Cryo-7

by Metal Pony Fan

I Don't Think We're in Canterlot Anymore

Astral groaned as he eased himself into one of the shuttle's passenger seats. He was still a bit tingly from Lilybelle's neural reconnect spell. As nice as the young mare was, her spellcraft wasn't exactly pleasant.

He groaned again as he sank into the seat cushion. It was much softer than it looked. Then again, everything on the shuttle was like that, deceptive in some way. At first glance, it would be easy to call the small, three cabin shuttle utilitarian in nature. It was anything but.

There were hidden panels everywhere, waiting beneath the windowless, office-beige walls. Biding their time until the slightest touch of a hoof called them into service. Computer terminals, entertainment stations with personal audio, and even refreshments were available at each of the eight seats.

And that was just in the passenger area. The pilot's cabin, where his, "captor," prepared for departure, was no less impressive. Based on the different displays, this shuttle had a slipstream drive, shields, and offensive capabilities.

The third cabin, behind the passenger area, was a mystery. It's door was closed, and Astral had no excuse to go back there. He only got a peek at the pilot's cabin because the red pony had left the door open.

Astral straightened up in his seat as that red stallion walked back into the passenger cabin. "Ok, you said you would explain this, so start explaining."

The earth pony sat in a nearby seat. "Ah'll try, but Ah've got a few things Ah'm not supposed to say." He bumped a hidden panel, and nearly jumped out of his skin when a curaxxan death ballad started blaring out of the speakers around him. He fumbled with the controls that appeared in front of him, trying to silence the distorted harmonics pelting his eardrums, and stopped only when a piece of the panel snapped off in his oversized hooves. He then stood up, and the seat's sensors automatically turned off the, "music." He cleared his throat, and set about stuffing the broken panel back into the compartment it flipped out from. "Anythin' particular ya want to know?"

"Are you going to be ok piloting this thing all the way to wherever we're going?"

The red pony shook his head. "Oh, Ah ain't piloting nothin'." He sat in front of Astral, and was very careful not to touch anything. "This thing's takin’ us ta planet Canterlot on auto, and Ah'm leavin' it that way."

Astral looked back towards the front of the shuttle. The door was still open, and the front viewport showed space where shuttlebay had been. "I didn't even feel us lift off."

The red pony nodded in agreement. "Mighty nice ride, Ah'd say."

Astral leaned back again, relaxing into his seat cushion. "You know, you don't strike me as the usual muscle-for-hire type."

"That's cause Ah ain't." He glanced back at the door to the third cabin. "Ah'm helpin' a friend."

"Abducting somepony with presidential approval." Astral rolled his eyes. "Must be some friend."

"Mah family owes her a lot, so do a lot of other folk." He sighed quietly. "And, she thinks she owes us more than she's already given."

"That does sound like a good friend." If he wasn't being held against his will, Astral would have felt bad about his sarcasm. "What's her name? And while we're at it, what's yours?"

"That's right, Ah never introduced mahself properly." The red pony turned around in his seat and leaned over the back of it to offer a hoof. The chair creaked under his weight like old wood. "My name's Macintosh, but most ponies call me Big Mac."

Astral gave the offered hoof a firm shake. "It's certainly a fitting name."

"Eeyup." Mac turned around, and his chair let out one last groan as it was relieved of his weight. "But, so's yours. Ah heard you're a starship pilot, so Astral Plane fits you just right."

The unicorn's head tilted to the side. He just said starship. Nopony says starship anymore. Not unless they're five. "So, uh, where are we going?"

"We're goin' to see that friend Ah mentioned." Mac scratched at his mane and turned around again."Um, could ya get me a glass a' water? Ah don't want ta risk breakin' another panel."

Astral's head tilted to the other side. He just had to be kidnapped by the galaxy's nicest, most inept mercenary. "Sure. Why not?"

The red pony watched carefully as Astral activated the appropriate panel and manipulated a selection menu. After a few seconds, a selection was confirmed, and the glass, aluminum tumbler rather, of water was dispensed from another panel. Mac took the cup and gave it a timid taste before knocking it back in one go.

Astral took the emptied tumbler and set it back in the panel. It would be cleaned, washed, and ready for the next pony in just a few seconds. "So, does this friend have a name?"

Again, Mac glanced at the back compartment. "That's one a' the things Ah ain't supposed to say."

Astral snuck a glance back when Mac wasn't looking. "You know, we should play cards sometime."

The red pony's ears perked up. "Ponies still play cards?"

Astral squinted at the pony. "Still?"

"Oh, nothin'." Mac chuckled. "Ah just ain't played a hand a' poker in a long time. Ah was thinkin' somethin' might have come along to replace it. So, why do ya bring it up?"

"I brought it up because you seem like an easy mark." Astral pointed over his shoulder. "Your friend's in the back there, isn't she?"

Mac stood up and walked back to Astral's chair. He stood close to Astral, much closer than anypony would be comfortable with, and made sure the unicorn realized how much smaller he was. "She's sleepin'," Mac said quietly. "Disturb her, you'll be doin' the same."

Astral swallowed and nodded slowly. "OK, I won't disturb her then."

"Then we'll be just fine." Mac nodded towards the pilot cabin. The main viewport was filled by the swirled blue and white of a planet's atmosphere. "Asides, we're gonna be landin' soon."

As the oversized earth pony went back to his seat, Astral cleared his throat. "Can you at least tell me why she couldn't talk to me on the station?"

"She could've." Mac looked back at the unicorn. "But she ain't the only one wantin' to talk to ya."

Astral leaned on the chair's armrest, resting his cheek against his hoof. "Let me guess. This other pony's name is one of the things you're not supposed to say."

The red pony chuckled. "Eeyup."

The conversation ended there, and the shuttle landed in silence. The door opened to the bluish orange of an evening sky. Mac stood up. "Well, that was smoother'n Ah remember." He walked into the pilot's compartment and came back with a plastic box. He set the box down on the seat next to Astral. "Here's yer stuff. Join me outside when yer ready."

The red pony walked out, leaving Astral alone with the box. Well, not alone. Astral looked back at the rear door. Who sleeps after ordering a kidnapping? But it didn't seem like his captors wanted to hurt him. If anything, this whole situation reminded him of an old spy novel he owned. Specifically, the second chapter, the recruitment of the unwitting hero.

Astral shook his head. As if. He opened the box Mac had left. His jacket was inside, as was his bag of books. Surprisingly, his knife was in there too. It should have been lost to the void after his fight with the Celestial. For it to be here, a sweeper ship must have been sent out to comb the area where he was attacked. That means the drone operator's ship, and the prill pods were most likely recovered as well.

The unicorn picked up the knife and balanced it on his hoof. It was stained with blood, his blood, and pretty beat up. The blade had a little knick near the tip, and was no doubt as dull as a rylac's spines. Astral tossed it up, giving it a little spin and catching it in his magic.

He hadn't expected to get it back. Only a sweeper ship, with its overpowered sensors and tractor fields, could hope to find something so small in the vast empty of space. But, they weren't usually sent out for something so trivial. Sweeper ships were rare, and expensive to operate, so they were only sent out after valuable items, or escape pods. One could have been sent out officially, but would the Canterlot government be so interested in a single incident of piracy? The only other possibility was an individual or private organization with bits to burn.

Astral sighed as he put on his jacket. It was mostly intact, being made of a dense Kevlar composite, but still had small holes punched in it here and there. The largest hole was the one in the left shoulder, and it was bloodstained to match the knife. The jacket needed a good cleaning and some patching, but it would have to wait.

Astral put his knife away, slipping it into the scabbard hidden inside the jacket. It seemed like a lot of things had to wait lately. Other ponies were controlling his life at the moment, and he didn't like it. He started pulling the various pins and patches off his jacket, dumping them into the box.

When he was done with that, he ripped open the jacket's collar with his teeth. There was a patch of much weaker cloth hidden there for just that purpose. A thin steel rod, and a small mechanical assembly fell out, and were quickly caught by Astral's invisible grip. The unicorn started pulling small bits of metal, screws and springs, off the backs of the patches and connecting them to the assembly.

Another tear at the other side of the collar yielded a spring that Astral slipped over the rod. He then pulled at a hidden pocket stitched to the inside of the jacket, opposite his knife. Sewn within was an "L" shaped frame that he attached the mechanical assembly to.

The hem of the jacket was next, and was opened much like the collar. It gave up two more steel pieces, a tube, and a rectangular piece with a notch cut out of the side. The tube fit into the rectangular part, and the rod with the spring followed. This assembly was then connected to the frame.

One last part, a magazine removed from the sleeve, clicked into the bottom of the frame, and Astral placed the completed pistol into the holster beside his knife. He didn't believe his captors meant him any harm, but he wasn't going to be defenseless.

Astral zipped up his jacket, threw his bag over his shoulder, and walked to the door. He immediately regretted assembling his backup pistol. At the bottom of a short flight of stairs, Mac was talking to a gryphon holding a small view screen. But it wasn't just any gryphon. Tall, regal, and white as snow, with a single black marking on his face. Astral would recognize that face anywhere, as could billions of others. Coriander Jones, President of Canterlot, and head of the Galactic Assembly, was waiting at the base of the stairs.

And he wasn't alone. The small landing platform was floating several hundred meters above a large city, and a cavalcade of jet-black aircars surrounded it. Security guards of every race were scattered on almost every available surface. That included the top of the shuttle. Astral didn't know when he got up there, but there was a dusk-grey gryphon sniper with a long-range laser rifle perched up there.

Astral stood frozen at the top of the stairs until he was waved down by the white gryphon. "Get down here, son. I want to have a word with you."

"Yes sir!" Astral stiffly descended the rampart, careful not to make any sudden moves. "Um, I should mention-"

Coriander Jones rolled his eyes. "Just get your butt down here, boy!"

He tossed the screen up at Astral, who caught it out of reflex. As the screen hovered in front of him, the unicorn noticed it was showing his backside. There was a small joystick on the side of the screen, and the unicorn gave it a wiggle. The view on the screen shifted, showing more of the shuttle's interior.

Astral rubbed his hoof over his face as the president yelled up at him. "We already know about the hidden weaponry." The gryphon reached into his feathers and pulled a necklace from his neck. He held the large pendant up and discharged a plasma blast straight into the air. The blast was huge, akin to a shipmounted weapon, and could probably be seen from several kilometers away. "Heck, even I carry a few myself. So skip the robo-walk, and give me back my pad."

The unicorn complied. Somehow, this wasn't quite how Astral imagined it would be like to meet someone in a position of power.

As soon as the view screen was within reach, the white gryphon snatched it out of the air. He fiddled with the joystick for a few moments, then smiled and showed the screen to Mac. "Hey, she's kind of cute when she's asleep, isn't she?"

Then again, it did fit Jones's public image perfectly.

Mac took the view screen without a word and switched it off. Coriander Jones voiced his displeasure with a small groan. "Oh, you're no fun.". He then looked over his shoulder, at the largest aircar. "Jasper!" A moment passed in silence, then the gryphon yelled again. "Hey! Jasper!"

After another moment of silence, he raised his disguised weapon aloft and gave it a squeeze. It responded with a short series of clicks and a distinct lack of superheated particles. "Darn holdout weapon, only good for one shot." Coriander Jones then chucked the thing at the aircar.

The pendant bounced of a tinted window, and fell. And fell. And fell some more. "Eh." Jones shrugged. "It's light. It shouldn't hurt too bad."

The door to the aircar opened, and a pegasus in a suit and sunglasses dove out after the pendant. He was fast, almost a blur, and he came back up within seconds. He landed on the edge of the platform with the pendant in his mouth. He then walked over to Jones, passing the pendant off to one of the security guards. His suit, slicked back mane, and sunglasses showed no sign of his recent stunt "How many times do I have to tell you sir? It's rechargeable."

The Pegasus pulled his sunglasses down with a wing tip to take a good look at Astral, then pushed them back into place. "So this is the pony I've been hearing about. He doesn't look like much, that can be a good thing."

Coriander Jones waved off the security guard who tried to give him his pendant back. "Jasper, take a note." He pointed at Astral. "I want a jacket like that. And a weapon that fires more than once."

Jasper sighed quietly. "I assume the bloodstains are included in that?"

Jones shook his head. "Nah, they're meaningless if they aren't earned. I'm talking about the hidden compartments."

"Right..." Jasper started beeping, and he held up his hoof. He pulled the sleeve back to reveal a chrome-colored watch. "Sir, you have to meet with the delegation from Turia about their request for a new orbital defense system. If we leave in the next minute, we can still be on time."

Jones spread his wings. "We have more time than that."

Jasper sighed and adjusted his glasses. "Sir, the Furian delegates are expecting an official response to an important request. I doubt they will be impressed by a sweaty old gryphon showing up with only an aid and a few security guards."

The gryphon sighed loudly. "Fine, at least I get to Hoof-wrestle with Rock Duster again."

Jasper cleared his throat. "About that, I received word a few minutes ago. He had to return home, something about a family emergency."

"Of course he did." Jones rolled his eyes. "Well, it was good meeting you Astral, maybe we'll actually get to talk next time." He walked over to the edge of the platform and hopped onto the top of the aircar Jasper had gotten out of. "Maybe we could even spar one of these days, I hear you're worth your salt in a tumble. Even if you smell like a mare fresh from the spa."

"Uh, sure..." Astral scratched his neck. He did still smell like surberry soap. "Bye, I guess?"

Security guards started filing into aircars. Those that could fly on their own took up positions on and around the cars.

Jasper was the only one not preparing to leave. He walked up to Astral and adjusted his shades, more likely out of habit than out of any real need to."Regarding your pistol, you were pretty good putting that thing together. If you can do the same thing with a particle disrupter, I might have a job for you. Interested?"

Astral shook his head slowly. Finally, somepony actually asked if he wanted to do something. "Thanks for the offer, but I don't use energy weapons."

The Pegasus shrugged. "I'm sure you have your reasons, but I'm only looking for somepony to aid in training exercises. It's a perfect fit for a private contractor with your experience." He turned and walked back to his aircar. "If you change your mind, figure out how to contact me."

As the presidential cavalcade pulled away from the landing platform, Mac let out a low sigh. The red pony was still holding the president's view screen. "That Coriander Jones is an odd fellow, but Ah kinda like 'im."

Astral looked over. "So, is he the 'somepony else' I was supposed to meet?"

Mac smiled, but it seemed hollow, almost forced. "Nnope. He just happened ta be around. Yer gonna be meetin' somepony a bit higher up."

Mac went and put the view screen in the shuttle. While he did that, Astral watched the procession of airfare disappear into the evening sky. What's higher up than the leader of the free galaxy?

Mac exited the shuttle just as the platform started to descend towards the city below. The towering glass of skyscrapers reflected a broken sunset as the platform moved between them, slowly searching for its preprogrammed destination.

The red pony stared, in awe and wonder, as aircar highways snaked among buildings, and spaceships, other platforms, and robotic maintenance drones wandered a forest of steel, glass, and concrete. They were like little, iridescent beetles, catching the light around them, and reflecting it as they skittered about.

There was literal forest to be found as well. Every available surface, walkways, balconies, even entire floors, left open to the world around, sported a coat of green. Plants. Trees. Grass. Ranging from carefully landscaped, to chaotic and wild, there was vibrant foliage throughout the city. In some places, it almost looked like the city had been grown, instead of built.

Astral was busy watching Mac. Something seemed off about him. He seemed smaller. His shoulders were slumped, he was starting to let his head droop, and his eyes seemed to grow wearier by the second. After a few minutes, the red pony gave up on looking at the cityscape, and instead stared at his hooves.

The platform eventually came to a stop between three large buildings. They were sharp, cylindrical spires, arranged in a triangle. Each was a different height, but even the smallest one dwarfed any other building in the city. Large vines crawled up their sides, and many of the floors were open, giving the buildings a skeletal quality that made them look like the frames of some ancient craft.

Mac slowly walked around the platform, looking over the side the entire way around. He moved as if he was suddenly carrying a heavy burden. Apparently unsatisfied with what he saw, the big pony walked around again.

Astral watched quietly until Mac's fourth time around the platform. "Are you looking for something?"

Mac stopped. "Ah don't see a walkway. How are we supposed ta get to the buildings?" He sighed and ran a hoof through his mane. there was still dried blood matted in it. "We're supposed ta take the yellow path."

"Look there." Astral pointed at the lights around the outside of the platform. There were pairs of them every two meters, lit up in colors such that each light was two meters from its twin, and next to a completely different color. Astral walked between the yellow ones, and straight off the platform.

Mac screamed and lunged for Astral, hoping to grab the unicorn before he... stood there. The unicorn was just standing there, just off the platform. There was a yellow ribbon of light under his hooves, and it stretched from the landing platform to the tallest of the three towers.

Astral stared as the red pony clutched at his chest and took deep, heavy breaths to calm himself. "Haven't you ever seen a force field?"

"Sure Ah've seen force fields." Mac edged up to pathway and gave it a little poke. "Ah've just never seen one used quite like this." After a few moments, he worked up the courage to step onto the path. "So, are you doin' this?"

"Doing what? The force field?" Astral chuckled. "No. There are field emitters on the platform." With a heavy dose of sarcasm, the unicorn asked, "Can't you recognize basic technology when you see it?"

"No..." Mac's voice cracked. "Ah can't."

Astral was taken aback as the red pony stared out at the city. Tears formed in the giant's eyes as the sunset dyed the world the same color as his mane.

"Mah world was a backwater compared to this one." Mac tried to blink the tears back, but they only came that much faster. "But, it was home." The red pony collapsed on the walkway, punching the electronic ground. "Ah tried ta be strong, fool mahself into thinkin things will be all right, but it ain't! Everything's gone! Everypony... everpony Ah knew...". For a few moments, the red pony just sat and cried, with Astral watching in shock.

Slowly, the unicorn moved to Mac's side. A hesitant hoof found its way to the earth pony's shoulder, and rubbed back and forth as the large pony cried himself to sleep there on the platform, hundreds of meters above a city slipping towards night.

Astral sat there for at least twenty minutes before he spoke to the sleeping pony. "I've been there." With a sigh, the unicorn stood up. He couldn't recall any recent news of a planet level disaster within the galactic assembly. Then again, it was possible Mac was from a planet outside the assembly. The unicorn's world was the same way. "I was a lot younger than you, but I still know the pain of losing everything."

"As do many others." The voice came from behind, dark, silky, and feminine.

Astral looked back. A midnight blue unicorn mare stood on the pathway. She had a smooth, pale blue mane that curled near the ends, and a matching tail with a silver bell hanging from the tip. She seemed much younger than her voice suggested, falling somewhere between Ribbon Dancer and Lilybelle's ages. She also lacked a cutie mark, instead bearing black splotches on her fur.

She walked forward. "Are we to assume that you are Astral Plane?"

Astral nodded. She said 'we,' but he didn't see anypony else with her. The bell on her tail made no sound as she moved, and astral assumed it didn't have a clapper inside. But then, she flicked her tail, and the bell let out a delicate jingling.

Astral appraised the splotches again. Perhaps they were her cutie mark, darkness would suit this pony well. "Who are you?"

The dark mare's head tilted slightly, and Astral got the feeling he was silently being judged. She walked forward. "Even if we were so inclined as to answer, one should give theirs before asking such a thing."

"But you already know my name."

"Then, you are Astral Plane?" She twitched her tail, and the bell rang quietly. She bumped into him softly, and walked around him, keeping her shoulder against him. Her touch was like a feather. There was no effort in her moments, only grace and subtlety. "Your heart is troubled, I can only assume your mind is as well."

Astral looked down at her. He noticed that she wasn't looking at him. Her icy-blue eyes didn't seem to be focused on anything. "Are you..."

"Yes, I am blind. All are in one way or another." She walked away from Astral, back towards the building. "Your keeper slumbers. You have a choice to make. If you choose to leave, we are ill-suited to stop you. But, should you choose to follow, you will meet one who can give you answers."

Without hesitation, Astral picked up Mac in his magic. It was a struggle for him, but he managed it. He then started following the mare. "I'll bring him inside, then make my choice."

The mare stopped. "No." She turned around and took the red pony from Astral. The forceful switch gave the unicorn a jolt, but Mac didn't wake up. "You seek more information before making a decision. The information you seek carries a cost, and that cost is your freedom."

"My freedom?" Astral took a step back. "What do you mean?"

"One freedom is taken, as another is given." There was a flash as Mac was teleported away, leaving the mare alone with Astral. "You are free to leave, but your heart will remain chained. If you follow, you must serve, but what binds you will be removed."

Astral shook his head. "What do you know of what binds me?" He turned and started walking towards the shuttle.

The mare sighed. "Black fire."

Astral stopped.

"An evil sun, bathed in dark light." She walked towards him. "An army that should not be, burned by the very light at their backs. Insanity seeking only slaughter, washed away only by the purifying light of destruction."

Astral turned around. He was now standing face to face with the blind mare. "Who are you? How do you know about that?"

She stared ahead, straight through him. "There was more than one army on Serus that day. I was part of one, a common soldier."

"Serus was destroyed twenty years ago."

She nodded. "You were a foal then. I was barely more." She slowly touched a hoof to her face. "A choice was made. My sight was taken from me, as was physical growth."

Astral sat down and crossed his hooves. "You expect to believe that you were on Serus, and that something happened to make you… what? Immortal? If so, you were the luckiest pony there. There were only a handful of survivors, and very few of them came out in one piece."

She nodded again, wistful smile on her face. "You were one of them. But, I doubt you wish to speak of your experiences on that planet. I most certainly do not wish to speak of mine."

"Then where does that leave us?"

"It doesn't leave us anywhere." The mare sat down, and the bell on her tail jingled against the force field's energy. "It leaves you with a choice to make."

Astral chewed his lip for a moment. "Choices and freedom..." How much did this mare know about his past? How much could she tell him? "You still haven't told me your name."

"Nor do I plan to." Another flick of the tail, another jingle. "Though, it matters little. I will soon take another."

"Another name?"

She nodded. "Within the week, we shall be known as Luna. I am taking over as Headmistress of the Academy." Astral shifted his weight, but the mare spoke before he could. "Your heart betrays your mind. Something about the academy bothers you. But, be warned. I will answer one more question, then I will go inside, and lock the door behind me."

Astral lifted a hoof to point at the shuttle, but caught himself halfway and put it down. "There is still somepony else in the shuttle. If I leave, that means taking that pony with me."

The soon-to-be Luna shook her head. "She has already been teleported out. You may take the shuttle without reservation. It will not be tracked or deactivated, and could be sold for enough to live quite well for some time."

Astral looked back at the shuttle. He knew enough about ships to know exactly what that one was worth, and she was underestimating it a bit. If he sold the shuttle, he could fix the philomena and operate her for a decade or so. Would they really just give it away like that?

There was a persistent jingling as the mare twitched her tail impatiently. "We await your question."

Astral looked back at her. "Who would I serve? If I chose to follow, who would I have to serve?"

"It's not so much that you would serve any one individual." She smiled gently. "You would serve the sun, rising over a land filled with hope."

Comments

[TheStratovarian]

Out of all this. I can see him walking. He'd never willingly work with the painted celestials i think. If he learned he was and tricked into it, i can see him taking a direct way out of it. with a rather direct means to the cerebellum.

There's enough subterfuge, and ones there to ensure that they are going out for the recruiting speech quite heavily. That should set some rather big warning flags..

[Moongaze14]

OK, this is starting to get cryptic. Wonder how Big Mac ended in the future and what the new Luna's connection to Astral's past and future. Still, you earned yourself a favorite. Hope to see more of this story.

[Cerolas]

Excellent

[Misplaced Mage]

Who are you?
What do you want?
Where are you going?
Who do you serve?
And who do you trust?

[KarmaDash]

Oooh interesting

[Timuri]

Interesting. The talk of secrets and freedom throws dozens of warnings about. At least Astral has the knowledge that whoever this organization is, they have the tacit, if unofficial, cooperation of at least the galactic president whom he respects.

On the other hand....turning away would leave a person questioning if they made the right choice for years. That's how hunters are born, when the question refuses to die until they start seeking it again.

[Charles Farrow]

I'm calling it on a bunch of the old characters gaining immortality. It makes the most sense as to why they're still alive.

[Venerable Ro]

Me, I'm extremely contrary. If it was me it'd be so long and thanks for all the fish, and I get a new shuttle to hawk on the secondary market. I'm doing nothing for any "anonymous benefactor".