sky, Sufficiently Advanced, Heart of Courage. I've been thinking of writing one myself, but haven't gotten a good plot line yet.
Ergo: I love you
Also, Ditzy is awesome.
Sorry. Been a bit lazy about responding to all the wonderful comments I've been getting lately. Job hunting has had me down. Let's catch up a bit, shall we?
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(and anyone else I might have missed, my apologies!)
Well, obviously it'd be a little unfair if I joined in this style of discussion, but I must say: speculation brings me a surprising amount of joy. It is fun to read.
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I'd say give me time to actually finish the story first. I might want to do a sequel! :p That said, feel free to do your own pone sci-fi story and borrow inspiration/ideas. You'd be amazed at the number of sources I borrowed from to develop the setting and plot here.
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Hopefully you enjoy it!
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Self-Deprecating and Sympathy Eliciting (But Still Half-Serious) Answer: Because I'm not a very good writer . =(
That aside, the Venn Diagram where Romance, Adventure, Alternate Universe Sci-Fi, and Background Pone Love probably has an unsurprisingly small overlap. The sentiment is super appreciated, though <3. And hey. Almost at 1K views and 100 likes. Those are pretty awesome milestones to be approaching.
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Thanks! =)
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Glad I could fill that literary gap for you! Hopefully the story lives up to your expectations!
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How did you get those symbols there? They aren't part of the smiley list.
They look like they're from the image options for bookshelves.
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dl.dropbox.com/u/31471793/FiMFiction/Spike_lolface.png?wrap=true roundstable.com/forums/images/smilies/excite.gif
Glad you asked!
https://www.fimfiction.net/user/Sollace
^ That guy has made userscripts (major one Fimfiction Advanced) that adds a bit of extra functionality to ol' Fimfiction, including extra emotes if you want them.
It also streamlines importing images from Font Awesome, which is apparently where Knighty got a lot of his book shelf images from.
Lyra! Suddenly shoot Sombra in the face! They never suspect that!
It's always worked for me, like when I ran out of change in the laundromat that one time...
Despite keeping her ears
flatflat against her skullwhen she totally managed to save Octavia’s
1. Extra Flat.
2. Octavia.
it only took a few seconds for Shimmer’s image appeared on the screen (replace for with before)
Lyra’s yawned hugely, her jaw cracking. (Replace Lyra's with Lyra)
Great. Now you've got me shipping Trixie and Sombra.