13: Carrier has Arrived
Rainbow Dash left the hatchery with profound pride in Blitz for committing to a royal rebirth, but also in herself as well. Blitz’s initial hesitation drew up some strong memories as Rainbow made her way over to the covered airship hangar. That reminds me so much of how scared I was when I found out I was a royal bug. But now…
She looked around at all the changelings buzzing around the hive, with a growing portion of them sharing her rainbow mane and blue color. If I told my old self I’d rather be a queen than a Wonderbolt anyway, she’d probably deck me upside the head. And now I’ve got a royal daughter.
The thought of it drove her queenly expansionist instincts to new heights. I’m giving rise to more hives. Once Aegis and Blitz are all settled in… I want more royal daughters. I think Twi will agree that we should blanket the Chaos lands with our hives. And once Blitz’s hive is ready, she’ll no doubt create her own royal daughters so we can do it even faster!
Rainbow swooned to the mental picture of hive mind of that size, a chorus filled with millions of voices. Just thinking about that far off day excited her to the point where she was getting heated. By the time she arrived at the hangar, her pheromones were in overdrive, not that she noticed. I can never thank Aegis enough for giving me that circlet!
However, no matter how much her life as a queen made Rainbow Dash happy, there was always one thing in the back of her mind that yearned for the past. The omnipresent buzz of her gossamer wings was comforting, but it was no replacement for the sound of feathers upon the wind. I don’t care how alchemically hard it is, one of these days I’ll get my feathers back. Granny already had us become more pony like by giving us fur and proper manes. There’s no reason I can’t figure out the wings someday.
Fortunately for the drones inside the closed hangar, the warship within distracted Rainbow Dash enough to subdue her queenly instincts, and by extension, her pheromones as well.
The so called “carrier” was lit up by large numbers of lights and one way skylights. It was actually fifty meters longer than the Deception, but much to Rainbow's confusion it only had a paltry number of small anti-air guns. Well whatever it is, they certainly aren’t calling it a carrier of big guns.
Rainbow Dash scowled at that as she continued to inspect the exterior. The top of the ship looked more akin to a short stretch of road than anything else, with what she assumed was a command tower off to one side. Rainbow circled the hangar’s interior to get a view of the ship from all sides. Overall the ship looked like a long square box, although tapering towards the front a ways. Along the sides of the ship were two boxy wings where large propeller engines sat idle. Finally, both sides had what looked like long thick steam pipes just outside a matching dimple in the hull which ran from a few meters beyond the stern to what looked like a big exterior mana engine that easily dwarfed a queen.
Curiosity drove Rainbow to inspect the steam pipes a little closer. Why have pipes on the outside? Two pipes split off from the engine and curved back to being parallel with a much thicker third one running straight out the back. Support scaffolding crisscrossed the three all the way to the stern where the two outer pipes reconnected in the shape of a flat circle with the center pipe doing the same to form two circles of pipes.
The other big thing that caught Rainbow’s eye was the complete lack of lift propellers that were supposed to keep the ship from falling. Sure it has forward propellers, but how does this thing get any lift? Should I even bother mentioning those paltry deck guns? I hope Granny didn’t send us a fancy new freighter. Sure we could use one, but everyone from SG was saying this is a fancy new weapons platform.
Seeing nothing else of interest, Rainbow flew towards the command tower. Numerous drones of all three coat colors covered the vessel. Though it was mostly the grey ones showing the purple and blues how to crew the ship.
The command tower itself had far too much open window for Rainbow’s liking for what she assumed was the bridge. As she expected, Captain Rourke was present along with four grey drones. Rainbow hailed them over the Link before teleporting through the glass.
“My queen,” the group announced together with polite shallow bows before Rourke spoke alone. “Chief Scientist White Phosphorus was just explaining the command center to me. I have to say, this vessel is by far the most interesting weapon to date.”
Rainbow had to suppress from rolling her eyes, but she couldn’t help but give a disillusioned scowl. “Then you know something I don’t, ‘cause this all looks like a big fancy freighter to me.”
White Phosphorus would have berated anyone who insulted his brainchild other than a queen. Thankfully for him, Rourke spoke for him in a much more amused tone than he was capable of. “Well, my queen, you’re half right.” Both she and Rainbow looked to the scientist.
“Yes, well, you see, your highness, it is not the ship itself that is dangerous, I grant you.” He spoke with a grumbling tone that betrayed years of being mocked by his colleagues. He still took vindictive pride that only Cadista saw the merit. “This vessel is designed to carry, service, and launch the real threat this ship brings to bear.”
“Care to show me?” Rainbow Dash replied with mild interest. “I don’t know what could be more threatening than creating bigger guns.”
White Phosphorus turned towards the stairs, mostly so he could hide his vindictive smirk. “Sometimes it’s not the size of the gun you use, but how you wield it. Come, I’ll show you!”
Giving an amused snort, the comment reminded Rainbow of her military career. Just like Spitfire always said, the right amount of force at the right spot makes all the difference. Alright, I’ll bite, Whitey. She followed after him with the rest of the group lining up behind her. She was led through various aluminum corridors where passing drones stood at attention at Rainbow’s passing. Guess having all steel is too heavy.
The group quickly found themselves within a large hangar. Heh, a hangar within a hangar. Rainbow was about to voice a colorful barb when White Phosphorus pointed with a wing at a small vehicle as he kept walking. “This is the true weapon of my carrier.”
“It’s a little small for a gunship isn’t it?”
“Some of the pilots got it in their heads to call this a biplane,” Coal Chute replied with a slight chuckle to hopefully break the ice a bit. “On account of the two sets of forward wings. I think it’s a simple and apt name for its type.”
Rainbow took careful examination of the biplane. It was nine meters long with two straight wings in front, with one a half a meter above the other. A third set of shorter wings in the form of an inverted ‘T” was located at the tail. Only a single propeller engine sat at the front.
The frame itself looked to be of extremely sturdy construction, thought Rainbow admitted she knew little of manufacturing methods. Two large flak cannons were slung under the lower wing near the fuselage, with the barrels being just beyond the edge of the propeller blades. There was an open cockpit for a single pilot with only a small windshield in front.
The cannons had feeds snaking to the section behind the pilot. Finally, there was a repeat of the carrier’s exterior curved piping that ran from the bottom of the engine to the tail. Rainbow finally clicked that the piping looked sort of like a tubular hollow sword with a circular end instead of a sharp tip.
Rainbow Dash had seen enough fancy gadgets and gizmos to know White Phosphorus was just begging to be asked how the machine worked. “You know, I’m just going to leave the explanations on how this thing gets off the ground to my sister. Just tell me about why we should dedicate so many resources to them.”
“As you wish,” White Phosphorus said with supreme effort to keep a growl out of his voice at such disinterest. “The problem with warships like the Deception is that they are slow and vulnerable to attack once entering the combat zone. Let’s be real here. The other queens have been watching us for hundreds of years. One day they’ll figure out how to use that mana artillery they used on my home against a high flying warship. The further away we are from those launchers the better.
“Both Yumia and Mother Cadista’s anticipated that for a long time,” White Phosphorus continued with a prideful smile. “She’s been working on these single pilot aircraft designs off and on far longer than she was trying to redesign Queen Twilight Sparkle. You’re looking at the culmination of countless years of airship developments. ” Rainbow Dash gave him a disbelieving eyebrow at such a claim.
“That’s impressive and all that,” Rainbow yawned, ready for a nap, “but that doesn’t really answer my question.”
One of White Phosphorus’ brothers saw he was about to explode and stepped forward to head him off. “Queen Rainbow Dash, simply put, this aircraft can reach long distance targets, at far greater range than the Deception’s guns can reach. It can move ten times faster, strike a distant target and return. And with this ship acting as a mobile hangar, we have potentially unlimited range for them.”
After spending so much time with the Deception, Rainbow Dash had a thing with big guns. “It doesn’t seem like a game changer to me. Still…” The more she thought about it, the more her military mind searched for possible uses. “These probably would have been useful during the last siege.”
White Phosphorus jumped on the thought. “My thoughts exactly, your highness. In fact, had you been in command of this vessel instead of the Deception you could have projected your firepower a good eight hours sooner.”
“Maybe, but these small things don’t have the staying power of my flagship,” Rainbow countered evenly. “And every new tech requires more repair time than stuff that’s tried and true.”
“Your highness,” White Phosphorus insisted with all the tact he could muster. “The world changes daily and the other hives evolve just as quickly. As stalwart as your defense of the Deception was, it nearly failed. We need to keep expanding our arsenal to keep up. With mother’s trade assets being transferred over to Phoenix’s Roost, there’s no reason we can’t finish outfitting the carrier to be a potent weapon.”
Rainbow Dash glanced around the hangar deck. There were several other aircraft, but most of them were incomplete or in some obvious state of disrepair. “How many of these things do you have available?”
Coal Chute tried to mask his embarrassment. “Only one is operational for now. We lost most of our parts and other fighters when our hive was laid to waste. We barely managed to save the blueprints for everything, but at the cost of most of the ship’s crew, including the pilots. Hence why we’re training some of your naval staff.”
“So you have a ship with turrets taken off a gunship and only one aircraft to its name. Is that fair to say?”
Captain Rourke politely cleared her throat and spoke with the measured calm Rainbow had come to expect from her. “To be fair, my queen, the carrier was barely into its first trial run when the attacks started. It’s a testament to its design that it made it from SG to the Roost without breaking down.” The grey drones warmed up under the praise. “At the very least, Cadista saw the merit for it. I think we should trust her wisdom and vision.”
An inch. Even with Rourke’s advice, Rainbow was just an inch from scraping the ship for parts to build a proper ship of the line. “Aside from having to devote a factory or two to building the aircraft, and constructing a second hangar for it, is there any other major support infrastructure we’re going to need to bring the carrier up to snuff?”
White Phosphorus and the others shuffled around nervously. Their silence only proved to exasperate Rainbow Dash even further. “Well, your majesty, there is the slight issue of needing a pegasi-mana enriched fuel for the steam engines for the ship to rise. I won’t trouble you with the laundry list of various compounds of the mixture, but I can tell you that fabricating it would only require an expansion on your oil refinery.”
Even though she was the hive’s overall commander, Rainbow Dash knew exactly the productive capacity of the hive’s armories, including oil refinement. “You do know all of our ships still run on coal right? We only have a refinery for flamethrowers, lubricants, and whatever else my sister requires. We’re nowhere near ready to supply this fuel guzzler!”
“And the biplanes,” Rourke added flatly. ‘Their new engines require it as well.” Rainbow Dash couldn’t help it any longer and dragged a hoof across her face out of supreme annoyance. “Even with these logistical problems, my queen, I still think this will be an excellent addition. Just remember the historic arguments of those championing the first crude firearms over crossbows.”
Of all the things Yumia and Cadista forgot of their history, only the recordings of those arguments survived to this day. She thought over it for close to five minutes before Rainbow heaved a sigh. “You guys are lucky we got a big cash injection. Write up what you need and pass it on to the treasury.” She started cantering back the way she came. “I want demonstrations within the week.”
The group of engineers and one scientist cheered, even if a bit prematurely and quickly thanking Rourke for her assistance before brainstorming how to abide Rainbow’s command. For her part, Rourke took the gratitude with more than a little enthusiasm before calling out to her aunt. <My Queen, the carrier still doesn’t have a name. Care to give it one?>
<Pah! There’s only one thing that’ll fit this money pit. We’ll call it the Longshot.>
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Yis!
I'm curious how they have the tech for a floating Aircraft Carrier, but their plane tech is that of WWI.
Rainbow's skepticism of this new tech also reminds me of the US Navy's opinion before WWII, when they believed aircraft could never compete against their big-gunned battleships.
5806749
Magic.
No, seriously, it's rather clearly the existence of magic as a reliably tappable natural force; having aided some industries and made others wither on the vine.
I mean, heck, they quite clearly say in this chapter alone that the fighter fuel require infusions of pegasi magic.
Doesn't get much clearer that it's magic-tech than that.
Good good leap it up please
5806749
When every member of your species can fly, small aircraft are a lower priority.
I love this book soo much I dare say its better than fallout equestria
5806767 Yes, I know about that. But why does it need bi-wings when it uses pegasi magic fuel? They also haven't figured out how to mount a central gun behind the propellers.
Yeah these are first run trials, but the designs have been worked on for years. Surely some of these little kinks would have been ironed out.
5806818
I will say this about the gun, they do not have anything like a machine gun. The aircraft has flak weaponry. Mostly because their primary targets are individual drones who typically fly en masse. due to the weapon's nature, it can't be fired through the rotor blades.
5806795 But they spend all those resources on a high tech carrier that can't do anything other than sending out those low-priority aircraft?
5806749
thecommonconstitutionalist.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/uss-langley.jpg
WWI Carrier, The current ship tech is about WWII, but what would flying ponies need Aircraft for, so oviously their tech is lagging a bit.
Would not be the easiest solution, make drones with flammable saliva through alchemy?
YES! even though small update. Still YES!
5806833 I love this whole thing with the changeling tech floating carrier. I just found it odd using pre-WWI airplane tech in comparison to the tech required for that carrier and their other gunships.
5806836
Its only low priority because the potental isnot realized yet. Even in WWII most admirals did not value the Carrier. When Japan bombed Pearl Harbor, Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto believed it was a failure because they did not get any American Carriers. Meanwhile America was forced into a new style of fighting where instead of a Battle fleet centered around the Battleships it became the Carrier that was the main focus, and because of this the Navy learned the effectiveness of the carrier. If it were not for Pearl Harbor we may not have had the kind of success we did in the Pacific.
And the name will serve as a reminder for centuries to come that she was wrong.
Also, I like the pun on the name. It's definitely the only name worthy enough for this aircraft.
5806844 Yes, but that Langley isn't flying under its own power like this changeling carrier does. Considering they don't need airplane wings for the thing to fly, it doesnt need bi-wings. Early planes used bi-wings because they needed the extra lift since the engines weren't strong enough.
For dog fighting, which they'll need for fighting other 'lings, a single wing design would be much more maneuverable than a bi-wing design can reliably pull off.
Another chapter and after such a short time! Thank you!
5806818 Worked on on-and-off. They were more of a hobby, a few kinks are too be expected...
5806899
I see what you are saying, But consider that the oil based fuel is new Tech, So while the older stuff might have been more advanced, it was also very big. Most likely too big and or too slow, for a small aircraft. So new Tech was created. With new Tech comes steps back in advancement until the new tech catches up with the old.
Ahah this name, so fitting.
5806870
To be honest that's how some of the "plane V ship battles took place" in WWII.
Biplanes (armed with one torpedo each) would be used to attack enemy ships.
Here have a Wiki link...
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fairey_Swordfish
5806971
Destroyers carried Biplanes and sea planes because they lacked the runways space so needed the extra lift. What Eon is complaining about is why the step back in Tech. They should have the Tech to do single wing planes. The problem is that the Tech they are currently using is equivalent to Magical Steam engines. Imagine a Steam engine plane...
5806938 But, the details in the story showed that the planes are based on the same tech the carrier uses, that's why they had similar piping designs on the outside and use the same fuel. Yeah, the engine would be a lot weaker due to smaller size, but the planes themselves would also be a lot lighter, which more than cancels out the lower strength. That's why planes IRL can move 10x faster than a carrier while having engines that are much smaller.
I would be perfectly fine with biplanes if they didn't already show they have the tech to make flying dreadnaughts and now carriers. It doesn't need biwings for lift like IRL planes did since it have those pegasi magic fuel engines, so they're probably used only for maneuvering, which only needs 1 set of wing flaps.
I got a feeling that plane tech will advance pretty quickly once they show their merit.
5807010
The problem is the Carrier and the Planes are both new tech that trades Lift for speed. Instead of a cloud granting lift and magical steam for propulsion, its a form of fuel based jet propulsion most likely using exhaust from the Prop.
Also I assume biology is also playing into the design. The better changeling flyers have 4 wings, so it could be a simple design choice based off their their biology.
They have a Carrier, now they just need Additional Pylons.
aaaawwww. I was hoping for my name suggestion.
And RD you need to curb some of the expansion drive.
urgh, the technological godmodding still drives me nuts, but the rest of the story is good so I'm not giving up yet.
Excited for LOTV?
5807077
This reminded me of this Vid.
[youtube=KuPwXRM9lWo]
5807107
Funny, that's one of the things I like the most about this fic.
5807197 heh. I have to say, though, I do like the idea of steampunk changelings, just not that kind of steampunk. More like mechanical, steam-powered brass magitech, rather than flamethrowers and biplanes. Mostly my issue with it is the fact that it's basically like sticking in WW1-grade technology in a universe in the medieval era.
Space paragraphs.
____________
To your questions. My guesses.
1)Partually.
2)Yes, becuase Aegis is just that freaking epic.
3) Not unless Twilight can talk her into a jaccuzi, or she takes a bath more thorough than flying through a rain cloud.
4) He would if not for the fact he's busy making the worlds first massaging, levitating bed that's about to become the new rage acrorss Equestria ... then the world. Netting the Roost more Gross Income per quarter than most small nations make per year. And way more money than the Bargin Bins franchise and Applejack Whiskey (the greatest Whiskey in the world, short of Glenfiddich 50 (While an Earth Whiskey. I think it sounds griffin enough to be Equestrian as well without punifying) combined.
5806749 True their tech is lacking, but when you compare that of SG's tech and PR's tech to the other hives? We have WWI Cruisers and Destroyers going up against ground forces from the stone age. That fact alone is pretty impressive. And if they keep advancing like this? It'll be a a sure fire victory for PR and Equestrian interests. They quite frankly don't stand a chance against them now. It's just a matter of time.
5807122
Pffffahahaha!
Compounded with the fact that one of the hallmarks of Yumia and Cadista's legacy is that their child-hives are equipped with two Queens instead of one?
I found that exceedingly appropriate.
Longshot! Ha! Imagine when they invent rockets/missiles...
"Finally, both sides had what looked like long thick steam pipes just outside a matching dimple in the hull which ran from a few meters beyond the stern to what looked like a big exterior mana engine that easily dwarfed a queen."
"Two pipes split off from the engine and curved back to being parallel with a much thicker third one running straight out the back. Support scaffolding crisscrossed the three all the way to the stern where the two outer pipes reconnected in the shape of a flat circle with the center pipe doing the same to form two circles of pipes."
Here I wasn't really able to visualize what you were describing
"Rainbow finally clicked that the piping looked sort of like a tubular hollow sword with a circular end instead of a sharp tip."
...But here it started sounding a bit familiar. Last Exile?
5807360
but you fail to see, just because the Ponylings use tech does not make them better. A lot of foolish generals felt their technological edge would give them victory over suprior numbers. Imagine those planes against teleporting kamikaze shrapnel bombs, or a fleet of bomb spewing dreadnoughts to carpet bomb the allies. All could be possible with alchemy not just tech.
I love this story so much! I cheer every time a new chapter pops up :)
5807371 As soon as they said carrier I thought of the Protoss.
Rainbow is completely correct here. The Longshot is a terrible idea.
You made a wonderful case for the strength of an aircraft carrier over a battleship or cruiser. However, those strengths are based on the logistics of naval warfare. The critical element to an aircraft carrier's strength?
Has anyone caught the problem yet?
The Longshot uses the same fuel reserve as the planes. The logistical nightmare here is that a flying aircraft carrier is practically guaranteed to decrease the range and flexibility of a flight of planes acting either independently or from a temporary air strip.
I'm going to take a moment to go over that and reread the Longshot's description. It looks like it lacks VTOL capability, and is an oversized fixed wing design. On one hand, that does decrease the fuel concern relative to most designs. On the other hand, landing a fixed wing aircraft on another, in flight? This is mildly crazy.
5807484 Not fail to see, fail to take into count. Completely forgot about that.... Could be an issue... Though only only one (remaining) Queen shows penchant for giant, massive even, changeling drones. And the one Queen who showed hardcore talent in crazy alterations in magical drone manipulation got wrecked by the Nightmare.
5807484 I wonder how many planes that carrier will be able to hold. Since all lings can fly, you'd need a pretty sizable force if you don't want the planes to simply get overwhelmed by shear numbers. I'd but my bets at somewhere between 30-40 planes, probably more once they figure out how to store/launch groups of them more efficiently.
I assume they're going to try doing strafing runs to try to get hits without ending up getting surrounded.
Wait until they discover nuclear power.
5807723
Yes But I believe that at the end of this Arc, Chrysalis and her sisters will have complete control of all the hives. I think that where Cadista and her sister went Tech based, Chrysalis will evolve her Alchemy. My theory is Her ponyling offsprings will most likely be the Elite nobility in the hive over their more drone like slaves. Every tech aspect of TwiDash hive will have a Slave drone counterpart.
5807829
Well the thing is that Tech evolves really fast, within 50 years humans went from biplanes to jet engines. So yes now the tech limitations keep things rather underwhelming but advances will come. And hopefully by the time Chrysalis and her Children are ready the ponies will have some Gauss Cannons, or Rail guns, or some awesome Plasma weapons. Oooo Or Chrysalis develops Plasma launching drones.
5807829 Speed is life, as the adage goes.
5807629
It's my hope that this will all be explained/be accounted for later on.
Because the alternative, that the author of this story did not do a bit of research, will sadden me quite a bit.
5808116 I'm actually hoping that doesn't happen. The awesome factor of a flying carrier is pretty high, but I've never encountered a "and this is why it's practical, too!" that wasn't a wallbanger. The closest used nuclear powered turbines, but I'm pretty sure that there's a fairly nasty limit on how many kw/h you can pull out of a small scale fission reactor without compromising safety.
...In all seriousness, biplanes? That is going to be a real game changer once they get faster and get outfitted as bombers.
I'm not actually convinced as to the reliability of this new ship. I mean it sounds good on paper but I have to ask a few whys.
First why is, why does it use the same fuel as the fighters? Wouldn't it be better to use the same tried and true flight system as the decepticon? It was able to make a very long and very sustained journey all the way into the chaos jungles. That sounds like a good system. So why change it? New isn't always better. How efficient is this new fuel system? Is it good enough to warrant its use on its own without this new ship?
Second, why flack cannons? And why biplanes? Shouldn't they have something a little different since they can already use Pegasus magic for flight of their airships? How will they deal with armies of changelings that are able to fly? That is the one thing that I can see really having issues with is simply being swarmed by changelings in the air. After all the other hives all use quantity over quality, something that has been proven effective even in our own history.
Third, wings? Really? With it being THAT size. Yeah no, all that creates is a pylon with an engine on it that can be broken off. Better to mesh the engines to the hull.
This has potential, but I feel like the designers are trying too hard to make it something that it doesn't have to be. They should work on making it simple and stop trying to shove too many new concepts into one new ship. What are they going to do if just one of these new concepts fail?
Also... just a few AA guns? No, they need a LOT more or they need to create a dedicated AA gunship. They cant rely on distance to protect them. Not when every enemy combatant can fly and has no self value. Mark my words, kamikaze will be the end of this ship.
5808149 Given the very real potential of thorium focused fission over uranium for a race with major mining interests and no rush towards a thermonuclear weapon in the immediate future, combined with access to the sphinx knowledge base for electricity and its utility over the diesel-punk rubbish they're currently using for power, that may not be the safety risk you'd expect. Especially for a logistics and support craft.
5808354 Liquid hydrocarbons are a better energy density option for basically anything that moves.
You know what would be an awesome crossover? A Hive 'Verseerse/Exosquad one. *salivates*
Also, I know this is weird coming from a reader, but, jeez, slow down with those updates, lol! You are gonna finish the story too soon! ;) *wink, wunk*