Fly-Along
The next day, Aurora was sitting in Career Sciences Class, having a staring contest with the clock. The class orientated ponies various jobs aboard Navis 7. For ponies who didn't know what they wanted to do when they got out of school. It was a decently interesting class. Though for ponies like Aurora who had already fixated on a job, it was a big waste of time.
The teacher explained the role each species generally kept to on the ship. Earth ponies and unicorns helped with the basic survival of the ponies aboard. Earth ponies planted, while an automated system watered them with condensed air fed in from the outside. The earth ponies would go in and harvest, replant, and repeat. Unicorns tended to use their magic for more delicate tasks or to improve the ship. They would make fine products and help construct buildings, or they would help in the labs as researchers. On of their biggest projects was creating an efficient automated de-icing system for the ship. The only job that required Pegasi was the manual de-icing of the envelope of Navis 7, the rest held mundane, everyday jobs. When ponies used to live on the ground all those years ago, pegasi controlled the weather to feed crops. Now it was almost completely automated. Researchers were trying to figure out how to duplicate earth pony magic to finish the automation process. So most pegasi never even had a reason to fly. The Overseer put flight restrictions on them for 'safety reasons' so that they wouldn't constantly crash into one another. With the exception of those who worked out their wings and were on the external teams, a pegasus would hardly ever use their wings.
Census reports from the Navis fleet showed that the number of pegasi had been slowly dropping over the generations since the ships took to the air. No pony seemed to have a logical answer. All that was said was that they "weren't needed as much" anymore. Researchers were trying to figure out why their numbers were dropping.
Navis 7 had the lowest population in the fleet. In Aurora's class of fifty-eight students, only seven of them were pegasi. The Navis Project may have saved ponydom, but pegasi were slowly becoming an endangered species.
One by one, the class was asked where their interests laid or what they wanted to do. There were doctors, lawyers, firefighters, security, teachers, farmers; all the jobs you'd expect. Buck said that he wanted to be an astronomer, while Rose wanted to be an author.
Then came Aurora's turn. "I want to be on the AIR Team," she said. Probably at least half of the class snickered at her answer.
"A-A-A-A-AIR Team?" the teacher stuttered. "Miss Aurora, that's the most dangerous job on the ship. Perhaps you'd be more suited to being a waitress or librarian? You could carry trays and books with your wings!"
Aurora kept her physical bearing, but emotionally her jaw dropped. Her teach had essentially told her to aspire to nothing. If they were equal in age and authority, Aurora was liable to have slapped her. Not feeling like getting into another argument about job equality, Aurora sat in fuming silence. She could see Crystal Star out the corner of her eye, making snickering motions. The gray coated brat said she wanted to become the Overseer, to which the teacher said that was an admirable and innovative goal to set. Words that almost made Aurora sick.
On the wall hung an aging map of the world, drawn in a time when ponies lived there. Now that they were eternally in the skies. One would think it would be a pegasus' dream. For Aurora, it was a cage.
And Crystal Star liked to rattle it.
"You, on the AIR Team?" she hissed. Unfortunately she sat next to Aurora in this class. "Ha, the only thing your wings are good for are quills."
"The only thing you're good for is carbon dioxide production for the plants," Aurora retorted. Her response managed to shut the mare up long enough for the bell to ring, dismissing the students to their next class. Proving the stuck up pony wrong, Aurora unfurled her wings, hovering above the flood of ponies trying to leave.
Rose, Buck, and Aurora all had biology next. There they were taught about pony physiology, different cells and their parts, viruses, diseases, etceteras. Focus was spent on understanding the disease the forced ponies into the skies as a civilization in the first place.
It laid dormant for weeks with no symptoms. After that, you would think whoever was infected simply had the flu or the cold. In pegasi, their feathers would molt away one by one when eventually they could no longer fly or walk on clouds. Unicorns magic became weaker until they could do little more than give out a tiny spark of magic. Earth ponies were more clumsy, then they'd lose the ability to walk. Everypony affected would gradually become more tired and sleep through more hours. After three weeks, they'd fall asleep at night and slip into a coma. Approximately a week after that, their hearts would give out its last pulse.
The disease spread quickly through the air. Medicines and magic failed to stop it. It had already spread to every part of the world before it was noticed. Not even the alicorn princesses were able to stop it. They too eventually succumbed to the illness. Before she died, Princess Celestia commissioned the Navis project. She used the last of her magic to spin the entire planet, so that they day/night cycle could continue with out her. Luna did a similar thing, but so that the moon rotated around the planet.
"...and since then," the teacher continued to explain, "pony kind has survived for generations aboard these ships. Does anypony know why?" Somepony raised their roof. "Yes, you have the answer?"
"Because the air is too cold for the virus to survive?"
"Correct. The weakness was noticed when ponies who lived in the northern plains and at the tops of high mountains didn't get sick. However, the environment was too hostile to sustain larger populations."
"Will a cure be discovered?" a student near the back asked.
"We may only hope at this point. Each Navis ship is equipped with a laboratory dedicated to researching a cure. As technology advances, we get closer to discovering it.
"Are we the only ones left alive?" another student asked.
"Besides the other Navis ships? We believe not. Ground images clearly show vegetation, and we believe there are still indigenous wildlife. As far as sentient life, yes. The dragons and gryphons were hit the hardest. Since the outbreak, they haven't been heard or seen from since." Aurora raised her hoof. "Yes, miss?"
"May I be excused to the restroom?"
"Quickly." Aurora hovered out of her seat, drifting towards the door. "Walk..." She begrudgingly set back down, walking towards the door while grumbling to herself. Once she was in the hall and out of view, she took to the air again. She didn't really need to use the restroom; she just wanted to stretch herself out.
A series of voices reached her ears. Thinking it was a teacher, the pegasus crouched next to a wall, poking around the corner to see who was there. Instead of a teacher, it was Crystal Star. The unicorn was holding a younger, nerdy looking mare upside down by her legs with her magic.
"I told you to bring your lunch money today with you, twerp," she insulted. "Why didn't you bring it?"
"I-I must have forgotten it at home!" the younger pony stammered. "I'll bring it tomorrow, I swear!"
"Assuming you can walk after what I'm going to do to you." With that, Crystal released the foal from her magical grip, dropping her head first. She was just about to kick her in the stomach when Aurora stepped around the corner.
"Hey!" she stopped the rouge unicorn, "knock it off!"
"Why should I?" Crystal Star asked, facing the opposing pegasus. "You're not going to do anything about it. I'll just have you and your family evicted." Aurora steadied her stance, like a track runner waiting for the starting gun to begin the race. "Hay, I'll even have the rotten little brother of yours taken." She flared her wings. "I'm sure you guys will do fine without him, seeing has how you already lost on broth—" The trigger was pulled.
It was Aurora's luck that at that exact moment a teacher happened to emerge from the nearby restrooms. All they saw was the pegasus tackling Crystal Star into the lockers, leaving an imprint of the unicorn in them, and them proceeding to pummel her in the face with her hooves. Within minutes, Aurora found herself sitting in the principal's office with her family on the way. After waiting for an hour, the door opened.
"Thank you for coming, Mr. Aries," the principal said from behind her desk.
He took a seat next to his daughter, who was closely examining the floor in front of her chair.
"Where's mom?" Aurora asked, not daring to look over at him.
"At home," she could tell by his voice that he was trying to keep his bearing. "Cobalt was running a fever. I was helping her take care of him."
"Oh... so the uniform—"
"I had intended to go to work today. Your sister hasn't been acting well, either. Then your brother got sick. Then this. Take a guess on how far I got to work."
"Dad, I'm—"
"What? Sorry? Aurora, you put that foal in the infirmary! Your first hit knocked her unconscious. The other punches resulted in a broken nose! The only reason you're getting any breaks is because the filly she was bullying explained the situation. In any other scenario, you would be charged with aggravated assault and thrown in jail. Do you understand me?"
"Yes, sir..."
"Look at me when you say it." She did as told. His powerful green eyes made her feel very, very small.
"Yes, I understand."
He took a moment to consider her words. "Good." A weight felt like it was lifted off of her shoulders as his gaze was directed back to the principal. "I'll take her from school for the day. Thank you for calling us."
"Not a problem," she nodded. "Aurora is a good student with high ambitions. So long as she keeps her emotions under control."
"Agreed. Come on, we're going." Aries stood up, followed by Aurora. He used his wing to usher her out of the room. She kept her head low as she walked in his shadow through the school's halls. Even once they were out of the school and in the streets she tried her best to stay out of his field of vision. Though there was no escaping it.
They continued on in silence through the wards. Aurora didn't expect her father to say much in the office, not in front of the principal at least. The real chewing would come at home, with her mother at his side, both equally staring her down. At least that's what she thought until they passed their home and continued on to District 1. But they just kept walking...
"Dad?" she kept her head low but still looked up at the side of his head.
"Hm?" he didn't return the glance. The only thing that indicated that he was listening was his flickering ear.
"Where are we going?"
"Don't worry about it." Usually when he said something like that, she did worry.
They came to one of the entrances to the fore-deck. The guards standing at the gate snapped to attention under Aries' presence. Not even bothering to check his pass, one of the guards fumbled to open the gate. The two pegasi entered into the fore-deck's halls, going up and fore ward several levels. A path that Aurora recognized.
In minutes, Aries was leading Aurora through the blue halls of the AIR Team headquarters. Instead of going straight into his office like Aurora had thought, they turned left, heading down another hall that she had only been in a hoof ful of times.
She hadn't been in the crew quarters since her brother had died and they collected his stuff. Now as they walked through the halls, any team member who happened to be there at the time backed against the wall and saluted them as they went by. Some of them Aurora had met before, though she didn't recognize the rookies.
"Dad..." Aurora sighed.
"You'll see. What have I told you about patience?"
"That if you keep it,"
"Good things will follow," the both finished in sync.
"Yes," Aries continued. "All you need to do is wait," he stopped outside a pair of double doors, at the top of which was labeled 'equipment depot', "and good things will come." He pushed the doors open to allow Aurora inside.
Her eyes went wide and her jaw dropped as she took slow steps in. The large, open space was reminiscent of the locker rooms at her school.
Benches sat in the middle of the room on top of wooden floors. Blue double door equipment lockers lined the walls. Tags were attached to the doors with the names of the AIR Team member whose equipment was stored inside. Suits, tools, air tanks, anything that they might need for their job. A few were empty, with blank tags on the front. The doors shut behind her as Aries stepped up to her side. Looking around Aurora noticed it was just them in the depot. No pony, or any sign of pony, was visible. It was just them.
"And your patience has rewarded you," Aries patted his daughter on the back with his wing, pushing her forward slightly.
"I don't get it..."
"Who uses this room?"
"Uh, Team Members obviously."
"Indeed. Then tell me, who all comes in here?"
"AIR Team Members. Dad, this isn't making sense."
"So then why are we here?"
"Because you're an AIR Team Member. The leader, actually."
"And why are you here?"
"Because you brought me?"
Aries sighed. "You need to be less blunt with this, it's not fun. No, you're hear because you're destined to be here." Aurora looked at her father with a less-than-pleased look. "Don't believe me?" She shook her head. "Check that locker there." He pointed to the closest locker to her that had a blank name tape.
Rolling her eyes, she proceeded as instructed. The unassuming metal construct sat with the same appearance as all the others. SHe put a hoof on the lever and slid it to the side. A blue body suit hung in the center of the locker. On the shoulder of one sleeve was teh ship's insignia. On the other was a white number 7. There was a blank spot on the chest where a name tape would have gone. The flanks of the suit were also bare where a patch of the wearer's cutie mark would have gone. Off to the side was a set of black saddle bags, containing various peices of equipment used to help de-ice the ship. On the other side was a silver ice pick that sheathed itself on the side of the saddle bags. Above, a pair of goggles hung from a hook. And above that on a shelf was an oxygen tank and muzzle mask.
"Okay," Aurora said, "it's a bunch of stuff for some new recruit. Am I missing something?"
"This," Aries responded. She turned to face him, her eyes widening when she saw what he held in his hoof. It was the missing nape tape that went on the front of the uniform. A blue strip with a velcro backing to attach with. Her name was stitched on the front in white letters.
"There's no way you're serious," Aurora said emotionlessly
"Very."
"You're pulling my feathers."
"Not at all!" He moved past Aurora and placed the tape on the front of the flight suit. "Hurry up and put it on. The weather's clear for now but turbulence is supposed to pick up by tonight." Aries made his way to a locker on the opposite side of the room with his name on it, all the while Aurora gaped at him. He opened it up to retrieve his own gear. A mirror on the inside of one of the doors revealed that his daughter was still staring at him. "Come on now, we don't have all day! Let's go!"
"Go where...?"
"Outside! I'm taking you on a fly-along." Aries had just stepped his hind legs into the suit when Aurora zipped over and gave him the biggest hug in years.
"Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"Easy now," Aries pealed her off. "You're still going to have to answer to your mother about your suspension from school. Personally I wish I could have seen you kick that brat's flank." He slid the suit over the rest of his body, closing the zipper that ran down the center. "But keep in mind I don't condone what you did. There's other ways to handle situations like that. This isn't a reward for what you did. I fully intend to put you on my team, but the training will start while you're young, just like mine did, just like your brother's, and everyone else's."
Aurora nodded, returning to her locker don her own flight suit. The interior was lined was white fleece that flushed against her body, feeling like a second coat layer. The insulated suit was already causing her to sweat. Once Aries had buckled his saddle bag, slid his ice pick into place, put the air tank on his back and rested his goggles atop his head, he helped his daughter do the same. "This isn't as heavy as I thought it would be," she remarked as he helped her put the tank on."
"Can't be," Aries said. "We have to do enough out there, dealing with weight would be too much on top of that." He handed her the goggles to set on her head. "The teams waiting on you, cadet," he complimented, rubbing the top of her head. "You know everything there is to know about this job. Hay, you could probably teach a class at the academy. I'm proud of you."
Aurora wrapped her hooves and wings around him again. "Thank you, so much."
"Don't mention it," he smiled. "No, seriously, don't mention it. Especially to your mother; I don't think she would approve of this."
"Got it."
"Good." With their gear ready, Aries led Aurora out of the depot and down the hall, away from his office. They stopped outside a pair of metal doors that slid open into an elevator when he pressed the call button. Inside he pressed a button labeled H. "The rest of the team is in the hangar waiting." In just a few short moments, the doors opened again at the bottom front portion of the ship. "Don't embarass me and do something foolish out there."
They stepped out into the large open space where dozens of ponies were gathering in small grounds. Somepony called, "Captain on deck!" and all talking among the groups ceased at once as they turned to face him at attention.
"At ease," Aries raised a hoof. "Lieutenant Quick Wing?"
The pony he called for seemed to materialize from thin air in front of them.
"Sir," the Lieutenant saluted.
"Team statuses?"
"Everypony is ready, sir. Just waiting for the brief."
"Tell them this is just a preemptive check. We're going to make sure we get anything the MDT's missed this morning. It's supposed to get cold and windy tonight, I want as little ice on this ship as possible before dusk."
"Aye, sir," he saluted before turning to inform the team leaders.
Aurora followed Aries as he walked through the center of the hangar, inspecting each team as the went by. Aurora caught several ponies glancing at her. Some were puzzled looks, coming from those who wondered why she was there. Others were confident smiles from veteran members who had known her for most of her life, wishing her the best of luck.
"Stand by my side," Aries told her as they stood in front of a pair of thick metal doors. Aurora felt her nerves fire up. What laid beyond those doors was a place she had been waiting to visit for years.
"Ears!" Aries' voice boomed through the open space. Him and almost everypony else pulled their attached hoods over their heads. After watching him, Aurora did the same, taking a little longer to put her ears in the right place. She felt something pressing against them that felt like headphones.
"Eyes!" He pulled his goggles over his eyes, tightening the straps.
"Masks!" He reached down and pulled up the oxygen mask over his snout, securing it in place. At first it was difficult for Aurora to breathe. She felt claustrophobic with it on. But seeing her father and everypony else do it, she quickly got over it.
"Comms check," Aries said, but his voice was different. He had spoken through a radio built into the mask, and head by all with the headphones that were in their hoods. One by one, the leader of each team responded through the same devices.
From, "Team one, check," through, "Team nine, check," everypony sounded off that they were ready.
Aries looked at Aurora, his green eyes barely visible through his goggles. "Your radio working?"
"I think?" she replied. Her voice sounded like she was speaking into a plastic cup.
"Good." He faced back towards the doors. "Control, AIR Teams ready. Open the hatch."
"Flight has been approved by Admiral Hawkins," a female voice replied. Aurora knew this mare was somewhere on the bridge of the ship talking to them. "Hatch is opening. Clear skies, twenty below, winds from the east with a chill factor of negative seventy. Good luck and be safe.
A loud bang made its presence known. Aurora watched a strip of light run through the center of the two massive doors as they parted. A blast of wind and cold air nearly knocked her back. She didn't notice everypony brace themselves first.
"You heard the mare," Aries said. "Be safe. Everypony comes home!" The few bits of Aurora's coat that was exposed to the air, in the areas around her goggles and mask, became very cold from the wind. The same happened to her exposed wings, so she flexed them to counter it. "Are you sure this is what you want to do?" he asked her.
"Yeah," she continued to stare at the expanding light, waiting for her first glimpse at the unobstructed sky. If only she could smell the air... "I'm sure."
"Then let's fly!"
Aries flared his wings and galloped towards teh light, disappearing within it. Aurora stood in hesitation as the others ran by. She soon found herself alone in the hangar, the only sound coming from the wind rushing through the open doors.
Swallowing her nerves, Aurora took off running. For a moment everything seemed to be quiet, save for her beating heart and the clop of her hooves. The light grew bigger as she approached. She held her eyes shut when she leapt through the threshold.
The familiar sensation of falling wafted over her. She could no longer feel a metal floor on her hooves. Leveling her wings, she felt them catch air. It wasn't visible because of the mask, but she had the biggest smile of her life when she finally opened her eyes.
No longer was she caged in by metal walls. She was free. Surrounded by an infinite space. So mesmerized by the sight of the endless sky that surrounded her she nearly forgot to flap her wings. Forgot to fly in general, really.
Somepony slammed into her from her blind side, yelling, "Watch it!"
Aurora was about to curse the pony out when she realized that it was her father. He had just pushed her out of the way of one of the ship's many rotors that propelled it forward.
"I told you to stay by my side."
"Sorry," Aurora bowed her head, "it's just..."
"Beautiful? I know. We've all been entranced by it at some point or another. Come on, I gotta go check on the teams."
Aurora nodded, chasing after him as he soared up the side of the envelope. She saw reflections of herself in teh passing windows of the ship. She couldn't help but stare at her passing image, how the sun behind her seemed to give her a bright aura. The sky and it's clouds provided a perfect frame. What caught her eye the most was the uniform. She couldn't believe that she was wearing it. Finally she had made it, she was on the outside of the ship. All thought about her numbing face and wings left her mind.
She was free.
When Aurora reached the top of the ship, her dad flew over while she skidded to a halt. Her eyes had fixated on a cloud far in the distance. Before, they had only been distant objects that would forever remain distant objects. Now they were within reach. All she had to do was fly to it.
"Well..." Aries said, floating up to her side. "What are you waiting for? Go get it!" She gave him a puzzled look, making sure it was visible even through the goggles. "Go on..." He could hear her emit a slight squeal over the radio before zipping off towards it.
Quick Wing dropped next to Aries, hovering up-side-down his head level to the other's. "Remind of you somepony?" he asked.
"Heh," Aries shook his head. "She's like we all were on our first flight. You remember the first time you touched a cloud, Lietuenant?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I thought it'd catch me but I just blasted right through it. You, sir?"
"Oh don't remind me. It was a thunderhead. Nearly took my feathers off with a bolt of lightning. Shift commander almost took me off the team that day."
They hovered, watching the adolescent pegasus revert back to a foal and play with the bits of a could as if it was sand. Then she disappeared inside of it. After a minute or two of waiting, Quick Wing spoke up. "So should you—"
"Yeah I'll go get her."
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this story had some good potential, im sad to see it canceled
the characters are compelling the world building is great and the writing style is awesome.
i might be a little late to the party though, this story has been sitting in my read it later list ever since ch 2 was released
-basbr
6271770 I've tried to revive her multiple times. Along with my other stories... Its just hard to get the momentum back. They're always on my mind, however. Particularly this one. This one had my favorite character set, plot, and setting. I tried rewriting it from the beginning, and only got to the end of chapter 1. Who knows, I've been bored lately...
Maybe I'm the one who's late to the party... maybe I should stir it up a bit...
Thank you for drawing my eyes back, dear sir, or ma'am,
-Sam.
6275336 well, what ever happens, ill keep it on my fav list in case of a update.
i realty like the premise; mobile air city, unlivable ground situation, dwindling Pegasus population. i had half a mind to take the setting and write my own story. if i may point out one thing though, there might be a lack of conflict. there is no problem to kick start a adventure. but it might be a little bit early for that.
anyway good luck in the future
-sir basbr